topic Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed in Android

Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 17:32:27 GMT

Hi everyone,

I have the following problem:

I got a new phone over christmas and wanted to get rid of my old Samsung S3 so I sold it on ebay. My friends said unlocking is easy-peasy and I should leave it to whoever buys it. So I did, selling it (clearly labeled and in mint condition) as not unlocked.

Now the person who bought it says they went and have someone unlock it, but they said "it could not be unlocked".

I talked with o2 support and they asked for the imei. She provided two, one from the display (which was wrong) and one from the actual device. The second one produced a viable code, but now the buyer says the code prompt does not even come up, despite putting in both an o2 and a different network sim as advised.

Could any of you more tech-savvy people here tell me

a) why the display IMEI and physical IMEI would be different

b) why the code prompt does not come up and how to make it come up?

c) whether any of these problems exist because of the unlocking person that the buyer might have used?

Thanks a lot in advance,

-F

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

MI5 — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 17:40:22 GMT

If it's been buggered about with by some Market Stall butcher anything could have happened.
If they had followed the correct procedure they wouldn't have this problem but as it's not your problem I wouldn't worry about.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 17:42:13 GMT

Hi,

As long as you decscribed the phone as locked to o2 in your product description then your fine on that part.

The person could get a o2 payg sim card and top up £20. Make a few chargeable calls and then o2 woud take £15 fee to unlock it if they fiiiled out the unlock form.

The imei should match. If its not then the phone could have been cloned.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 17:43:30 GMT

You sold it as locked that's what it is nothing wrong with that

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 22:36:05 GMT

Hi guys,

thanks for the replies, but currently I'm set to try and fix this for the buyer, rather than just going: "not my problem". I wouldn't want that to happen to me, after all.

What would it mean if the phone had been cloned, exactly? I wiped it, are they any further implications I would need to worry about?

Also any answers to fixing the problem with the code input would be great, as I still want to help them. They tried a pay as you go o2 card, but they can't get past the lock screen, so that won't help.

Cheers,

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 18:12:53 GMT

The buyer does have an amount of time to return the item to you even if it was described correctly on e bay.

http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/user-agreement.html

O2 would supply the unlocking solution after the owner filled out the unlock form.

On p=inputting the non o2 sim card it would prompt for the code.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

MI5 — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 18:25:14 GMT

If it was a straight request for an unlock, that would be easy. Your problem is that you don't know what has been done to it since you let it go. The fact that there is an IMEI issue rings alarm bells as it may not even be the same phone you posted out. The buyer could be trying to con you with a dodgy phone they obtained elsewhere - I'd be walking away from it before you get stuffed up.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 19:35:46 GMT

Hmmm. I want to give them the benefit of the doubt for now. If the unlock prompt does not appear, is there any way to make it appear so she can at least try the o2 code before I think about other approaches?

Thanks.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 19:38:35 GMT

Have you filled in the unlock form using the correct IMEI?

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 19:43:50 GMT

Yep, and got back a code. But the buyer cannot enter the code as it does not come up for a prompt even with putting in other sim cards.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 19:45:23 GMT

Does any prompt come up at all on the insertion of an o2 sim or non o2 sim card ?

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

MI5 — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 19:46:57 GMT

If no prompt comes up it means it's not locked or not recognising the sim cards - ie bricked or broken.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 19:48:08 GMT

Sounds dodgy to me to be honest.

I think other members are being right and you might be getting scammed.

Since you sold is as unlocked, I wouldn't worry too much.

Not your responsibility anymore.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 19:59:32 GMT

I am just wondering, on a different tack (& I may be talking crap here) but is it the phone that is locked or just the screen?

Did you send it to them needing to put a screen lock code in? If so is it that which needs entering first?

Just a thought

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

MI5 — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 20:03:18 GMT

Said phone was reset so no screen lock would be present.

Re: Samsung S3 won't unlock - help needed

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 20:29:34 GMT

Just wondered. ......