Advice buying used apple watch

[pppppenguin]

Hi all

Just looking for some advice for buying a new Apple watch.

The watch in question is a series 4 pink 40mm cellular + GPS and is sealed in the packaging.

Given that it's cellular I'm wondering a few things:

1) Can its IMEI be blacklisted by the cellular company?
2) Based on question 1, if it were to be blacklisted, will I still be able to use the watch normally as if it were a GPS version?
3) I plan to collect the watch today, check its sealed packaging, open it and pair it to my iPhone to check if it's activation locked. Is there anything else I should do?

Thank you in advance

 

[matrix07]

Serial number to check on warranty.

 

[pppppenguin]

Serial number to check on warranty.

Against this site? https://checkcoverage.apple.com/za/en/

 

[44267547]

Hi all

Just looking for some advice for buying a new Apple watch.

The watch in question is a series 4 pink 40mm cellular + GPS and is sealed in the packaging.

Given that it's cellular I'm wondering a few things:

1) Can its IMEI be blacklisted by the cellular company?
2) Based on question 1, if it were to be blacklisted, will I still be able to use the watch normally as if it were a GPS version?
3) I plan to collect the watch today, check its sealed packaging, open it and pair it to my iPhone to check if it's activation locked. Is there anything else I should do?

Thank you in advance

If the watch is sealed in the box, why would you be concerned that be blacklisted? For example, If It was activated and used, and sold to you, that would be a completely different situation where the Apple Watch could be blacklisted then.

 

[matrix07]

Against this site? https://checkcoverage.apple.com/za/en/

I believe so.

Stolen watch warranty could be void.

 

[oeagleo]

If the watch is sealed in the box, why would you be concerned that be blacklisted? For example, If It was activated and used, and sold to you, that would be a completely different situation where the Apple Watch could be blacklisted then.

I thought the same thing, initially, but what if the person "Purchased" the watch at a phone store, say Verizon, failed to pay for it on the contract, or if it's still on contract, then tried to sell the unopened watch? Wouldn't Verizon have the IEMI and be holding that until it was paid for? I don't know, hypothetical situation.

 

[whoisyourdaddy]

If the watch is sealed in the box, why would you be concerned that be blacklisted? For example, If It was activated and used, and sold to you, that would be a completely different situation where the Apple Watch could be blacklisted then.

I thought the same thing, initially, but what if the person "Purchased" the watch at a phone store, say Verizon, failed to pay for it on the contract, or if it's still on contract, then tried to sell the unopened watch? Wouldn't Verizon have the IEMI and be holding that until it was paid for? I don't know, hypothetical situation.

+1 for @oeaglo Just had this happen whereby I was typically in the habit of checking an IMEI with my carrier beforehand to validate that it was not just able to be activated but if there were an obligations currently tied to the device. Purchased an Apple Watch S4, was busy and forgot to check until after the seller shipped. However, I felt reassured based upon the seller stating it was unlocked and their reputation. Found out it was locked to another carrier and subsidized which you would not know if you didn't use it with a cellular subscription. Wasted my time with this purchase and the risk of returning for a refund after finding out by Apple and two carriers that it was locked and could only be unlocked after the device obligations were satisfied. The kicker was that the previous seller had already contacted them for attempting to unlock and they couldn't. They didn't want to take on the responsibility with the carrier it was locked to. So, instead of them dealing with the problem from the purchase, they offloaded it to the next unsuspecting buyer. Some people are a worthless, POS. The conman attempting to con is somewhat expected. But, the people who attempt to deceive others as they had been deceived so that they can minimize their loss and somehow justify it with themselves it's alright to do taht because they "normally don't lie to or cheat others" are useless garbage.

As for suggestions; check if it's iCloud and network carrier locked. Also, beware of demo models which are resold. If possible, then you could acquire a GSX report.

 

[oeagleo]

+1 for @oeaglo Just had this happen whereby I was typically in the habit of checking an IMEI with my carrier beforehand to validate that it was not just able to be activated but if there were an obligations currently tied to the device.
As for suggestions; check if it's iCloud and network carrier locked. Also, beware of demo models which are resold. If possible, then you could acquire a GSX report.

This reminded me, I recently purchased a "New, sealed" AW4 off of Swappa.com, and never checked the IEMI. I just did so, and oddly enough, Google directed to Swappa.com. I checked on there, and it came up okay, but then I remembered that SWAPPA.COM requires a clean IEMI before listing for sale. I believe they also check. I would not have a problem purchasing from Swappa, have done so several times after being burned on E-bay with an "I-cloud locked" phone a couple years back.

 

[whoisyourdaddy]

This reminded me, I recently purchased a "New, sealed" AW4 off of Swappa.com, and never checked the IEMI. I just did so, and oddly enough, Google directed to Swappa.com. I checked on there, and it came up okay, but then I remembered that SWAPPA.COM requires a clean IEMI before listing for sale. I believe they also check. I would not have a problem purchasing from Swappa, have done so several times after being burned on E-bay with an "I-cloud locked" phone a couple years back.

This AW S4 was purchased off of Swappa. They do not check AW IMEI; at least this was what was told to me by a couple of moderators over this particular return. Nor, do they check every IMEI. So, it is up to the buyer to completely verify. This was another thing that perturbed me about it because I had fallen under a false sense of security with if a cellular device was listed on their site, especially under unlocked, then it must be clear. Nope! Also, I didn't care for Swappa's policy on that it is up to the seller on whether they pay for return shipping. The penalty for a seller who sold something misleading and didn't pay for return shipping was that it was looked upon and noted as unfavorable by Swappa. Big F'N deal. I would have still been at a loss for cost of return shipping. Fortunately, after the seller had a few message exchanges about it must be the "carrier" and the carrier should be able to "force" the activation on their network; I informed them of all of my exchanges with Apple and the carriers, along with copies of dialog from the CS who stipulated that a previous person had already contacted them with a case about this same watch. So, at that point, the seller just shut up with any excuses and approved the return along with paying for return shipping. My opinion after that particular transaction on Swappa, is not phenomenal and I won't trust that they have the buyer's best interest especially whenever there is substantial evidence that the seller sold something misleading. Also, this is my opinion from a seller's standpoint as well. There should be something in place that if proof that a seller had mislead, misinformed, or didn't accurately list a device on their site, that the seller is responsible without the option of whether they "feel" like it with the risk of Swappa will not like you as much.

 

[44267547]

+1 for @oeaglo Just had this happen whereby I was typically in the habit of checking an IMEI with my carrier beforehand to validate that it was not just able to be activated but if there were an obligations currently tied to the device. Purchased an Apple Watch S4, was busy and forgot to check until after the seller shipped. However, I felt reassured based upon the seller stating it was unlocked and their reputation. Found out it was locked to another carrier and subsidized which you would not know if you didn't use it with a cellular subscription. Wasted my time with this purchase and the risk of returning for a refund after finding out by Apple and two carriers that it was locked and could only be unlocked after the device obligations were satisfied. The kicker was that the previous seller had already contacted them for attempting to unlock and they couldn't. They didn't want to take on the responsibility with the carrier it was locked to. So, instead of them dealing with the problem from the purchase, they offloaded it to the next unsuspecting buyer. Some people are a worthless, POS. The conman attempting to con is somewhat expected. But, the people who attempt to deceive others as they had been deceived so that they can minimize their loss and somehow justify it with themselves it's alright to do taht because they "normally don't lie to or cheat others" are useless garbage.

As for suggestions; check if it's iCloud and network carrier locked. Also, beware of demo models which are resold. If possible, then you could acquire a GSX report.

All good information, the only thing I can think of, is why would the seller want their information attached to the watch, which obviously would be associated with the serial number and the carrier. But then again, if somebody is desperate enough, they don’t care if the information is attached to the Apple Watch or not, they have plans to make money one way or the other, rather be fraud or honest selling.

 

[whoisyourdaddy]

All good information, the only thing I can think of, is why would the seller want their information attached to the watch, which obviously would be associated with the serial number and the carrier. But then again, if somebody is desperate enough, they don’t care if the information is attached to the Apple Watch or not, they have plans to make money one way or the other, rather be fraud or honest selling.

Seller's intent, most likely, is they purchased it and wanted to use it, couldn't activate, went through the measures to determine if it was Apple's responsibility or the carriers, found out it wasn't able to be activated without satisfying the financial obligation, wasn't covered by warranty because it wasn't a hardware problem, chose to resell because they wanted one that would be activated for their network carrier, didn't want to take a huge loss on the purchase so they took a chance to resell thinking that maybe whomever purchases it wouldn't activate on their carrier's network. (This was an incredulous run-on sentence but I don't really care). Many people have the GPS + LTE and don't use it for a cellular subscription. Had I not attempted to activate, then I would have never known. They even tried to blame the original "seller" they purchased it from in the messaging to alleviate that they didn't know it was locked. It's really not that difficult to understand why they did it if you think about it.
BTW. Why would they care to take the chance on selling it locked? Probably because there's not much of a penalty to them other than paying $10-12 to have it shipped back to them. They'll either try again locally, different platform, etc. They are probably aware that a AW S4 that's network locked will probably only get them about half or less of what they were selling it for $500. They probably spent about this much on it and didn't want to lose over half the amount they paid for it.

 

[44267547]

Seller's intent, most likely, is they purchased it and wanted to use it, couldn't activate, went through the measures to determine if it was Apple's responsibility or the carriers, found out it wasn't able to be activated without satisfying the financial obligation, wasn't covered by warranty because it wasn't a hardware problem, chose to resell because they wanted one that would be activated for their network carrier, didn't want to take a huge loss on the purchase so they took a chance to resell thinking that maybe whomever purchases it wouldn't activate on their carrier's network. (This was an incredulous run-on sentence but I don't really care). Many people have the GPS + LTE and don't use it for a cellular subscription. Had I not attempted to activate, then I would have never known. They even tried to blame the original "seller" they purchased it from in the messaging to alleviate that they didn't know it was locked. It's really not that difficult to understand why they did it if you think about it.

You see, this is exactly why I suggest to others do *not* purchase certain products online that have risks such as what you’re referring to. It’s not worth the ‘cost savings’ when you’re dealing with all the potential variations of where maybe the seller was being honest, but now they have their money and you can’t change the situation, because it’s now a customer/carrier concern that requires proof of who the watch actually belongs too or why ‘It won’t activate’. To me, my time is _way_ to valuable to be hassled with such nonsense behavior, regardless of someone’s intentions, which is why I avoid ‘Used sales’ from anyone, especially online.

 

[whoisyourdaddy]

Run-on indeed. You see, this is exactly why I suggest to others do *not* purchase certain products online that have risks such as what you’re referring to. It’s not worth the ‘cost savings’ when you’re dealing with all the potential variations of where maybe the seller was being honest, but now they have their money and you can’t change the situation, because it’s now a customer/carrier concern that requires proof of who the watch actually belongs too or why ‘It won’t activate’. To me, my time is _way_ to valuable to be hassled with such nonsense behavior, regardless of someone’s intentions, which is why I avoid ‘Used sales’ from anyone, especially online.

Well, your advice is warranted but shouldn't be the "reason" you don't purchase online. I would have been fine, like the many other past purchases of iPhones, Watches, iPads, etc. had I checked the IMEI. I blame myself for not checking because I've avoided any potential problem from this. A buyer is completely safe with buying preowned if they do the proper checks and take the time instead of rushing to buy because they don't want to miss out. So, your advice is good for you and someone that shares your opinion but not for everyone. So, I'll continue to purchase pre-owned and save money in the process and you can continue paying retail prices.

 

[44267547]

you can continue paying retail prices.

Wait , Don’t forget, I don’t have to deal with PayPal fees, buyer protection six months claims, sellers that don’t know how to accurately list some thing, the risk of fraud with Apple products, etc, etc, etc . Also, Let’s not forget, retail prices still include discounts, just depends on who you’re purchasing from. It doesn’t mean you have to pay _full_ retail for everything, when carriers and retail store still discount new products, it happens every day, which you in inadvertently forgot to factor.

 

[whoisyourdaddy]

Hi all

Just looking for some advice for buying a new Apple watch.

The watch in question is a series 4 pink 40mm cellular + GPS and is sealed in the packaging.

Given that it's cellular I'm wondering a few things:

1) Can its IMEI be blacklisted by the cellular company?
2) Based on question 1, if it were to be blacklisted, will I still be able to use the watch normally as if it were a GPS version?
3) I plan to collect the watch today, check its sealed packaging, open it and pair it to my iPhone to check if it's activation locked. Is there anything else I should do?

Thank you in advance

1) Blacklisted means that it's carrier locked. Carrier's can only lock devices if the device is contracted because of being subsidized or time-length in service.
2) Yes. The AW, as long as iCloud unlocked, can be used as the GPS only version.
3) Yes. Check if it's network carrier locked. If the AW is locked to the same carrier you're using it with, then the device just activates on your account whereby you're now the responsible party for the device and its obligations to the carrier.
[doublepost=1544658435][/doublepost]

Wait , Don’t forget, I don’t have to deal with PayPal fees, buyer protection six months claims, sellers that don’t know how to accurately list some thing, the risk of fraud with Apple products, etc, etc, etc . Also, Let’s not forget, retail prices still include discounts, just depends on who you’re purchasing from. It doesn’t mean you have to pay _full_ retail for everything, when carriers and retail store still discount new products, it happens every day, which you in inadvertently forgot to factor.

There's no reason for debate. I've been purchasing used, new, and new unused Apple products for years. I can easily say I've saved a minimum $25k. I can go over a ton of items and lists ranging from the '12 MP, '13 MBP, MM, iPhone 4+, iPad 3rd Gen+, iPods, etc. So adhere to your retail pro price opinion and I'll take mine. I was helping out OP and at this point your argument to me is useless. Bye.

 

[44267547]

There's no reason for debate. I've been purchasing used, new, and new unused Apple products for years.

~Snipped~

More on topic, the reason I commented that purchasing new sometimes versus used, you avoid potential downfalls and risks such as this, and that’s exactly how complicated the market is becoming today with LTE with Apple watches, and which involves carriers and other ramifications potential buyers are not aware of. So it’s worth noting regardless if you want to dismiss others purchasing options or not, but by all means, I don’t promote buying used online for issues like the OP is experiencing, which is more than enough of a validated opinion, even if you can’t accept that due to ‘Costs savings.’

 

[whoisyourdaddy]

Really don't care and didn't even read your reply; just commenting back. I'm done.