second hand android phone

Benevolent
kukdookoo

before purchasing a second hand android phone what things to check? is there a trustworthy app which gives complete and clear details about all parameters?

one more thing in second hand market pricing is very high, like a 4 year old m21 is priced at 4000 whereas online websites will not give more than 1500 for it even if quality is great and even if you have the box and charger. is there any website which can be checked just to get the idea about pricing?

@Rajkotian @Watcher @Ash-D @Snapz @HasdaChehra @androgame @shraaj

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Deal Newbie Deal Newbie
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In Covid-19, as the older phone's screen started giving up (my OCD and instead of dettol gel sanitozers, I sometimes used liquid alcohol based)

I had gone to the local (mobiles, accessories) market and started observing how shopkeepers talk to, behave with customers and their general trustworthiness.

Bought one second hand phone, without thinking much and not even previously knowing the shopkeeper.

Been 3-4 years, all okay.

Had immediately gone to the authorised service centre of the brand and showed it to a senior technician there.

I told him that i am planning to buy it second-hand from someone. He barely looked at it for 18-20 seconds from all sides
and the first thing he told was: mat lo, open piece hai. (Avoid. The device does not look like factory sealed and seems re-packed after opening).

Although the shopkeepers do not indulge in stolen devices, I got a bit jittery, that what if the stolen phones motherboard/IMEI is changed by rest is the same.

Kept it without SIM for 2-2½ weeks, but later started using it regularly. Till now, all good.

So in buying from previous user or a shopkeeper
the main thing to know is.. what if original display or some other internal parts have been through repairs, replacement.

If device is stolen, then it is nothing to bother about, as 😛... as soon as the operator sends alert to the authorities, the police will come and take it away.

I do not use many applications
but if previous user or anyone registered sone account from the secondhand/ restless device.. then it is possible that the app will refuse to recognise another/new account from the same device.. as a new customer.
Then in such cases, maybe the new user offers cannot be used.
Or weirdest like Flipkart might say that: you are the same guy who returned 7000₹ worth of orders. Let us block your account, after you add some GC into your account.
Benevolent Benevolent
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the main thing to know is.. what if original display or some other internal parts have been through repairs, replacement.

how to make sure about this while buying? one thing that i have noted is second hand market for mobiles and vehicles is not trustworthy at all.

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Benevolent Benevolent
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Best to avoid devices with OLED displays. Mostly previous owners replace them with LCDs or at best cheap, third-party OLED. In either case longevity isn't great. Even devices that launched with LCDs aren't safe as cheap third-party LCDs are plagued with ghost touches etc. Some only replace the touchscreen which can be checked easily as instead of 10-point multitouch it would be 5 points at most, usually limited to 2.

Also don't even bother with devices with a history of motherboard failures. Many users do a patchwork repair and sell off the device which can again fail in a few months. Need to also add devices with dead camera issues like the Redmi Note 10 Pro for example. 

Duration of software support left if any. Custom ROM development? Can the bootloader even be unlocked? 

Last but not the least concern if of course the battery. Overwhelming majority of third-party batteries are plain rubbish. 

To summarize: think 10 times before buying secondhand devices. 

Benevolent Benevolent
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Some only replace the touchscreen which can be checked easily as instead of 10-point
multitouch it would be 5 points at most, usually limited to 2
how to check whether screen is replaced or not? this is the biggest question? does some app give true picture of every component of the phone?
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Post Tycoon Post Tycoon
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Avoid too old second hand phones. The main reason is battery. I purchased a second hand phone few years back and hand to install an aftermarket battery. Most of the second hand phones battery can't last more than 3 hours under average active usage.

Deal Cadet Deal Cadet
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don't buy, I purchased Samsung m21 mobile it was dead after two months

Benevolent Benevolent
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that was just an example
Finance Mentor Finance Mentor
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I feel somethings shouldn't be bought second hand, phones are one of them.

Unless it's an expensive phone and you are buying them from a trusted official source.

Of course this is my personal opinion.

Deal Cadet Deal Cadet
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I would hate to buy a phone that is more than a couple of year old when you don't know how the original source cared for it. Unsure if they drained their battery way too many times, overheating issues if they were hardcore gamers, falls, repairs and such. Only exception I'd probably make is getting it from a dependable friend or relative who would have used it lightly. 

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