How to replace a dying phone (out of contract)

The situation:

Wife's Nokia 3589i is giving up the ghost after about 3 years of
service.

The phone is out of contract. We are not interested in signing a new
contract.

We want another Nokia that is compatible with the accessories for the
3589 (she has a built in car kit that is very nice).

What are the options for replacement without signing a contract? I
assume I can buy one from Verizon at some go-to-hell ripoff price that
punishes me for not wanting to sign a new contract.

OTOH, can I buy a replacement phone on ebay and have Verizon activate
it? No need to explain gsm vs cdma and the other technical
compatibility issues, I fully understand them, I'm asking if Verizon
will activate a compatible phone obtained elsewhere, and if so what
are the restrictions.

Thanks.

"xyzzy" <xyzzy.dude@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1178636089.958319.29460@e65g2000hsc.googlegro ups.com...
> The situation:
>
> Wife's Nokia 3589i is giving up the ghost after about 3 years of
> service.
>
> The phone is out of contract. We are not interested in signing a new
> contract.
>
> We want another Nokia that is compatible with the accessories for the
> 3589 (she has a built in car kit that is very nice).
>
> What are the options for replacement without signing a contract? I
> assume I can buy one from Verizon at some go-to-hell ripoff price that
> punishes me for not wanting to sign a new contract.
>
> OTOH, can I buy a replacement phone on ebay and have Verizon activate
> it? No need to explain gsm vs cdma and the other technical
> compatibility issues, I fully understand them, I'm asking if Verizon
> will activate a compatible phone obtained elsewhere, and if so what
> are the restrictions.
>
> Thanks.
>

They'll charge you if they activate the phone. You can do it yourself for
free from your online VZW account.

I've had better luck on eBay buying from a private party unloading his
just-replaced cell phone rather than dealing with one of the used cell phone
bulk buyers/sellers.

xyzzy wrote:
> The situation:
>
> Wife's Nokia 3589i is giving up the ghost after about 3 years of
> service.
>
> The phone is out of contract. We are not interested in signing a new
> contract.
>
> We want another Nokia that is compatible with the accessories for the
> 3589 (she has a built in car kit that is very nice).
>
> What are the options for replacement without signing a contract? I
> assume I can buy one from Verizon at some go-to-hell ripoff price that
> punishes me for not wanting to sign a new contract.
>
> OTOH, can I buy a replacement phone on ebay and have Verizon activate
> it? No need to explain gsm vs cdma and the other technical
> compatibility issues, I fully understand them, I'm asking if Verizon
> will activate a compatible phone obtained elsewhere, and if so what
> are the restrictions.
>

Yes, they will activate it if it hasn't been reported stolen and has
up-to-date GPS capability, which my 3589i has. I would suggest Craig's
list where you can buy from a private party. Make sure you can activate
the phone before you buy.

http://www.craigslist.org/

My 3589i hasn't been used since last September, but I charge it every
two weeks and keep it as a backup phone.

--
SlobbyDon

I got a good deal from these guys.

http://search.stores.ebay.com/Value-...944263QQsofpZ0

It's on eBay and the used phone was in very good shape. They don't have
your Nokia at the moment. But, you could e-mail them. info@valuecells.com


xyzzy wrote:
> The situation:
>
> Wife's Nokia 3589i is giving up the ghost after about 3 years of
> service.
>
> The phone is out of contract. We are not interested in signing a new
> contract.
>
> We want another Nokia that is compatible with the accessories for the
> 3589 (she has a built in car kit that is very nice).
>
> What are the options for replacement without signing a contract? I
> assume I can buy one from Verizon at some go-to-hell ripoff price that
> punishes me for not wanting to sign a new contract.
>
> OTOH, can I buy a replacement phone on ebay and have Verizon activate
> it? No need to explain gsm vs cdma and the other technical
> compatibility issues, I fully understand them, I'm asking if Verizon
> will activate a compatible phone obtained elsewhere, and if so what
> are the restrictions.
>
> Thanks.
>

Check out http://www.wirelessgalaxy.com -- I have had several very good
purchasing experiences. The site lets you select phones by carrier, so
you only have to look at the VzW compatible phones. As someone else
said, eBay is an option, too. But on eBay you take your chances.

On 5/8/2007 10:54 AM, xyzzy wrote:
> The situation:
>
> Wife's Nokia 3589i is giving up the ghost after about 3 years of
> service.
>
> The phone is out of contract. We are not interested in signing a new
> contract.

--
Michael D. Sullivan
Bethesda, MD (USA)
(To reply, change example.invalid to com in the address.)

I checked that site, pretty expensive -- 2-4x what the same phones are
going for on ebay. I figure for $40 (including shipping) I can take a
chance on ebay, if I have to buy twice to get one that works, I'm
still ahead of the game.

On May 10, 2:48 am, "Michael D. Sullivan"
<use...@camsul.example.invalid> wrote:
> Check outhttp://www.wirelessgalaxy.com-- I have had several very good
> purchasing experiences. The site lets you select phones by carrier, so
> you only have to look at the VzW compatible phones. As someone else
> said, eBay is an option, too. But on eBay you take your chances.
>
> On 5/8/2007 10:54 AM, xyzzy wrote:
>
> > The situation:
>
> > Wife's Nokia 3589i is giving up the ghost after about 3 years of
> > service.
>
> > The phone is out of contract. We are not interested in signing a new
> > contract.
>
> --
> Michael D. Sullivan
> Bethesda, MD (USA)
> (To reply, change example.invalid to com in the address.)