Frequently Asked Questions
June 18, 2009COMMON REPAIR QUESTIONS
Can we repair liquid damaged phones?
Unfortunately we have no way of knowing for sure until our engineer disassembles the phone to see how bad the damage is. There is a higher chance of repair with drinking water rather than fizzy drinks or seawater. The chance is also higher the quicker you can get the phone to us - Just take the battery out and do NOT try and turn it on! It will sound strange but put it in a bag on uncooked rice for a day or two as that will help pull the moisture out.
Water damaged phones have to be sent to a qualified phone engineer and the repair can take UPTO 3 weeks although they are usually completed MUCH faster. The approximate cost is £40-£60 depending on the make and model of phone and the extent of the damage.
Please note that if a water damaged phone cannot be fixed, there is still a £15 fee to cover insured postage and our engineers time.
My phone cannot be fixed or further faults were found - Do I still have to pay?
No! We only charge for successful repairs! Even if our engineer spends an hour or two attempting to repair your phone we will not bill you if the phone cannot be repaired. The only exception to this is water damage as per the paragraph above.
COMMON UNLOCKING QUESTIONS
What is the difference between a locked phone and a barred one?
* A LOCKED phone is simply one that will not accept another networks sim card - You cannot put a Vodafone sim into an Orange phone for example - It is LEGAL to unlock a phone
* A BARRED phone is one that has been reported lost or stolen or on which the contract has not been paid. A barred phone will not work on any network and is barred permanently - It is ILLEGAL to unbar a phone
Why can't you unlock my <insert model here> phone?
The phone manufacturers are always changing things on newer phones to try and stop people like us unlocking their phones. Also, there are so many new phones coming out on the market that it would be impossible for us to have the equipment to unlock every phone available.
What happens if we cannot unlock your phone?
If we cannot unlock your particular phone in our shop, we can send it to one of our specialist engineers at no extra cost to you - It just means that you will be without it for a few days.
If your phone is a new model there is also a chance that the manufacturers have changed the way they lock them and it may not be possible to unlock it - This is especially common with newer Nokia models that have a new kind of lock called SL3 which is VERY expensive to unlock.
Obviously if your phone cannot be unlocked there is no charge.
Will my unlocked phone work on the 3 network?
Lots of phones will not accept a 3 sim card even after being unlocked! If the model of the phone you want unlocked is one that is available on the 3 network then you it should be OK. If you need your phone to work on 3, please check with us BEFORE getting it unlocked as there are no refunds once the unlock is done!
What happens if things go wrong?
Please understand that occasionally, despite our best care, things can go wrong. Unlocks can take longer than we quote for and sometimes things can go wrong during the unlock. Very rarely, the phones software can be 'killed' and has to be sent away for repair at our cost.
We always aim to get your phone back to you in the exact condition it was brought in but sometimes the phone will need to be completely wiped to finish the unlock. Absolute worst case, if your phone has been damaged by us during an unlock and cannot be repaired we will replace it.