Better to buy phone off offical site or better one off ebay?

[zalahn]

I wanted to get the new $30 100 min/5gb data plan and am trying to decide if I should buy the Blaze S online or a phone off ebay (in this case the t-mobile branded HTC One S).

Is there any drawback to using the t-mobile branded HTC One S on the prepaid plan? Will I still get 4G 42Mbps HSPA+ speed?

Also since the card ordered online is not the microsim needed for the One S is cutting it down that difficult to do? Or can you buy a microsim card from the T-mobile stores and activate it online to the $30 100 min/5gb data plan?

Thank you for your help!!!

[adam1991]

If it's branded t-mo 4G, then it's t-mo 4G. Period.

Some recent discussions here reveal that people *love* the Blaze.

[PhoneCreator123]

I just recently did the same thing. Transfered from Straight Talk to T-Mobile. Bought an HTC One S and its great especially with the internet speeds (Real FAST) Kinda regret getting it doe. It's great and everything don't get me wrong but ima probably sell it to get a Samsung Galaxy S Blaze or Samsung Galaxy S3. The HTC ONE S has decent battery life and no memory card holder (Don't know if that's a deal breaker for you)

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[Ramos1224]

I recently used a (unlocked) t-mobile htc one s on straighttalk and it worked great..although i was using straighttalk on at&t network it still gave me 4g i was surprised..but when i switched to gs3 i only recieved 3g...weird
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[zalahn]

What did you guys do with your sim card? Did you just buy an activation kit off the website and cut it?

[Dragoonxgears]

I got a Iphone 4S on Ebay.


Since you already have your sim on the plan already, this is what I did. I went to a Tmobile store in my local mall and asked about the micro sim card. They told me if I buy an Accessory worth $20 they would upgrade me to a micro sim.

I got a $20 skull candy ear/mic ( cheapest availble) and they transfered my account to the micro sim. ( doing this deactivates the sim bought online )

this way no need to worry about cutting the sim. I put it in my tray and now have a $30 month Iphone.

they will ask for your tmobile phone number and pin code to find your info.

[PhoneCreator123]

I had the regular sized sim card activation packet I just went to a T-Mobile store and nicely asked if they could my cut my sim card and they did for free. You should call in advance not all T-Mobile stores have Sim card cutters

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[Joplin T-Mobile]

If you buy on Ebay... I would only look at sellers with tons of positive feedback from phone buyers who are very happy. Don't let the lowest price be the determining factor... look for respectable sellers.

I would also call the carrier to make sure the phone isn't listed as "lost or stolen".

Many sellers "dump" their phones on Ebay due to bad ESN's or ESN's that go bad within a month or two after the sale due to the seller not paying their phone bill and the carrier eventually blacklisting them. Also many Ebay sellers acquire phones in bulk from surplus auctions and know nothing about them.

At least with Ebay you have 45 days to return anything that's not as described for a refund... so if the ESN goes bad on day 44 you can file a claim and have a good chance of getting your money back.

[manofstill2012]

Hi I have an one s but on the st site there is no option for the micro sim

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[aurora40]

There's certainly less risk with buying a phone new/outright vs from eBay. The Blaze is only $250 brand new currently, which seems pretty decent. Not sure there are any other dual-core phones for cheaper than that outright.

[heatdepot]

Blaze is $299 with $50 airtime currently on Tmobile.

[TMOCustomer]

My local Target stores match prices including bonus airtime cards + they are the only retailer I know who allows you to return a cellphone with 90 days with no restocking fee. They contract with some company to provide tech support free for customers but the tech support is not great. Drawback to target is limited phone choice.