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Just adding a little bit of context about AT&T: I collect used cell phones, erase them, unlock when possible, and distribute them to unhoused people through sev
by siskiyou 2y ago
Just adding a little bit of context about AT&T: I collect used cell phones, erase them, unlock when possible, and distribute them to unhoused people through several local food shelves, which allows those people to access benefits, housing, health care, jobs, etc which would otherwise be out of reach. With AT&T I can go to their website and unlock an old phone in minutes, allowing them to use a no-cost carrier like QLink Wireless. With T-Mobile or Consumer Cellular (or many others) they just give you the finger. The phone could be e-waste for all they care.
- einpoklum 2y agoUpvoted in recognition of your activity, while "downvoting" the reality you report. I should also mention that - while not directly accessible to homeless people - today it is quite easy to obtain new Smartphones, probably in bulk, which are quite usable with new version of Android and new apps, albeit not the most snappy, for something like 50 USD apiece (I just searched on AliBaba for example). I know such things can be quite legit technically, since I bought a a 75 USD smartphone individually, 10 years ago; and though it sometimes struggled a bit, it worked just fined. Only stopped using it because I was mugged, which was funny because the guy who took my phone was probably not happy he lifted something this cheap :-) Anyway, that's an optional for buttressing your collection of used smartphones, to distribute.
- acdha 2y agoHow do they distinguish you from a phone thief? Is there some kind of check with the previous owner?
- pessimizer 2y agoUnlocking from being bound to a cellular network.
- underlipton 2y agoI imagine the phone's previous account having removed the device/cancelled service without filing any sort of loss/theft claim would help. And then a red flag would be the unlock call coming before the previous account adds a replacement phone/cancels service.
- lolinder 2y agoLocking the phone to a carrier is not an anti-theft mechanism. They're available in abundance on the used market with no special protections of any kind from the carriers, the only difference is that they sell for a fraction of the cost because you're locked in to the single carrier. Maybe you're thinking of the locking mechanisms built in to Android and iOS?
- pcai 2y agoIt is 100% an anti theft mechanism - it prevents people from stealing phones from carriers. The scam is: - get a new iphone from tmobile that costs $30 over 2 years. - don’t pay them anything: you just got a free iphone. Tmobile is mad and won’t provide service to that handset because you stole it from them. - You open a new line with at&t and tell them you’re bringing your own phone. Carrier locking prevents this. If someone steals your phone on the train that’s a different problem with a different solution
- dingnuts 2y agosorry if this is a stupid question, but if you don't pay for the phone don't they repossess it or something?
- batch12 2y agoNo. They charge you and if you dont pay, they report your debt to credit agencies.
- michaelmrose 2y agoSo your average phone costs $700-$800 retail new. Cost of repossession would be going to court, court costs, lawyer bills etc. I would end up costing $5000+ for a piece of used goods that is worth $300 if they are lucky.
- zaptheimpaler 2y agoThat sounds like a speculation on a tangential benefit instead of the major consideration in locking phones. The carriers can blacklist any phone's IMEI at any point (in addition to the usual collections attempts, credit reporting etc) which achieves the same effect but better if a phone is stolen from them.
- siskiyou 2y agoNone of the carriers care if the phone is stolen, unless it's reported as stolen. They only care if it stays on their network. As a practical matter I have to work with the phone's previous owner to erase it (eg, an Apple phone that's been associated with an iCloud account, or a Samsung phone associated with a Samsung account). The carrier lock only matters after I've gone to the trouble of erasing it since I won't distribute a phone that hasn't been erased.
- Tempest1981 2y agoReminded me of this YouTuber who bought 10 stolen iPhones for $1000: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26bdjJqWdCo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26bdjJqWdCo (prepare for hundreds of jump cuts)
- siskiyou 2y agoSo far I have never handled a stolen phone as far as I know so I don't know much about that angle. What I get are peoples old iPhone 7's that have been sitting in a drawer for a few years. They are eager to donate them but have no idea how to get their personal data off them, so the work I do is sitting down with them and walking them through the process. I would say that's about 1 hour per phone including getting to and from the donor, teaching them how to reset their iCloud account password (or Samsung account, whatever) to erase the phone. When I get a carrier locked phone I sell it on eBay and buy an unlocked phone or a bunch of chargers and cables. I'm always happy when the phone is from Verizon or was bought unlocked, but AT&T is better than most.
- Tempest1981 2y agoNice. I can imagine volunteering to do that. Or helping to wipe old hard drives or laptops. Sounds satisfying. Do you also help teach them how to navigate the changes to each new version of iOS/Android? I would find that frustrating... so many "hidden affordances", and increasingly complexity.
- totetsu 2y agoAt least on the 4g days there was such a thing as a lost and stolen device database that was shared between providers. When the phone presents its IMEI to the network the process that checkes it’s subscriber status also checks if it’s IMEI is on that block list.
- ranger_danger 2y agoIn general they can't. They would only know if the IMEI came up as stolen in their database if it was reported.
- adrr 2y agoIt is carrier locked, not user locked. Just put in another sim card from that carrier.
- oldmanhorton 2y agoIs there a way to get phones to you or information about how to do this myself? I am sure I could find similar programs if I looked but it sounds interesting.
- Plasmoid 2y agoT-mobile refused to unlock a phone I bought. A complaint to the FCC got that fixed right away.
- zrobotics 2y agoSlightly OT, but as someone who escaped poverty this is the type of volunteering that is super helpful and makes a huge difference. A quick Google search doesn't turn up anything like this in my local area, do you have any pointers on starting/finding a program like this to contribute to? I really what you are doing, I have been looking for a way to give back now that I am in a financially secure position and that sounds more impactful than just giving money. If you would prefer, I can be contacted at my username at google's email service.
- theonlyklas 2y agoI would begin with contacting an appropriate state department that helps those people and seeing if they know of any similar organizations, or if they provide grants for non-profit organizations that can assist people in poverty that way. California had quite a bit of money allocated for that, which led to some abuse of the system by a few of them.
- barbazoo 2y agoMany charities are very happy with money btw, our local food bank prefers it and cites a 3x factor in “value” compared to food donations due to discount s they get when buying bulk. Just saying, don’t feel bad for “just” giving money.
- ITB 2y agoIf I donate time or things I’m more sure it will be used as I intended.
- me-vs-cat 2y agoDonate all the time you can afford! Regarding monetary donations, if you believe institutional misuse outweighs efficiency gain, then your area food banks are in a much worse shape than my local area, which I hazard to guess is merely average. Food banks can do so much more with cash, such as buy fresh produce from local farmers, than they can with your unwanted groceries, usually canned goods. Or if you're buying food specifically intending to donate it, do you really think the average person reading this (and 50% of you reading this are below average) is a better shopper with their $100 than the food bank is with $10,000+? Instead of shopping, spend that time with them, and still donate the same amount you would have spent. I was surprised when I spent my own time and found out how much further they can stretch each dollar, and often provide healthier food.
- darby_nine 2y agoThis might be the first positive thing I've ever heard someone say about at&t. Mad props for distributing phones though! If you wrote up even a brief guide as to how to do this and common pitfalls I'd do the same in my area.
- Narkov 2y agoHow can I financially support you?
- gigatexal 2y agoThis is such a nice thing that you’re doing! Bravo and thank you!
- d4704 2y agoWould you be accepting any phone(s) if shipped to you or do you have a group you would recommend that accepts shipments of phones? Thank you!
- QuizzicalCarbon 2y agoI’m in desperate need of a phone. My current phone has a very cracked screen and I can’t afford a replacement.
- stuckkeys 2y agoNot sure if you trolling or serious, but these folks here are actually trying to help people in need.
- wetpaws 2y ago[dead]
- throwaway81523 2y agoThere's also huge e-waste and technological regression from shutting down the 2g and 3g networks. I have several perfectly good old phones that are now useless as phones. They were better phones than current ones, because they were smaller and used much less power, through the one weird trick of not containing what we used to call workstation-class processors. I don't understand why they couldn't make the current base stations (they are SDR anyway) serve multiple standards. I had thought that was possible.
- toast0 2y ago> I don't understand why they couldn't make the current base stations (they are SDR anyway) serve multiple standards. I had thought that was possible. They can, but 2g and 3g are not built for sharing spectrum. They'd need to allocate a block of spectrum to each, and the minimum size blocks are too big. LTE and 5g can better share, so a block can use LTE compatible coordination with 5g for some slots and LTe for others. This should let LTE stay deployed for much longer (unless 6g can't be deployed in a compatible mode)
- coolspot 2y agoBecause radio spectrum is limited resource. They are going to reuse 2g and 3g frequencies for new protocols.