FAQ's
Frequently asked questions!
Your frequently asked questions answered!
General FAQ
We diagnose and repair broken and malfunctioning cell phones and tablets. We unlock cell phones that use SIM technology so they can be used with different service providers. We sell refurbished smart phones as well as new and refurbished basic cell phones. We also carry a wide selection of cell phone and tablet accessories, including wall, car and USB chargers, headphones and headsets, skins and protective casing, screen protectors, holsters, and SIM cards. We carry USA SIM cards for travel, prepaid top-up credit and long distance.
For remote and mail-in services, browse our website and add the service(s) you need to the shopping cart. When you are finished, click on the “View Cart” tab above to check out via Paypal. For in-shop services, you can pay in person.
We accept card payments via Paypal online. You will need either a Paypal account or a credit card to use Paypal. We also accept money orders for mail-in repairs but using this payment method will lengthen the time before we can return your phone. We do not accept personal checks. In shop, we take cash but we can also accept card payments via Paypal.
Add the services you need to the shopping cart. When you are finished, click on the “View Cart” tab and check out via Paypal.
Add the services you need to the shopping cart. When you are finished, click on the “View Cart” tab and use the “Additional Shipping” button to add the shipping charges for the additional phones to the cart. Then check out via Paypal.
We are licensed with the British Columbia Ministry of Finance and the City of Vancouver. We have serviced many thousands of phones. Check out the “Reviews” at the bottom of our homepage to see what our customers have to say about our services.
We understand that cell phones are an expensive yet necessary tool in our daily lives. When a cell phone breaks down, the big companies who sold it often won’t help and insurance won’t cover the repair. Imagine all the cell phones that get thrown away every year for this reason alone! That is why we work hard to help you, our customers, keep using your current phones that would otherwise be filling up our landfills. That is also why we offer unlocking services—so that you can continue using your current phone when you switch providers or move, rather than having to invest in a brand new one. We hope you will try our fast, reliable and environmentally-friendly services that we strive to keep economical and kind to your pocket as well!
Remove the battery from your phone and look for the model number written inside the phone. For iPhones, look on the back of your phone. The “make” is the manufacturer, such as Sony Ericsson or Blackberry. The model is usually a number or letter/number combination, such as w580i or 8100. The make and model in these examples are “Sony Ericsson w580i” and “Blackberry 8100.”
Type *#06# into your phone and the number will appear on your screen. For some Blackberry phones, you may have to get the IMEI number by going to “options” then “status” in the menu. On Sidekick / Hiptop phones, the IMEI number may also be found on the backside of the screen. For unlocking, it is always better to get the IMEI number from within phone’s software rather than by checking under the battery.
Repair FAQ
Most likely! We diagnose and repair most problems on GSM and CDMA cell phones, including damaged LCDs, lenses, flex cables, speakers, microphones, keypads, tracking balls, charging ports, etc., as well as malfunctioning software, power-on issues and water damage.
It depends on the repair needed, the time involved and the cost of replacement parts, which vary according to the make and model of the phone. We try to keep our prices as low as possible. To see the prices of our more common repair services, check under the manufacturer tabs on the left of our Repairs page. If you don’t see the service(s) that you need listed, please contact us for a quote. Or, if you don’t know what is going on with your phone, please select “Diagnostic” and mail it in for us to figure out what exactly is wrong.
Yes, they do. All prices and quotes include parts and labor, unless otherwise noted.
You can submit a request using the Contact Us tab above.
Mail it to us! Or, drop it off in person at our Vancouver shop. Click here for complete directions, including our address and drop off and pick up hours.
Most cell phones are repaired and shipped out again within 1-2 business days. We do sometimes have to order in parts for the repair, in which case your repair may take up to 2 weeks. In rare cases, it may take a little longer. We will let you know the approximate repair time should it be expected to take longer than usual.
Yes! We carry a selection of LCDs screens and lens covers for while-you-wait repair for local customers and same-day replacement for mail-in customers. Most other LCD screens and lens covers can be ordered in within 1-2 weeks.
Yes! We can also repair keypad and software malfunctions.
Yes! We can also repair phones that won’t power on or keep powering off by themselves.
Yes! We can also repair trackballs, power and volume buttons and other buttons on your cell phone.
Yes! We can also repair phones that have freezing or other software malfunctions.
Yes! We can also repair phones that keep freezing or shut off by themselves.
Yes! The success rate for this type of repair is 50%, but it is much better for phones that haven’t been charged after the incident. So make sure to remove the battery from your damaged phone and don’t try to charge it (any moisture on the motherboard might create a short circuit). Then bring it in or mail it to us.
We will refund you minus the diagnostic fee of $19.99.
We offer a 30-day limited warranty on most repairs!.
Check out our repair prices and compare them against the cost of a new phone, then you decide! We think it’s better to keep as many cell phones out of our landfills as possible!
Unlocking FAQ
GSM and AWS wireless providers lock their cell phones to ensure that they will only work with their network. Unlocking allows you to use your current GSM or AWS mobile phone with other GSM service providers (your phone will no longer be “locked” to one network). In addition, unlocked AWS cell phones can also be used with other AWS service providers (such as Wind Mobile and Mobilicity). This means that you will be able to use your cell phone with other wireless providers, including prepaid and overseas, by simply inserting a new active SIM card inside it! (Please also read Question 5 if you plan to travel with your cell phone.)
We unlock GSM and AWS cell phones, which are phones that use SIM-card technology. GSM phones from anywhere in the world can be unlocked. Providers that use GSM technology in North America include Rogers, Fido, SpeakOut, Chatr, Virgin, Solo, AT&T Cingular, T-mobile and many, many more! Telus, Bell, Verizon and other providers sometimes have Blackberry or Android phones which use GSM technology as well. We also unlock Wind and Mobilicity cell phones, which will work on GSM networks (note, however, that unlocked GSM phones will not work on these AWS networks).
We do not unlock CDMA mobile phones, such as the CDMA only phones used by Telus, Bell, Verizon, Sprint or Nextel. They are not compatible with SIM card technology.
A GSM or AWS phone has a slot for a removable SIM card. Remove the battery cover and take out the battery. Look for a SIM cardholder or slot. You can also check with the current provider of your phone as to whether they use GSM technology (Rogers, Fido, SpeakOut, Chatr, Virgin, Solo, T-Mobile, Cingular and AT&T are GSM providers; Wind Mobile and Mobilicity are AWS providers).
Insert an active SIM card from a different wireless provider than the one you usually use with your phone. If you can make and receive calls with this new SIM card, then your phone is unlocked. But if your cell phone gives you an error message or doesn’t work with the new SIM, then your cell phone needs unlocking. If you believe your cell phone is unlocked but still isn’t working with your new SIM card, you may want to check the frequencies that your phone uses (see next question).
It depends on the frequency bands supported by the cell phone. GSM wireless services are offered on different frequencies around the world (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz). A quad-band phone will work anywhere that GSM service is provided (in over 200 countries), a tri-band phone will work in a lot of countries and dual-band phones will work in a more limited number of countries. If you plan on traveling, you can do a Google search for the frequencies used by your phone and those used in the country you plan on visiting.
Only unlocked cell phones using AWS technology (such as those from Wind Mobile, Mobilicity and some T-Mobile USA phones) will work with other AWS providers. They will also work on GSM networks.
Yes, of course! Just use the same SIM card and you won’t notice any difference.
GSM phones can be unlocked by typing in a code that is uniquely based on their IMEI number and original wireless provider. You will need to send us three things: 1) the exact make and model of your mobile phone (look under the battery inside the phone for this), 2) the wireless provider that the cell phone is currently locked to (not the one you intend to use later), and 3) the exact IMEI number of your cell phone (you can find this underneath the battery as well, but it is better to get this by typing *#06# into your cell phone). We send you back your mobile phone’s unlock code to you by email, along with complete instructions on how to enter it into your phone to permanently unlock it.
In the rare case that we cannot find the unlock code for your mobile phone, you will have two options. You can either request to be refunded in full at that time, or we can request your unlock code through another provider (usually with an additional charge). We always refund in full if we cannot find the unlock code for your phone.
An unlock code is unique to your cell phone’s IMEI number and original wireless provider, so it will work and unlock your phone once entered. The only exception to this is if you or someone else has previously attempted to unlock the phone using the wrong code. If you suspect this is the case, please contact us first before requesting our remote unlocking service as your cell phone may need flashing (software repair) first. We cannot refund a remote unlock service once your mobile phone’s unique unlock code has been found.
In most cases, we will email you back your phone’s unlock code within 1-3 business days, often the very same day. In very few cases, unlocks can take between 1-3 weeks (for example, Sidekick). Please click on the image of any phone on the Fast Unlocks page for the estimated time it will take to unlock your particular model of cell phone (if the time is not noted, then it will take only the usual 1-3 business days).
You bring in your mobile phone to our drop-off location and we unlock it using professional unlocking software and hardware. Most unlocks take between 5-30 minutes. You should back up your data and contacts first, either to your computer or your SIM card, as sometimes these are erased in the unlocking process (we are usually able to preserve them but better to be safe than sorry).
Sending and receiving calls and text messaging.
We guarantee our unlocking 100% or your money back. We test with SIM cards from different carriers for all our in-shop unlocks and suggest you do the same. The only cell phone for which unlocking is not permanent is the iPhone. See Question 11 for more information on remote unlocks. Please also see Question 6 for frequency requirements and Question 11 for flashing requirements.
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