New Note 5! But unsealed box?

[RobynFC]

Hi everybody! Sorry if this is in the wrong section, it's my very first post!

I purchased a new, unlocked Note 5 off a premium eBay seller who shipped from Taiwan and it arrived today! But the seal that says 'Do not accept if broken' has been broken and a sticker with the word 'Taiwan' is stuck over it. Does anyone know where that sticker is from? I was wondering if it's a returned phone..

Thanks!!


Update: The seller replied 'The local distributor will have to unseal the original package and put a distributor sticker inside the box for warranty issue. Hence you will see another seal sticker on the phone box which is acknowledged by Samsung Taiwan."

thanks for the help! Greatly appreciated guys!

 

[tanson1011]

Could be from customs. Could be sketchy. If the phone has the plastic over it and is mint. No finger prints than its probably brand new.

Not sure if the note has a minutes used timer somewhere or not. But if it does check that too.

 

[RobynFC]

I did hear it could be customs but there was no note? Or do they sometimes don't bother with that?
Yes, it had the plastic sheet over it and had no scratches or fingerprints. Though, I just plugged it in to charge and it got slightly warm. The screen and the back, just under the camera. Could this be due to the fast charging? Or is it just a totally dodgy phone.

 

[anon(153966)]

Is the device unlocked? If yes, maybe it had to be open to be programmed unlocked, then shipped.
Better still, why not email the seller and ask?

 

[tanson1011]

I did hear it could be customs but there was no note? Or do they sometimes don't bother with that?
Yes, it had the plastic sheet over it and had no scratches or fingerprints. Though, I just plugged it in to charge and it got slightly warm. The screen and the back, just under the camera. Could this be due to the fast charging? Or is it just a totally dodgy phone.

The fast charger does cause my phone to heat up a bit. Let the seller know your concerns. See what they say. Ask what condition should the packaging be in. Of they say sealed, tell them yours wasn't sealed.

 

[ELAkid]

I might be wrong but I was thinking of buying a z4 tablet from amazon from a seller that was in Vietnam, and someone said they break the seal to sell it as used and avoid taxes?

Is that a possibility?

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[AllPhones]

Hi everybody! Sorry if this is in the wrong section, it's my very first post!

I purchased a new Note 5 off a premium eBay seller who shipped from Taiwan and it arrived today! But the seal that says 'Do not accept if broken' has been broken and a sticker with the word 'Taiwan' is stuck over it. Does anyone know where that sticker is from? I was wondering if it's a returned phone..

Thanks!!

Interesting! I received the N920I with the broken seal as well. Even though the plastic cover was no it, it doesn't mean it's brand new. The plastic cover can easily be placed back on. When I received mines, the seal was broken, I didn't receive the proper US plug. I thought maybe that's why the seal was broken in order to place the US plug in. But that wasn't the case it still had the international plug. Lastly, It had Chinese software installed on the device. I reset the phone to factory settings and the Chinese software was not there. So, as a result it was used. IMO, the seal should only be broken if they are placing the plug with a US plug.

 

[H3aTeRzz]

I would NEVER buy from over seas. The thing I would be worried about, is if its a fake!

 

[Raptor007]

Confirm with the eBay Seller, if the answers don't make you feel comfortable contact eBay and return it for a refund. Buying overseas can be sketchy, but you can also find a lot of genuine sellers of all types of goods. However given the rise of counterfeit smartphones I would be concerned.

 

[RobynFC]

Thanks for the reply! I'm waiting for their reply now! They're qd_au from eBay, and they're listed as a Premium Seller. Would that mean the likelihood of it being fake is lower? They currently have a 99.9% satifsation rating. The phone seems to be working rather well, and the signs of it being fake (bad camera, lag) haven't appeared yet.. It's an unlocked phone, would it have to be opened to be unlocked?

 

[RobynFC]

Thanks for the reply! I got a plug in a separate box .. does your phone work well? Or did you replace it?

 

[RobynFC]

I'm not sure ... the eBay seller listed it as genuine and 100% brand new!

 

[RobynFC]

Confirm with the eBay Seller, if the answers don't make you feel comfortable contact eBay and return it for a refund. Buying overseas can be sketchy, but you can also find a lot of genuine sellers of all types of goods. However given the rise of counterfeit smartphones I would be concerned.

Thanks for the reply! I'm waiting for their reply now! They're qd_au from eBay, and they're listed as a Premium Seller. Would that mean the likelihood of it being fake is lower? They currently have a 99.9% satifsation rating. The phone seems to be working rather well, and the signs of it being fake (bad camera, lag) haven't appeared yet.. It's an unlocked phone, would it have to be opened to be unlocked?

 

[anon(153966)]

I stated this earlier...

It's an unlocked phone, would it have to be opened to be unlocked?

 

[anon8380037]

They sometimes have to open to change chargers, and / or to Region Unlock them via 5 minutes + of phone use, if that still applies.
Try an app like Spec Device to confirm it's genuine. There was a Genuine Galaxy app, but the current one is not the same afaik.
Antutu benchmark app has a device information screen also.

 

[wolverinex]

Open the dialer,press ##786# view, and you can look at the life timers of the phone,see if has been reconditioned, and the activation date.hope this helps

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