Please can someone help me "set up" a new phone without activating it

[jadecomputergal]

This question isn't specific to a DX, but since that's what I have, I'm posting here and hoping some kind people will offer suggestions. I apologize for the length of this message.

Thanks to an unbelievably nice lady at Verizon, I have a DX for my husband coming for Valentine's Day. This is great, but now I'm puzzled about what to do, because my plan had been to upgrade my own phone to what is now called the Bionic, then to give my DX to my husband. That went awry because now I'm getting him a new phone rather than giving him mine since the Bionic release date has been pushed up to what now looks like the May/June time frame.

I have quite a few free apps that I know he loves, but I've also been downloading to my own phone apps I know he can use in his business that I never had any use for. Some of these I paid for since I knew he'd be able to use them and I had planned to just turn over this phone to him, but there are also many others that are free and I know he'd want them on his own phone. Many of these I downloaded over the past few months simply so I wouldn't lose track of them in the meantime.

So, I said all that to say this, so you understand what I really want to do. I'd like to give him this phone ready to go on Valentine's Day, with the apps he'll want, but only those, not mine that he won't care about, and with his e-mail, etc. I can't figure out how to do this.

One issue is that I need to selectively transfer (some of them paid) apps to his new phone, but I also need to get his personal stuff set up on his phone. I'm thinking this means I'm going to have to activate the phone, but I can't do that because it will cut off his existing phone, and I need a network connection to do some of this.

Also, just to throw another wrench into it, he's not going from Droid-to-Droid. He has a BlackBerry right now, so I'm not seeing a seamless transition.

Many thanks in advance to anyone who can help,
Jade

 

[roberte1342]

You will need his gmail password to use the market to install apps.

To bypass activation tap the four corners of the box that the welcome android is standing in. Start at the top left and work clockwise until it bypasses.
Since you are not activated you will need to use wifi for data access. Join your wifi and browse the web to make sure it works.
Open Andriod Market and sign in with his gmail account.
Install the apps you want, customize, etc.
Add any contacts with pics too. But keep in mind that these will show up in his gmail account. Use your own discression. My dad didn't have a clue and he is a techie.

When you are ready to activate just bring up the dialer and call *228

 

[dinod]

One issue is that I need to selectively transfer (some of them paid) apps to his new phone,

question hijack

Once a paid app is in someone's account, can it be transferred to a different one or must it be re-purchased?

 

[terpitude71]

question hijack

Once a paid app is in someone's account, can it be transferred to a different one or must it be re-purchased?

once you have paid for an app, you can download it on any device that is using that same gmail account.

 

[wildman]

jadecomputergal since you need a gMail account and the items you download are tied to the account used when the app is installed it will be dificult to preload it, now if you have his gmail account information you may be able to setup the new phone with that information using wifi and then you should be able to download apps then with his account.

I have set my device up like this before so it may work...