I don't feel like debating ethics or whether this is right or wrong, but it does have the potential to be a little personal.
I have a line on a 3g smartphone whose upgrade date is 10/28/12. I tried to convince VZW to allow me to upgrade to a 4G device early but was shot down. It's significant because anyone wishing to keep grandfathered unlimited data as of today cannot upgrade at the subsidized pricing, so it's clear that any 4G phone I purchase for this line, or any other grandfathered line will need to be purchased at full retail or previously used.
In my mind, the top 4 Android phones currently released for VZW, in no particular order, are the Galaxy Nexus, Razr, Razr Maxx, and Rezound. When I upgraded in December, I chose a Nexus, though a bit reluctantly. It's the best phone for modding/romming and mine has been defect free, a damn good phone, but I've always preferred Moto hardware and thought long and hard about getting a Razr before settling on the Nexus.
If I had gotten the Razr back in December, I would've been disappointed when the Maxx was released, but I'd have gotten over it and moved on, even though my phone may have depreciated quicker as a result.
Now, as I plan to upgrade a 3g phone to a 4g device, I am looking again at the Razr and Razr Maxx. The person using this phone will prefer a device with powerful radios and superior hardware more than ICS/Jellybean and an open bootloader.
I'll be honest, until yesterday, I didn't even realize it was possible to upgrade the battery for the original Razr, so I would've been a potential target for not asking the "right" questions.
I plan on probably using Ebay, and I would be concerned that anyone selling a Razr with an upgraded battery as a Razr Maxx would potentially open themselves up to the possibility of a credit card/Paypal chargeback for selling something not as described. Selling on Craigslist may decrease the seller's risk.
So, what are the "right" questions to ask when buying on Ebay? If a phone is described as a Razr Maxx with a clean ESN, is it reasonable to assume that it's an original Razr Maxx and not a modded Razr? If water damage is not mentioned in the description, should I still assume that it may have been dropped in water? If it doesn't mention in the listing that the screen is cracked, would it be reasonable to assume the screen is uncracked and perhaps even unscratched? I don't know....
When I buy a 2nd hand phone, I assume I am buying it with no manufacturers warranty, unless it is stated in the listing, but I also also assume that if a phone is sold as one type of device, that it is that device and not a similar device that was modded by a 3rd party to look and even act like the device it is being sold as.
Though, here is some food for thought, and I welcome your opinions. When I bought my Nexus, the first thing did, after determining it was free from hardware defects was to unlock the bootloader and root it. Verizon would probably say that I voided my warranty. If I ever decide to sell the phone to a 3rd party, I'll flash the device back to it;s factory state and relock the bootloader. Am I obligated to list the phone as previously rooted? I probably wouldn't but should I?
If it makes any difference, I've never overclocked the CPU or changed the stock voltage. Rooting is a software modifcation, upgrading the Razr's battery is hardware modification. Both probably void the warranty. Should a buyer also have a right to know if their device was once rooted, even though they are buying it unrooted and factory stock?
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