New USB port or Wireless Charger?

[sandman1887]

So, I got a couple of Thunderbolts from a buddy who 'upgraded' his and his wife's phones to a pair of iPhone 4s. One of the Tbolts is in near perfect condition (only a very slight bit of kickstand peel) but the other one has an issue: When ever you move it around while it is being charged, the USB plug falls out.

Granted, this is not something that really affects the charge, unless you consider trying to charge it in the car, but if the phone is plugged in and you pick it up....the charger drops right out. I have tried multiple different USB cords, and they all act more or less the same. This seems to leave me with two options:

Option 1 is to try and get it replaced/repaired under the 1 year Manufacturer warranty (it was purchased March of 2011). I didn't think this would be an option since I didn't purchase the phone, but PCD (the company that the HTC website directs you to for warranty questions) said it did not matter. So the only problem that I may have is that I dont know if it is going to be covered under warranty or not. I typically take VERY good care of my phones and can count the number of times they could have been damaged on one finger, but I cant say that this is not a result of damage to the phone as opposed to a manufacturing problem.

Option 2 is a wireless charging cover and pad. Verizon has the covers on sale for $2.99 and the pads for $39.99 (although you can get an Energizer pad cheaper online) so this would be a viable solution. Except for the fact that Verizon is sold out of the cover and cant tell me when (if) they are getting any more. Does anyone know where i can pick one up for cheap?

My delima is that if I request a replacement phone, and send this one back in, and they determine that it is not covered under warranty, I would be billed for the full price of a phone. If I don't then I may never find a wireless charging cover (I think they may have stopped producing them). Any ideas on how much just paying to get it fixed would cost?

 

[defcon999]

If you activate the phones on your Verizon plan, doesn't matter where you got the phone....as long as they aren't stolen. You might have to wait a month in order to use the insurance. (billing cycle).

This is what I would do. My son's Droid 2 was having issues with the keyboard. I went on the ASURION site to file a claim. Well, a faulty keyboard wasn't covered on the insurance since the phone was under a year old. But, if the phone had water damage, it would have been. So, while some may think it is dishonest, I would file a claim with water damage, get the new phone, and then "accidentally" (wink wink) drop the old phone in the toilet. You pay for the insurance...use it!

I have the same problem with my USB charging port on my phone...is a little loose and I have to make sure the orange light is on when I go to bed.

I never thought of the wireless charger thing. Might have to look into that.

 

[sandman1887]

I did not realize that the insurance would carry over as well. I was only asking about it from a manufacturer warranty standpoint...thanks for that info!

The problem is that the phone is the one i put my wifes number one and she has a really bad habbit of NOT plugging up her phone at night...or if she does, she will pick it up everytime she gets an email to see what it was, so when we are laying in bed, it will beep, she picks it up to check and the cord falls out and she just puts the phone back on the night stand without plugging it up. so I think the wireless charger may be a good idea anyway...

 

[anon(394005)]

Another option could be a couple Rezound 1620mAh batteries and an external charger (ex. Seidio Multi-function Battery Charger) and just swap out batteries as needed. That's my setup (also have two standard 1400mAh batteries and one extended) and I rarely if ever actually plug the phone into a charger.

 

[defcon999]

I did not realize that the insurance would carry over as well. I was only asking about it from a manufacturer warranty standpoint...thanks for that info!

The problem is that the phone is the one i put my wifes number one and she has a really bad habbit of NOT plugging up her phone at night...or if she does, she will pick it up everytime she gets an email to see what it was, so when we are laying in bed, it will beep, she picks it up to check and the cord falls out and she just puts the phone back on the night stand without plugging it up. so I think the wireless charger may be a good idea anyway...

The insurance will cost you $100 / phone / claim. If it is a legitimate mfg. defect, then they might replace it for free...if not, it will be $100 also.

Back in Sept. I cracked my screen really bad. I didn't have the $100 to replace it and the phone worked perfectly. Well, then an update was pushed (Not the OTA), and it wouldn't load it and pull it from the server. I tried everything. I took to Verizon gut did everything he could....factory reset, battery pull, SIM card pull...everything. He said "Well, we have to get you a new phone". I said I didn't have the $100, he said, doesn't matter, it is our fault, no cost. Well, I have heard since then that Verizon doesn't do that anymore....but you can always ask.

 

[worwig]

Why no just have your buddy call Verizon, and they will replace it.