[Q] Rooted warranty question?!?!?!? - Verizon Samsung Galaxy S 4

So ive had my verizon s4 for a year or so and ive been rooted for several months. Recently, the phone's audio stopped working completely: No on board speaker, no headphones, no call speaker, no bluetooth. No videos either. However i didnt do anything to cause as i had no custom rom, just root access. i flashed stock (just to be sure even if i was already stock) , factory data reset, and unrooted, but since it is 4.3, MK2, and verizon, KNOX was already tripped. So there was no evidence except for the little 1 in download mode under Knox warranty voids, might I add there ISNT a little padlock on boot, but the rest was clear. I told them i factory reset to try to get audio back which didnt help and the guy was like its cool we'll just send you a new one. Since resetting the phone didnt help, I (and the employee) said it was a hardware problem, possibly a bad headphone cable that broke it. Now i got the phone and im reading on a little pamphlet "We can and may charge you full price (500$) if we find out software or hardware alterations have been made. Now im worried that since Knox still has evidence, that even though it is, to my knowledge, a hardware fault, that they will charge me. Does anybody know what their plan of action would be for a "silent" phone that had proof of rooting, but the rooting isn't/wasn't the problem.

antonyur said:
So ive had my verizon s4 for a year or so and ive been rooted for several months. Recently, the phone's audio stopped working completely: No on board speaker, no headphones, no call speaker, no bluetooth. No videos either. However i didnt do anything to cause as i had no custom rom, just root access. i flashed stock (just to be sure even if i was already stock) , factory data reset, and unrooted, but since it is 4.3, MK2, and verizon, KNOX was already tripped. So there was no evidence except for the little 1 in download mode under Knox warranty voids, might I add there ISNT a little padlock on boot, but the rest was clear. I told them i factory reset to try to get audio back which didnt help and the guy was like its cool we'll just send you a new one. Since resetting the phone didnt help, I (and the employee) said it was a hardware problem, possibly a bad headphone cable that broke it. Now i got the phone and im reading on a little pamphlet "We can and may charge you full price (500$) if we find out software or hardware alterations have been made. Now im worried that since Knox still has evidence, that even though it is, to my knowledge, a hardware fault, that they will charge me. Does anybody know what their plan of action would be for a "silent" phone that had proof of rooting, but the rooting isn't/wasn't the problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You tried to flash factory software and tripped KNOX.
You accidentally flashed or attempted to flash the wrong version.
You have now flashed the correct version and still no audio.
That would be my story...........

antonyur said:
So ive had my verizon s4 for a year or so and ive been rooted for several months. Recently, the phone's audio stopped working completely: No on board speaker, no headphones, no call speaker, no bluetooth. No videos either. However i didnt do anything to cause as i had no custom rom, just root access. i flashed stock (just to be sure even if i was already stock) , factory data reset, and unrooted, but since it is 4.3, MK2, and verizon, KNOX was already tripped. So there was no evidence except for the little 1 in download mode under Knox warranty voids, might I add there ISNT a little padlock on boot, but the rest was clear. I told them i factory reset to try to get audio back which didnt help and the guy was like its cool we'll just send you a new one. Since resetting the phone didnt help, I (and the employee) said it was a hardware problem, possibly a bad headphone cable that broke it. Now i got the phone and im reading on a little pamphlet "We can and may charge you full price (500$) if we find out software or hardware alterations have been made. Now im worried that since Knox still has evidence, that even though it is, to my knowledge, a hardware fault, that they will charge me. Does anybody know what their plan of action would be for a "silent" phone that had proof of rooting, but the rooting isn't/wasn't the problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Verizon doesn't seem to be too over the top about this. If there's no evidence of damage due to overclocking, etc. they'll generally honor the warranty. Some people have reported problems with their phones running clearly custom ROMs and still getting swapped out on warranty.
I wouldn't get too worried about it as long as you haven't done something you aren't telling us.

Related

Is it possible to damage phones with custom roms ?

The Reason i ask is either it is or i am the unluckiest person ever with a S2 lol
So far got the phone at xmas wasn't happy with the screen colours sent it off they said the main chip was faulty and had been replaced and a software upgrade etc...
Got it back and flashed a custom rom, well a few and noticed that i then had an issue where if someone called i had to put loudspeaker on in order to hear the other person...
Put phone back to stock and sent it off again...
Phone came back last week picked up monday used for a day all seemed fine, flashed a custom rom got another problem with the phone this time i have to put the loudspeaker on to hear other people they can hear me fine...
So its back to stock and back to vodafone tomorrow...
So can custom roms/kernels cause physical issue's with phones, never had an issue with my HTC Desire HD but i'm beginning to wonder if i should leave my next S2 stock, or have i just been unlucky ???
Would also add when going back to stock the screen colours seem much better than custom roms but the sounds issue's remain...
One word NO!
What rom are you flashing?
Checkrom, wickedrom, illusion Xt, not sure which if any has caused any issues could be I'm just unlucky
Definatly noticed issues with screen colours too which now in I'm back on stock have been sorted
Its all a bit weird
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
wakers said:
Checkrom, wickedrom, illusion Xt, not sure which if any has caused any issues could be I'm just unlucky
Definatly noticed issues with screen colours too which now in I'm back on stock have been sorted
Its all a bit weird
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Trust me if that was the case damaging my phone by flashing a rom then my phone would of been damaged goods by the first month i had it
Anyway just be careful how you flash a rom and it is always advised to do a full wipe before installing one
Um, actually, yes.
You run the (slight) risk of bricking your phone every single time you flash something to it. If you're the type of person who's paranoid about these things & can't handle the idea of possibly not getting warranty service if things go wrong, you shouldn't be messing with your phone in the first place.
Anyone who has an expectation (as opposed to a "hope") of warranty service after they stuff around with the phone is an idiot.
The SG2 is a hard phone to brick. Follow the general guidelines and you should be fine. I can't imagine flashing a rom can break this phone. Worst that can happen is you brick it. Either it works or it doesn't.
Yeah Im fully aware that you risk bricking the phone
I've been flashing roms to HTC,s for years always trouble free
I always read and full wipe between flashes
Sounds like I've been unlucky then 3rd time phone is going back and since Xmas 1day without a fault not a great introduction to Samsung for me...
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
In all my time reading SGS1 and 2 the only ones who have bricked their phone are the idiots (1) who refuse to read instructions . Even then 90% of them have been able to recover .
the SGS2 quota of 1 is getting higher day by day for some reason .
jje
Yeah 3 physical faults though in a month which is what got me thinking maybe installing the custom roms is causing an issue, but if others are installing with no issue's i've obviously just been unlucky
Hopefully this time i get it back its sorted...
wakers said:
Yeah 3 physical faults though in a month which is what got me thinking maybe installing the custom roms is causing an issue, but if others are installing with no issue's i've obviously just been unlucky
Hopefully this time i get it back its sorted...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
~Don't accept a repair... DEMAND A NEW PHONE
Samsung doesnt change phones, only repairs.
GeorgeCm said:
Samsung doesnt change phones, only repairs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Who said Samsung??? I meant Vodafone, and they do give new phones
About a stock I don't know, and on aosp try it
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1385862
Suarez7 said:
Trust me if that was the case damaging my phone by flashing a rom then my phone would of been damaged goods by the first month i had it
Anyway just be careful how you flash a rom and it is always advised to do a full wipe before installing one
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seconded..
It's possible to introduce some new bugs by flashing a custom ROM (that's the price of development, you uncover new weird stuff), but not to physically damage the phone. You'd have to fiddle with the battery or greatly increase the voltages to accomplish that.
If you experience hardware issues after flashing a ROM, it means that the hardware was faulty before, and flashing the ROM just uncovered it and made it obvious to you whereas it was hidden before.
But don't let it get you down. Apparently a lot of SGS2's are faulty when coming out of the factory and need to be replaced.
The first one I had didn't last the night, it 'overcooked' itself when I plugged it to the mains to get it recharged (I knew those phones could get pretty hot but damn ! a 100°C is too much for it, it didn't stand the strain and gave up)..
In fairness they suggested a new phone in Vodafone today so it's gone back with the the request of a new phone rather than repair so we'll see
Also if anyone is interested I obviously flashed a few custom roms and reset the counter to zero and installed original Vodafone software and have had no issues warranty wise
wakers said:
In fairness they suggested a new phone in Vodafone today so it's gone back with the the request of a new phone rather than repair so we'll see
Also if anyone is interested I obviously flashed a few custom roms and reset the counter to zero and installed original Vodafone software and have had no issues warranty wise
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I seem to have been lucky with a Vodafone SGSII, I'd have insisted on a new phone from it's first problem, Vodafone have always been pretty good at replacing.
I am wondering however how did you manage to reset the flash counter ? Even with a USB Jig mine won't reset. It will go into download mode, but that's it. I presumed my six week old SGSII was a newer one a jig won't work on.
Before trying to reset the counter you should flash the old boot loader (pre-KI1) on, the new one cannot be reset safely with a jig. Works just fine after this
What Snakeforhire said i flashed the old bootloader reset the counter with the USB Jig then reflashed the new bootloader...
Updated through kies and sent back...

[Q] Samsung Repair Ethics Question

My Galaxy Note (Bell) has a loose micro USB port. It can charge from the wall and is recognized by my pc however I need to prop it up on a slant in order for it to maintain pressure on the cable input, otherwise it will disconnect. It was caused by my dog knocking it off an end table while charging. It's a pain and Samsung has sent me a UPS slip to send it away.
The phone is rooted and this is my first experience with an Android. I've had a good time loading Da_G's kernel, figuring out adb, cwm, dagr8's Saurom and all the rest. However its time to send it back and I really don't know what Samsungs procedures are for a rooted phone. I've loaded the Bell kernel back to the phone but it's not the 100% solution I was looking for so I got frustrated and just went back to where I was already at with Saurom rc4 loaded up and titanium backup now doing it's thing.
Anyone with previous experiences send back a rooted phone for a hardware issue and know their policies?
Is there a step after flashing the bell kernel tar I'm missing?
Thanks
Jesso2k said:
My Galaxy Note (Bell) has a loose micro USB port. It can charge from the wall and is recognized by my pc however I need to prop it up on a slant in order for it to maintain pressure on the cable input, otherwise it will disconnect. It was caused by my dog knocking it off an end table while charging. It's a pain and Samsung has sent me a UPS slip to send it away.
The phone is rooted and this is my first experience with an Android. I've had a good time loading Da_G's kernel, figuring out adb, cwm, dagr8's Saurom and all the rest. However its time to send it back and I really don't know what Samsungs procedures are for a rooted phone. I've loaded the Bell kernel back to the phone but it's not the 100% solution I was looking for so I got frustrated and just went back to where I was already at with Saurom rc4 loaded up and titanium backup now doing it's thing.
Anyone with previous experiences send back a rooted phone for a hardware issue and know their policies?
Is there a step after flashing the bell kernel tar I'm missing?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had to send my Captivate to Samsung for repair. it was rooted and they fixed it without any issues.
Most manufacturers will fix hardware issues clearly not caused by rooting. Of course, no promises.
That's the reassurance I needed. I'll get on with it and send it away tomorrow. I'll report back in a very long 2 weeks...
Sent from my SGH-I717R using XDA
Jesso2k said:
My Galaxy Note (Bell) has a loose micro USB port. It can charge from the wall and is recognized by my pc however I need to prop it up on a slant in order for it to maintain pressure on the cable input, otherwise it will disconnect. It was caused by my dog knocking it off an end table while charging. It's a pain and Samsung has sent me a UPS slip to send it away.
The phone is rooted and this is my first experience with an Android. I've had a good time loading Da_G's kernel, figuring out adb, cwm, dagr8's Saurom and all the rest. However its time to send it back and I really don't know what Samsungs procedures are for a rooted phone. I've loaded the Bell kernel back to the phone but it's not the 100% solution I was looking for so I got frustrated and just went back to where I was already at with Saurom rc4 loaded up and titanium backup now doing it's thing.
Anyone with previous experiences send back a rooted phone for a hardware issue and know their policies?
Is there a step after flashing the bell kernel tar I'm missing?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Best luck.... if you were in America you could just take it to an att store. Just be on a stockish rom and turn it in and they would not notice lol, get another device that day. Idk how things go up in Canada though.
Dont Do It!!!!
I dont know WHY there are people here sending the OP off....EVERYONE KNOWS that if you root it voids your warranty...it doesnt say "It voids your warranty except for hardware issues"
Why set yourself up to be disappointed when you can just revert it back to stock and not worry at all.....people always trying to catch a fool slipping....question is who will be the fool in this scenario????
BigBrotherMotown said:
I dont know WHY there are people here sending the OP off....EVERYONE KNOWS that if you root it voids your warranty...it doesnt say "It voids your warranty except for hardware issues"
Why set yourself up to be disappointed when you can just revert it back to stock and not worry at all.....people always trying to catch a fool slipping....question is who will be the fool in this scenario????
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well he should revert back to stock for sure but you can't roll back the counter. But as long as your stock they may not look at the counter and just fix the phone. It's been said before, there's no known case of Samsung voiding a warranty because of it.
Dont know how they do it up there but down here on AT&T we have a 30 day return/exchange policy I exercised yesterday in fact, plus a year warranty giving us refurbished phones if anything happens. I know you guys got it a little before us but I would check into this. Go back to stock there's a thread on how to do this in our development section and take it into your local providers store see what happens maybe you'll get lucky and they'll replace it on the spot. Say it was a hardware defect though.
BigBrotherMotown said:
I dont know WHY there are people here sending the OP off....EVERYONE KNOWS that if you root it voids your warranty...it doesnt say "It voids your warranty except for hardware issues"
Why set yourself up to be disappointed when you can just revert it back to stock and not worry at all.....people always trying to catch a fool slipping....question is who will be the fool in this scenario????
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because in everyone's experience they'll generally fix hardware problems even if you're rooted. Of course they have to, but they tend to. We all said there were no guarantees.
BigBrotherMotown said:
I dont know WHY there are people here sending the OP off....EVERYONE KNOWS that if you root it voids your warranty...it doesnt say "It voids your warranty except for hardware issues"
Why set yourself up to be disappointed when you can just revert it back to stock and not worry at all.....people always trying to catch a fool slipping....question is who will be the fool in this scenario????
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems like one does not simply revert back to stock. Admittedly I'm new to this but all I can find in the development forum is the Bell kernel. The full bell system doesn't seem to be up, just the At&T. After a factory reset and old kernal I still have super user loaded and all of the bell bloatware gone. I'm sure with some due diligence I could have made a back up right after my original root but I didn't. Frustrated with the mess I created I just set the phone back up with Saurom the way I liked it.
alexige said:
Dont know how they do it up there but down here on AT&T we have a 30 day return/exchange policy I exercised yesterday in fact, plus a year warranty giving us refurbished phones if anything happens. I know you guys got it a little before us but I would check into this. Go back to stock there's a thread on how to do this in our development section and take it into your local providers store see what happens maybe you'll get lucky and they'll replace it on the spot. Say it was a hardware defect though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's only 14 days here. I've had it since launch on Feb 14th. Bell is synonymous for passing the buck off, contact them online and they tell you to call in, call them and they tell you go into a store, go to a store and they'll tell you to go to the original store of purchase or another another store with a repair tech on duty. Going directly through Samsung has been smooth thus far, I just hope if they have an issue they'll contact me before blowing whistles and charging my bill some erroneous fees.

Warranty problems/scare

So today as I was preparing to flash the latest AOKP rom at 90% battery, I accidentally hit reboot to bootloader instead of recovery. No problem, i hit reboot. The screen turned black and a minute later it was still black, so I removed the battery. Nothing turned it on, couldn't access the bootloader and the charging light wouldn't even go on.
That was odd, so i thought maybe it was just still in bootloader mode. I gained access to ADB and it doesn't see the device at all (yes i tried the method explained because of the CWM problem, I also do not have CWM and have had a battery die before and it was able to charge fine) I also tried fastboot and it just sits at "waiting for device"
I called up Verizon support figuring it was the battery and they said i could test it at a store. The rep didn't think it was the battery, but when he tested it said 3/3 times it was increment, so it was bad. Then when he tried a regular battery it didn't work either, so he said the phone was bad.
Now, i called support and they are sending me a new phone and i am going to exchange my extended battery for a good one tomorrow. The thing is the lady on the phone said that as long as there were no hardware defects or unauthorized software than there wouldn't be any charge but if there was then it would be a $200 charge added onto the bill. A $200 charge would be pretty bad.
I would never return my phone if i messed it up actually doing something to the phone but here it didn't... at least not in any way I can think of. I am worried about the charge though. I know they usually don't check them but I had the Juopunut bear h-boot and neo's ICS installed. I am not even sure if it's recoverable at all because from everything i tried it definitely wasn't.
Am i just being silly here?
If they can't even boot the phone, then there is no way that they can tell it was hacked.
Sounds like the only way they'll get the phone booting is to do the manufacturer RUU thing with their special tools, so I'd say you're in the clear.
I've sent a phone back that was S-OFF running CM9. If they check before they JTAG it, I've seen no evidence of it.
I had heard before many times that they never checked, but i was extremely surprised whenever she said that. I wanted to ask some of you guys your opinion as well. I doubt it's recoverable without a full sbf as well, so i should be fine. Thanks!
Reaper0294 said:
I had heard before many times that they never checked, but i was extremely surprised whenever she said that. I wanted to ask some of you guys your opinion as well. I doubt it's recoverable without a full sbf as well, so i should be fine. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had to send mine back for a screen hardware issue. I was still s- on with the bootloader saying relocked and I did not get hit with that charge. As stated before I have heard of people sending back their phones with different ROMs without issue. Good luck
Sent from my Rezound using xda app-developers app
I've returned multiple devices saying relocked in the bootloader. I think Verizon simply doesn't care to be honest.. Hell I've even gotten a replacement phone that was rooted and running custom software. Shows you how muc hattention they pay to the devices they recieve and send out. Hell I've gotten replacements with screen protectors still on them and big ass gashes/scratches on the screen. 100 point inspection my ass.
Same here; my first Rezound was S-OFF, bootloader unlocked when the USB port failed (the unit would charge but couldn't connect to PC). I just factory reset it and sent it back. The folks who refurbish the phones don't even turn 'em on, and if they did, they probably wouldn't know what they were looking at. The things are bulk reflashed, if the motherboards are even retained at all.

[Q] Galaxy SII bricked

Hi everyone!
So, yesterday I picked up my Galaxy S II and tried to unlock it, but the touchscreen didn't work. 5 seconds later, the phone turned off, and it is completely bricked.
I have no access to recovery, download mode, absolutely nothing. It just doesn't turn on, even if the charger is plugged in.
Obviously, my phone was rooted and flashed with the latest JB rom available. Since the phone still has almost one year and a half of warranty left, will they be able to know if the phone was rooted, and the number of Odin flashes?
I flashed my phone via Odin about 15-20 times. Since it bricked so quickly, I couldn't reset the counter and unroot.
So, what do you think?
They probably won't be able to tell, but you can never be 100% certain & nobody here can give you that certainty. Anyone who says they can is lying to you.
Give it to a service centre, say as little as possible & see what happens.
MistahBungle said:
They probably won't be able to tell, but you can never be 100% certain & nobody here can give you that certainty. Anyone who says they can is lying to you.
Give it to a service centre, say as little as possible & see what happens.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know that it's difficult to be 100% certain, but maybe it has happened to someone and they could share their story
It was clearly some defect on the device, since I got it on late November 2012. It lasted for 8 months, and it used to get quite hot, right below the camera... is that normal on the S2?
Besides, the moment you flash something to your phone/use the phone in a manner excluded by the warranty, having an expectation of warranty service is completely unreasonable.
MistahBungle said:
Besides, the moment you flash something to your phone/use the phone in a manner excluded by the warranty, having an expectation of warranty service is completely unreasonable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know that rooting voids the device warranty, but on the other hand, the device failed not because of the rooting process, but because of some faulty hardware.
I know how warranty works, but the brick isn't related to bad use, since the rooting process worked flawlessly.
Anyway, I already delivered the phone at the service centre, now I'll just wait.
Thanks for all the responses
Irrelevant.
The warranty explicitly states if you use the phone in a manner not specified in the warranty (I.E use unauthorised firmware), all bets are off. Whether flashing unauthorised firmware caused the problems or not doesn't matter. If you expect warranty, leave your phone stock.
Mattz94 said:
I know how warranty works, but the brick isn't related to bad use, since the rooting process worked flawlessly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Or just be honest....and admit to voiding your warranty and learn from your mistake. I know that is not what you want to hear or you may not hear that to often....
good luck with the service dept....And since there are too many trying to give you fraud instructions...Thread Closed.

Word of warning before calling Verizon

IT'S A TRAP!
Well I just found out the hard way that VZW is even more evil than I thought.
Called about my G3 because of audio issue with the headphone jack, seeking an RMA.
Without my permission verizon ran some remote diagnosis on my phone and discovered root, right while I was on the call. Tier 2 support did this by the way.
Not sure how... I froze all the VZW bloat I could find in titanium.
Just wanted to let you guys know to watch your back. I'm not sure exactly when verizon got wind of my root. Whether it was right there while I was on call or the minute I rooted.
Verizon is literally the devil
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
What did they say once they discovered root on your phone? Just denied the RMA? Would they let you make an insurance claim at least?
The rep responded "after running diagnostics on your device I see your phone is rooted so your warranty is invalid"
Then he preceeded to try and give me instructions to call LG and get the flash tool to return to stock.
My issue with the audio jack is obviously a HW issue and not an issue with software/root
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
Always put your phone in Airplane Mode if you have to call them. If they say they need the phone turned on to run diagnostics, REFUSE, and tell them that you don't consent, or tell them that the phone is not near you, then continue talking and tell them that you're NOT calling about a software but hardware issue and there's no reason that they need to run a Software Diagnostic.
Someone else mentioned the same thing however from what I understand their system polls your phone every few hours so that may not help. Even if the phone was offline the system may still show root status regardless of the phones current state.
Couldn't hurt though...
Either way it's a little to late for me. I just hope that someone sees this thread before calling only to get a big fat middle finger from VZW.
Flash to stock and wait a bit on official software to make sure Verizon's system shows official software.
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
I woulda said root (software) has nothing to do with audio jack (hardware). Not that it wouldve really gotten you anywhere anyway.
Either way, Verizon doesnt really cover hardware warranty, they just send the phone over to LG, which the rep directed to you anyway. So sounds like youre gonna have to contact LG directly.
Or maybe you even get a do-over. You could flash back everything to stock, and then just walk into store and try the same thing. The reps at the store arent nearly as sharp as the phone reps.
Good to know tho, thx for the heads up!
Yeah but I got the phone on the VZW website on a black Friday deal. So that would leave me without a phone. I'm assuming they would have to ship it back and would not just exchange it on the spot.
Couldn't hurt though I call tomorrow and ask if they will swap it on the spot.
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
I had same exact audio jack prob on G2. They didnt take my phone or anything, they shipped me a new one and i sent back the old one afterwards. There's something like a 30 day grace period to ship your phone back before they charge you for it. Was easy peasy
---------- Post added at 06:01 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:58 PM ----------
Oh and doesnt matter where you bought the phone , its a Verizon phone and youre a Verizon customer so they will help you no matter what. That G2 was from Ebay. If its under warranty by LG, its under warranty. Again, Verizon just assists yoh with the warranty as a customer service. The money comes out of LG's pocket, not theirs.
Yeah but their service department knows I have root. I'm pretty sure they will just tell me to screw off if I go to swap the phone. But it couldn't hurt to try. Thanks for the info.
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
True but you never know, give it a shot and let us know.
---------- Post added at 06:58 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:36 PM ----------
Check out this article from Droid Life. Verizon actually saw tge article and made some clarifications in regards to root, warranty and what they consider void or not void.
Verizon Begins Charging Full Price of Warranty Phones if Rooted? (Updated)
What exactly should happen if you were to root your phone, play around with ROMs/hacks/etc., somehow manage to break it, and then send it in to Verizon for a warranty replacement? Should you be allowed to get a replacement or not? According to reports, you can get a replacement, but the rooting of your phone voids any warranty you had and gives Verizon permission to charge you for a new one if they determine that your broken phone was tampered with.
Our buddy @P3droid has apparently heard from a couple of friends who have run into the scenario that we described above and then been slapped with a pretty hefty and unannounced bill. Fair or unfair?
I’ll just say this – we’ve known that rooting your device voids your warranty since well back in the original DROID days, so it makes sense that Verizon would do this. As unpopular as this may sound, I can’t fault Big Red for going this route. If you decide to take your phone out of its original factory status, tinker with its guts, and break something, it shouldn’t be their responsibility to take care of you.
With that said though, a broken volume rocker, faulty screen, etc. has nothing do with rooting, so I’d hate to see someone get charged for something that they didn’t cause even if they decided to root. It’s an interesting topic, and one that I would love to hear all your opinions on.
Update: Our friends at Verizon saw this post and wanted to reach out to clarify everything immediately. First up, is the fact that their policy says absolutely nothing about checking for root on devices. When a phone is received, a phone is checked for three things and that definitely isn’t one of them. They check to see if the box that the device was sent in is damaged, if the outside of the phone looks awful, and if it powers on – satisfy all of those and they move on to the next phone. So basically, these reports of being charged for a rooted phone simply mean that these people were sending in garbage phone with defects.
So…sound off!
http://www.droid-life.com/2011/06/1...ging-full-price-of-warranty-phones-if-rooted/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would take the word of a Verizon PR Rep over some call center dweeb. Just b/c he works there doesnt mean he's rhe end all be all.
I'll tell you what's up there. Worked for the company for a while and encountered this. Rooting does not really void a warranty, as the warehouse does not check for root, they just check if a phone has physical damage to it. Now if your phone is rooted, reps are advised to tell you that it can't be supported any longer by VZW. But that could happen with any company. If you modify a LG TV, LG might not want to support it either. If you are just rooted, it might be one thing, but different roms MIGHT affect different things. Yours probably is the hardware issue though. If you haven't been already taken care of, if you call back in, just let a rep know that you don't want anyone to remotely access your phone. That is not supposed to be done without your permission. I have had a few phones replaced under warranty that had been rooted. If nothing else, just return a phone to stock. But if you don't want to worry about any of that, just turn your phone off, and tell them that you tried to accept the most recent 12B update, and now your phone won't fully boot up, and leave the phone powered off the whole time.
subhelix said:
I'll tell you what's up there. Worked for the company for a while and encountered this. Rooting does not really void a warranty, as the warehouse does not check for root, they just check if a phone has physical damage to it. Now if your phone is rooted, reps are advised to tell you that it can't be supported any longer by VZW. But that could happen with any company. If you modify a LG TV, LG might not want to support it either. If you are just rooted, it might be one thing, but different roms MIGHT affect different things. Yours probably is the hardware issue though. If you haven't been already taken care of, if you call back in, just let a rep know that you don't want anyone to remotely access your phone. That is not supposed to be done without your permission. I have had a few phones replaced under warranty that had been rooted. If nothing else, just return a phone to stock. But if you don't want to worry about any of that, just turn your phone off, and tell them that you tried to accept the most recent 12B update, and now your phone won't fully boot up, and leave the phone powered off the whole time.
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Click to collapse
I would assume that because I have already been caught that they have the voided warranty on record... or is this not the case?
I thought that once they caught you, thats it, the jig is up and they put a note on your account that the phones warranty is void.
I think I might know what happened. I have noticed that when I first rooted my G3 (3 Days Ago) that the Verizon Mobile app asked for root permissions immediately upon rebooting for the phone. I accidentally gave it permissions and it went on about its ways. I later removed the permission and didn't worry about it any longer. Not thinking anything about it I think that once you give the Verizon app permission it will figure out your rooted and sync up with your account (which it does automatically during the setup process) by your phone number tied to the Sim card. I think that's exactly how they knew, and I think a warning goes out and is posted on the account phone number saying its a rooted device.
Possibility? Let me know.
Wow, now that I think of it, you might be right!
Same thing happened to me a few days ago. I had already granted it access before i even realized it was the actual Verizon app. Shrugged my shoulders after I realized it but thought it had something to do with the actual ROM im running (Jasmine 3.0).
That being said, if it were me, id still try the store. Things arent nearly as automated and recorded as you think they might or should be in the real world.
Not to mention, reps at the store are idiots and dont really know too much about smartphones outside of using the setup wizard. I cant tell you how many times tge in store reps have told me or someone else to call the hotline b/c they werent sure or didnt know. The physical store employees are the bottom od the Totum pole. Halfbof them are fresh out of High School
Its not just Verizon that does this by the way.. These phone companieshave this in place as a standard to protect themselves against people bricking phones, and crying out for a replacement. History has shown them that when people root, they tend to flash custom roms, and more dangerously, custom kernels.. As well, people attempt to change the way their CPU functions, and alter the phone to better its performance.. When these things are done, it changes the system hardware stability, and things can get weak or damaged.
So as a way of cutting you off from future complaints, they make it clear that if you root, your warantee is void.
NEVER tell them its rooted, never walk into a store with a rooted device and ask for help, and if you call for support, dont just put it in airplane mode.... PULL THE BATTERY!!! They are able to access your phone through GPS, wifi, bluetooth, and data connection
If the battery is in your device, it can be accessed... The Government has been doing it for years to track people...and contrary to common thought, I believe I read some documentation that "front facing" cameras were a Government idea...
Anyways, be safe, and be careful...youve just learned proof that someone is watching
JJT211 said:
Wow, now that I think of it, you might be right!
Same thing happened to me a few days ago. I had already granted it access before i even realized it was the actual Verizon app. Shrugged my shoulders after I realized it but thought it had something to do with the actual ROM im running (Jasmine 3.0).
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Click to collapse
Why on Earth would you grant something root privileges without verifying what was asking first? This is exactly the type of thing more senior folks in the modding community are constantly complaining about.
yes NEVER EVER GIVE MY VERIZON SU!!! this is what probably happened and it throws flag in their system if you call or request service
Its totally possible.
From what I understand the response from denying root access and the response from not having it at all have two different signatures.
Once I saw a VZW app requesting root I immediately denied it. But that right there could have been the dead giveaway.
I already tried flashing back to stock using the KDZ method. Still the problem of audio quality persists.
Either way, it's BS this is most definitely a hardware issue and should be covered under warranty.
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
Yes it's BS but it shouldn't really be a surprise. And it's nothing we haven't been warned of before
I suggest calling back in. If you are now back on stock, you should have no problem. I know it sucks ass, but representatives are just doing a job. What we were told, if someone was rooted, to try to suggest that they return to stock and then we can support the phone, and that is again no matter what the issue might be. Well, as long as it can boot up. So if you flashed back to stock using the KDZ method, root should not be detected anymore. And it might have been noted at that time that it was rooted, but it's a different story now since the phone is back to stock.

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