replacing a broken Tracfone

[retire-early]

In late June I bought a brand new Motorola G6 that is locked to Tracfone.
It works on the Verizon network.

Today, the G6 shut down and would not re-boot.
The battery is fully charged.
It turns out this is not an uncommon problem.

I am thinking about buying an unlocked phone and just moving my SIM over.

Best Buy sells some unlocked smartphones which supposedly would work.
I am specifically looking at the Motorola e6.
According to https://www.motorola.com/us/carrier-compatibility, the unlocked e6 is Compatible with this network, but all service provider specific features may not be available.

Not sure what to do.

Never had a smartphone break like this.
The G6 was never dropped.

 

[easysurfer]

Years back when my cell phone (was a flip phone) that I used for Tracfone stopped working and I made the mistake of calling Tracfone support as that was not a happy experience. The kicker was when the support person said they'll send me a replacement phone, that was on the way. But they pretty much misled and never shipped one as I waited.

I ended up saying forget them and moved to Consumer Celluar which I'm happy with.

I'm not sure how easy it is to move the SIM over to an unlocked phone as have never tried that.

The Tracfone prepaid is great if you seldom use the phone until you need service, then could be a different story.

Good luck!

 

[retire-early]

I bought the smartphone from Tracfone on eBay so I am under warranty.

The CSR I talked to promised that they would send me a shipping label to mail back the broken G6, and then they would send me a brand new G6 when they receive the broken one. This means I will be without a smartphone for at least 2 weeks if they follow through.

What a pain.
So disappointed in Motorola.
.

 

[pb4uski]

.... I'm not sure how easy it is to move the SIM over to an unlocked phone as have never tried that. ...

It is easy peasy. About a month ago DS dropped his phone in the toilet... it was a Samsung Galazy S5 (I think) and his cell phone provider is TracFone.

I brough him my old Motorola G4 Play and we took the SIM out, put it in the G4 Play, powered it on and he was good to go.

 

[pb4uski]

I bought the smartphone from Tracfone on eBay so I am under warranty.

The CSR I talked to promised that they would send me a shipping label to mail back the broken G6, and then they would send me a brand new G6 when they receive the broken one. This means I will be without a smartphone for at least 2 weeks if they follow through.

What a pain.
So disappointed in Motorola.
.

If they really cared about customer service they would sell you a replacement and then give you a credit once they receive the bad phone.... or ship you a new phone and then charge you for it if they don't receive the old phone back within 30 days.

 

[easysurfer]

It is easy peasy. About a month ago DS dropped his phone in the toilet... it was a Samsung Galazy S5 (I think) and his cell phone provider is TracFone.

I brough him my old Motorola G4 Play and we took the SIM out, put it in the G4 Play, powered it on and he was good to go.

After reading this, I'd definitely lean towards the take SIM out approach.

Also, don't use a phone while in the bathroom .

 

[retire-early]

It is easy peasy. About a month ago DS dropped his phone in the toilet... it was a Samsung Galazy S5 (I think) and his cell phone provider is TracFone.

I brough him my old Motorola G4 Play and we took the SIM out, put it in the G4 Play, powered it on and he was good to go.

Was your old G4 Play a Tracfone too?

 

[pb4uski]

No, just an unlocked GSM/CDMA phone. When I used it I had AT&T and he has Verizon (via TracFone).

Our G7 Plays are the same. When we bought them we just swapped SIM cards and were up and running.

 

[retire-early]

I remembered that I have an old Tracfone.
It uses a microSIM so I went and bought a nanoSIM adapter on eBay for $1.50
This should tide me over until I get the new G6 back from Tracfone.
Assuming they follow through on their promise.

 

[FIYes]

I have seen several negative reports on the G6 on Howard Forums. On the other hand I bought an unlocked G6 in November 2018 and loved it...had absolutely no problems with it. I switched to a Samsung last year in my successful quest to have a seamlessly linked Smartwatch and phone. This June I too jumped on the Tracfone eBay deal for the Moto G6 bundle. It was just too good a deal to pass up. We are using it as an extra phone for DH when he needs a smartphone or gps. DH’s phone preferences are, in order, no phone, ancient flip phone, smartphone. So far no issues with the G6.

I am a long time Tracfone user and I am very familiar with their lack of customer service. Typically I consult Howard Forums and only contact customer service as a last result. Hope Tracfone sends you a good replacement. Really, it’s luck of the draw on getting a good phone. I liked the G6 so much that bought the second one this June!

 

[retire-early]

I did not think of reading reviews of the G6.
Folks on Slickdeals were very keen on it, so I bought it through the deal on eBay back in June too.


My Motorola E (2nd Generation) with 4G LTE which I bought five years ago is still going strong. I don't think I will take another chance on the G6 though.
It looks like G7 is no better.

 

[pb4uski]

We have had two G7 Plays for over a year (one me and one DW) No problems at all. Best phones we have ever had.

 

[Sunset]

We have 2 Motorola G6 for 2 years now, working just fine, no issues at all.

Looking toward the future, I just wish it had a replaceable battery like some of my other phones as I know the battery will be pretty bad in another 2 years.

 

[folivier]

My DW and I both have Moto X4's and are pleased with them. Bought them unlocked direct from Motorola. Only problem I have with mine is this summer while at 9600' for a few months the display would get a line down in the middle of the screen. Once back at lower altitude it would go away. Weird and didn't affect performance.

 

[retire-early]

From a hint found on the internet, I took a brand new 3in1 SIM that I had lying around, removed the micro SIM then removed the inside nano SIM.
That which remains is a "hollow" micro SIM.
Then inserted the G6's nano SIM into the "hollow" micro SIM.
Then inserted the "Frankenstein" micro SIM into the old Motorola E.

Voila! working smartphone with service.

 

[drb391]

No, just an unlocked GSM/CDMA phone. When I used it I had AT&T and he has Verizon (via TracFone).

Our G7 Plays are the same. When we bought them we just swapped SIM cards and were up and running.

what is a GSM/CDMA phone? I thought they were separate phone OSs. they make phones with both??

 

[folivier]

I think you're confusing the phone's OS (operating system: Android, IOS, etc.) with the cellular carrier: In the US Sprint, Verizon, and US Cellular use CDMA. AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM.
Yes there are phones that can use either CDMA or GSM sim cards.

 

[retire-early]

I think you're confusing the phone's OS (operating system: Android, IOS, etc.) with the cellular carrier: In the US Sprint, Verizon, and US Cellular use CDMA. AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM.
Yes there are phones that can use either CDMA or GSM sim cards.

I was told that the G6 has the hardware thus giving it the capability to work on all bands aka frequencies. So, after a year + 1 day with Tracfone, I could unlock it, and theoretically it would work on T-Mobile or AT&T network.

.

 

[retire-early]

what is a GSM/CDMA phone? I thought they were separate phone OSs. they make phones with both??

When I was looking at unlocked phones over the weekend, I would see "GSM unlocked" which would seem to imply that the unlocked phone would not work with Verizon or Sprint since both are CDMA.
Such a royal pain.

/

 

[pb4uski]

I think you're confusing the phone's OS (operating system: Android, IOS, etc.) with the cellular carrier: In the US Sprint, Verizon, and US Cellular use CDMA. AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM.
Yes there are phones that can use either CDMA or GSM sim cards.

Right. We have unlocked G7 Plays that are unlocked for both GSM or CDMA... $130 plus free shipping from Motorola or Best Buy... I only know because I've been looking for a replacement phone for my son.

 

[braumeister]

No longer true. Most phones made today will operate on either system.

 

[retire-early]

Right. We have unlocked G7 Plays that are unlocked for both GSM or CDMA... $130 plus free shipping from Motorola or Best Buy... I only know because I've been looking for a replacement phone for my son.

Right now on Best Buy website, the unlocked G7 Play is showing $80 (activation today) or $130 (activate late).
Why does an unlocked phone need to be activated if I plan on putting in my own SIM ?


.

 

[retire-early]

No longer true. Most phones made today will operate on either system.

most is the operative word especially if you are like me and buy Tracfones based on price and not the internals of the smartphone.

 

[pb4uski]

The $80 price is if they activate it and sell you a cell phone plan when you buy the phone. The $130 price is if you buy the phone unlocked and are your own in terms of getting a plan.

Right now on Best Buy website, the unlocked G7 Play is showing $80 (activation today) or $130 (activate late).
Why does an unlocked phone need to be activated if I plan on putting in my own SIM ?


.

 

[retire-early]

The $80 price is if they activate it and sell you a cell phone plan when you buy the phone. The $130 price is if you buy the phone unlocked and are your own in terms of getting a plan.

Thanks.

I was on chat with Tracfone. The CSR told me that the replacement G6 was on back order.

Then called Tracfone. The CSR claimed they sent me an email with printable mailing label, but there was nothing not even in Spam folder. So they are going to generate one again which will take 24-48 hours. We shall see.

In the meantime, I have initiated an action via Paypal asking for a partial refund. This smartphone was purchased directly from Tracfone on eBay.

I am not holding my breath on a replacement smartphone or a refund.


.