[Nimzi]

Hi guys.

I just recently joined the community and glad to be part of such a helpful forum. I am from the UK.

I bought a blackberry classic not too long ago after many years of not using a blackberry. The handset was listed as locked to the o2 network which was fine as I use giffgaff which runs on the o2 network. I bought the phone hoping I could buy one of those cheap codes from ebay to unlock it so I could switch between my personal and business number on a different netwrok when needed. I bought a code from ebay but the seller was unable to generate it and refunded me immediately. I bought another and the same thing happened. I kept on buying codes and to date I have purchased approximately 15 codes and none of then have worked. One of the sellers asked me if my device was a cdma phone but I didn't know. I then looked it up and realised that it may actually be. I read online that it can be done for free through the carrier so I contacted them. The strange thing is that o2 got back to me and said that it's not an o2 device even though it boots up with the o2 logo and those sims work in it. I'm really stuck as I can't get it unlocked.

Some extra information. The phone has the imei number and 'not for sale' printed at the bottom underneath the space bar. It made me think it might be from america as the currency button is set to dollars and cannot be changed to show the pound sign by default. The IMEI starts with 0044 which is unusual too.

Any help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[m3ach]

Hi guys.

I just recently joined the community and glad to be part of such a helpful forum. I am from the UK.

I bought a blackberry classic not too long ago after many years of not using a blackberry. The handset was listed as locked to the o2 network which was fine as I use giffgaff which runs on the o2 network. I bought the phone hoping I could buy one of those cheap codes from ebay to unlock it so I could switch between my personal and business number on a different netwrok when needed. I bought a code from ebay but the seller was unable to generate it and refunded me immediately. I bought another and the same thing happened. I kept on buying codes and to date I have purchased approximately 15 codes and none of then have worked. One of the sellers asked me if my device was a cdma phone but I didn't know. I then looked it up and realised that it may actually be. I read online that it can be done for free through the carrier so I contacted them. The strange thing is that o2 got back to me and said that it's not an o2 device even though it boots up with the o2 logo and those sims work in it. I'm really stuck as I can't get it unlocked.

Some extra information. The phone has the imei number and 'not for sale' printed at the bottom underneath the space bar. It made me think it might be from america as the currency button is set to dollars and cannot be changed to show the pound sign by default. The IMEI starts with 0044 which is unusual too.

Any help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

The biggest red flag here is the ‘not for sale’ that’s printed on the phone!

What model number is it mine is a SQC100-1, I’m also in the UK.

My IMEI Number begins with 359 but I’m not sure if that means anything.

Is the phone actually locked to a network, have you checked in the settings under security and privacy, sim card to see if it says it’s locked to a network?

[Nimzi]

I know, everytime I see that not for sale sign I feel like an idiot. However I did manage to get a very good deal on the phone which is why I went ahead with it.

The model number is the same as yours. SQC100-1. One of the sellers that I purchased an unlock code from said that it's very unusual to have an imei that starts in 0044. He said they all should start with 359. It doesn't say in the settings that its locked to any particular network but a code is required when you put a different sim card in.

If o2 said its not an o2 device even though it's branded with their boot up screen then that is just a mystery beyond me. I thought it may be an imported phone from US so I tried US unlock codes. I tried all of the available codes from ebay hoping they might work but still no luck. If I could at least find out what network it's on then I could contact them.

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

Good Deal......

You bought 15 worthless codes... that alone should have paid for a unlocked Classic on eBay.

Sorry but those "not for sale" pre production phones aren't meant to be unlocked or even used, they are for testing. Either by BlackBerry or Carriers.

[brookie229]

You bought 15 worthless codes... that alone should have paid for a unlocked Classic on eBay.

Those companies always refund if the codes do not work- been there, done that!

[m3ach]

I think DDD has it, it’s not for sale and not meant to be unlocked.

Your only option would seem to be to get an O2 sim and use the phone like that.

The O2 branding could be from a carrier OS loaded onto the phone with all the carrier bloat left in, it may just be a red herring.

[Nimzi]

@Dunt Dunt Dunt
Brookie229 is correct all of the codes I purchased were refunded so didn't spend a penny. Like I said at the beginning if you read it properly that the phone is not useless because my main network is on o2 unlocking the device would just be a bonus and is not necessary. On top of that I raised a dispute and got £10 taken off the total for a phone that is literally in brand new condition. Seems like a good deal to me.

[m3ach]

@Dunt Dunt Dunt
Brookie229 is correct all of the codes I purchased were refunded so didn't spend a penny. Like I said at the beginning if you read it properly that the phone is not useless because my main network is on o2 unlocking the device would just be a bonus and is not necessary. On top of that I raised a dispute and got £10 taken off the total for a phone that is literally in brand new condition. Seems like a good deal to me.

If you can use it without any problem apart from the unlocking then it’s certainly not wasted money.