cant use HTC phone - has it been blocked???

trinidadone

hello all,

I hope you had a good New Year ????

I have aquired a HTC. I dont know any more details than that, other than it has a large screen and told it retails at £130.00.

I bought a £5.00 charger today, popped my Sim in and turned on the phone. The screen told me i had "restricted service" does this mean it is locked/blocked???? i tried making a call, but it would not let me. I returned the sim back into my normal phone and the sim works fine.

any suggestions????

TadleyBaggie

It's probably locked to another network, ask the person you bought it off?

John_Gray

I love the word "acquired" - it is so non-specific!

It sounds like the phone is locked to another network, and you would have to get it unlocked to get your SIM to work in it.

[curses - beaten by a non-Grumpy Cat!]

trinidadone

its with the same network as me

macman

Then it sounds like the phone you acquired has been IMEI-blocked. As in, it was stolen or lost.

trinidadone

well if that is correct macman, then my guess was right. can a IMEL be unblocked???

katejo

Did you 'acquire' it from someone who obtained it as a 'free' handset as part of a contract? If that person has stopped paying, then the phone is a 'stolen' one and thus has perhaps been blocked.

ChiefGrasscutter

If so, then I would suspect not - or rather not without the conset of the "original owner".
Otherwise there would not be much point in the blocking process which is to make a lost/stolen phone totally unuseable thereafter.

John_Gray

Hence my interest in the precise meaning of "acquired"...!

trinidadone

thanks for your import, I welcome it alot

agrinnall

Please do ring up the network to ask them to unblock it, I'm sure they'll be happy to pass your details on to the police so they can ask you to assist them in their enquiries on receiving stolen goods.