Google Pixel XL Phones Blacklisted as Stolen

This a personal blog or a tech news site??

Until all Pixel phones (WTF kind of phone is a Pixel anyway?) keep this talk on your Wordpress page...
 
Are you new to the tech world? You want the latest most advanced phones and devices you pay a premium and you realize right off the bat there's a clock ticking till it's just "another device" and the next hyper advanced toy is here. The people that spend that much on a phone know damn well it's not something they will keep for 8 years. or even 5. It sounds like you are perfectly happy with updates from apple that break and or degrade their older hardware and it's well established what and how apple pushes the users of older hardware into upgrading to the latest toy. With the pace at which phones and technology advance, it's just not realistic to support every phone for 10 years. I don't even see why you are in this thread flying the apple flag, are you that insecure with your purchase?
My, my, reading some of these posts makes me realize how reading comprehension has failed so many.

Kyle, let us know if swappa or paypal forces you to return the blacklisted phone.

I imagine that there will be a lot of these on ebay soon.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
This a personal blog or a tech news site??

Until all Pixel phones (WTF kind of phone is a Pixel anyway?) keep this talk on your Wordpress page...

633645003725135464.jpg
 
Wonder what state would have "not legitimate" as a specific civil or criminal term. Failing to adhere to ToS and other contracts just means the wronged party can sue the party who breached the agreement and maybe third parties who knowingly went along with it. Many jurisdictions have taken steps to prevent collateral damage to other parties from contract disputes.

Still doesn't make it illegal just breach of contract. No criminal laws were broken.
 
People talking about not using phones for 7-8 years, I'm still using an SGS2. Hardly use it because no cell reception.
Want to get a flip phone next, w2017 or similar.
 
So... another thing I get from this is that people can report an IMEI stolen... and BOOM insta-brick. I hope there's something in there to check that the person who is reporting the phone stolen is actually the person who owns (or in this case, owned) the phone? I can see this being used for purely nefarious reasons...
 
What are you going to do with the blacklisted phone, Kyle?

Since this made the news, you should throw your John Hancock on it and auction that bitch off asap...might set a record for most money made on a mostly-bricked device! :ROFLMAO:
 
I'll make it easy for you. Apple provides updates for at least my wife's 4 year old phone. But hey I get it, being wrong and all that.

Again, wrong about what?

This thread is about Android, my post specifically states Vanilla Android and Apple still does not support phones forever, that 4 year old phone will no longer be getting a new OS, so your whole point is that 4 years is the magical worth it point? Ok?
 
This a personal blog or a tech news site??

Until all Pixel phones (WTF kind of phone is a Pixel anyway?) keep this talk on your Wordpress page...

Is the Pixel a smart phone? Yes

Is a smart phone tech related? Yes.

Is there an issue with said tech that is possibly affecting other people? Yes

Is this a tech site reporting on it? Yes



Conclusion: You forgot your morning coffee again....
 
That's really unfortunate. I've heard good things about the Pixel and I've sold a few phones on Swappa but never really purchased one. I had a Note 5 previously but switched to the iPhone 7+ but boggles my mind how Google can release a phone like that and still have supply issues.
 
The people that spend that much on a phone know damn well it's not something they will keep for 8 years. or even 5.

I kept my last phone for 5 years. Phone before that right at 4 years. Phone before that 4 years. I spend that much on a device because I EXPECT to keep it for a long time and because they do what I need them to do for personal and work. Otherwise, I would buy cheap pieces of crap every year.
 
A person reporting a phone stolen should be required to show a police report to the phone company before they blacklist it. Loosing it is another story again if the phone was activated for over 6 months and than the old owner reports it stolen, that should be a red flag for the carrier(s)
 
I'm loving my Pixel XL, best phone I've ever owned.

I hope this gets resolved for you quickly Kyle.
 
That AndroidPolice article said:
Kyle, a writer for HardOCP, had his Pixel XL's IMEI blacklisted just yesterday.

Made a comment there stating that you're not just "a writer for HardOCP" but the owner and founder, not that they'll probably give a shit. Gotta love reposted materials for clicks, eh? :D
 
I'm really curious how swappa will handle this since i've bought a couple of phones through them and will likely buy more soon
 
I'm really curious how swappa will handle this since i've bought a couple of phones through them and will likely buy more soon
I hope they find a way to fix this with google, since i personally had very good experience and deals with them and wouldn't mind a xheap and clean pixel xl.
 
I wanted a Pixel when they came out. At the time, IIRC the Pixel came out after I got my Note 7, while the Note 7 was in recall mode (don't quote me on that) I held on to my ticking timebomb trying to get a Pixel. I believe, at that time, that the Pixel was UP FRONT only. I couldn't cover it at the time, after buying a Note 7. Needless to say, I had to return the Note 7 and get an LG V20. I still want a Pixel XL -- but I'm leaning towards a Note 8 when they come out.

Also, this image is why I love [H]... Kyle has one of the best senses of humor, and the perfect IDGAF attitude to people really trying to be a dick.
 

Attachments

  • Capture.PNG
    Capture.PNG
    5.8 KB · Views: 24
Okay there's a lot going on here so let's break it down for you.

I never advocated for 10 years but losing security updates after two years isn't a good thing. I never once said 10 years but losing the ability to update your phone after two years is bullshit, we both know it by the way you tried to deflect. Snowflake.

Never had an Apple update break my phone. The devices slow down after 3 years and I snag a new one. Sounds like someone's upset that google fucks you guys around on updates and that's got nothing to do with Apple's (how does fruit have a dick?) penis in my mouth.

Apples dick, well that's new and special. Are you fucking retarded? Must be.

I'd be more insecure if random iPhones were getting blacklisted after IMEI checks though. (y)

Then you need a Pixel, or other vanilla Android device, where you can download the latest versions directly from Google and update the device yourself.

See how easy that is to get updates for your phone for as long as you want?
 
IMG_1173.JPG
Then you need a Pixel, or other vanilla Android device, where you can download the latest versions directly from Google and update the device yourself.

See how easy that is to get updates for your phone for as long as you want?
The pixel has updates for 24 months. If they'd guarantee longer update releases for the pixel I'd probably buy one. I'm not going to subject myself to the fractured android ecosystem again.
Two years isn't good enough.
 
View attachment 25822
The pixel has updates for 24 months. If they'd guarantee longer update releases for the pixel I'd probably buy one. I'm not going to subject myself to the fractured android ecosystem again.
Two years isn't good enough.

The idea of "fractured Android" comes from multiple OEMs using Android that don't update their devices when Google does push out a new release, it has absolutely nothing to do with Google itself: the whole idea of the Nexus and Pixel devices is so you CAN get the latest updates, literally when they are published by Google itself, instead of having to hope and pray that a carrier will test it out on their devices for however long then finally decide to release it, sometimes a very long time after it first became available. Multiple OEMs can even have multiple devices in their own lineup and have different versions of Android across their entire product line which is the source of the "fractured Android" concept and practice.

2 years is pretty much the standard cycle for any Android device, especially those from Google itself - sometimes they service them for even longer periods but that's up to them to go that distance, they guarantee at least the 2 years which typically is two major updates.

Google devices in the Nexus line (no longer made) and now the Pixel lineup are absolutely not part of that fractured situation.
 
So, Kyle, what are your plans for the now blacklisted Pixel XL? Gonna offer it up to someone or... perhaps, target practice on a nice sunny Spring day?
Talking to the seller now. This is what the seller has told me as of this morning, "I'm going to try and get more answers from Google.. otherwise I'll set up a return and issue a refund.. Swappa, help on this matter would be greatly appreciated considering the hundreds of dollars I've spent on seller fees over the many devices I've sold."

This a personal blog or a tech news site??
It is whatever I want it to be. :) But to that point, I think there is a bigger story here than just my phone. It looks like large scale fraud of some kind has been perpetrated considering the mass bannings of Pixel phones.

Kyle, let us know if swappa or paypal forces you to return the blacklisted phone.
As of now, returning it is the plan.

What are you going to do with the blacklisted phone, Kyle?
Hopefully return it, get my money back, and money back on insurance plan I bought from Swappa. The Swappa guys seem to be firmly on my side on this.

A person reporting a phone stolen should be required to show a police report to the phone company before they blacklist it.
Yeah, this is somewhat interesting in how this all happens. I like the killswitch feature in phones, but it seems to have just made criminals adjust how they operate.
 
Well that's good on the seller's part that they're willing to work on this with you and Swappa, it sucks that Google took this rather drastic measure and actually went this far but the backlash over it will snowball till they fix it more than likely. I would presume they'll be making some kind of update on things soon enough with some backtracking perhaps, or they could stand their ground with the claim that their ToS on the Project Fi devices is pretty clear and explicit and leave everybody out in the cold, literally.

Would be a fucked up thing to do but I wouldn't put it past them, honestly. I think this whole fiasco is going to have a pretty severely negative impact on the Pixel 2 when it's available, that much I'm pretty certain of already.
 
I'm sure you answered this, but was he the original owner of the phone?

Seems to not be, I think he said the seller he got it from was pulling the "I am checking with the person I bought it from", or something along those lines. Now....If that is true or not who knows.
 
Buy smart, buy ...sss-m-- traight from Google! :p
Hopefully things work out in your favor Kyle, without any serious negative hits on your end but some hoop jumping.

It use to be, you'd pay top dollar for an unlocked phone, but you knew it was legit, but receiving warranty was 50-50.
Even if you purchased a phone second hand, you knew it was direct from a carrier because those were literally the only options; or you were cognisant of the fact that it was unlocked and AS-IS.

These days, there are so many different paths a phone can travel as they reach second and third time buyers.
One would hope, that those phones sold into specific usage scenarios would somehow be locked into that case, so the original owner cannot resell if that goes against the Ts&Cs.
Protects from people abusing, but prevents these sorts of situations. But there's probably a lot of legal wrangling there.

I'm not surprised something like this happened, and I am extremely interested in knowing the root cause.
 
Buy smart, buy ...sss-m-- traight from Google! :p
Hopefully things work out in your favor Kyle, without any serious negative hits on your end but some hoop jumping.

It use to be, you'd pay top dollar for an unlocked phone, but you knew it was legit, but receiving warranty was 50-50.
Even if you purchased a phone second hand, you knew it was direct from a carrier because those were literally the only options; or you were cognisant of the fact that it was unlocked and AS-IS.

These days, there are so many different paths a phone can travel as they reach second and third time buyers.
One would hope, that those phones sold into specific usage scenarios would somehow be locked into that case, so the original owner cannot resell if that goes against the Ts&Cs.
Protects from people abusing, but prevents these sorts of situations. But there's probably a lot of legal wrangling there.

I'm not surprised something like this happened, and I am extremely interested in knowing the root cause.

Pretty sure he said they were all OOS when he wanted to buy one, so his only option WAS used. Not sure if he knew about going through Fi, or if he did Fi might have been out of stock as well. He did say he got a new XL black and I know when I got mine, even Fi was OOS on those.
 
2 years which typically is two major updates.
And that is the root of my issue in paying full price for a pixel when the device is already at almost the one year mark of those two years.

and why i think that buying it used is more in line for the "real" value of the device, unless google start reducing the price accordingly to the already state of "obsolescence " of the device due to the 2 year mark.

Thats also the reason why the iphone was mentioned, google priced the pixel at the same amount as one, so the comparison is a valid one. A smart consumer needs to keep that in mind when two devices costs the same.

And will drop this part of the argument, because for some reason, my original comment created all this "confusion ".
 
Does Apple reduce the price of a 2 year old iPhone? Not typically, nope. I just saw a mention of the iPhone 6 going on sale somewhere in the UK with only 32GB of storage at £399 SIM-free which to me is insane considering but they'll get away with it just the same. :)

I get the point about the pricing, the Pixel and Pixel XL were too much to begin with anyway but that's how it goes these days, everybody is looking to make massive profits (blame Apple and their minimum 40% profit margin on everything) and reaming customers in the process but the customers just keep going for it. I wouldn't buy any brand new device on the market today if I had more than enough money to do it with no negatives, there's just nothing out that I give a damn about at this point and nothing on the horizon either that I've seen.

But some folks just gotta have those Pixels, never been able to figure out the draw, who knows.
 
IF someone buys a phone on a plan in the US, and then doesn't pay up for the plan duration, does the phone get black listed? I know some carriers in Canada are doing this.
 
Does Apple reduce the price of a 2 year old iPhone?
They dont officially do, but their refurbished units are sometimes new devices, which, lets say are two years old, you buy one and chances are, you will get two more os updates, cant say that about a pixel, sadly.

I wouldn't buy any brand new device on the market today if I had more than enough money to do it
Agreed 100%. My last 3 phones were either used or heavily discounted because they werent new.
But some folks just gotta have those Pixels, never been able to figure out the draw, who knows.
Would be a matter of platform preference, i prefer android because ios is too locked down for my taste, but you have to balance whats worth and whats not i guess.
 
IF someone buys a phone on a plan in the US, and then doesn't pay up for the plan duration, does the phone get black listed? I know some carriers in Canada are doing this.

Most US carriers will blacklist a device on their own network but they don't classify them as lost or stolen in that respect, so there are 3 states a phone can be in on a carrier blacklist: it can be reported as lost, it can be reported as stolen, or it can be blacklisted for a balance on the account the phone was sold under (assuming that it was sold under a plan and not an outright purchase). Usually this kind of thing is covered in the fine print of whatever contract the plan has attached to it but, it's not like most people actually read the fine print - instead they just go by whatever a carrier rep is spitting out as fast as they can read the script on their screens. :)

This action by Google - at least as far as I can tell from the still rather limited information that's available - is pretty questionable considering they are saying one thing but the carriers are saying something else.
 
Damn, yeap, sounds like the already metioned scam.

What is curious is why it took this long for the phone to be blacklisted, since it looks like it is a launch unit?
I suspect we are seeing the results of widespread fraud here with Project Fi "purchased" phones, but have no evidence of that yet.
 
This experience would make for a good article on [H]ard|OCP. Just a thought.
I'm sure it's already in the works. At least with a globally known site like Kyle has it may cause the companies involved to "step up" their due diligence.
 
This experience would make for a good article on [H]ard|OCP. Just a thought.
Oh yeah...but EVIDENCE is required. But if you read the news page, you will see updates in the news feed.
 
i mean, if you really want to, you could (legal disclaimer, this is probably illegal) change the imei number on the phone with cdma tools.
The problem with blacklisting phones is that it reduces your ownership of the item. The problem with people not paying their bills with their subsidized phones shouldn't be the current owner's issues. Stolen phones should be handled like every other stolen device. If you have the imei number, the police should put it in a database and try and recover it for you.
This blacklisting process sounds like the no-fly list, which is basically out of your control with almost no recourse. If you get blacklisted, the item you paid good money for becomes trash.
 
The problem with people not paying their bills with their subsidized phones shouldn't be the current owner's issues

They never had the legal right to sell it, so that is NOT the current owner. That is like a renter selling a home they don't own, and calling the current occupant the "owner", when the seller never had the right to sell it in the first place. The device was never paid for and as such belongs to whoever has the lien.
 
Back
Top