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Saved Drowning Boy, Killed my Phone

I did get "somewhere" with Verizon. They said that due to the fact that I didn't have insurance, and since it's been over 30 days (I got it on 4/29), that normally I'm out of luck. But given the circumstances, they are willing to allow me to get a replacement Droid Eris for $50.

I know beggers can't be choosers, but I feel like I did a good deed, and I'm getting a downgraded phone for it. So I told them I'd think about it and let them know tomorrow, but I think I've already made up my mind.

I guess I don't have much of a choice but to get the parents to pay the full amount, can't say I didn't try with Verizon. Still waiting to hear back from HTC, I'm hoping tomorrow, since I'm assuming they don't work on the weekend.

How much would HTC charge to replace the screen... or would they even consider replacing it being that it was due to water damage?


- Darin
 
Darin said:
I did get "somewhere" with Verizon. They said that due to the fact that I didn't have insurance, and since it's been over 30 days (I got it on 4/29), that normally I'm out of luck. But given the circumstances, they are willing to allow me to get a replacement Droid Eris for $50.

I know beggers can't be choosers, but I feel like I did a good deed, and I'm getting a downgraded phone for it. So I told them I'd think about it and let them know tomorrow, but I think I've already made up my mind.

I guess I don't have much of a choice but to get the parents to pay the full amount, can't say I didn't try with Verizon. Still waiting to hear back from HTC, I'm hoping tomorrow, since I'm assuming they don't work on the weekend.

How much would HTC charge to replace the screen... or would they even consider replacing it being that it was due to water damage?


- Darin
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haha, yeah some deal. $50 more for them for a phone that was going to end up in the junkyard soon anyway.

The Eris is a great phone, and if you can't come up with the cash for the Incredible, it beats the alternatives. Coming from an Incredible, however, you will be very disappointed in the screen size, screen quality, and speed of the Eris compared to the Incredible. I say follow Steven58's attempt and/or get the parents to pony up the cash. If all else fails, I'm sure VZW will still offer you the Eris in a week or two if you have no other choice.
 
i have no doubt the OP did a great thing.. but he didn't really mention anything about the kid's parents in this thread.. did you tell them about your phone? if so, what did they say? if someone saved my kid in the situation like this, i wouldn't hesitate at all to pay for whatever the loss or damage he/she had, replacing remote car key, phone, wallet or whatever.. no offense.. just curious about the reaction or mind-set of kid’s parents..
 
Good for you.. You did a wonderful thing.. Things are things and they come and go throughout a lifetime..

God Bless You!
 
murmur11 said:
i have no doubt the OP did a great thing.. but he didn't really mention anything about the kid's parents in this thread.. did you tell them about your phone? if so, what did they say? if someone saved my kid in the situation like this, i wouldn't hesitate at all to pay for whatever the loss or damage he/she had, replacing remote car key, phone, wallet or whatever.. no offense.. just curious about the reaction or mind-set of kid
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You can call HTC and see what repairs would cost? I would try leaving it on rice a bit longer to be honest though.
 
Kelmar said:
You can call HTC and see what repairs would cost? I would try leaving it on rice a bit longer to be honest though.
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Yeah... I did take your advice last night and I removed the battery and SD card and put the phone back on rice. How long do you think I should leave it in there for? I put the screen face down and at a slight angle (bottom of phone pointing down); does that even matter or will the rice just do its job regardless of the phone angle?

I'm going to type up another e-mail to HTC, but this one will be in regard to getting the phone repaired.


- Darin
 
Darin said:
Anyway, I informed the family of the boy who almost drown, and they are willing to cover the cost of a new phone (though I don't believe they know how much it's going to cost them - that's the next call).


- Darin
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Hey very cool of you to save a life! Definitely worth a phone.. Unless of course it had your will in it and you drowned. jk!

Anyways,

As stated above, you already said the family is paying for it, right?
 
jamor said:
Hey very cool of you to save a life! Definitely worth a phone.. Unless of course it had your will in it and you drowned. jk!

Anyways,

As stated above, you already said the family is paying for it, right?
Click to expand...


Yeah... I'm pretty certain that they'll pay regardless of the price, they were very gracious for what I did.

I just want to find out if I can get it repaired to lessen the financial burden on them. No use paying for a brand new phone if the only thing wrong is the screen light. Not to mention everyone is tight right now with the way the economy is.


- Darin
 
Darin said:
Yeah... I did take your advice last night and I removed the battery and SD card and put the phone back on rice. How long do you think I should leave it in there for? I put the screen face down and at a slight angle (bottom of phone pointing down); does that even matter or will the rice just do its job regardless of the phone angle?

I'm going to type up another e-mail to HTC, but this one will be in regard to getting the phone repaired.


- Darin
Click to expand...

Darin said:
Yeah... I'm pretty certain that they'll pay regardless of the price, they were very gracious for what I did.

I just want to find out if I can get it repaired to lessen the financial burden on them. No use paying for a brand new phone if the only thing wrong is the screen light. Not to mention everyone is tight right now with the way the economy is.


- Darin
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At least a few days (48 hours minimum).

The cost of repairs may be cheaper than the cost of a new phone, so that may be the way to go.
 
Darin you did a good deed in saving something that is priceless and that's life. The phone is replaceable and something good will happen to you in return. The thing is you'll get it when you least expect it.
 
Darin said:
Well at first it was, "Darin's $200 phone was in his pocket when he jumped in." And I spoke with the parent's on phone conversation the next morning, and they said they will cover the cost to replace the phone... but like I said I don't think they know that it's gonna cost $540.

What are my options with HTC... will they repair the phone? As I mentioned, I've run the phone through several tests, and it seems to be just the light on the screen that is not operating. The internal memory, as well as the SD card, all pop up with I plug the phone into my computer via USB. I can call the phone, answer calls, receive texts, make calls (granted, I'm doing all these blindly).

But does the phone run off a backlight like LCD TVs? If so, it would seem to me that the backlight is the only issue. Just my guess.


- Darin
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glad to hear what they said next morning. i'm not an expert on cell phone hardware or mechanism on the LCD sreen, so i can't really speak to it.. but from my past experience on the water damaged ipod and palm t3 pda, it might be cheaper to just get a new one. either way, good luck on fixing or replacing your device.
 
The Droid Eris is selling on eBay for like $200, so if you took the deal Verizon is giving you, you could offset the cost of repairs/new phone by selling the droid eris.
 
Darin said:
I just want to find out if I can get it repaired to lessen the financial burden on them. No use paying for a brand new phone if the only thing wrong is the screen light. Not to mention everyone is tight right now with the way the economy is.
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This, to me, is any proof anyone needs as to the validity of the story. I don't need any further proof. The fact that Darin seems perfectly happy to simply have the phone repaired, if possible, for something as major as a screen failure is incredibly refreshing when I see other posts where people insist that they should have a brand new phone because of one little scratch or minor issue.

We can all learn a lesson from Darin's actions. I can't add anything to what everyone else has said other than you did good, and it'll come back to you.
 
jakeh0 said:
this would be a great episode of curb your enthusiasm
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loool.

Couldn't you picture Larry walking up to the door and awkwardly telling them how his phone broke?

And then they told him they wouldn't pay for it..

He would be PISSED.
 
Same thing almost happened too me this weekend. I was at a friends house, kids were swimming, I was nervous all day cause of my 3 yo.so I was mentally prepared to empty my pockets and jump in
Well my kids were out of the pool. Me and the guys are hanging in the deck and I looked down and my friends kid is on her tippy toes spitting and spattering. I run down, dump my pockets am about to jump in and her dad was already in there and grabbed her. Close call but she was fine
 
jamor said:
WWDD
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That's funny.


TheBeardedMann said:
Darin,
Start up a PayPal account and I'll donate $5 to get you closer to a new Incredible.
Click to expand...


For those interested, my paypal e-mail is darin.mikesell@gmail.com


So anyway, my wife and I were talking, and I think we're going to take the following approach.

1) Order a new Incredible from Verizon, total of $576.33.

2) Invoice the parents.

3) Put my current Incredible on eBay, with full disclosure.

4) Then for any amount I make off the sale of the phone on eBay (or paypal for that matter), give it to the parents to lessen the cost they had to pay in #2.


Let me know what you guys/gals think.


- Darin
 
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