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Undertoad · 01-03-2013, 08:03 PM

Today I took a guy, and felt good about it.

Dude comes in with an iPhone and says it's an iPhone 5 and he doesn't need it any more.

It's not so easy to immediately tell the difference between an iPhone 4 and a 4S. The 5 is larger, so you can see that. So I know it's a 4 or a 4S. I say no, it's just a 4, and then I turn it over and look at the model number.

The model number is in very small type, at the bottom of the back of the phone. This one is A1387, which means it's a 4S.

So the gentleman has stated that the model is the latest, but told it was a 4, he didn't question it.

The gentleman does not have a charger cable, and the phone is not charged. I explain that we can't buy the phone without starting it to see whether it works, and can I charge the phone for 10 minutes? Sure. I take it to the back where we have an iPhone charger. But after 10 minutes, it isn't charged enough to boot. This means it's probably not holding a charge.

I return to the guy and show him the not-charged-enough symbol, and say with that sort of problem we can only buy it in for $40. I insert into his mind the idea that all pawn shops will have the same policy. He takes the phone back and then -- turns around, and says, well we might as well do that.

I knew he'd do the deal. He either stole the phone, or he found it somewhere, maybe even discarded due to its bad battery. He doesn't know what it is. He doesn't have the charger that any legitimate phone owner has. He doesn't know it couldn't hold a charge. He doesn't know that a dead battery is not a big deal.

This phone currently sells on eBay for $300 in "For Parts or Not Working" status. Chances are 50-50 that the cops will come looking for it -- but since it doesn't hold a charge, they can't power it on to see if it comes up with someone's information.

Dude is a criminal or at the very least a terrible liar. I took him for every penny I could, and I was proud.

01-03-2013, 08:03 PM	#290
Undertoad Radical Centrist Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Cottage of Prussia Posts: 31,423	Today I took a guy, and felt good about it. Dude comes in with an iPhone and says it's an iPhone 5 and he doesn't need it any more. It's not so easy to immediately tell the difference between an iPhone 4 and a 4S. The 5 is larger, so you can see that. So I know it's a 4 or a 4S. I say no, it's just a 4, and then I turn it over and look at the model number. The model number is in very small type, at the bottom of the back of the phone. This one is A1387, which means it's a 4S. So the gentleman has stated that the model is the latest, but told it was a 4, he didn't question it. The gentleman does not have a charger cable, and the phone is not charged. I explain that we can't buy the phone without starting it to see whether it works, and can I charge the phone for 10 minutes? Sure. I take it to the back where we have an iPhone charger. But after 10 minutes, it isn't charged enough to boot. This means it's probably not holding a charge. I return to the guy and show him the not-charged-enough symbol, and say with that sort of problem we can only buy it in for $40. I insert into his mind the idea that all pawn shops will have the same policy. He takes the phone back and then -- turns around, and says, well we might as well do that. I knew he'd do the deal. He either stole the phone, or he found it somewhere, maybe even discarded due to its bad battery. He doesn't know what it is. He doesn't have the charger that any legitimate phone owner has. He doesn't know it couldn't hold a charge. He doesn't know that a dead battery is not a big deal. This phone currently sells on eBay for $300 in "For Parts or Not Working" status. Chances are 50-50 that the cops will come looking for it -- but since it doesn't hold a charge, they can't power it on to see if it comes up with someone's information. Dude is a criminal or at the very least a terrible liar. I took him for every penny I could, and I was proud.