Every guide on the site as a thread in one inbox, sorted into three folders: buying used, unlocking and trade-ins, insurance and repair.
- BBuying a Used Phone: How to Save Without Getting BurnedBuying UsedA used phone can cost a fraction of a new one, but the risks are real: locked devices, hidden damage, fakes and sellers who vanish. Where to buy, how to pay, what to ask and the checks that protect your money, based on FTC guidance.
- BRefurbished Phones Explained: What the Word Does and Doesn’t MeanBuying Used“Refurbished” sounds reassuring, but no single federal standard defines it. What a refurbished phone usually is, the questions that reveal what you are actually getting, how warranties and returns work and when a plain used phone is the better deal.
- BChecking a Used Phone Before You Buy: A Practical ChecklistBuying UsedTen minutes of testing can save you from a locked, damaged or stolen phone. A step-by-step checklist for meeting a seller: accounts and activation, network, hardware, battery and paperwork, plus the warning signs that should end the deal.
- BWarranties on Used and Refurbished Phones: What You Actually GetBuying UsedA used phone may come with a maker’s warranty, a seller’s warranty, only the implied warranties of state law, or nothing at all. How each works, what the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act says about repairs, how to read the fine print and what to do when a claim is refused.
- UHow Phone Unlocking Works: Postpaid, Prepaid and the Waiting PeriodUnlocking & Trade-InsA locked phone works only with the carrier that sold it. Why carriers lock phones, the industry’s six unlocking commitments, when postpaid and prepaid phones become eligible, what changed with the FCC’s 2026 waiver for one national carrier, and how to ask for an unlock.
- UIs Unlocking a Phone Legal? The Copyright Rule ExplainedUnlocking & Trade-InsFor a few years, unlocking a phone without the carrier’s permission ran into copyright law. How that happened, how Congress fixed it in 2014, what the current Copyright Office exemption allows, who may do the unlocking and how repair is now covered too.
- UTrade-Ins and Bill Credits: How to Get Real Value From an Old PhoneUnlocking & Trade-InsA trade-in can be worth a lot, or tie you to a carrier for years. How instant trade-ins differ from promotional bill credits, how credits interact with financing and unlocking, what to do with the phone before you send it and how to compare a trade-in with selling it yourself.
- UWiping a Phone Before You Sell, Trade or Recycle ItUnlocking & Trade-InsYour old phone carries your accounts, photos, messages and passwords. The FTC’s steps to remove personal information before a phone leaves your hands, the order that avoids locking yourself out, and why a factory reset is not the only thing to do.
- IPhone Insurance vs. Extended Warranty: Which, If Either, Is Worth It?Insurance & RepairPhone insurance, protection plans and extended warranties overlap more than their marketing suggests. What each covers, what state law requires sellers of phone insurance to disclose, the FTC’s checklist for service contracts and when saving the money yourself makes more sense.
- IRight to Repair and Your Phone: What Federal and State Law SaysInsurance & RepairYou can repair your own phone or use an independent shop without automatically losing your warranty, and some states now require makers to sell parts, tools and manuals. What the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, the federal copyright repair exemption and Minnesota’s digital fair repair law actually say.
- IFixing a Cracked Phone Screen: Repair Options and Costs to WeighInsurance & RepairA cracked screen is the most common phone injury, and the cheapest fix depends on your warranty, any insurance, and who does the repair. How to compare maker, carrier, independent and do-it-yourself repairs, what your rights are and when it makes sense to replace the phone instead.
- IRecycling an Old Phone Safely and ResponsiblyInsurance & RepairAn old phone in a drawer has value, both in metals and in data risk. How to wipe it, where to donate or recycle it, why lithium-ion batteries must never go in the trash and what recycling a million phones recovers, according to EPA.