AboutDebiN Expertise I can answer questions on cellular phones, the physical device, the network, what to look for when purchasing cell phones. I am located in the United States. I am an expert on BlackBerrys, Treos, HTC devices and iPhones as well as cellphones and aircards. I have over 15 years of experience in both the wireless and wireline world with the carriers. I have a lot of knowledge regarding the wireless providers - their services, prices and policies, both GSM (AT&T (formerly Cingular) and T-Mobile) and CDMA (Verizon, Sprint/Nextel (iDEN)). I am very familiar with the individual devices and their specifications. I can also answer questions regarding BlackBerrys, iPhones and other PDAs, both Palm-based and Windows-based. I can troubleshoot most any problem someone is having with their cellular device or with the provider.
Experience Over 15 years in the telecommunications field in the United States.
Question QUESTION: is there still a business for cell phone repair?
ANSWER: Hi Jared -
If you are asking if this is a business to go into, I would say that only if you work for a company that is authorized to repair phones by the manufacturers. These days, it is not something for independents and that is mainly because all of the major US wireless carriers provide 12 month warranties on the phones that they sell and when the phones come in under warranty, the wireless companies use a company or companies that they have contracts with to repair and refurbish phones for them. As you can imagine, these are big contracts that they have with large companies who do this type of thing. For the same businessman, it's a tough business. However, there are a lot of folks who damage their phones and they are not covered under warranty and those people probably would like to have their phones repaired. But, if you aren't authorized by the manufactuters, a lot of folks won't bring their phones in to be repaired and the insurance that you would have to carry in order to be a cell phone repair shop might not make it worth the money.
Don't forget that there is also cell phone insurance and those companies that sell the insurance (it's done via third party and billed for by the carriers) also contract with large companies to repair the phones that come back as claims to the insurance.
So, the simple answer is that if you are willing to look into the cost of being certified by the manufacturers to repair phones, you live in a smaller town where there isn't that much competition, you think that you would be able to find enough business from folks who are not covered under warranty or insurance, and all of the other factors of running a small business, then, maybe it's something to look into. Personally, I don't think that I would do it because I don't think there's really any money in it in the short or long run, especially because cell phones aren't very expensive to the consumer to begin with and more and more people are reselling their phones on places like eBay (which I think is ridiculous because I can't imagine people wanting someone else's junk, but that's just me).
I hope this helps. Thanks. DebiN
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QUESTION: i meant is it worth it to get my cell phone repaired or shouldl i just buy a new
phone
Answer I am so sorry!! Boy, did I misinterpret your question. My apologies!
In any event, if your phone is more than 12 months old and is no longer under warranty and your contract with your carrier is up, then it's not worth getting it repaired, in my opinion. If the problem with your phone is minor and it's not under warranty but your contract with your carrier is not up, it's probably worth repairing. And if the repair costs more than $50, then the answer is no, it's not worth repairing, in my opinion. I hope this more clearly answers your question. Thanks. DebiN
