What I Did When My iPhone 3GS Died

It was just another Sunday. It is laundry day.

As I reluctantly woke up to my mom’s voice, I rolled up my bedsheets and what dirty clothes I had into a ball and tossed it into the washer.

About 45 minutes later, I heard a whipping cry as my mom pulled my iPhone 3GS from the bundle of wet clothes. Exactly how that happened is still a mystery to me but I blamed my half-asleep state of mind.

The Proper Reaction
The typical instinct would be to poke at every button in an effort to elicit any signs of life. Instead, I hopped on my laptop and resorted to good ole’ Google. Soon, my iPhone was in a Ziploc bag filled with uncooked rice and silica gel packets.

For the next 3 days, I’d occasionally open up the phone and place it where there was a light wind current from the fan.

In the meantime, I was able to find a Motorola RAZR, which was able to work with the SIM card from the iPhone 3GS. It felt like such an ancient piece of hardware but I had not other choice.

A Tragic Loss
Unfortunately, after completely drying the iPhone 3GS, it failed to turn on. My baby did not survive a full wash cycle.

It was still under the one-year warranty from Apple but the warranty does not cover water damage. Each iPhone has moisture indicators in the headphone jack, the sync cable port, and on its internal components. Therefore, Apple will know if your non-functional phone was the result of water damage.

My Options
I went directly to the Apple Store to let them know of my situation and see what I could do from here on out. Since my phone wasn’t covered under warranty, I couldn’t get a new or refurbished 3GS squat-free. And, iPhone 4′s were sold out in stores and were estimated to ship in 3 weeks.

Only 10 months into my two-year contract, I checked my upgrade eligibility with AT&T and a 3GS (8GB) would cost me $299 while an iPhone 4 (16GB) would cost $399.

Next, I head to the world’s most popular auction site and looked around for any iPhone 3GS. The price range for a used 3GS on eBay was $300-$400. Then, in hopes that someone on eBay was willing to pay for a water-damaged 3GS, I searched the completed listings for broken, as-is, non-functional, and water iPhone 3GS and found that they sell for quite a lot!

If I was lucky, I could get over $200 for it. That settled it for me.

My plan was:

1. Order the iPhone 4.
2. Use the RAZR until the new phone arrives.
3. Sell my 3GS when the new phone gets here.

Making Me Whole Again
Logging in to the AT&T account to order the iPhone 4 took less than 5 minutes. While Apple said it ships in 3 weeks, AT&T said it would ship in 7-14 business days.

Surely enough, I had the iPhone 4 in my hands two weeks later.

After practicing some of my unremarkable product photography skills, my water-damaged iPhone 3GS eBay listing was up for a Buy-It-Now price of $230. I was overshooting it quite it bit but that’s my method of selling.

Within 30 minutes, I received a $190 offer for it. I countered for $200 and it was done. I pocketed about $180 after fees.

So, I “upgraded” my phone for about $40 more than a new customer and had to renew the two-year contract (but still kept the $30 unlimited data plan).

Living a few weeks without an iPhone felt like a handicap. I guess that’s what technology has done to us. And contrary to popular belief, I did not “wash” my 3GS as an excuse to get the iPhone 4 – I didn’t want to get it yet. But, life threw a curveball at me and I think I came out okay.

(Photo credit: kona99)

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