Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 2: Check the model number
• Method 2 of 2: Check the serial number
• Tips
• Warnings

This wikiHow teaches you how to tell if your iPhone has been refurbished or not. iPhones are considered "patched" if they have been repaired and resold by Apple or a third-party reseller after a hardware problem has been discovered in a phone.

To step

Method 1 of 2: Check the model number

1. Identify the common characteristics of a refurbished iPhone. You can often tell whether or not an iPhone has been refurbished by paying attention to the following things:
   • Worn or missing accessories
   • Grooves or scratches on the iPhone itself
   • Missing packaging
2. Open the Tap on Tap on Info. This is at the top of the "General" page.
3. Scroll down to the "Model" section. You will see a series of numbers and letters to the right of the "Model" line.
4. See if your iPhone has been refurbished. The first letter in the name of the model tells you what the status of your iPhone is:
   • If the first letter is an "M" or a "P", your phone is an original (retail) model.
   • If the first letter is "N", your phone has been refurbished by Apple.
   • If the first letter is an "F", your phone has been refurbished by a telecom provider or a third party seller.

Method 2 of 2: Check the serial number

1. Understand what this method entails. If the phone you buy has already been activated, it doesn't necessarily mean it has been refurbished; however, this does fish out the people who sell a phone as "new" when in fact it has already been used.
2. Open the Tap on Tap on Info. This is at the top of the "General" page.
3. Scroll to and view the "Serial Number" section. You should see a string of numbers and letters here (e.g., ABCDEFG8HJ84). Write down this code as you will be entering it into Apple's database.
4. Open Apple's website where you can check support coverage. In the browser on your computer, go to https://checkcoverage.apple.com/. You can enter the serial number of your iPhone on the site here to see whether or not it has been activated before.
5. Enter the serial number of your iPhone. Enter the serial number of your iPhone in the text field in the middle of the page "Check coverage".
6. Enter the verification code. Enter the code you see on the encrypted image in the text field below. You must enter this code to make sure you are not a malicious program.
7. Click Continue. This will take you to the diagnostics page of your Phone.
8. View the status of your iPhone. If the phone is brand new, you will see something like "This phone has not been activated yet" at the top of the page.
   • If you determine that the phone is already activated and the seller is trying to sell it as new, you may need to buy from someone else.

Tips

• If the iPhone was refurbished by a third party, you cannot use the packaging as a benchmark to determine the condition of the iPhone.
• "Refurbished" is not the same as "poor quality," and sometimes Apple devices are considered "refurbished" due to a minor hardware tweak afterwards, even if the adjustment isn't much.

Warnings

• Make sure to review the terms and conditions of sale of any site you are considering purchasing an iPhone from before making the actual purchase.