OT: Vehicle Mount Analog Motorola Cell Phone

[Wes]

Off Topic:

We have a Motorola Vehicle Mount Analog Cell Phone in one of our fire apparatus. It is acting up. The handset has intermittant Tx audio. I really dont want to go to a portable phone. I would like to get another permanent mount phone to replace it with and I really dont think Verizon offers anything like this anymore.

Has anyone had success getting Verizon to activate a used phone in this situation?

I am open to suggestions......

Wes

[perthcom]

Likely the handset cord is gone bad.

We haven't been able to get them for a while now.

Motorola has come out with an "Installed" phone again, but I have no experience with one yet.

[spareparts]

We have a Motorola Vehicle Mount Analog Cell Phone in one of our fire apparatus. It is acting up. The handset has intermittant Tx audio. I really dont want to go to a portable phone.

Wes,
I have a bunch of pulls - let me know where you want them sent. Hopefully the handset will work without reading "loan". Failing that you can part them out.

Martin

[Wes]

spareparts,

I have emailed and PM'd you,

Wes

[JustinHale]

If you do wind up switching the T/R get the 11 digit ESN off of it and then call Verizon and request an ESN change for that phone number. The old analog unit will not 'Over The Air' program so you will have to be talked through how to program your number in to the new T/R once they have completed the ESN change. Call customer service not a store. If you get a sales rep they will try to upgrade you into new equipment and slam you into a new 2 year agreement. Ensure that all that they do that day is the ESN change and nothing more. After this is all complete place a few test calls to ensure that the new T/R passes authentication by the tower. If you get lucky you can make nicey nice with one of their (subcontracted) techs and have him keep an eye out for any analog T/R trade ins for you. In most cases the Mgr will let you get your mitts on one for a spare. Explain the situation with the fire apparatus and so forth so they know why you are trying to do this. FCC no longer has a mandate for cellular providers to maintain analog equipment and it's probably only a matter of time b-4 it goes away altogether.

[Birken Vogt]

I spent almost an entire day on the phone with these SOBs one time, I had asked for a PHONE NUMBER CHANGE (not an ESN change) and when the broad took my old car kit ESN off line, the system would in no uncertain terms not let the analog ESN back into the system whatsoever. They have gone and changed their computer system so that it will not accept ESNs from any old (non GPS) phone under any circumstances apparently. Because it was due to their own screwup, I was able to get them to foot the bill for a new phone, new car kit, and even a new antenna (since the phone was now dual-band). But I was still out my time and hassle.

Anyway in my experience all the installed phones I used to work on were basically the brains of a Motorola bag phone with different accessories. The brain does not go bad very often and it is what contains the ESN so if you can identify what part of the accessories is malfunctioning then you can repair or replace that. Failing that my shop still has a lot of old car kit stuff, we used to do a pretty brisk business in repairs, etc. but it has dwindled off lately. We do however replace a lot of handset cords as someone stated.

Birken

[JustinHale]

Where there is a will there is a way... When they use 'Netace' to process esn changes your at the mercy of the system... However.... When they use 'Vision' (if they are in a vision market) then... well... there are ways around stuff in 'Vision'... Good ole, DOS based, Vision... Gotta love the DOS based goodies.

[Birken Vogt]

Also there is a way to clone the ESN of a bag phone but I have never attempted it...seemed like it was fairly common in the good old days but we never had a reason to do it because we were always doing it legit, much easier to call in an ESN change then.

Can anyone tell me more about this new Motorola car phone?

Birken

[kg6bki]

Well Verizon is a big Pain in the ass against non gps equipment. I have a Sprint Phone programmed on Verizon and as of Aug 1st they will not allow any non-gps enables phones to be activated on the network which kinda sucks mine is a GPS phone but its a Sprint Phone. They are probally going to be like well get a new phone and we will give you a new 2yr noose...but what can you do. They might do it differently for a LE agency and find a way to make it possible but I highly doubt it...also its Illegal for them or anyone to change the ESN of a phone to that of another phone. like the ESN of a GPS phone flashed to a NON Gps one...