Sometimes, people who mean well can accidentally get you a gift that is just slightly wrong. A new phone is of course a pretty expensive and significant gift, but if it is on the wrong network, isn’t the brand or OS you are used to, or you simply prefer the phone you already have, it can be hard to know quite what to do with it. If you gracefully accepted a new handset this Christmas but are now stuck wondering what to do, then here are some ideas:
Phone on the Wrong Network
If you actually do love the phone you were bought, but it isn’t on the network you want to use or currently have a contract with, then there is the option of having it unlocked. You can find services that unlock Sony phones, iPhones, Nokia, Samsung and all the other big brands, and should enable you to use them with a SIM of your choice. This will mean you can make use of the gift and make the person who gave it to you happy!
Try Returning It
If you wanted a different model, or you were gifted an iPhone when you really only like Android, then depending on whether you can do it without hurting the giver’s feelings, you could ask if they would mind coming with you to return it and swap it for a phone you like better. This can also be a good idea if you mostly like the phone, but really wanted a different colour or a larger memory. Phone shops will let you return a gift and exchange it for a phone of equivalent value (or pay the difference for a more expensive one), if you have the receipt, which of course, most gift givers are wise enough to keep!
Re-Gift It
It may feel like a bit of a mean thing to do, but if you really have no use for the phone, someone else you know might be really glad of it. You could re-gift it and make someone else really happy, which isn’t such a bad thing after all!
Keep It as a Back Up
If you prefer your current phone but there is nothing really bad about the new one, you could always just keep it as a back up. You could carry it with you turned off and use it when the battery on your usual phone dies, or just store it away to bring out if your phone gets lost, stolen or fails. You could also just set up the second phone with your media and use it as a music player you can keep docked at home.
Sell It
While probably the least polite option, some gift givers would rather you sold the phone and bought something you really wanted than just had a useless extra phone! If the phone is still in its box and is a new model, it could fetch a good price secondhand.
If you were given a phone you don’t want or can’t use, these are some of the ways you can make sure it doesn’t just gather dust in a drawer!