Is it safe to sell our free cell-phones? Also, is it safe to BUY?

[siratfus]

We're with T-Mobile with 4 lines. I'm starting to realize that the smart thing to do is switch between 2 carriers whenever your contract is up in order to get free phones. So, say I'm switching to At&t and I pick out 4 of their most expensive phones, well at least the ones that do not require data plans. All 4 of our current t-mobile phones are unlocked, so all we have to do is pop in the new at&t sims. So my question is.. is it safe to sell those brand-new at&t phones? I can leave them locked to sell to just at&t people, or I can unlock them to attract more buyers. But these are my 2 concerns:

1. Are these phones linked to my account somehow, so can some genius fiddle with it somehow and I end up paying for his cell service?

2. Or, are these phones useless to other people since they are linked to my account?

I'm guessing this is what people do all the time on eBay. They sell off their new free phones, but I could be wrong.

Please advise. Thank you!

[Tearren]

1. Are these phones linked to my account somehow, so can some genius fiddle with it somehow and I end up paying for his cell service?

No, they are not linked to your account. The only information on the new phones is what you put on them.
To clarify, the phone stores data (that you put on it, (ex phone numbers, address). And in addition, the SIM card stores data that the company (ex. account info) and you put on it, (ex phone numbers, address). You can transfer your data between the SIM and your phone. There is no linked data between the phone with no SIM card and your account with the carrier.

2. Or, are these phones useless to other people since they are linked to my account?

No, they are not useless to other people. Get them unlock if you can, it should help but certainly can't hurt your auction.

I'm guessing this is what people do all the time on eBay.

Yes.

[siratfus]

Thank you tearran. Just the confirmation I need.

[siratfus]

So I first started this thread asking if it's safe to sell my free phones. I recently read an article how nowadays your account may be linked to your phone. If so why would people trust me? What if I default or do not honor my 2 yr commitment? Would that in anyway effect the buyer who bought my free phone?