iPhone for camera use only

[UEDan]

Bad ESN/IMEI should be fine. Won't be able to activate it on but you obviously don't need that.
Have fun with the project!

[hcbr]

I want to buy an iPhone only to use the camera. Ebay has auctions for iPhones that are iCloud/Find my iPhone locked and others that have a bad IMEI.

I know iCloud/Find my iPhone locked phones are possibly stolen, but what about the phones with a bad IMEI? When I check the Ebay item's IMEI with Sprint, I get a message about outstanding bills.

My question is, can I still use the camera if the phone has a bad IMEI? Will the phone start up and get to the main screen?

Thanks.

The ones with the bad IMEI, so long as they're not activation locked (icloud lock) and not asking for someone's email and credentials, then you're good to go to get them to use only for the camera. Usually, they are stolen or lost phones that are blacklisted on the carrier's database.