(WHTM)– So you just bought a new iPhone, or your provider sent you a replacement one because your old one broke. But how do you know if that new phone is really brand new?

When you spend as much as a thousand dollars on an iPhone, you like to think it is brand new, and that no one else used it for a year or two.

But recent reports in the Daily Mail, How-To-Geek, and other sites say every iPhone his a secret code that will tell you if your phone is new or used! All in the model number.

To find out go to settings, then go to general and about which tells you all about your phone. Look for model and specifically the letter in front of your model number:

• "M" means it was a brand-new phone when you activated it.

• "F" means it was refurbished, and that someone else used it first.

• "N" means it is a replacement device, for a phone that broke.

But from the doesn't that stink file, buying a new phone and ending up with a used one.

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Apple forums are filled with complaints from people who said it happened to them when they bought a discounted phone from third-party sellers. And if it was refurbished by an independent repair shop, it may not have an Apple warranty.

So check the seller and the secret code number before you buy!

Apple reminds customers that all its certified refurbished phones come with a one-year warranty so they can be a great deal, and you don't waste your money.

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