Iphone 3GS keeps crashing and wont hang up after out & incoming calls after repairs

Question

I have had my iphone 3GS back to vodafone after I could not make calls, kept saying call failed!. I did all the troubleshooting tips, was okay for a short time, then shortly started doing same thing.I took it back to the store and on that occasion the assistant took the phone out of the protective cover i always had it in  to replace the simcard in case it was this that was causing the problem ,then he dropped it onto the shops wooden floor and it bounced, he picked it up & went bright red & kept apologising , I then said if I have any more problems with it then I will come back & see him & he said yes. Shortly after I noticed the sim cover on top of phone was missing but i could see the simcard inside, so I returned to the store & informed them of this, i was advised by the earlier assistant 'Craig' that he thought that the sim tray was underneath the simcard which he then removed the simcard, then advised me he didn't want to go poking about in it in case it was inside and he would send the phone to be repaired & gave me a replacement phone until mine was back. I waited approx 2 weeks before receiving a call from Vodafone saying they would repair it if I payed over £100! as it was not covered under my insurance,  I informed them the assistant dropped the phone in store and then i noticed the problem & was then told they would investigate this and call back, 10 minutes later they called back to say it would be a free repair. Since the repair I have had nothing but trouble with the phone crashing when I access apps , sticking on the hangup screen with in & out going calls for approx 10 minutes or more, when I turn phone on the Apple logo stays on the screen for long periods off time. When I access my music the track will change part way through to another track & also sometimes refusing to charge. I am fed up with going back & forth to the store which is quite a distance from my home & the phone has more problems since it was ''dropped'' & then ''repaired'' & I am at a loss of what to do. I feel I have been treated unfairly and gone along with all Vodafone asked of me. Please could someone from Apple help me!!!

Answer 1

The steps you already took were the correct ones - reset, restore from backup, restore as new phone. You could always try them again, but a Restore with set up as new is the 'ulitmate' troubleshooter - if that doesn't correct the issue, it's usually time for a replacement phone. Unfortunately, you've learned a hard lesson there, although I don't see how Apple screwed you - it's no secret that the iPhone warranty is valid only in the country of original purchase (as a little research on your part would have shown).
See how much money you saved with your eBay purchase? Next time buy the phone from Apple or an authorized UK carrier.