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Can I use an ATT prepaid SIM to activate my iPhone 4?

swoosh0217

swoosh0217

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 20, 2007
579
0
NW
I am with Tmobile and still waiting for the unlock to come out. I really can't do anything right now but my idea was to buy a "Pay as you go" prepaid sim card to activate my iPhone 4. I just want to see what the interface is like instead of looking at the connect to iTunes logo. Is that possible?
 
swoosh0217 said:
I bought a sim cutter so there's no issue with that. I just want to be able to activate my phone using a pre-paid sim card.
Click to expand...

Of course you can, after cutting it down.

You can also call AT&T and tell them you lost your original GoPhone sim and you have a new sim card that you wish to activate. Use the one that comes with the iPhone 4 and AT&T will simply ask you for the # on the sim.
 
SpaceKitty said:
Of course you can, after cutting it down.

You can also call AT&T and tell them you lost your original GoPhone sim and you have a new sim card that you wish to activate. Use the one that comes with the iPhone 4 and AT&T will simply ask you for the # on the sim.
Click to expand...

I'm hesitant to call AT&T and give them the iPhone SIM number to transfer my prepaid account to.. They can't tell from the number it's a micro SIM?
 
Carlos E said:
I'm hesitant to call AT&T and give them the iPhone SIM number to transfer my prepaid account to.. They can't tell from the number it's a micro SIM?
Click to expand...

Good question. I'd like to know that as well. Can AT&T know just from the SIM code that it's a microsim (I mean will the customer reap immediately know without having to look into the matter) and will they care?
 
Carlos E said:
I'm hesitant to call AT&T and give them the iPhone SIM number to transfer my prepaid account to.. They can't tell from the number it's a micro SIM?
Click to expand...

AT&T doesn't care what phone you use with it's prepaid service.

Last summer, I was using a GoPhone sim in my 3G iPhone. I was tired of the data plans they offered and asked if there was any way I could still get the unlimited plan that was no longer offered for prepaid. i told the CSR that I was using the sim with my iPhone. She didn't say a word about that but told me it was impossible to offer me the unlimited GoPhone data plan since they no longer offered it.

A few weeks later, I got a SMS asking me to take a survey about my call to CS. When asked why I called CS, I said that I was using my GoPhone sim in my iPhone and that I wanted to have the GoPhone unlimited data plan. I hung up after the survey.

A few weeks later, September 25, 2009 to be exact, I got an SMS on my iPhone that told me I could get the unlimited data for $19.99 and to call 611 to get it added. I called and got it added on. Obviously there was a change made on my account that now allowed the CSR to add the data plan that was no longer offered to my account. I used it with that iPhone until about three months ago when I sold the sim card. I sold it because Apple finally allowed me to add another line to my post paid account.

They really don't care what phone you use the sim in.
 
When I first moved my prepaid 2G SIM to a 3GS I was having connection problems with my phone so I called AT&T. She asked for my phone number then said I'm using a 3GS not a 2G. She could tell. Then said you're not supposed to have a prepaid 3GS and refused to help me. I hung up and figured the problem out myself.
 
Carlos E said:
When I first moved my prepaid 2G SIM to a 3GS I was having connection problems with my phone so I called AT&T. She asked for my phone number then said I'm using a 3GS not a 2G. She could tell. Then said you're not supposed to have a prepaid 3GS and refused to help me. I hung up and figured the problem out myself.
Click to expand...

Yes, some reps are not helpfull at all.
You just gotta hit the right one I guess.
 
SpaceKitty said:
Of course you can, after cutting it down.

You can also call AT&T and tell them you lost your original GoPhone sim and you have a new sim card that you wish to activate. Use the one that comes with the iPhone 4 and AT&T will simply ask you for the # on the sim.
Click to expand...

Wow great idea! Now I'm off to walmart and buy myself a prepaid card and do exactly wat us ad here...
 
insidmal said:
they don't want you to but they have no way of really knowing what phone a sim card is in
Click to expand...

So maybe I should just call ATT and ask them that I need a prepaid sim card. I'll tell them initially that I already have an existing sim (which is the micro sim that came with my iphone) and would like to add some minutes. Hmmmmm....
 
Who else here actually tried to do this with an iPhone 4 (not 3GS or anything else)? They changed it.

I have an old prepaid SIM that I used to activate my 3GS (no commitment) a few months ago. Worked great. Then I got the iPhone 4 (with contract) and tried the same thing. Cut the SIM, placed it into the phone. No Service, connect to iTunes. I plugged it into the computer, iTunes says "invalid SIM". I put the original SIM in, and iTunes recognized it. So I tried something else (DON'T DO THIS!), I went to https://www.wireless.att.com/activations/ and choose GoPhone and typed the new microSim number. However, it just activated it as usual (no prepaid), so now I'm on AT&T.

So basically, if you didn't go no-commitment, you can't activate iPhone 4 with prepaid. Either that, or they just don't allow prepaid activations on iPhone 4 anymore.
 
I'm doing an upgrade swap, does the iPhone 4 need a sim in it to be activated? If not can I call AT&T and have them transfer my pay as you go number to the microsim?
 
Don't you pay full retail for an iPhone if you do not use an AT&T contract, pay as you go is like just buying the phone with now contract isn't it?

Can't we just get an Unlocked iPhone 4 from the UK or Canada and then use it in the USA.

I have a friend who can get me one in the UK, just not sure what I would pay?
 
Unlocked Iphone 4

I bought my Iphone 4 unlocked in Canada can confirm it works in USA on AT&T. Have old blue AT&T sim card I had to cut down. Hardest part was getting 3G to work, finally found correct APN settings:
APN: proxy
USERNAME: leave empty
PASSWORD: leave empty
 
can you have att reapers transfer pay as you go numbers to a blank microsim? thats what i wanna find out. does anybody know? :confused:
 
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