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Can you use iPhone with a Prepaid plan?
- Thread starter alesley03
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3GS GoPhone
I have an old beat up 3GS whose contract has ended and the number has been transferred to a new iPhone. I want to make use of the old 3GS as a GoPhone.
So I bought an ATT GoPhone sim card from Amazon for about $4. When it arrives, I understand all I need to do is put the new sim card in the 3GS and activate it with an IMEI that is not the 3GS IMEI (due to the fact that ATT won't allow you to activate a smart phone as a GoPhone)
My question is how do I choose an IMEI number? I don't have an old phone to use it's IMEI. And these days you can't buy a cheap Go phone without its IMEI number being tied to the cheap phone for X amount of time. What's the trick? Do I just use any numbers for the IMEI when activating? How do I know I won't be duplicating someone else's IMEI and does it matter?
Thanks.
I have an old beat up 3GS whose contract has ended and the number has been transferred to a new iPhone. I want to make use of the old 3GS as a GoPhone.
So I bought an ATT GoPhone sim card from Amazon for about $4. When it arrives, I understand all I need to do is put the new sim card in the 3GS and activate it with an IMEI that is not the 3GS IMEI (due to the fact that ATT won't allow you to activate a smart phone as a GoPhone)
My question is how do I choose an IMEI number? I don't have an old phone to use it's IMEI. And these days you can't buy a cheap Go phone without its IMEI number being tied to the cheap phone for X amount of time. What's the trick? Do I just use any numbers for the IMEI when activating? How do I know I won't be duplicating someone else's IMEI and does it matter?
Thanks.
3GS GoPhone
I ended up just going into an ATT store and asking for a GoPhone Sim and explained that I did not have my phone with me. Don't mention the word "iPhone". I said I had an old Samsung that was on the ATT network. They gave me a pre-activated Sim. The cost was $0. I got home and popped the sim in my old 3GS. I then added $25 talk time at 10 cents a call for 90 days and 200 texts a month for $4.99. Because they did the activation, I did not need an IMEI. I did not bother trying to port my old phone number from my previous Tmobile pay as you go phone and just got a new number. (I obviously don't use a cell phone much)
No data yet and it is not a priority for me as wifi is everywhere where I am, but I might try the APN profile at the NZ website next. That is well documented elsewhere on the web.
Anyway, no need to purchase a cheap Go Phone and switch Sims. Just go into ATT and ask for a Sim to put in your phone and don't mention iPhone.
I ended up just going into an ATT store and asking for a GoPhone Sim and explained that I did not have my phone with me. Don't mention the word "iPhone". I said I had an old Samsung that was on the ATT network. They gave me a pre-activated Sim. The cost was $0. I got home and popped the sim in my old 3GS. I then added $25 talk time at 10 cents a call for 90 days and 200 texts a month for $4.99. Because they did the activation, I did not need an IMEI. I did not bother trying to port my old phone number from my previous Tmobile pay as you go phone and just got a new number. (I obviously don't use a cell phone much)
No data yet and it is not a priority for me as wifi is everywhere where I am, but I might try the APN profile at the NZ website next. That is well documented elsewhere on the web.
Anyway, no need to purchase a cheap Go Phone and switch Sims. Just go into ATT and ask for a Sim to put in your phone and don't mention iPhone.
My friend is selling his iPhone 4 and I really would like to buy it, as he's giving me a really good deal. I currently have a GoPhone. It's an LG Thrive and I honestly can't stand Android and really wanna get the iPhone. Would I be able to use my current SIM card and keep the number that I have now?
That depends upon the SIM. Some GoPhone SIM cards are locked to the specific phone it was bundled with. (I found that out the hard way)
I am currently using a StraightTalk micro-SIM in a locked AT&T iPhone 4. Everything (calls, SMS, 3G, data) seems to work fine except for MMS which requires a jailbreak. I've only had it for about a week but so far I am very pleased with the combo. (when an untethered jailbreak for 5.1 is released, I'll JB it and activate MMS)
If you decided to go that route, you can port your GoPhone # to a StraightTalk micro-SIM.
I'm actually using the SIM card in the LG Thrive that was in a cheap ass Samsung phone that I bought a few years ago. Transferred it over to the Thrive when I got it.
My friend ended up selling the phone, anyway. He thought I didn't want it and ended up selling it on eBay. I suppose I could find another one and attempt to get it to work. He was gonna sell me the iPhone 4 with a case, all original box, etc. Black...16GB for $250.
I'd really rather have a white 32GB one. Maybe I'll look for one on eBay and give it a shot.
That's not a terrific price, IMO. I just picked up a brand new AT&T 32GB black iPhone 4 on eBay for $310. (that was after 2 months of auction watching) Be warned though, the demand for white 32GB AT&T iPhones are "white-hot" (pun intended) so you may have to be even more patient to score one at a reasonable price.
If you're going to go the ebay route for an iPhone and don't have much experience with eBay, here's a link to a post I made a few days ago that will help reduce/eliminate the possibility of getting ripped off:
https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/14579715/
Awesome. Thanks! I just assumed it was a good deal because of how much Apple sells the unlocked ones for. If I have to wait on a White one, I might just go ahead and get the black. I'm SO sick of Android. Blah.
+1!
45 bucks a month, unlimited talk, "unlimited" data (i've heard 2GB is the limit, but I average about 500-900MB per month).
same exact service at much less.. why not??
45 bucks a month, unlimited talk, "unlimited" data (i've heard 2GB is the limit, but I average about 500-900MB per month).
same exact service at much less.. why not??
I am about to be going this route. I am getting a used mint 32gb locked ATT iphone for $320. I know I could probably fish a better price on ebay, but it's good enough for me, lol. A new ipod touch is $300 for 32gb, and with tax comes out the same. Worth it for me for the superior features. Anyway, planning on using a prepaid ATT gophone SIM with pay-as-you-go 10 cents/min plan. The key to the puzzle though, is I am going to be using a Clear mobile hotspot for unlimited 4g, and will be using GV as my primary number. The SIM is just for those rare emergency scenarios where I might not have data with the hotspot or wifi. My monthly plan gets cut in half from $100 to $50 for unlimited everything.
Anyway, glad to hear others confirm that it is easy and doable to use a prepaid gophone ATT sim with a locked ATT iphone...it is, right? lol
Anyway, glad to hear others confirm that it is easy and doable to use a prepaid gophone ATT sim with a locked ATT iphone...it is, right? lol
For anyone who may be curious...I walked into an ATT store in midtown Manhattan today to get a SIM. The guy who helped me was very up on what was up, if you know what I mean, and openly asked me if I wanted the sim for an iphone and said "that's cool." Long story short, he set up a micro prepaid SIM with $25 (or 250 minutes) that is ready to pop into the iphone for immediate use. No hassle, no fuss. Very happy 
I can also manually add 3g data as needed and it will work, he said.
So by using google voice as my main number, and using talkatone, and carrying around my small 4g Clear hotspot - I will have a fully functioning iphone for about $50/month And the legit ATT voice minutes on the SIM are a safety net for when I don't have data connection for whatever reason and can't make calls on google voice. Same with optional data - if I know I will be somewhere with no Clear service anytime soon I can add 100MB 3g data for $5, for email and what not. This for me is a perfect scenario
I can also manually add 3g data as needed and it will work, he said.So by using google voice as my main number, and using talkatone, and carrying around my small 4g Clear hotspot - I will have a fully functioning iphone for about $50/month
And the legit ATT voice minutes on the SIM are a safety net for when I don't have data connection for whatever reason and can't make calls on google voice. Same with optional data - if I know I will be somewhere with no Clear service anytime soon I can add 100MB 3g data for $5, for email and what not. This for me is a perfect scenario
I'm VERY intrigued by the Straight Talk idea.
You can buy a MicroSim from here. Would I just need to buy one of those SIM cards, then an iPhone 4 and it would just work?
Like I said, right now I have a GoPhone and I can't stand Android. I want an iPhone so bad and this seems like the best option.
I assume I'd just get a new StraightTalk account and number and just let my GoPhone plan end...
You can buy a MicroSim from here. Would I just need to buy one of those SIM cards, then an iPhone 4 and it would just work?
Like I said, right now I have a GoPhone and I can't stand Android. I want an iPhone so bad and this seems like the best option.
I assume I'd just get a new StraightTalk account and number and just let my GoPhone plan end...
Yes, if you purchase an AT&T micro-SIM from that link (which is what I did) you can simply pop that into an AT&T iPhone 4 (the phone does not need to be unlocked or jailbroken) and it will work out-of-the-box for talk and text.
To enable data usage, you'll temporarily need wifi access so that you can load http://www.unlockit.co.nz/unlockit/ in safari and download the proper settings. Once that is done, then you'll have full data (even 3G if it is available in your area).
I've switch over to my ST-prepaid iPhone 4 as my primary cell phone and am quite pleased with it. Especially the battery life... which is insane compared to my VM LG Optimus V. I'll be keeping that VirginMobile phone active since I'm grandfathered in to the $25/month plan and plan on continuing to use it as a myfi hotspot and GPS.
I was very intrigued by Straight Talk too
Wound up deciding to use them instead of my elaborate ATT prepaid SIM, plus mobile hostpot for data plan. I will save about $5/month and have a 'normal' voice/text/data plan for a crazy low rate. Their one 'catch' seems to be that the data is not really unlimited, but rather is capped at around 2GB/month. The really crappy thing is that if you go over after a warning, they deactivate your sim, rendering it and your old # lost forever. Since I'm porting over my standard # that I've used for years, that everyone has, I'm going to be very careful with this.Will let you know how it goes after using it for a couple weeks. Should get the sim from fed ex today! I live in NYC, fyi (though I'll be in California for the next week).
Took the plunge and got a Black iPhone 4 32GB on eBay and went ahead and got a micro-SIM from Straight Talk. I'm so pumped. Can't wait to get it and ditch Android!
Well, I got my card and phone in, enabled data, etc. and everything works. One weird thing, though...StraightTalk gave me a long distance number. I can deal with that later, but since this is my first iPhone, I have a question to see if this is normal or not. I live in an area where cell coverage is spotty. I can get 1 or 2 bars depending on where I am in my house. My question is, is it normal for when you don't have service for the phone to say "searching" constantly? I was at my friend's house earlier and there's no service there and the phone just keeps on searching for a signal. Occasionally it would stop and say "No Service," but it seemed like it was searching every minute or so. Basically just wondering if this is normal?
iPhone 3GS
i just received an iPhone 3GS from my uncle, and it is recently locked. if i don't unlock it will i still be able to use any prepaid plan, or does it have to be unlocked? I've been looking at several different prepaid plans, i want a prepaid plan that has unlimited everything, and i will not need to jailbreak my iPhone to use it. Please help!
i just received an iPhone 3GS from my uncle, and it is recently locked. if i don't unlock it will i still be able to use any prepaid plan, or does it have to be unlocked? I've been looking at several different prepaid plans, i want a prepaid plan that has unlimited everything, and i will not need to jailbreak my iPhone to use it. Please help!
i have an iPhone 3GS which is locked if i got the sim card that fit it from straight talk would it work without having to jailbreak it?
That is correct. You'll need to check the StraightTalk thread for details on configuring the phone for data and MMS.
+2
Although I'm switching back to AT&T for the iPhone 5, I have nothing but great things to say about Straight Talk. I would highly recommend them!
Advice please
Newbie here...not just new to the forum, but new to smartphones. Please be patient with me.
My daughter just received her new iPhone 5 and I am buying her old iPhone 4. It's off contract and she had AT&T unlock it.
I've been using a T-Mobile To-Go phone for about 6 years, love the plan, but still have about 700 minutes in my account, and will keep my number there. So until my TMo minutes are used up, all I need is a data plan. (I don't want to use the iPhone on TMo; I won't be using it enough to warrant their plan pricing.)
On the AT&T site it *looks* like I can get a data-only plan for the iPhone for $20-$30 a month. Will AT&T give/sell me a microSIM with just a data plan without requiring a voice & messaging plan, too?
If not, I'm leaning toward Straight Talk, even though that would require paying $45 a month - still more than I'd like to pay for limited use. So I'm wondering if anyone has had experience with H2O? They have very affordable plans, but I don't know how dependable they are or what kind of signal strength and range they have.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Newbie here...not just new to the forum, but new to smartphones. Please be patient with me.
My daughter just received her new iPhone 5 and I am buying her old iPhone 4. It's off contract and she had AT&T unlock it.
I've been using a T-Mobile To-Go phone for about 6 years, love the plan, but still have about 700 minutes in my account, and will keep my number there. So until my TMo minutes are used up, all I need is a data plan. (I don't want to use the iPhone on TMo; I won't be using it enough to warrant their plan pricing.)
On the AT&T site it *looks* like I can get a data-only plan for the iPhone for $20-$30 a month. Will AT&T give/sell me a microSIM with just a data plan without requiring a voice & messaging plan, too?
If not, I'm leaning toward Straight Talk, even though that would require paying $45 a month - still more than I'd like to pay for limited use. So I'm wondering if anyone has had experience with H2O? They have very affordable plans, but I don't know how dependable they are or what kind of signal strength and range they have.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
where are you seeing decently priced H2O data plans? I'm not seeing it. only thing i see is 1GB data (which is what you were concerned about), and some voices/text at $50/month. Compare that to $45/month for straight talk (who gives you 2GB).
Also, walmart.com has 3 month plan for a slight discount. works out to $41/month. not bad eh?
Also, walmart.com has 3 month plan for a slight discount. works out to $41/month. not bad eh?
Newbie here...not just new to the forum, but new to smartphones. Please be patient with me.
My daughter just received her new iPhone 5 and I am buying her old iPhone 4. It's off contract and she had AT&T unlock it.
I've been using a T-Mobile To-Go phone for about 6 years, love the plan, but still have about 700 minutes in my account, and will keep my number there. So until my TMo minutes are used up, all I need is a data plan. (I don't want to use the iPhone on TMo; I won't be using it enough to warrant their plan pricing.)
On the AT&T site it *looks* like I can get a data-only plan for the iPhone for $20-$30 a month. Will AT&T give/sell me a microSIM with just a data plan without requiring a voice & messaging plan, too?
If not, I'm leaning toward Straight Talk, even though that would require paying $45 a month - still more than I'd like to pay for limited use. So I'm wondering if anyone has had experience with H2O? They have very affordable plans, but I don't know how dependable they are or what kind of signal strength and range they have.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
So I bought an AT&T micro sim off amazon and I need an IMEI# from any prepaid phone. Can it be from a Net10 phone or tracfone or does it have to be an AT&T phone even though it's not in service? One guy said to put all zeroes for the IMEI#? Idk I need expertise
just put 1 [x15 as thats the length of the imei] if AT&T really wants to know your IMEI they will read it, otherwise it doesn't matter because its not like the phone is going to only work based on the IMEI # you enter into the field, network access is granted based on the IMEI # of the actual device, otherwise people with bad IMEI's would jus be able to enter random IMEI and get access.