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iPhone 5 Pick-Up w/o Activation?

WoodrowCall

WoodrowCall

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 20, 2010
276
39
Memphis, TN
Is it possible to reserve an iPhone 5, pick it up in the store, and get it out without having to activate it? I'm wanting to get one as a gift, but I am using my line's upgrade, so I'd rather not have to de-activate my phone, activate the 5, then de-activate and re-activate. Anyone done this?:confused:
 
WoodrowCall said:
Is it possible to reserve an iPhone 5, pick it up in the store, and get it out without having to activate it? I'm wanting to get one as a gift, but I am using my line's upgrade, so I'd rather not have to de-activate my phone, activate the 5, then de-activate and re-activate. Anyone done this?:confused:
Click to expand...

According to my local Apple Store, they cannot let you leave the store with an un-activated iPhone. I think you could if you buy it at full retail price, but if it's subsidized and tied to a contract by a provider, you're out of luck.
 
WoodrowCall said:
Is it possible to reserve an iPhone 5, pick it up in the store, and get it out without having to activate it? I'm wanting to get one as a gift, but I am using my line's upgrade, so I'd rather not have to de-activate my phone, activate the 5, then de-activate and re-activate. Anyone done this?:confused:
Click to expand...

For the iPhone Pick-Up from an Online Reservation. They can't actually not activate it to the line you used on ordering online. There's a part where before it prints out receipt or let you go home with the iPhone it will asked you to sign that you have the correct infos, plans and accept the terms of your carrier after that it will activate it the transaction completed and you can go home with your iPhone.
If you are buying a subsidized phone and transferring it to another line your option is to make sure to ask for an extra nano sim so you can use it to activate it to the line where you want it. (I am talking about Verizon)
Other than that I don't know if there are still options you can do with the switching with a subsidized phone.
 
contracts they wont allow it to leave unactivated. full price- you can do as you please. they kind of keep the full price thing under wraps unless you pry. also sometimes they say they dont have any in stock but they did when i walked in and got one.
 
lelisa13p said:
How in he11 were you able to buy 8 iPhones on launch day? I thought stores had limits to number of units allowed that day.
Click to expand...

It's 2 per body... I had 3 people with me, and I bought 8 phones using the same card... As long as you have enough people and enough money you can buy as many as you want...
 
Nope lol called ahead before launch day and called all 6 stores in my state and they all verified its 2 per body... I bought them All lol
 
If Apple really won't allow contract purchased phones to leave the store unactivated, then...what a dumb policy. Apple does mail-order, and if you buy a phone from store.apple.com under contract, the phone doesn't get activated before they ship it to you, because then you'd be without cell service until your new phone arrives. No, the phone remains unactivated until YOU activate it, at which point service is transferred from the old phone to the new.

If they can do that for mail-order purchases (which they clearly can), why the heck would they deny you the exact same experience when carrying it physically out of a store?

-- Nathan
 
iPhonesandMacs said:
It's 2 per body... I had 3 people with me, and I bought 8 phones using the same card... As long as you have enough people and enough money you can buy as many as you want...
Click to expand...

so you are one of them who sells the iPhones in black market!
 
NathanA said:
If Apple really won't allow contract purchased phones to leave the store unactivated, then...what a dumb policy. Apple does mail-order, and if you buy a phone from store.apple.com under contract, the phone doesn't get activated before they ship it to you, because then you'd be without cell service until your new phone arrives. No, the phone remains unactivated until YOU activate it, at which point service is transferred from the old phone to the new.

If they can do that for mail-order purchases (which they clearly can), why the heck would they deny you the exact same experience when carrying it physically out of a store?

-- Nathan
Click to expand...

that's what I've experienced on all my pick up orders. both subsidize and full retail or non contract phone. There was even a time that the system (the ipod thingy) keeps saying can't activate, had to wait for hours to let itsay it's activated if not it's not sold as it won't let complete the transaction meaning printing the proof of purchase. the phone technically is not user activated until you power it on and pop up window say your iphone is activated. but the system know already that the iPhone with that serial# and iccid or sim # is activated to the phone # associated to the number used when ordering online.

The phone itself you have an option not to power it on until you want to but still associated to the # used.

non-contract, unsubsidized, full priced iphone can have options, it all depends on the specialists how far they know how to do it.
 
Im picking up a 16GB AT&T iPhone 5 today at full price. I hope they don't activate it otherwise my gf wont have service on her phone all day. If I pay full price I think its a reasonable expectation that the phone shouldnt be automatically activated upon purchase.
 
or buying one as a gift

2 years ago i bought an iphone 4 for my wife at the apple store. she works 20 miles away. her 3G was a paper weight the moment i walked out of the store even though the 4 was still in the box. very annoying.

want to buy iphones as gifts this year but no way will i buy it at the apple store
 
I did the reservation/pick up thing and they already had it activated before I even opened the box.. So, somehow they activate it through the box, don't ask me how
 
Bought mine from Apple store. Asked person not to even open it. Came home with iPhone still in shrink wrap. Called VZW to have them switch to my number – person says phone has been activated and must wait for sim card aging (next day 7AM EST). All in all, even though it was not open, according to Apple the phone is pre-activated at the number you upgrade on but after the aging takes place you can switch it to any number if it is in your account.
 
WoodrowCall said:
Is it possible to reserve an iPhone 5, pick it up in the store, and get it out without having to activate it? I'm wanting to get one as a gift, but I am using my line's upgrade, so I'd rather not have to de-activate my phone, activate the 5, then de-activate and re-activate. Anyone done this?:confused:
Click to expand...

They won't do it. I asked, how does one buy an iPhone 5 upgrade as a gift then...she just ignored the question and said it couldn't leave the store without activation. Luckily my gf was on her way home, I just didn't open the box until I got home and it didn't change the line until I got home and turned it on.

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saberahul said:
Bought mine from Apple store. Asked person not to even open it. Came home with iPhone still in shrink wrap. Called VZW to have them switch to my number – person says phone has been activated and must wait for sim card aging (next day 7AM EST). All in all, even though it was not open, according to Apple the phone is pre-activated at the number you upgrade on but after the aging takes place you can switch it to any number if it is in your account.
Click to expand...

Same thing happened to me. Verizon said it would take 24hours to be able to switch the number. I went back to the apple store to tell them, and they gave me a new sim card. I was up and running in a few mins.

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iPhonesandMacs said:
Bought 8 from apple store on launch day full price, not one was activated
Click to expand...

Yup, you bought them full price. Obviously they won't be activated...since you were buying them retail. If you buy them subsidized they require activation so you can't just turn around and sell the unopened. You need to open the box to remove the SIM once activated.
 
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