T-Mobile on an officially unlocked iPhone 4 Guide

[violetgoose]

Little late on this and I am prob SUPER behind on news, but how did you get an unlocked iPhone 4? Is Apple selling them? I am a T-Mobile customer and am still on my unlocked 3G. Thanks.

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WOW Just kidding. I just checked the Apple website... They are so effing expensive, these factory unlocked phones. Jesus!

 

[Wolfpup]

Little late on this and I am prob SUPER behind on news, but how did you get an unlocked iPhone 4? Is Apple selling them? I am a T-Mobile customer and am still on my unlocked 3G. Thanks.

Yeah, Apple sells unlocked iPhones, though the iPhone 5 took a while after the carrier versions came out to get:

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_iphone/family/iphone/iphone4s

Of course it costs more, and is really only set up to work with AT&T, but presumably can still sort of work with T-Mobile (shame it doesn't just officially work with it!)

 

[isaaclimdc]

Can you please detail the steps on how to buy the microSIM from the T-Mobile store? And what are the steps you needed to take to activate the card?

Is this a "true" microSIM or a manually cut-out SIM?

And I'm also interested to get the $30/mo Monthly4G plan with unlimited data, but it says only available from Walmart.com etc. So how can I get this plan?

 

[dontwalkhand]

Can you please detail the steps on how to buy the microSIM from the T-Mobile store? And what are the steps you needed to take to activate the card?

Is this a "true" microSIM or a manually cut-out SIM?

And I'm also interested to get the $30/mo Monthly4G plan with unlimited data, but it says only available from Walmart.com etc. So how can I get this plan?

It is a true MicroSIM that T-Mobile offers for your iPhone (or other Micro-SIM devices out there).

As for the $30 Monthly4G plan, I think you can go into Wal-mart and pick up a cheap prepaid phone and sign up for that plan, then go into the T-Mobile store afterwards and have them help you set it up with the iPhone.

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Little late on this and I am prob SUPER behind on news, but how did you get an unlocked iPhone 4? Is Apple selling them? I am a T-Mobile customer and am still on my unlocked 3G. Thanks.

----------

WOW Just kidding. I just checked the Apple website... They are so effing expensive, these factory unlocked phones. Jesus!

Unlocked phones are phones that are purchased outright with no contract. When you pay $199 with AT&T, you are tied not the contract.

 

[MacJackson]

Can you please detail the steps on how to buy the microSIM from the T-Mobile store? And what are the steps you needed to take to activate the card?

Is this a "true" microSIM or a manually cut-out SIM?

And I'm also interested to get the $30/mo Monthly4G plan with unlimited data, but it says only available from Walmart.com etc. So how can I get this plan?

Ok, so here's how I did it. I bought a phone from Walmart online (you can do online or a store that sells them)....you MUST activate it online and not on the phone. Believe me, it will be a PITA otherwise - I know. You then have your phone and your Walmart Tmo account. Now, I did this hoping I would really like the Exhibit II 4G that I bought there - but I don't, hence I went to the iphone. Ok, so I had the phone and the Walmart data plan I wanted. I then went to the Tmo store (actually a kiosk at the mall) and told them exactly what the deal was. That I already had a phone and the prepaid Walmart plan but that I want to change phones to my unlocked iphone and use it on the plan instead. They called up my account info (just the cell phone # and my PIN #, my name isn't even attached to it) and activated the micro sim for me, and disabled the sim in the other phone I have. I didn't have to take either either phone in with me. I left the kiosk with the the activated microsim and that's it. (And it is a true microsim, they didn't cut it or anything.) They didn't charge me for it although I've heard others have had to pay up to $20. Luck of the draw there, I guess. Just be clear with them that you DO NOT want a second plan, that you want the same plan but to put a new phone on it.

I then took the microsim home and popped it into my just opened Iphone 4s. Took about a minute for it to all come together and then, bing, got the Tmo service and the bars on top. I never activated the phone through Itunes. You just follow the setup on the iphone itself that pops up after you put the microsim in it.....I *assume* this is because you already have an active account and the phone just slips right into it.

Now, this is only how I did it. But I think if you want an iphone on the Walmart plan it's the only way you can do it. Remember, though, that the 4g we are paying for is really only EDGE, but I'm a data user and not a talker on my phone so this setup works best for me.

Ok, hope this helps!!!!

 

[isaaclimdc]

Ok, so here's how I did it. I bought a phone from Walmart online (you can do online or a store that sells them)....you MUST activate it online and not on the phone. Believe me, it will be a PITA otherwise - I know. You then have your phone and your Walmart Tmo account. Now, I did this hoping I would really like the Exhibit II 4G that I bought there - but I don't, hence I went to the iphone. Ok, so I had the phone and the Walmart data plan I wanted. I then went to the Tmo store (actually a kiosk at the mall) and told them exactly what the deal was. That I already had a phone and the prepaid Walmart plan but that I want to change phones to my unlocked iphone and use it on the plan instead. They called up my account info (just the cell phone # and my PIN #, my name isn't even attached to it) and activated the micro sim for me, and disabled the sim in the other phone I have. I didn't have to take either either phone in with me. I left the kiosk with the the activated microsim and that's it. (And it is a true microsim, they didn't cut it or anything.) They didn't charge me for it although I've heard others have had to pay up to $20. Luck of the draw there, I guess. Just be clear with them that you DO NOT want a second plan, that you want the same plan but to put a new phone on it.

I then took the microsim home and popped it into my just opened Iphone 4s. Took about a minute for it to all come together and then, bing, got the Tmo service and the bars on top. I never activated the phone through Itunes. You just follow the setup on the iphone itself that pops up after you put the microsim in it.....I *assume* this is because you already have an active account and the phone just slips right into it.

Now, this is only how I did it. But I think if you want an iphone on the Walmart plan it's the only way you can do it. Remember, though, that the 4g we are paying for is really only EDGE, but I'm a data user and not a talker on my phone so this setup works best for me.

Ok, hope this helps!!!!

Thanks so much for your reply! So your walmart cheap phone came with a normal SIM right? And when you told T-Mo to help you, they just gave you a microSIM free of charge?

 

[MacJackson]

Yep, the Walmart phone sim was a regular-sized one. And yeah, I just explained to the Tmo people that I wanted to switch phones and the new phone I wanted to use needs a micro sim and my current phone uses a regular sim. And no charge. Again though, other people have said they have been charged up to $20 to get the micro sim, while some like me get it for free. If you have a few stores or kiosks around you I'd go to all the ones close by until one of them gives it to you for free. And hey, we are practically neighbors - I'm from Greensburg.

 

[isaaclimdc]

Awesome, thanks for your info man! I will try it out and see what I get. You mentioned that you bought the phone/plan from walmart.com. Does this mean I can just buy the cheapest phone there like the $18 Nokia 1616, and then how do I go about selecting the $30 unlimited web+text plan?

By the way, hows the EDGE speeds for your iPhone? Liveable? I was planning on using H2O wireless with full 3G speeds, but it's a lil too expensive for me. $30 a month for EDGE is probably more worth it than $50 a month for 3G.

 

[violetgoose]

Yeah, Apple sells unlocked iPhones, though the iPhone 5 took a while after the carrier versions came out to get:

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_iphone/family/iphone/iphone4s

Of course it costs more, and is really only set up to work with AT&T, but presumably can still sort of work with T-Mobile (shame it doesn't just officially work with it!)

Thanks!
And for those who are having trouble w/ MMS, this SHOULD work: http://leimobile.com/t-mobile-mms-settings-for-ios-5/. Let me know what you think.. The guide helped me before on my old phone and the writer is pretty knowledgeable and helpful too.
I am getting my new factory unlocked iPhone 4 soon!!

 

[Crystal-RX]

Thanks!
And for those who are having trouble w/ MMS, this SHOULD work: http://leimobile.com/t-mobile-mms-settings-for-ios-5/. Let me know what you think.. The guide helped me before on my old phone and the writer is pretty knowledgeable and helpful too.
I am getting my new factory unlocked iPhone 4 soon!!

I can tell the excitement in your post about getting a factory unlocked Iphone. I will love it L...

 

[violetgoose]

Just as an update. I did the above copy/paste with the restore and altering the file. Didn't work for me as I said above. I then went into the phone and used these settings and they worked. I can now send and receive MMS either on wifi or EDGE and can also do FaceTime. (LOL, make sure the other person has turned FaceTime ON in their phone settings.):

you’ll need to adjust carrier MMS settings to fit T-Mobile’s network:

Tap on Settings -> General -> Network -> Cellular Data Network
Adjust the settings as follows:
Cellular Data APN: wap.voicestream.com
MMS APN: wap.voicestream.com
MMSC http://mms.msg.eng.t-mobile.com/mms/wapenc
MMS Proxy 216.155.165.50:8080
MMS Max Message Size 1048576
MMS UA Prof URL http://www.apple.com/mms/uaprof.rdf
Leave Username and Password empty
Save the settings and reboot your iPhone again

I got these from jitjet on the T-mobile forum, so credit to him/her. IDK if I would have needed to do the whole altering the files on the phone and restoring or not. Anyone who needs the fix might want to try just changing these settings first to see if they work as is, without the whole backup/restore part.

GREAT! I am stocking up on alternatives in case the OP's settings don't work. Thanks for posting this.

 

[violetgoose]

I can tell the excitement in your post about getting a factory unlocked Iphone. I will love it L...

Haha thanks Minh. Oh, so basically as long as I use Wifi my new phone/surfing the Web should work fine if I am at home, Starbucks, etc? (I don't have a data plan and don't use the internet all that much)

 

[dontwalkhand]

Ok, so here's how I did it. I bought a phone from Walmart online (you can do online or a store that sells them)....you MUST activate it online and not on the phone. Believe me, it will be a PITA otherwise - I know. You then have your phone and your Walmart Tmo account. Now, I did this hoping I would really like the Exhibit II 4G that I bought there - but I don't, hence I went to the iphone. Ok, so I had the phone and the Walmart data plan I wanted. I then went to the Tmo store (actually a kiosk at the mall) and told them exactly what the deal was. That I already had a phone and the prepaid Walmart plan but that I want to change phones to my unlocked iphone and use it on the plan instead. They called up my account info (just the cell phone # and my PIN #, my name isn't even attached to it) and activated the micro sim for me, and disabled the sim in the other phone I have. I didn't have to take either either phone in with me. I left the kiosk with the the activated microsim and that's it. (And it is a true microsim, they didn't cut it or anything.) They didn't charge me for it although I've heard others have had to pay up to $20. Luck of the draw there, I guess. Just be clear with them that you DO NOT want a second plan, that you want the same plan but to put a new phone on it.

I then took the microsim home and popped it into my just opened Iphone 4s. Took about a minute for it to all come together and then, bing, got the Tmo service and the bars on top. I never activated the phone through Itunes. You just follow the setup on the iphone itself that pops up after you put the microsim in it.....I *assume* this is because you already have an active account and the phone just slips right into it.

Now, this is only how I did it. But I think if you want an iphone on the Walmart plan it's the only way you can do it. Remember, though, that the 4g we are paying for is really only EDGE, but I'm a data user and not a talker on my phone so this setup works best for me.

Ok, hope this helps!!!!

Actually the reason why you don't need to use iTunes now is because of iOS 5's "PC-Free" features

 

[phon]

Well this finally got my MMS working, and now that Apple/Fedex has delivered my new and perfectly working unlocked iphone, I'm fully functional on T-Mobile!

Now I need to send this defective one back...

Could you please share your settings? none of those settings above works for receiving tmobile MMS on me (have not edit the text file yet).

Thanks

 

[violetgoose]

Could you please share your settings? none of those settings above works for receiving tmobile MMS on me (have not edit the text file yet).

Thanks

I agree. I will be getting mine in a couple of days and am worried that my MMS won't work. Thanks silvrbullet.

 

[purpleplume]

A HUGE Shoutout to dontwalkhand for these 4S guides!

Actually the reason why you don't need to use iTunes now is because of iOS 5's "PC-Free" features

I've just opened the factory unlocked iPhone 4S that Santa brought me directly from the Apple online store. I have been diligently studying the guide provided by dontwalkhand, the OP on this thread, in preparation for my big adventure tomorrow, as I endeavor to get my 4S working on my existing (ancient) T-Mobile plan. I am moving up from an iPhone 3GS (unlocked and jailbroken) and I am jazzed to start shooting better quality photos and putting Siri to work for me.

Here's my story: I purchased a microSIM from my local T-Mobile shop today (paid $20 cash). I asked for a Pay-As-You-Go SIM, watched them tear open a brand new shrink-wrapped package of SIM cards, and punchcut the full-sized SIM into a microSIM. They gave me a PIN (1234, clever of them, huh?) and activated the microSIM. I didn't tell them it was for a 4S, and I didn't tell them I had a line of service with them, and I didn't even tell them my name. The new micro-SIM has a pre-paid balance of $13.34 on it, and has a new cell phone number--a number that I do not want to use because I need to keep my old number.

dontwalkhand, could you please clarify for me the best practice to follow tomorrow? Is it possible for T-Mobile to reassign my original cell phone number (currently working on a full-sized SIM) to the new micro-SIM? If so, would it be accurate to say that, once T-Mobile does that, I could expect a seamless experience like MacJackson reported in this thread on his post of December 21, 2011, OR should I go back to the step-by-step guide you gave us in the original October 15, 2011 post you made on this thread?

I should mention that I have the old T-zones $5.99 unlimited data plan on my T-Mobile account, and I really don't want to call even the slightest bit of attention to this fact, for fear that the T-Mobile rep will force me into a more expensive data plan--at a rate that I cannot afford. I would prefer not to even mention that I have a factory unlocked iPhone.

I do have an old dumb flip phone that I used years ago on my existing T-Mobile line. Maybe I could put the new microSIM in that dumb phone (sized up to full-SIM size using the outer portion of the card that was cut away today when T-Mobile punched my newly purchased SIM down to micro-size), take it into T-Mobile, and ask them to assign my current/fave cell number to the card that's in the dumb phone. That way they wouldn't try to force me into a more expensive data plan and I could keep my existing cell number.

I am too close to this situation to clearly see the best way to handle this. I would be most grateful if you, dontwalkhand, could cut through the fog and point me in the right direction!

Happy New Year!

 

[violetgoose]

Here's my story: I purchased a microSIM from my local T-Mobile shop today (paid $20 cash). I asked for a Pay-As-You-Go SIM, watched them tear open a brand new shrink-wrapped package of SIM cards, and punchcut the full-sized SIM into a microSIM. They gave me a PIN (1234, clever of them, huh?) and activated the microSIM. I didn't tell them it was for a 4S, and I didn't tell them I had a line of service with them, and I didn't even tell them my name. The new micro-SIM has a pre-paid balance of $13.34 on it, and has a new cell phone number--a number that I do not want to use because I need to keep my old number.

Hi PurplePlume, I am a bit worried now. Does that mean that all micro-SIMs have prepaid numbers on them? I still want to keep my monthly plan and my old number, of course. Did they give you an old micro-SIM? Or is it bc you have a pay-as-you-go plan? I am a bit confused. I just want to be aware so that way I know what to look for when I go to my T-Mobile store. Please clarify. I thought from dontwalkhand's first post that they are $10. I can't believe each store sells them for different prices? What happened/what did you decide to do? Thanks!!

 

[photographypro]

Is it easy to unlock an ATT iPhone 4 (iOS 5.0.1) to use on TMobile?

I have a 16GB iPhone 4 running iOS 5.0.1 that it seems I was able to Jailbreak yesterday with Redsn0w. I would like to use this iPhone on T-mobile, but I understand unlocking the iPhone is a whole different deal. Is this possible?

Any recommendations?

I could add my wife to my ATT account, but her cell (non-iPhone) is T-mobile, so it would be cheaper to activate the iPhone on T-mobile (she doesn't need data off Wi-Fi). I also want it unlocked as we are moving to Italy in August, so I want to be sure I can do this before we get there.

 

[purpleplume]

Hi PurplePlume, I am a bit worried now. Does that mean that all micro-SIMs have prepaid numbers on them? I still want to keep my monthly plan and my old number, of course. Did they give you an old micro-SIM? Or is it bc you have a pay-as-you-go plan? I am a bit confused. I just want to be aware so that way I know what to look for when I go to my T-Mobile store. Please clarify. I thought from dontwalkhand's first post that they are $10. I can't believe each store sells them for different prices? What happened/what did you decide to do? Thanks!!

Hi violetgoose,

You can buy a T-Mobile micro-SIM at T-Mobile online for $10, I believe. Some T-Mobile stores will give you one for free (I got a free one today. More on that in a minute.) while other T-Mobile stores charge for them. In my case, I had a time parameter in which to get my Apple factory unlocked 4S up and running, so I couldn't wait to get one online. That's why I went to a T-Mobile store to get one. I requested a pay-as-you go micro-SIM, for a friend of mine who was coming over from Europe and wanted to use it in their mobile phone while they were visiting the States. That way, no one bothered me about why I wanted it, whether I had T-Mobile line of service, my cell number, etc.

Here's where I screwed up. I put the new micro-SIM in my old dumb phone and tested it by sending a text and making a call. Do NOT do this! When I went into a second T-Mobile store today to ask them to port my cell number from the original SIM (full-sized, which I presented to them loose) to the target micro-SIM (which I presented to them in my working dumb phone, they did the "SIM-to-SIM" (this is the lingo I heard the employees use) and gave me back my dumb phone.

I asked them to make a call to my cell number, in order to test it out. When they called my original cell number, it went immediately to voice mail and my dumb phone did not ring. What I discovered was, that because I had used the new micro-SIM to make a test text/call, they could not port my original cell number to that SIM-card. At that point, they graciously gave me a new SIM, complimentary, and once again did a SIM-to-SIM transfer to port my original cell number to the (3rd) SIM.

I left there to go back to the T-Mobile store I'd visited the day before and had them punch the new (3rd) SIM so I'd have a micro-SIM (the 2nd T-Mobile store did not have a punch). Of course I retained the border of the SIM card that remained after the punch was made, so I could fit it back together with the micro-SIM center, insert it into my old dumb phone, and test it out.

Now I am home again and about to attempt to get my new 4S up and running. Wish me luck!

 

[purpleplume]

Now I am home again and about to attempt to get my new 4S up and running. Wish me luck!

Mission accomplished!

My 4S is now up and running, working off my original cell phone number that I've had with T-Mobile for nearly ten years. I followed the step-by-step guide provided by dontwalkhand in the original post of this thread. Thanks again to the OP.

I have yet to test iCloud, MMS functionality, and facetime. Pending tomorrow's successful testing results the MMS and iCloud features, it appears I have successfully moved up to the 4S.

 

[violetgoose]

Thanks Purpleplume, for the info and warning. Glad you got it all worked out. On the Tmobile website, it says I can get the MicroSIM for free, but it says something about a two year contract?

 

[purpleplume]

Thanks Purpleplume, for the info and warning. Glad you got it all worked out. On the Tmobile website, it says I can get the MicroSIM for free, but it says something about a two year contract?

True. If you want to reup your T-Mobile contract for another 2 years, you can do that on T-Mobile online and they will give you a MicroSIM. But since you can buy a Micro-SIM online for $10 from TMO (even less on Amazon) I suggest that would be a better choice than committing to an extended contract to obtain such a low-cost item for "free."

 

[violetgoose]

True. If you want to reup your T-Mobile contract for another 2 years, you can do that on T-Mobile online and they will give you a MicroSIM. But since you can buy a Micro-SIM online for $10 from TMO (even less on Amazon) I suggest that would be a better choice than committing to an extended contract to obtain such a low-cost item for "free."

Okay. I have the FlexPay so I have no monthly commitment. Do you suggest I just go to the store and get it there then and explain the entire situation to them? I was thinking about calling Customer Service and asking what I should do.

 

[purpleplume]

Okay. I have the FlexPay so I have no monthly commitment. Do you suggest I just go to the store and get it there then and explain the entire situation to them? I was thinking about calling Customer Service and asking what I should do.

Based on the research I did, it seems the staff in TMO stores aren't that helpful if you go in and tell them you want a microSIM for an unlocked iPhone 4S. I would think customer service would be even less helpful over the phone.

To me, that's the beauty of a thread like this. Here you have the benefit of TMO customers who have accomplished what you want to do, and it makes it easier to follow in their footsteps rather than reinvent the wheel.

 

[phon]

Okay. I have the FlexPay so I have no monthly commitment. Do you suggest I just go to the store and get it there then and explain the entire situation to them? I was thinking about calling Customer Service and asking what I should do.

I purchased 2 32gb of 4s factory unlocked (64gb returned and replaced 32gb one), just paid $10 for 1 tmobile microsim, and cut mine with a knife , saved 10bucks