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Using Iphone 3g on AT&T Pick your plan

I

iluvgr8tdeals

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 22, 2009
41
0
Hello everyone,

I have a daughter who is on my AT&T family plan but she keeps running out of minutes, buys numerous ring-tones and keeps our bill inflated. She is turning 16 and we have agreed on a compromise. I shall purchase her a phone of her choice as long as she has her own plan. She wants the iphone 3g with 16gb. An AT&T associate suggested the pay as you pick plan since she is below 18, where she has to pay for her airtime before she even uses the phone. I have a few questions which I need answered before I purchase the iphone for her.

1. If I get the I-Phone 3g for her, can she insert her new pick your plan sim card into her I-Phone when she goes to the AT&T store?
2. I am limited to purchasing a new or used phone from Ebay, which she doesn't mind, as long as it is an I-Phone. I usually see the terms 'jail-broken' and 'unlocked' for most of the I-Phones on sale, meaning that they have somehow been 'tampered' with. Will anything happen if she uses an unlocked or jailbroken I-Phone with the new AT&T simcard?
3. Can she have unlimited internet use using the I-Phone, since she is bound to surf the internet like crazy. Does her plan allow her to have unlimited internet access? Is Wifi free when using the I-Phone, so that she can limit her usage so as not to inflate her bill?
4. If I get her an i-phone, can I simply insert the sim card into the i-phone 3g and it will work seamlessly? Since the phone may be 'used' or refurbished, does it need to be activated again, and shall it function just like an ordinary i-phone with a contract with AT&T?
5. If you have done this kind of thing before, do you mind posting the steps I need to take to activate the sim card so as to use the i-phone? Could I put the sim card on the i-phone?

Sorry if I asked a question that was already in this forum, but I searched and did not find anything specific to my above questions.

Thanks for your input. Have a nice day everyone.
 
hitman45400 said:
well price wise, check the refurbs;
http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-ph...artFilter=false&allFeatures=on&manapple=apple

as for the internet, the data package is part of the deal when you get the phone, i am not sure about how they have it set up with the pay as you go plan though. The data plan is unlimited, you don't have to worry about her inflating your bill.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the prices. Those prices mean that she can only get the phone with a 2 year contract, which I want to avoid because I want her to pay her own bill. She cannot get the phone on her own via contract.

Thanks for the info about the data plan on the contract iphone plans. AT&T are being evasive on the issues I have listed above, with different people saying different things, so I was wondering if anyone has tried this.
 
Got the iphone 3g, works with pick your plan, shh

iluvgr8tdeals said:
Hello everyone,

I have a daughter who is on my AT&T family plan but she keeps running out of minutes, buys numerous ring-tones and keeps our bill inflated. She is turning 16 and we have agreed on a compromise. I shall purchase her a phone of her choice as long as she has her own plan. She wants the iphone 3g with 16gb. An AT&T associate suggested the pay as you pick plan since she is below 18, where she has to pay for her airtime before she even uses the phone. I have a few questions which I need answered before I purchase the iphone for her.

1. If I get the I-Phone 3g for her, can she insert her new pick your plan sim card into her I-Phone when she goes to the AT&T store?
2. I am limited to purchasing a new or used phone from Ebay, which she doesn't mind, as long as it is an I-Phone. I usually see the terms 'jail-broken' and 'unlocked' for most of the I-Phones on sale, meaning that they have somehow been 'tampered' with. Will anything happen if she uses an unlocked or jailbroken I-Phone with the new AT&T simcard?
3. Can she have unlimited internet use using the I-Phone, since she is bound to surf the internet like crazy. Does her plan allow her to have unlimited internet access? Is Wifi free when using the I-Phone, so that she can limit her usage so as not to inflate her bill?
4. If I get her an i-phone, can I simply insert the sim card into the i-phone 3g and it will work seamlessly? Since the phone may be 'used' or refurbished, does it need to be activated again, and shall it function just like an ordinary i-phone with a contract with AT&T?
5. If you have done this kind of thing before, do you mind posting the steps I need to take to activate the sim card so as to use the i-phone? Could I put the sim card on the i-phone?

Sorry if I asked a question that was already in this forum, but I searched and did not find anything specific to my above questions.

Thanks for your input. Have a nice day everyone.
Click to expand...

I found the answers to above thread. I scoured the internet. Found out that, you purchase the pick your plan sim card from AT&T customer service over the phone (1866-499-7888) (not from store) and have them mail it to you. Dont worry about jailbreaking or unlocking, iphone 3g works with pick your plan sim card. Got locked phone for her. Activate the sim card using a different phone, and then insert it to iphone. Synch it to itunes, and voila, you are in business. When ordering, please order the 100mb plan to avoid shock if you use the internet while getting charged per usage.

Please disable 3g and fetch new data options, to prevent unnecessary data downloads. If you have a wireless router at home, use wifi,

If you have 2g, AT&T may have an unlimited data plan, but I am not sure. Some reps say yes, some say no. Call AT&T to confirm. If you have a 3g phone, don't call AT&T, as they can tell the phone you are using.

Hope this helps.
 
CBR900RR said:
Or you can use SKYPE for unlimited US and Canada voice call, for $2.95 a month over wifi, and if you jailbreak, you can use skype over 3g.
Click to expand...

I think the op is tyrying to find a cheap plan for the iphone. I dont think he wants to pay the $30 data plan.
 
Hello everyone,

I have a daughter who is on my AT&T family plan but she keeps running out of minutes, buys numerous ring-tones and keeps our bill inflated. She is turning 16 and we have agreed on a compromise. I shall purchase her a phone of her choice as long as she has her own plan. She wants the iphone 3g with 16gb. An AT&T associate suggested the pay as you pick plan since she is below 18, where she has to pay for her airtime before she even uses the phone. I have a few questions which I need answered before I purchase the iphone for her.

1. If I get the I-Phone 3g for her, can she insert her new pick your plan sim card into her I-Phone when she goes to the AT&T store?
2. I am limited to purchasing a new or used phone from Ebay, which she doesn't mind, as long as it is an I-Phone. I usually see the terms 'jail-broken' and 'unlocked' for most of the I-Phones on sale, meaning that they have somehow been 'tampered' with. Will anything happen if she uses an unlocked or jailbroken I-Phone with the new AT&T simcard?
3. Can she have unlimited internet use using the I-Phone, since she is bound to surf the internet like crazy. Does her plan allow her to have unlimited internet access? Is Wifi free when using the I-Phone, so that she can limit her usage so as not to inflate her bill?
4. If I get her an i-phone, can I simply insert the sim card into the i-phone 3g and it will work seamlessly? Since the phone may be 'used' or refurbished, does it need to be activated again, and shall it function just like an ordinary i-phone with a contract with AT&T?
5. If you have done this kind of thing before, do you mind posting the steps I need to take to activate the sim card so as to use the i-phone? Could I put the sim card on the i-phone?

Sorry if I asked a question that was already in this forum, but I searched and did not find anything specific to my above questions.

Thanks for your input. Have a nice day everyone.
Click to expand...


Does this still work with the new att rules about the 3g iPhone on the GoPhone?
 
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