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Carrier Will AT&T give me a new SIM card if I buy a new SIM-free iPhone?

M

macrumorsuser10

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Nov 18, 2010
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I currently have a 2012 iPhone 5 that has an AT&T SIM card. Unfortunately, the plastic case for my iPhone is almost impossibly hard to remove, so I cannot remove the SIM. I don't want to break the case off.

So now I want to buy a new SIM-free iPhone 6s. Some questions:

1. If I got to an AT&T store, will they give me a new SIM card?

2. When I activate the new SIM card with a new iPhone 6s, will the SIM card on my iPhone 5 automatically be deactivated?

3. Is there a reason I should prefer the AT&T "pay in full" iPhone (which presumably comes with a SIM card) over the SIM-free iPhone 6s?
 
1. Yes, AT&T corporate stores are very liberal with giving out SIM cards. If you go anywhere else, like Best Buy or smaller kiosk locations they will charge you.

2. Yes, the SIM in the 5 will automatically deactivate.

3. Not really. If you purchase a SIM free version from Apple or anywhere else you can still walk into an AT&T store and ask for a SIM card.
 
macrumorsuser10 said:
I currently have a 2012 iPhone 5 that has an AT&T SIM card. Unfortunately, the plastic case for my iPhone is almost impossibly hard to remove, so I cannot remove the SIM. I don't want to break the case off.

So now I want to buy a new SIM-free iPhone 6s. Some questions:

1. If I got to an AT&T store, will they give me a new SIM card?

2. When I activate the new SIM card with a new iPhone 6s, will the SIM card on my iPhone 5 automatically be deactivated?

3. Is there a reason I should prefer the AT&T "pay in full" iPhone (which presumably comes with a SIM card) over the SIM-free iPhone 6s?
Click to expand...
1. Yes. Sometimes they will simply give out the card which you can activate online at your convenience. But the last two times I asked for a SIM they wouldn't give it to me unless I had a phone in hand for them to activate in the store.
2. Yes.
3. The "pay in full" phone will come with an AT&T SIM and it will be locked. You can request an unlock from AT&T, but why buy a locked phone when you can buy an unlocked phone?
 
na1577 said:
3. The "pay in full" phone will come with an AT&T SIM and it will be locked. You can request an unlock from AT&T, but why buy a locked phone when you can buy an unlocked phone?
Click to expand...

Is unlocked vs locked relevant to me if I'm planning to stay on AT&T? I understand that the unlocked phone allows me to move to another carrier and/or insert a temporary SIM if I'm traveling overseas.
 
na1577 said:
1. Yes. Sometimes they will simply give out the card which you can activate online at your convenience. But the last two times I asked for a SIM they wouldn't give it to me unless I had a phone in hand for them to activate in the store.
2. Yes.
3. The "pay in full" phone will come with an AT&T SIM and it will be locked. You can request an unlock from AT&T, but why buy a locked phone when you can buy an unlocked phone?
Click to expand...

The only possible reason would be for Band 30, which is AT&T only, and NOT in the unlocked iPhone.
 
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dwfaust said:
The only possible reason would be for Band 30, which is AT&T only, and NOT in the unlocked iPhone.
Click to expand...

This doesn't seem right. This report says that the SIM-free, unlocked phone has band 30:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2492848,00.asp

Apple today started selling factory unlocked, SIM-free versions of its iPhone 6s and 6s Plus phones online at Apple.com, and there's a pleasant little surprise on board.

The factory-unlocked models, which start at $649 for the iPhone 6s and $749 for the 6s Plus, are models A1633 and A1634. Why is that interesting? These are the units AT&T is selling, and they include an extra frequency band that only AT&T uses.​
 
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macrumorsuser10 said:
This doesn't seem right. This report says that the SIM-free, unlocked phone has band 30:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2492848,00.asp

Apple today started selling factory unlocked, SIM-free versions of its iPhone 6s and 6s Plus phones online at Apple.com, and there's a pleasant little surprise on board.

The factory-unlocked models, which start at $649 for the iPhone 6s and $749 for the 6s Plus, are models A1633 and A1634. Why is that interesting? These are the units AT&T is selling, and they include an extra frequency band that only AT&T uses.​
Click to expand...

Sweet. Earlier online reports that I saw indicated that it did not. Good to know.

In that case, I can't think of any reason not to buy the unlocked, SIM-free version.
 
I've never had an issue. You can even have them send you a new one that you can activate at your convenience. I have had them overnighted before, for free. It's a matter of convenience. If you don't have an ATT store nearby, just give them a call or log online to chat and they'll take care of you.
 
Mine is an unlocked sim-less model that I got at Sam's Club on Black Friday. Looks like it has band 30.



Mike
 
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