Good idea, I will try that, Might be more helpful and since it looks like it's actually Apple's packaging issue not Verizon, might get more sympathy and pull from them.
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Wrong Verizon iPhone4 in box.
- Thread starter ScottMcF
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Good idea, I will try that, Might be more helpful and since it looks like it's actually Apple's packaging issue not Verizon, might get more sympathy and pull from them.
I don't understand the use of the whole activation process at all. With ANY other phone than the iPhone, this is what you do:
1. Purchase phone
2. Put SIM in phone
3. Use phone
Then Apple decided that for some unknown reason, it would be better to add a error sensitive activation procedure into the mix that serves absolutely no use at all.
Can anyone explain this to me? Why does a phone need to be activated?
I think you are mistaken...ALL cell phones have to be activated...iTunes is just a middleman to activate a GSM phone at HOME...and it does serve a purpose...to properly use your iPhone it needs to be synced with an iTunes account, and if you want tech support over the phone iTunes allows you to register your device also
Correct because with Verizon you probably have to deactivate two phones, contact the other party and get the problem straightened out.
What a PIA it is to deal with CDMA.
I am mistaken? I've never activated a cell phone before I had an iPhone in my life and I've used cell phones for a good 8 years before using an iPhone.
Can you at least explain me why a phone needs to be activated?
Your still wrong, i ordered my girlfriend a 32gb iPhone 4 on launched I was only able to get a 16gb, all pre ordered 1 through AT&T and one through apple. On the day they gotmhere delivered actives both iPhones like u said to the imei in iTunes. Then I took out the sim card and switched so I can have the 32gb and her the 16gb. How come they are working? If you can not do that like you state?
Two possible scenarios:
1. Buy an iPhone at a retail location (AT&T or Apple Store). The phone when you connect to iTunes asks you to either set up a new account, or to put in your existing phone number. You can easily type your existing phone number, activate the iPhone, then go sim swapping crazy.
2. Buy an iPhone from Apple online. For some weird reason, who knows why, Apple registers the IMEI of the phone for both iTunes and in your AT&T account. When you connect the iPhone to iTunes it automatically pulls up your existing phone number, the account number, and other information it gets from your account from AT&T. If you were shipped the wrong phone for whatever reason, the number you see there will be someone else's number.
In situation #2, the phone can't be activated because you need to provide proof you are the owner of the account. I believe you need the SS# on the account. Since you aren't the other person, you can't activate the phone. Put in another SIM, connect to iTunes, iTunes uses the IMEI of the phone to lookup info on the phone, and once again presents you with the other person's account info and wants you to verify.
Also in situation #2 if you take it to an AT&T store, they can see the IMEI of the phone on the account, but if they try to remove it they get an error that it is locked. Call Apple for help, they will only offer a return and replacement for a solution.
Sorry that you don't believe it, but that is the way it works, but it only on the iPhone, no other manufacturer does this. Typically, yes, a sim swap would work, but not in above situation #2.
Either you activated them in iTunes before swapping the sims, or Apple fixed their issue for the iPhone 4 launch. I did state it was during the 3GS launch and that they may have fixed it.
1. Buy an iPhone at a retail location (AT&T or Apple Store). The phone when you connect to iTunes asks you to either set up a new account, or to put in your existing phone number. You can easily type your existing phone number, activate the iPhone, then go sim swapping crazy.
2. Buy an iPhone from Apple online. For some weird reason, who knows why, Apple registers the IMEI of the phone for both iTunes and in your AT&T account. When you connect the iPhone to iTunes it automatically pulls up your existing phone number, the account number, and other information it gets from your account from AT&T. If you were shipped the wrong phone for whatever reason, the number you see there will be someone else's number.
In situation #2, the phone can't be activated because you need to provide proof you are the owner of the account. I believe you need the SS# on the account. Since you aren't the other person, you can't activate the phone. Put in another SIM, connect to iTunes, iTunes uses the IMEI of the phone to lookup info on the phone, and once again presents you with the other person's account info and wants you to verify.
Also in situation #2 if you take it to an AT&T store, they can see the IMEI of the phone on the account, but if they try to remove it they get an error that it is locked. Call Apple for help, they will only offer a return and replacement for a solution.
Sorry that you don't believe it, but that is the way it works, but it only on the iPhone, no other manufacturer does this. Typically, yes, a sim swap would work, but not in above situation #2.
Either you activated them in iTunes before swapping the sims, or Apple fixed their issue for the iPhone 4 launch. I did state it was during the 3GS launch and that they may have fixed it.
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I don't have AT&T so I can't say for sure, but what I think Shawn was saying, he basically got a new phone AND sim card together, but they were for the other customer, so basically, yes if you have your own sim card you can swap out, but sounds like they weren't able to easily re-assign the wrongly sent sim cards between customers, is that it?
I think the problem lies with AT&T. In my country, the service provider I'm using doesn't even know I'm using an iPhone so the phone number I use doesn't matter.
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I'll stop you there. iTunes does not pull in your information. You still need to put in your phone number and SS# to proceed. If you get sent the wrong phone, an error display will be shown and prompt you to call or visit AT&T or go to an Apple Store.
False, I used my SIM to activate a friend's iPhone to a no commitment mode. New iPhones are dealt with either "Restore from previous back-up" or "Set up as new" the later goes through the activation process.
They will fix it for you on the spot. I've seen them do it.
In my case, due to how iTunes (now, or maybe just used to) activate the phones, even a sim swap didn't work. I tried 5 different sims.
It was rather funny to watch 3 AT&T employees try 3 different sims, swapping back and forth, while the system wouldn't let them.
For those counting:
1 sim came with 3GS
1 sim from my original iPhone
3 sims from the AT&T store
That simply means they have fixed the issue, not that it never occurred.
The whole point of this is that having GSM/sim cards doesn't necessarily negate what the OP's experience is, as in the past iPhone activations have had this problem before.
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You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. The iPhones that are shipped directly CANNOT be attached to a different number no matter what SIM card is inserted unless they are initially activated.
I was thinking the same thing, I don't want to change the system, just frustrated VZ customer service, or tech support could not resolve on the phone, re-assign the ESN to me, Otherwise I'm sure activation would have been easy. And mostly the fact that the wrong phone MEID was in the wrong box. Imagine it was an off by one packing problem for 1,000s and 1,000 of phones.Actually, both. VZW website was not processing the order for the fist hour on the 3rd, so upgraded 1 phone via Apple site (that shipped from China) on Verizon site later that morning... added an additional smart phone and line to Plan, that shipped from Verizon (Tenn.) But I said China because isn't that where they all are packaged from? Just Verizon had them in US already.
I will keep all updated after visit to Apple... the Bar or both.
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You know what, it isn't worth it. You've already seen that no matter what your experience, or what you know (which is true btw), those that are fully set in their ways will not accept anything different.
Before it happened to me, I wouldn't have believed it either, but it did happen to me and I learned something new. That is something I pride myself in btw, learning new things based on new experiences.
Hmm weird. Well I ordered mine through VZW on another family line's upgrade. It should be here within the next hour or so and then I need to make a trip to the store to port it to my number. I have been told by many reps that it is possible to do that but will know for sure once I get back home (I will be extremely angry if they don't do it... my 60 yr old mother doesn't need an iPhone). Anyways - if that can be done I don't see why same cannot apply to you.
By the way - have you tried logging into my verizon --> activate a device --> inputting the MEID# of the iPhone you currently hold in hand? If I understand correctly, that should pretty much port your actual number to the handset you have at hand.
BTW, whatever you do, don't click this link and view the screen capture there. It might prove you wrong.
EDIT: I realize now this may be ambiguous as I edited out the phone number field since it had someone's phone number in it. The field was not editable, and we pre-filled with a phone number, and the number was not mine. This is probably very similar to what ScottMcF is seeing.
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Me Too!!
Scott,
You're not the only one. I noticed the wrong phone # came up when I activated my new iPhone that I received today as well. MEID on box matched paperwork, but the phone in the box didn't match. I'm on the phone with VZW now seeing what they can do.
Steve
Scott,
You're not the only one. I noticed the wrong phone # came up when I activated my new iPhone that I received today as well. MEID on box matched paperwork, but the phone in the box didn't match. I'm on the phone with VZW now seeing what they can do.
Steve
Yes, that was the first way I tried, but using the ESN # on my printed order form... that didn't work, because the phone had a different #, then I got the MEID directly from the iPhone, tried that on the VZW site and go this error:
We cannot activate the phone associated with the Device ID you entered. Please contact Customer Service at (800) 922-0204 for assistance.
So, a this point, something major wrong, hope Apple can fix tomorrow.
sounds like you were in a pretty messed up situation. On both the 3GS and iP4 release, I ordered online with my parents account instead of my own (they didn't want new phones and had upgrades), and then popped my SIM into the phone BEFORE ever plugging it into iTunes. Worked just fine after that. Then I used my upgrade for an HTC Surround ($50 on amazon weeks after launch!) and am currently enjoying that much more than the iPhone
