For the purpose of testing, this week we purchased an iPhone and decided to check the options for AT&T prepaid service. Essentially there are two choices when it comes to prepaid service with AT&T: Pay As You Go or Pick Your Plan. The difference between the two plans is that pay as you go simply means you put a value on your account and you get charged standard itemized billing per minute usage, text message, picture message and Media Net (Internet Usage). Pick Your Plan is much more beneficial to prepaid users looking to have a standard plan since it gives you standard minutes with Rollover, Nationwide Long Distance and most importantly add-on options for text messaging/multimedia messaging and internet usage.
Going Prepaid with the Iphone is a choice a lot of people have to make before they decide to give over their life for a 2yr Commitment to AT&T without knowning how solid the service is in their area or if they want to pay the rate plans for the next 2 years on the iPhone. Also, the most important is that you do not get a carrier subsidized phone when you purchase the iPhone, instead you pay full retail like anyone else wanting to use the iPhone.
What are the choices? Well first off you can always bypass the activation then jailbreak the iphone which will allow you to use the Iphones features as well as install 3rd party applications such as Nintendo Emulators, Instant Messaging Software, etc. This will essentially give you a Ipod Touch with a camera and the option to be used as a Phone later down the line with an AT&T Contract or simply AT&T Prepaid. Check my previous post for all the juicy details on unlocking your iPhone
We were in the same boat at this point, since our goal was having an iPhone without contract. The first step was following the procedure above on my previous post and unlocking the iPhone with an activation bypass and a jailbreak. This allowed us to be able to access the iPhone’s menu.
Step 1: Bypass activation and jailbreak the iPhone. Note follow these same instructions Read, but instead of choosing upgrade so that it upgrades to 1.1.3, you will need to download the 1.1.2 restore image from Apples website. Hold down the shift key when you press the upgrade button and direct it to the 1.1.2 restore image. Currently the jailbreak for iPhone 1.1.3 is on hold and it is worth waiting for the SDK *software developer kit* firmware update to be released so they can jailbreak that version.
Step 2: Pickup an AT&T GoPhone at your local retailer. We ended up going to Walmart to pickup our Go Phone since they often have deals where it is $9.99 for the GoPhone with $10 of prepaid balance included. You will follow the activation online at http://www.att.com/activations and setup your GoPhone. At this point you need to decided whether to choose the Pick Your Plan or the Pay as You Go Option.
We choose the Pick your Plan Option 29.99. We also took advantage of the Unlimited Messaging feature for $20.00 and the unlimited Media Net internet for $20.00. This brings the grand total to $69.99 a month for a small amount of voice minutes, but an unlimited texting, picture messaging, and EDGE internet capable device.
Step 3: Take out the SIM card from the AT&T GoPhone and place SIM Card in the Iphone.
You are now ready to use AT&T Pick Your Plan Service. If you need to add money to your GoPhone account or want to make changes to the Plan features/add ons you can do it online.
You are now done and have your iPhone ready to use with a small number of voice minutes, but unlimited internet and unlimited texting/picture messaging. Grand Total per month will be 69.99, but if you are not as heavy of a text messenger you can always use the $10.00 option and have 1500 text messages per month. Alternatively you can lower your internet plan if you intend to use WiFi access a majority of the time.
Any Questions? Leave a Comment below.
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My iphone was bought without any sort of contract—i bought it outright, full price.
when i turn it on, it says:
**NO SIM CARD INSTALLED: please insert a valid SIM card with no PIN lock to activate IPHONE**
I dont have AT&T. I have Tmobile. I have had iphones before, and I have unlocked them. But they were used, and somebody else had already activated them. I dont know what to do. Can someone please tell me in detail what I should do? I am guessing it involves buying a GoPhone and activating it and putting the activated SIM in the iphone. I really need help. If there is way to do it without a SIM, that would be awesome to know as well.
THANKYOU ALL FOR YOUR HELP.
http://download.ziphone.org/ use ZiPhone and unlock the iPhone.
I cant unlock the phone until i activate it. I guess what I mean to say is how do i bypass activation, so i can get to the phones icon(home screen). once its there, itunes will recognize the phone, and i can unlock/jailbreak the phone with ziphone or qckpwn.
Interesting, ZiPhone use to do all 3 steps (activation, jailbreak, unlock). Have you looked into yellowsn0w over at the dev-team blog?
http://blog.iphone-dev.org/post/67797811/dont-eat-yellowsn0w
u should jailbreak it download yellowsnow and put a boostmobil simcard unlimited everything for 50 bucks a month or 1$ a day for unlimited minutes textt and $.35 a day for unlimeited data
i already have a go phone account. my question is if i buy a iphone could i jailbreak it and then use my sim card to keep my service? also where did you purchase your iphone from and how much did it cost with out a plan?
ok so all you iphone junkies i need a few questions answered. i have at&t already and i use a blackjack. have unlimited texts and lots of minutes but no data plan at all. my friend is selling his iphone i think its one of the originals, not a 3g. but its cheap and i want a new toy. can i just use my sim card and put it in his phone and just not use the internet unless im in wifi area?
Beware of one thing when choosing a prepaid plan for the iPhone.
I have an unlocked iPhone, bought in Europe. I use it on a contract in Denmark and in the US, I opted for the AT&T pay as you go plan and put $ 100 on it so it would not expire until a year from now. – Do not get this plan! AT&T “forgot” to inform that the iPhone will drain your account as it will keep downloading data. The only real prepaid option for iphone from AT&T is the “pick your plan” option. (+a data package if needed)
However, you can also buy a sim card from T-Mobile. It works just fine for calls and you can still get online at hotspots and home networks.
HI I purchased a I-phone 2g fro, ebay, I already had a go-phone account. I put my SIM caed in and it works fine (until you access the internet) They only offer a small amount of internet usage for $20, so I called AT&T and they told me I had to activate my phone thru I-tunes, when I plugged it up to my pc it pulled I-tunes up and synched all my songs,pics,etc but it did not say anything about activation. Is there anyone that can offer any help if not I will go back to t-mobile. I intially left t-mobile to come to AT&T for this bull.
I unlocked my 2g 8gb, version 2.2.1. I used a t mobile prepaid sim. I signed up for the sidekick prepaid plan. $1.00 a day, unlimited everything except calls for which I pay $0.15 a minute. Hope this helps.
ok i got an iphone 3G with a pre paid sim i was wondering if the ipod cost money to use it and i dont use the iphone internet
@ John
You have to acess the ipod thru the net….so its gonna cost u
I already have a go phone and want to get a iphone to put my sims card into. I pay by the min and I can now access the web but the cost is a bit higher then a phone call per min. If I have wfi in my office or area for free do I have to still pay ATT to use the web with a Iphone? I called a ATT store and they were being advacive when I asked. Thanks Sue
Hi Sue, go back and read my comment above – Janusz 03.01.09 at 1:42 am-
As there is no way to opt out of data flow from ATT with a go phone account. On the iPhone, the constant data flow will drain your account in no time. This is why they are evasive at the ATT store.
how good is the internet service from boost on the 3g iphone? And overall would’nt boost provide better service for the 3g iphone than t-mobile cause there service is pretty poor
can u still do all the things you could do with a contract on an iPhone?
I followed your steps above and activated the phone with GoPhone. I also choose the plan with the phone and internet for roughtly the same as you paid but less texting minutes and Internet acess.
I put the chip on the iphone and tried to use the service. I can not make any phone calls. It’s says that the called failed.
I visited the ATT site again, plugged in my phone number and confirmed it has indeed being activated. (Our records indicate that all wireless numbers on this account are already active. If you feel you’ve reached this message in error, call Customer Care at 1-800-331-0500.).
So why is my iphone not working then?
Herb
Just a follow up. to my last comment above. I took out the chip and re-inserted and the iphone started to work, either that or the ATT activation via the web site listed on the steps above does that 24-48 hours to take effect. By in any event, the phone works now including phone and internet access. I am very please because I want to use this iphone for QA testing purposes.
I can confirm this method still works.
I just signed up and internet is working flawlessly. I didn’t have to buy a phone either.
I just went to the Att store and asked for the plan.
Be sure to call after you enroll because the data on mine was no taking the megabytes form my plan, instead from the total balance (which was friggin expensive!) But when I called i was recredited and everything is fine now.
And yes, you iPhone has to be jailbroken.
Anon:
So you must have had a chip laying around right? otherwise, just the ATT plan would do you no good without the actual chip.
Cesar
No, I went into the Att store and told the person I already had a phone. She just told me “ok thats find, just let me go get the sim card” and she went into the back of the store.
Nice. U did not burn your $20.00 like I did.
BTW have you guys noticed that you started to receive annoying text message stating that.. “Your activity cost you $.01 cent. Is that normal? It only started to occur the last 48 hours.
Everytime is .03 cents or .01 cent typicall for anything like checking email or going on the Internet.
Cesar
Cesar, the I phone will constantly try to acess the net and it will charge you,eventually draining all your money…iphone on pre pay is pretty much a scam cuz u cant fully use internet, unless with wifi (mine wouldn’t work) and there is no unlim net. I am now on a contract with t-mobile using my iphone and it works great!
Very true indeed my friend. I just went into the mail settings and turn off Yahoo mail. One thing I discovered is that they had no criteria. They charge me to receive 10 emails 1 cent and that 1 .039 cent and once $10.00 for 1 minute of reading email. No criteria. Mind you that, I was connected to my own hi-fi network Linksys not theirs.
Yeah. I will see if turning off Yahoo mail stops the bleeding if it does not, I will cancel my ATT charge as you go plan, and only use the iphone on hot spots and not as a phone. I don’t need it anyway.
Thanks!!!
Cesar
The I-phone does not have a SIM. It has to be activated at an APPLE store, or with AT&T directly. This is not like standard phones that AT&T have where you can intercange SIM cards. Cant be done.
Internet with the Iphone is not just available at hotspots. But you MUST have the internet feature on the plan. (no brainer).
I have worked for ATT for 2 years. I take calls on this E.V.E.R.Y.D.A.Y.
Sorry to say mimi, but you are completely wrong. The iPhone absolutely has a sim card. I often interchange between ATT and T-mobile sim cards and also change to a local sim card when I traveling abroad. – Also, one DOES NOT necessarily have to have a plan that includes data to use the iPhone for internet access. Surely at hot spots (some free and some for a charge) are available (also with a -no date- pay as you go- service from T-mobile) and any other place with accessible wifi service. – I hope you are not misleading people on a daily basis mimi.
MIMI is wrong and JANUSZ is right. The iphone works well with other networks as well, so as long as the phone is unlock. i gave my in law one last christmas in Manila, philippines and she had it there unlock, now she is using it in its full glory and works very well with other networks which envys everyone. we chat on yahoo and she even sent me pics taken from the iphone, and this is the first gen iphone. ANYTHING is possible so as long as you know!!
Oh and one more thing MIMI works with AT&T, that is a no brainer.
Ceaser I meant to tell u that u call call ATT prepay tell em u didnt know bout the iphone taking all ur money when u acess the net n they will look it up n refund it all back to you! They did it for me as far back as from when I got the phone n it came up to like 98 bucks! So make sure u get ur money back, I deletd my yahoo mail acct on my phone and it stopped charging me as much but periodically it would still have those annoying texts, now Im with tmobile using the iphone and everything works great!! Good luck
MIMI what are u saying….Ofcourse the phone has a sim, its @ the top n i use a paperclip to stick in the little whole to get it out.
GOOD LUCK ALL
Useful Iphone Tips:
If you are using your Iphone with a prepaid card. Called ATT and have then take out the auto renewal bill associated with your pre-paid account. If you don’t do this, you will be billed monthly regardless if you have credit on your account or not.
Talk for free using SKYPE for iphone:
If you download Skype for iphone you can call other people that also have Skype for iphone for FREE. Alternatively, you can purchase Skype credits and talk to regular phones residential or mobile. Although is still a paid service, it’s more affordable than ATT prepaid.
Hope this information is useful.
Cesar
Ecommercecms-solution.com
**NO SIM CARD INSTALLED: please insert a valid SIM card with no PIN lock to activate IPHONE**
Uh… my aunt & uncle just bought me iphone and I can’t even use it… Was there suppose to be a sim card in the box? How can I just get pass this screen so i can use other functions for now and worry about the phone later?
I’m planning to jailbreak, and getting the most cost-effective plans—which is not the $80/month plan that AT&T wants us to get…
iphones,are coming to an end
there is a newer version coming out soon called
copying iphone, does all the same stuff and $200 dollars cheaper
im so waiting
i just bought a iphone off my friend and i had a prepaid sim set up already i put it in the phone and activated it through itunes n everything works fine except the internet do i have to get that media net package first before i can even connect to the internet or should i be able to connect without buying the package
I did exactly what you did except i have the 200 messaging package instead of unlimited. I still have medianet and every app is running perfect on my iphone. The only problem for me is the text messaging feature. When i send text messages to friends, they receive them but when they send me a text message back, i don’t get it. Can you please help me?????
hey all! hey does anybody know how to thether /power a macbook thru an iphone? oh in a prepaid sence i mean.is that possible? thanx in advnce
Hi,
I did exactly what you did and it worked perfectly. The only problem is that i can only get text messages from at&t customers only. Please help!!
Hello all,
So, I just went onto the apple website to purchase a new 3G S with new at&t contract service. Apple asked me to input my SSN# and then proceeded to check my credit eligibility. After a couple of minutes, it said that I qualified for new service for at&t and i selected my plan under the 2 year contract, and was able to purchase the phone under the contract agreement pricing (&199 for the 3g S 16gb). I assumed this meant I passed the credit check, seeing as how my rate plan is detailed on my apple order confirmation. However, I received an email from at&t 3 days later about gophone service. I believe my credit is far from perfect, does this mean that when my iphone arrives it won’t activate when I try? I spoke to a rep from apple on the phone as well as in person, and they told me that I should be fine, however the at&t email scared me. Anyone know if they can let you buy a new iphone WHILE selecting a rate plan at the discount price and THEN deny your credit after you receive the phone when you try to activiate??? This seemed by far to be the most insightful thread i’ve read on this, so I would appreciate any and all advice. Thanks a lot,
D
can the iphone 3g be a prepaid contract???
no data for iPhone on prepaid plans with AT&T Go Phones
I’m in the US from Hong Kong and brought my not-locked iPhone with me. To avoid paying roaming charges, I decided to go to an ATT store for a prepaid card & added the data service ($20 for 100MB). The phone worked fine, but not data. The message on the phone was “Could not activate cellular data network: You are not subscribed to the cellular data service”. I spent about 45 minutes in the store with the sales guy, then on the phone with first with customer service then with technical support. I was told twice on the phone that ATT identifies iPhones on the network and will not let them connect for data unless there is contract. They refunded the data part of my card. Will try T-Mobile next if I can find a store.
I have an iPhone 3G with one year left on my contract. I want to cancel the contract and use the iPhone as a regular phone (calling and texting only). Will the GoPhone option work for me? Is there some way to prevent an iPhone with a GoPhone SIM from trying to access the internet?
I’m going to buy an iphone 3g from one of my mom’s friends and I cant get it on a plan bcz my mom has bad credit,so im going to buy the iphone and then go to the At&t store and have them put it on prepaid.
Should i do this?
Need some help, have 3g Iphone , have a go phone sim in it , seems to work fine but I can not sen text messages with it , how do I fix it ? Called AT &T told me nothing they could do . How do I fix it
I Have The First Iphone And The 3.1 Firmware And The Data For Gophone Wont Work??
i have the new 3gs and a at$t prepaid sim, the phone work’s but my internet connection does not seem to be connected… i do have unlimited net.. does anyone know wh@ the problem could be?>>> the last phone i had was a jailbroken 3g the internet from the same sim worked in th@ one.
warlord, there isn’t an unlimited internet option for prepaid, you fuu! romg!
Try putting your iphone in airplane mode when you are not using it and connect to wifi networks when you want to access the net
If I buy just the T-Mobile prepaid SIM from their website can it be activated using the iPhone 2g, or do I need to activate the SIM in a T-Mobile phone and then place it in the iPhone? I am just looking for voice and not interested in data.
Just don’t want to buy the phone if I don’t have to.
I assume you can still do voice on iPhone via T-Mobile prepaid…right?
Thanks
just activate iphone with someones at&t sim card then put in a prepaid sim card
internet dosnt work on prepaid iphone but does on other phones
ok I got the original iPhone with the latest update. my problem is that I have a problem. whenever I put in a AT&T sim card that has an actual plan on it it works fine. but when I put in my go phone sim it brings up the screen with the USB cord the one where you have to plug it up to activate it. well I plug it up to iTunes and it won’t let me do anythin with it it will just bring up my number and won’t let me activate it. what do I do to get my go phone card to work on it?
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