How to reactivate iphone with a new sim card & new number

RonAnnArbor wrote:
There's more to it than that.

You have to go to ATT and get a new SIM card before you can activate your friend's old iPHone for yourself. The old SIM card inside that was activated for your friend can not be used for your account. You also can not use any of YOUR old SIM cards, it has to be a fresh, unused SIM card.

Once you have a new SIM card, go into settings/reset and clear out everything in the current iPHone. You can then activate, and it will set up a new sync relationship for you.

I'm pretty sure the OP has a new sim card as it is stated in the title. So, I'm pretty sure I have covered what they need to do.

There's more to it than that.

You have to go to ATT and get a new SIM card before you can activate your friend's old iPHone for yourself. The old SIM card inside that was activated for your friend can not be used for your account. You also can not use any of YOUR old SIM cards, it has to be a fresh, unused SIM card.

Once you have a new SIM card, go into settings/reset and clear out everything in the current iPHone. You can then activate, and it will set up a new sync relationship for you.

I was mildly annoyed not to find the answer to the question of how to activate a used phone until I came into the forums. It seems fairly simple though, a new sim card. However, nowhere on the website does it have this information nor did the iPhone support person to whom I spoke know where to find this information. It took him a minute to figure out that all I needed to do was get a new sim card.

The previous phone number "goes away" in iTunes when you do a restore on the phone, but when the sim card is removed and replaced it is actually still there.

Message was edited by: Casey 🙂

You actually do not have to clear the data out just to activate the new SIM card. You can simply put the new SIM card in, and plug into iTunes. iTunes will recognize the new sim and you just set it up like you did the first time. You'll enter your existing number, etc. It's pretty painless, and you do not have to contact AT&T or go to one of their stores regardless of what anyone says.

Click the restore button in itunes. When it is done it will give you the option to setup as a new phone or restore from backup. Click setup as new phone and then you can name it.