Using Original Phone As An iPod With New Sim

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Level 3

563 points

Using Original Phone As An iPod With New Sim

My situation will be this - I currently have the 3G which I will be replacing with the 3GS. I know that I'll just be using the sim it comes with for the activation. My wife is currently using the original iphone but will be taking over my 3G. I believe all we need to do is take the sim out of the original one and use it in the 3G and activate it for her, discarding the sim that I was using with it. This will leave the original phone without a sim. I believe to use it as an ipod with no phone service a sim is required. I read an Apple support article that said to use the last sim that was activated with that phone to do this. However we will have taken that sim to use for her in the 3G.

I happen to have a spare 3G sim at home that was never registered to anyone. It was a new one I picked up from an AT&T store just in case. If a sim is required to activate the old phone as an ipod can I just insert that one and connect it to iTunes?

Macbook Pro 15" 2.4 Late '08, Intel iMac 20" 2.4, Mac OS X (10.5.7)

Posted on Jun 14, 2009 9:53 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Malcolm Rayfield

Level 7

28,123 points

Jun 14, 2009 10:15 AM in response to Pappasbike

The safest approach would be to leave the original SIM in the original iPhone, activate your new 3GS with its new SIM and your phone number, then activate the 3G with your unused SIM and your wife's phone number. That will deactivate the SIM in her original iPhone, but the old original iPhone will still have its original (but no longer active) SIM, which is what Apple recommends for iPod use.

Before doing any of this, update the original, and your 3G iPhones to 3.0 (when it is available).

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Answer 2

Pappasbike Author

Level 3

563 points

Jun 14, 2009 12:08 PM in response to Malcolm Rayfield

That sounds like the right way to do it. However does the unused sim need to have AT&T do anything to it? As far as I can remember I got it without any registration of any kind. It's still embedded in that plastic card they come in.
John

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Answer 3

Jun 14, 2009 12:36 PM in response to Pappasbike

Since you and your wife already have AT&T iPhone plans, you might be able to do everything at home with iTunes, but you should check with AT&T. Your wife will be moving from the original iPhone to iPhone 3G, for which AT&T normally charges a higher monthly fee. Since AT&T will not be subsidizing your wife's iPhone, though, she may be able to keep the lower rate.

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Answer 4

Pappasbike Author

Level 3

563 points

Jun 14, 2009 3:59 PM in response to Malcolm Rayfield

Thanks for the help. Just to make sure we'll probably drop by an AT&T store after the hoopla dies down and let them put the sim in.
John

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Answer 5

Gai Jin

Level 1

0 points

Jun 14, 2009 10:43 PM in response to Pappasbike

One thing to be aware of, when your wife upgrades to the 3G, you'll also have to upgrade to a 3G plan which is 15 dollars more. Maybe 10, I forgot if 200 text messages where included in the original Iphone plan.

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Answer 6

Pappasbike Author

Level 3

563 points

Jun 15, 2009 4:40 AM in response to Gai Jin

Yes, it will be $15 more since we'll have to pay $5 for the 200 text plan I'm using. When you think about the plans for the first phone were quite a bargain. On thing irks me though, when I was with Verizon you got 250 messages for $5. Oh well!!
John

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