No SIM card in the iPhone you are trying to activate

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Level 1

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No SIM card in the iPhone you are trying to activate

Hello,

I have a problem with my iPhone 3G S. Recently, I moved from the United States to Australia. Before leaving the US, i cancelled my plan with AT&T because I do not plan to have a mobile phone while I travel. I have been using my iPhone as an iPod/internet browser, etc since I cancelled my AT&T plan.

My problem started when I installed iPhone OS 4.0. The update installed successfully, however, I can no longer sync my phone. Every time I plug in my phone, iTunes says "There is no SIM card installed in the iPhone you are trying to activate. Please disconnect and insert a SIM card into the iPhone". Seriously? I still have my old SIM card in the phone (which is dead now that I cancelled my AT&T plan). So, I now have no way of syncing my phone? How is this possible? Why didn't Apple or iTunes warn me of this before my upgrade?

Is there a way to fix this? I'd put a real SIM card into the phone, but I'm 10,000km from home. If there is no way around this, can I buy an AT&T SIM card online for a couple dollars? Please help!

Thanks so much!

iPhone 3G S, iOS 4

Posted on Jun 26, 2010 1:33 AM

Reply

Answer 1

Ingo2711

Level 9

70,107 points

Jun 26, 2010 6:13 AM in response to tkelliott1

Welcome to the discussions,
Did you try to remove the SIM, switch on the phone and put it back in again after the phone recognized that the SIM is missing?
According to this article it should be possible to use the phone without a SIM, and you only have to repeat the activation after an OS-update: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3406

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Answer 2

tkelliott1 Author

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Jun 27, 2010 5:11 AM in response to tkelliott1

Thank you for your help! I don't know how you found that site, I spend a good amount of time googling different things.

I still have the same problem, though. I tried reinserting the SIM card, but I was to no avail. I think that the instructions on that page were saying to insert an actual, active SIM card (from AT&T) into the device (although the site never specifically says you need an active SIM card). My SIM card is dead, though, because I cancelled my plan before moving here.

What do you think?

Thanks again for your help!

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Answer 3

tkelliott1 Author

Level 1

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Jun 27, 2010 5:20 AM in response to Ingo2711

OK, please disregard my last comment! Perhaps I did not do your instructions in the right order last time, but I tried it again, and it works now.

For the record, here is what I did the first time (that didn't work)

I turned the phone off, removed the SIM, then turned it back on. I plugged it into the computer, and unplugged it when it didn't work. I reinserted the SIM, and plugged it in again. This did not work

Here's what DID work:

While the phone was still on, I took out the SIM and waited for the "NO SIM CARD" warning to pop up on the phone. Then, I put the SIM card back in, and plugged it into the computer again. iTunes activated the phone this time, and it works now.

Thank you very much for your help, you are a life saver!

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Answer 4

tkelliott1 Author

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Jun 27, 2010 5:22 AM in response to tkelliott1

P.S. I also realised that you cannot have the phone on "airplane mode", which I permanently turned on since I don't use it as a mobile device. Turn airplane mode off, then let the phone work through the SIM card issues.

Thanks again, hope this helps anyone else with the same problem!

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Answer 5

Ingo2711

Level 9

70,107 points

Jun 27, 2010 11:51 AM in response to tkelliott1

Glad it worked 🙂

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Answer 6

Aug 28, 2010 5:31 PM in response to Ingo2711

I also cancelled my plan from ATT and moved abroad and have the same exact problem. I followed your instructions several times, however I still get an error message even though my iphone has been unlocked and the SIM card installed is from an operator partner of ATT&T in the country where I am, any other suggestions?
It had been working with the SIM card of the ATT&T partner up until I updated the iPhone software.

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Answer 7

Aug 28, 2010 6:08 PM in response to Silvana15

I also cancelled my plan from AT&T and moved abroad

All US iPhones are locked to AT&T, and they are the only ones that can properly unlock them, but they won't.

... even though my iphone has been unlocked

It was not officially unlocked

and the SIM card installed is from an operator partner of ATT&T in the country where I am,

Only US AT&T SIM cards will work in US iPhones. SIMs from other carriers, AT&T partners or not, won't work.

It had been working with the SIM card of the ATT&T partner up until I updated the iPhone software.

iPhones that are unlocked by unauthorized means will relock to their original carriers (AT&T for US iPhones) when updated.

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Answer 8

Rick Dam

Level 1

0 points

Aug 30, 2010 9:45 PM in response to Malcolm Rayfield

Guys, just a question: Does the activation work with a dead at&t SIM Card? I mean... If I full restore an iPhone 4, can I activate it with an at&t SIM Card with a cancelled number?

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Answer 9

Sep 4, 2010 6:48 AM in response to Ingo2711

Dear Dahr me on the screen (No sim) Please, I want a solution. Thanks

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