Cannot activate iMessage

I was able to get it to work using my gmail address, but that's not the one I want to use. Why can't I use the email address that everyone knows?

Hi, I don't know if this will help but I finally figured out how to make my email address work when I followed the suggestion of changing my password. When I logged into my account I found out that the email address that I was trying to use was associated with my other (old) Apple ID that I had before getting mobile me. I logged into that account and deleted the email then logged back into my primary (newer) Apple ID and verified my email address. Since then everything works.

When I go into my iphone settings under imeesage it says "waiting for activation" same in facetime. what can i do to get the imessage working?

where are u logging in at to see the old password?

i think im having the same problem.

You may be in your Mobile Me mail on another device. I do get that message occasionally & I switch to another address (I have 2 on my phone) & it generally works.

Appreciate all the possible solutions posted here. Unfortunately I've tried them and still have the problem as originally posted.

Iphone 3GS, IOS 5. No phone service enabled on the phone (it's out of contract) so just trying to give my daughter an ipod touch essentially.

It's all working fine (icloud enabled with a new icloud / mobileme account, complex password as required by icloud), email working via the icloud address, etc.

Done a reboot.

But imessage just sits there saying "waiting for activiation". Tried the DNS change. Tried using her gmail address rather than me.com. Nothing has fixed the waiting. Never been out of waiting mode either.

Other ideas welcome!

hi sorry i have a problem with imessage can you help me?

when i try to turn on imessage it automatically switch to off

Before i had this problem , it was on then i signed out for imessage and it turned off automatically and now i can't turn it on!!!

Plz help

can anyone help me?

I also could not connect to the IMessage, after restore the iphone a few times, changing the configuration of the router, I did everything and nothing seemed to be the solution so that I could use the IMessage ... the problem was a little weird for me, but could you verify if it is not your case is similar.
In the settings, then go to general, the date and time has to be on auto setting.
It worked perfectly after changing that setting, and the problem was in the iPad and the iphone

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yo tambien no podia conectarme al imessage, despues de restaurar el iphone un par de veces, cambiar la configuracion de mi router, hice de todo y nada parecia ser la solucion para poder usar el imessage... el problema resultó un tanto raro, pero podrias verificar si tu caso es parecido.

En los ajustes, general, en la opcion de "fecha y hora" tiene que estar en ajuste automatico.

Funciono a la perfeccion despues de cambiar ese ajuste, y el problema lo tenia en el ipad y en el iphone

I also could not connect to the IMessage, after restore the iphone a few times, changing the configuration of the router, I did everything and nothing seemed to be the solution so that I could use the IMessage ... the problem was a little weird for me, but could you verify if it is not your case is similar.
In the settings, then go to general, the date and time has to be on auto setting.
It worked perfectly after changing that setting, and the problem was in the iPad and the iphone

----

yo tambien no podia conectarme al imessage, despues de restaurar el iphone un par de veces, cambiar la configuracion de mi router, hice de todo y nada parecia ser la solucion para poder usar el imessage... el problema resultó un tanto raro, pero podrias verificar si tu caso es parecido.

En los ajustes, general, en la opcion de "fecha y hora" tiene que estar en ajuste automatico.

Funciono a la perfeccion despues de cambiar ese ajuste, y el problema lo tenia en el ipad y en el iphone

I also could not connect to the IMessage, after restore the iphone a few times, changing the configuration of the router, I did everything and nothing seemed to be the solution so that I could use the IMessage ... the problem was a little weird for me, but could you verify if it is not your case is similar.
In the settings, then go to general, the date and time has to be on auto setting.
It worked perfectly after changing that setting, and the problem was in the iPad and the iphone

----

yo tambien no podia conectarme al imessage, despues de restaurar el iphone un par de veces, cambiar la configuracion de mi router, hice de todo y nada parecia ser la solucion para poder usar el imessage... el problema resultó un tanto raro, pero podrias verificar si tu caso es parecido.

En los ajustes, general, en la opcion de "fecha y hora" tiene que estar en ajuste automatico.

Funciono a la perfeccion despues de cambiar ese ajuste, y el problema lo tenia en el ipad y en el iphone

Thanks for the idea but setting date to auto didn't solve the problem.

After trying unsuccessfully to activate FaceTime before iOS 5 on my iPhone 4, I totally gave up, I was fed up and threw the towel, but as iOS 5 was coming my hopes to activate it were high, I didn't know that iMessage was going to use sort of the same mechanism, but I also can't activate iMessage.

I've being trying since release of iOS 5 and nothing, but I am glad I can iMessage and FaceTime via Apple ID, previously FaceTime was not possible to use via an Apple ID.

I am in Dominican Republic, I checked that I can send International SMS just in case, my carrier (Orange) tried to help me but they couldn't and they blame Apple and I believe them. Apple got to fix its mess, but what scary me more is that I don't see a sign they are working on this issue that affects thousands of iPhone users.

I found that if you go to settings/Wi Fi/(then press the blue button on the right of the network your joined to)/Then look at the numbers to the right of "router" and put these numbers into your internet browser you will come up with a login page put in the password (may be "admin") and then look at the Primary DNS and write this down then insert it into settings/Wi Fi/(blue button)/and then insert the numbers you wrote down into the DNS section.

If you have trouble logging into your router call customer support for Internet Service Provider (ISP) and find out how to find thE DNS

Hope this helps all and happy messaging

oh and this works for FaceTime as well!!!

thank you very much, my solution was that edgarmr mentioned, about changing the freaking auto setting for date and time... just as simple as that!