Q: Sim Card Failure No Sim with iPhone 4S Anyone Else?

My 4S iPhone is 1 week old today and I too am having the No SIM/Invalid SIM error! So very frustrating as I have wanted an iPhone for years and finally got one only to have it totally un usable!

I have tried numerous times tonight to reset the network connections and that won't resolve the issue anymore.

So I can't text or call out now! Wondering now why I bought the stupid phone as I had an LG ENV3 that worked just fine for many years. Now I have nothing to use at all!

I bought the phone at an AT&T phone store not close to my home so I hope my local store will be able to help me with the problem. I do not have an Apple Store near me either!

UGH! Technology ***** sometimes....  Isn't it supposed to make life easier not more difficult!!

restore the phone on itunes with the sim card in there, if the phone support the network this will update your carrier settings and allow you to use your phone

Can you help me by giving me some directions on how to do this thru iTunes please. I am a new iPhone owner and am still learning.

Thanks!

And where the heck do I find the camera icon so I can post those icons?? Using an iPad to type this & look up info on how to solve this issue.

Hi fun4suz,

My intent here is not to challenge the help you have been given by other posters.  Their suggestions may very well work.  I certainly hope they do.

But if they don't, or the procedures seem too daunting for your level of expertise, I would like to refer you to my post of July 21, 2012 in this discussion.  It speaks to the very "sim-centric" nature of the 4S and why even fully functioning SIM cards from a previous phone will not work effectively in the 4S.  Did you transfer your SIM card from your previous phone to your 4S?  If so, and if the fixes you have been given so far don't work, I would absolutely go to your carrier, explain the situation, refer them to this discussion forum if necessary, and REFUSE :-)  to leave the store without a NEW 128K micro SIM card or a promise that one will be ordered for you to have installed later.

I still have my 4S.  It works like a charm.  It did not before upgrading to a brand spanking new 128K micro SIM card.  I am not alone in having this experience.

Good luck and let us know if your situation gets resolved and how it was accomplished.  Future visitors to this discussion will profit from your feedback.

Mr. Luigi

Mr Luigi,

If you read my previous posts I state that I am a brand new iPhone user, therefore I have never owned an iPhone before. Thus I did not transfer the SIM card from a previous iPhone.  I can't even get the SIM card slot open. I do mot have the tool that i have heard mentioned and a paper clip doesn't work.

I am on my way shortly to the AT&T store shortly and am taking my iPad with me to show them all of these posts mentioning the new 128k Micro SIM card.

Hopefully I will have success as not having use of my brand new iPhone *****!!

Thank you!!

Hi fyn4suz,

Yes, I knew you were a recent addition to the ranks of iPhone mania :-), but that did preclude transferring a SIM card from a "previous phone" as I stated.  Sometimes people will even cut a larger SIM card from a previously used phone so it fits the micro SIM tray slot used in the iPhone.  That is why I wanted to be triple sure you were not using an older SIM card.

It still could be your SIM card even though it sounds like its new.  Other posters in this VERY LONG discussion have had to replace their new SIM cards in order to gain full functionality.  That is why I emphasized that the SIM card is a 128K card.  For reasons that are not clear, a smaller capacity card has been problematic for some...causing evil and dark SIM issues.

Ok, that's all for now.  Thinking good vibes for you.  I too waited a long time before finally adding the iPhone to a long list of Apple products I own.  Once I got past the SIM issues I was having it has been a delightful experience.

It will all turn out fine.

Mr. L

New SIM card installed & phone is again in working order! I'm a happy camper! They knew exactly what I was talking about too! Thanks for your help.

Hi fun4suz!!!

That's Great News.

As they say...Some days you're the Dog.  Some days you're the Hydrant.

I'm hearing some serious barking coming from your direction. :-)

Hey Mr. Luigi!!!!

I am so glad you are still here! ;-)

Guess what? About one week ago, when I removed my iPhone 4S off the charger, that ugly NO SIM CARD DETECTED warning came up! Unbelievable, especially after all the problems I had with my new 4S about 10 months ago. As you may well remember, Apple replaced my phone FIVE TIMES (plus I switched the SIM card out twice) until this problem finally went away!

Thankfully, I live within walking distance of an AT&T store, went inside, and in about 5 minutes I had a brand new sim card in my phone and the problem disappeared. The young lady in the store seemed very familiar with this problem, swapped out my SIM card in short order, (no charge for this, BTW) and I was out the door with a functioning phone again.

She told me that SIM cards do fail from time to time..."Sir, a SIM card is an electronic component, and they just fail from time to time. Thank you for your business and if it happens again, you know what to do!"

So Mr. Luigi, my advice to anyone seeing this problem is just go and get another SIM card. As we tried months and months ago, doing all the other "fixes"-rebooting, wiping the phone clean and re-installing everything from backup, drinking three shots of Gray Goose vodka while turning around slowly counterclockwise.... none of that works as well as just getting a new SIM card put into your phone.

It's good to see you here again....and if we ever meet, the drinks are on me! :-)

Have a Merry Christmas, my old friend!

Pat

Hello Pat!

Forgive my tardiness in replying.  The lack of posts on this forum seems to indicate that the SIM caper has finally been licked.  Your last post, I believe, gives any future visitors a clear battle plan for addressing the problem and I hope folks read it if they ever have any SIM problems.

Christmas was good.  Hope the same goes for you.  I just updated to iOS 6.1.  I am a subscriber to iTunes Match and was ecstatic to see Apple return functionality to that service they removed in iOS 6.0. 

Well, I still look forward to those drinks.  I am sure I will know who you are if we are in the same vicinity as you will be the one who is shouting...

"That darn SIM card!  I can't believe it is acting up again...as you down three shots of Gray Goose vodka while turning slowly counterclockwise.  :-)

Your Good Friend, Mr. Luigi

Hey, Mr. Luigi!!!!!

I was hoping this thread would eventually go away, but alas, it did not....however, the traffic has sure subsided!

I just received a ping from Apple that the new version was ready to download so I just did it....and lo and behold, it fragged my phone!

I had to disconnect, turn off, turn back on, re-download the update then had to do a total restore on it. All in all about an hour to update to newest version. That's the first time that has ever happened. Thankfully I had just backed up to my machine, not the cloud, just minutes before updating. I almost always use machine backups since they are infinitely faster than Cloud backups and Restores (and I should know, eh?-going thru 6 phones in as many weeks).

Anyway, I was glad to hear from you, as always....and maybe this thread will, eventually, just slowly fade into the sunset. Drinks are still on me, and you have a great memory, as quoted below. \/  I always rotate counterclockwise! (or anti-clockwise, for our outside USA readers!)  8-) 

Mr. Luigi wrote:

Hello Pat!

Forgive my tardiness in replying.  The lack of posts on this forum seems to indicate that the SIM caper has finally been licked.  Your last post, I believe, gives any future visitors a clear battle plan for addressing the problem and I hope folks read it if they ever have any SIM problems.

Well, I still look forward to those drinks.  I am sure I will know who you are if we are in the same vicinity as you will be the one who is shouting...

"That darn SIM card!  I can't believe it is acting up again...as you down three shots of Gray Goose vodka while turning slowly counterclockwise.  :-)

Your Good Friend, Mr. Luigi

Take care, old friend! I am glad you are still kicking around the forums here!

Pat

Well, it seems I am the latest victim of the dreaded SIM card failure message on my 4S.  *heavy sigh* ...

Thank you for your guidance and instruction regarding my next move.  I will be on the way to the Verizon store and request a 128K SIM card to replace the card that is in my 4S. 

Many thanks,

WineWomanATL

I had an iphone that went into SIM failure all day long.  Returned the phone, got a new iphone4s and AGAIN today SIM failure.  Deja Vu....here we go again!  Not at all happy with my iphone4S.

Hi williajd,

When you received your new, replacement iPhone 4S did you also receive a BRAND NEW 128K SIM CARD too?  Or, was your old SIM card simply recycled into the new phone?  No matter how "properly functioning" testing may show your old SIM card to be functioning there is just too much evidence urging folks with your problem to toss that old SIM card and replace it with a totally new 128K card.  The 4S seems especially sensitive to this problem.  If you would report back to this forum with an update of your status that would be helpful to folks who have this problem in the future.

Cheers, Mr. Luigi

williajd, et al:

I strongly agree with Mr. Luigi.... go get a new card at your cell phone provider. For some unknown reason, the 4S just doesn't like some older cards. Trust me, if you read through this whole thread, I had my 4S replaced 5, read that five, times..because the Apple Store, not even Apple in Cupertino, CA, knew a definitive answer for this problem.

Even after I received my 5th new 4S, I went to get another new SIM card, everything was good for over a year....until a couple of months ago and the old problem reared it's head again. Thankfully, there's an AT&T store within walking distance of my home, I went over there, they popped in a new sim card (at no cost to me), and it's been fine so far. KNOCK ON WOOD!

When is the iPhone 6 supposed to be out???  

Pat

PS--Hi there, Mr. Luigi!