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

I've been having the same problem, every few hours or so, I get an invalid SIM alert. a problem I can fix with a quick reboot however it's happening sometimes can stop me from getting messages or emails etc. and so causing problems.

I know this has nothing to do with ATT or O2 or anyother operator as I am using it in a country where the iPhone isn't officially sold. I know it isn't the SIM card as I am using the same SIM I used on my last iPhone 4.

at the moment, I have 2 theories, either this is caused by the fact that we who are experiencing this problem have restored from a backup of our iPhone 4 and therefore caused the 4S problems to which the solution would be for restoring and setting up as new iPhone. Or that this is a simple software bug for some of us. a bug which I expect apple will fix in 5.0.1 which is due this week. for the time being just stick with reboots every once in a while.

unless you're getting the NO SIM alert, that is something I haven't experienced and certainly hope I won't any time soon.

This could still be SIM related; despite the SIM working in an iPhone 4. I am starting to think that newer SIM cards may operate at a different voltage level. Older cards (like those sold with the iPhone 4) may become unstable when driven at the standard voltage level used in the 4S. Therefore a software change to detect the older cards and drive the reader accordingly would fix this.

Looking at Wikipedia, SIM cards operate at three voltage levels (1.8v, 3v, 5v) depending on the SIM; commonly they only operate at 2 of these, it would be interesting to measure the operating voltage level of a "bad" SIM in an iPhone 4 and then in a 4S.

My replacement handset is due today, when it arrives I will feedback my findings.

I had same issue for a few days.. It would start working as soon as I take it out and reinsert. So finally I went to apple store and got a new phone. It feels great to get a nice service!

same happened to me i leave in egypt im udsesi g iphone 4s 64gb my networks is vodafone but im still can not solve my problem

So here is my update:

Purchased 4s in the UK on launch day, put in new Vodafone sim, few hours later got "invalid sim"

Got "invalid sim" roughly twice a day for 2 weeks, turning phone on and off restored it

After 2 weeks got a new sim from Vodafone, now get "invalid sim" less than once per day, so better but still not good.

I am hoping the promised software update to fix the power problem also fixes this problem

The problem is that the tray that holds the sim card is made of metal and makes contact with the sim card. When this happens, it shorts out the sim and you get the 'no sim' error.  What you need to do is remove the sim card, place a VERY THIN sliver of tape on the long edge of the sim ( the side opposite the notched side)  that sits in the tray. What you are doing is insulating the potential connection point between the sim contact and the metal tray the sim sits in. There are a couple of videos on youtube that show you how to do it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2y0abjPFfk 

Should we have to do this? No.  Should Apple should fix this immediately and offer the fix to everyone asap? Better believe it!  

Are you listening Apple?

These videos have nothing to do with what you're talking about.

I think you're right about the metal part causing the SIM to short out though as the metal part in the 4S is bigger than the 4. I expect this should be fixed in the 5.0.1 update.

You are correct that the youtube video has nothing to do with the problem. I provided the link so that people, like myself who didn't know how to remove the sim card,  could see how to do it.  Once the sim has been removed,  insulating the exposed sim contact from the metal tray with a small piece of scotch tape should be apparent. 

This is probably not the 'be all, end all' solution. I'll try to post my own video on you tube to show exactly what I did

You should go to apple store and get a new phone for FREE. As long as your phone is in warrenty (1 year) you will get a replacement for no charge. I just got my new phone and didn't see the problem in that.

To correct some misunderstanding, if the SIM card was being shorted by the metal SIM tray, the SIM card would not work at all.  Secondly, I completed a simple test while in the office today and found that the metal band around the phone is not electrically conductive.  Something which is rather apparent as this would cause the various aerials within the phone to short too.

I would strongly advise against adding scotch tape the the SIM tray as this will eventually damage your phone as the SIM tray is designed to be fitted into the slot exactly, I highly doubt scotch tape was in Apple's mechanical design.

Finally, if the SIM was being shorted on the SIM tray, this could not be fixed by a software update.

I had my iPhone 4S replaced after encountering this problem every 2 hours, my replacement handset has not shown the problem and has been running for 96 hours.

Just read you post, no idea what else has been said as this thread is a bit of a mess, but you are wrong. I have bought two sim free iPhones from Apple directly, neither came with a sim card. If the phone is sim free, its what it says, unlocked and sim free. For me I just have sim pin turned off and no issues, turn it on I loose network, deep joy.

i just tested the conductivity of the case and the tray using a multimeter and both are conductive. As you say, if the sim is shorting it would not work at all. Exactly, that is why some folks are experincing the no sim issue. not much difference between a shorted sim and no sim at all.

re: i highly doubt scotch tape was in Apples design

i'm sure it wasn't but neither were the antenna problems of the iPhone 4 or the battery issues of the iPhone 4s and os5 which Apple has acknowledged

Agreed that the best solution is to bring the phone back and get a replacement.  When I have the time, I'll do just that. In the meantime, everyone should review all the comments and do what work or them. In my case, insulating the contact between the sim and tray works.

Thank you all for you comments. You're a passionate bunch.

Story is exactly the same as mine!

Old Optus plan for 3GS was over so thought I'd get a brand new shiny 4S on the same Optus plan.

Been getting no sim, invalid sim, SOS only, you name it ever since I bought the phone on the 14th October. Problem has been getting progressively worse since then with SOS only coming up AT LEAST 4 times a day!

Have been in to Optus to replace the sim, worked for maybe 3 hours and BAM SOS ONLY/NO SIM/INVALID SIM, again!

Visited Optus again Saturday to tell them that the replacement sim is not working so the phone must be an issue and was told it may take 2 weeks at least for me to get a replacement phone - not really an option as I NEEDthe phone as I am going away.

Visiting an Apple store is not an option for me because I live 7-8 hours from one.

Has your wifes phone been replaced by Optus? Update if you can?

Thanks,

Dee

10 hours since activation and same issue....all of a sudden the NO SIM message popped up on the service bar with "invalid sim." Simply turning the phone on/off didn't work, but after taking the sim out, blowing on it & the sim card slot, and rebooting, the phone recognized it again. Come on Apple....really? This isn't Nitendo here...We shouldn't have to be doing this.

Have the same problem started with an invalid SIM, then no SIM.  I pulled out the Sim card and put tape to insulate contacts that were shorting and seems to work for now. This is definitely a sim card quality issue by AT&t, and I am going to request them to send a new one.