How to use LTE on iPad 4 (A1460) from US (Verizon) in the UK (EE)

Well done Gareth! I've been looking for a solution to this for a couple of days and what you have suggested works.

In addition to the steps above, it should be noted that you cannot restore from a back-up made while the iPad still has those hidden Verizon settings as this forces it back onto 3G. So you have to build it up again from scratch.

Apple should take note of this. Pretty poor coding.

Anyone know about the process to take the same A1460 iPad 4 model, previously used with a GSM/HSPA/LTE carrier (in my case Telstra, but via a prepaid SIM, iPad purchased from Apple), and use it on Verizon?

Girlfriend is over there right now, took it to Verizon store, and they said 'its locked to Telstra, we cant do anything'.

Have read a Factory reset is one way clear any existing LTE settings and set up anew - but just wondering any other ideas, or any one has any any experience in doing this, (eg taking an iPad to Verizon after having used it on a previous LTE network).

Thanks

dg

Hi Dave,

Verizon is somewhat different from normal GSM/HSPA/LTE carriers in the respect that it still offers some of it's service over CDMA EVDOx1 A/B. The CDMA protocol is not usually delivered using a sim card only, and there are carrier settings in the iPad which are for this purpose.

I do not believe the iPad is locked to Telstra as 4th generation iPads are all unlocked by default. You need to give the MEID and IMEI number to Verizon. When they have been added to Verizon's network, then insert the Verizon sim card and completely factory reset the device. You will lose everything. When the device reboots, it should come up onto Verizon. If you restore, you may lose the Verizon carrier settings.

The 4th generation A1460 iPad seems to be a dual mode device between CDMA and non CDMA carriers. And the mode seems to be set upon the first encounter with a sim card after a complete reset.

To confirm the device is not locked, pop a T-Mobile or AT&T sim card into it. If it is locked, you will get a message stating that it is carrier locked. If not, you should see 3G service on either of those networks.

I would strongly recommend finding a small techie independent dealer who can probably help with this more than the staff in Verizon. Verizon is a very controlled network and BYOD is not massively supported at the best of times. They are unlikely to have experience of this and their text book response would be that they do not support it.

I'm also unsure as to whether or not Verizon offers LTE data on Prepaid plans so if it is a prepaid plan, you would only get 3G (CDMA) which after using Telstra would not impress you much speed-wise.

What may be an easier solution although not as desirable would be putting a prepaid T-Mobile sim card in. They now support DC-HSPA on 1900Mhz in many markets and it is nearly as fast as Verizon's LTE and quite cheap too. (With this T-Mobile solution, no reset would be required).

Good luck.

J.

Thanks for the quick response!

Agreed i can imagine they would not bother,... saw this article below, sounds like they are just being shifty and not wanting to bother with BYOD agreed. The article is meh, but the comments below it were all pretty useful.

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/mobile-news/buying-a-used-verizon-ipad-no-prepaid-data -for-you/8291

Sounds like a few ppl had no probs getting a prepaid VZN SIM on ebay or at bestbuy. Might try that down the track.

Thanks

You're welcome.

I do remember that article from a while ago. Verizon no longer has that policy and can provide a sim for which they charge $30 I think! But as for them understanding what needs to be done, then that's another matter. Apple themselves aren't very well versed in it either. As you can tell by the thread, Gareth had to experiment to find it out.

Bear in mind, Verizon may not give you the speed you expect. My friends in Melbourne use both Telstra and Optus on LTE and get 30m/bit+ as we generally do in the UK on EE. When I'm in the US I use a contract Verizon iPhone 5 on LTE. The coverage is unbeatable at the moment, but we only really see around 10m/bit in built up areas. Middle of the night, it can get over 20m/bit but they have a very early implementation of LTE and a high rate of adoption. They are acquiring spectrum and it should get faster as they start to aggregate spectrum and so on but at the moment it ain't that fast.

The sad thing is though that you cannot use that device on AT&T due to the lack of support for their frequencies. Give T-Mo a go if you get a chance, I'm sure in a decent dealer they could pop a sim into it to do a speed test.

Hello, guys, am having the same iPad 4 A1460 but there is no cellular data tab available in settings... it's be CVS among hectic chasing wifi connections around.... pls can anyone help me out on this. Thank u