I bought a used iPhone 5s "unlocked" that works perfectly on T-Mobile, but when I put in a Cricket SIM, it did not work. Does anyone know why this might happen? Thanks for your help.
iPhone 5s, iOS 8.1.3
What happens when you put in the Cricket SIM? It shouldn't matter if the phone is truly unlocked. The only thing would be is if it was hacked to unlock.
Please define "did not work". Are you getting an invalid SIM message?
When I was at the Cricket store, the Cricket employee put a SIM card in and the phone continued to say "NO SIM" in the top corner and the Cricket employee told me that the phone was not unlocked because it would say "Cricket" in the top where it currently says "NO SIM" and where it moments ago said "T Mobile"
I left the Cricket store with my T Mobile SIM back in the phone and the phone recognized the SIM.
No. If it were not unlocked, it would tell you that the SIM was invalid under the phone's activation policy.
Did they try to 'hot swap' the SIM? That's generally a "bad idea". Turn the phone off, put the new SIM in, then turn it back on.
Makes me believe the device was not really unlocked. Did you purchase the Cricket SIM, or just test it? If you purchased, you can try restoring and see if it activates.
KiltedTim:
They did do a "hot swap" as you are describing. She put the Cricket SIM in, then turned my phone off, then turned it back on. It still read "NO SIM" in the top corner.
ChrisJ4203:
I did not buy the SIM, I Just left with confusion and dismay in my brain. Now I am here seeking council from the wise Apple web!
Where did you buy this used device? How did you know it was unlocked?
I bought it on eBay, the seller claimed it was unlocked. I just figured, since my T Mobile SIM worked in it, that that meant it was actually unlocked. Becuase, I thought, in order for it to work on T Mobile, it had to be unlocked. Is that not true?
An update:
I just went to AT&T's website on their BYOD page and typed in my IMEI number to see if they would say I could bring my phone to them and they said that the IMEI was compatible and ready to go. I did the same thing on Ting's BYOD page, and they said that my phone will be ready to go as soon as they have their GSM network up and running.
Does that mean it is unlocked?
The only way to verify that it is unlocked is to call AppleCare and give them the serial number or IMEI.
The only thing anyone else can determine is that it is a GSM phone that is compatible with their network. They can not verify the lock status.
Note that if the phone was ever previously hacked or jailbroken to unlock it, it may not be possible for it to be 'legitimately' unlocked even if the original carrier approves the unlock.
That is very helpful. So my next step should be to call AppleCare and ask them about the IMEI on the phone? Will they help me, even though I bought it used?
That depends on who it may be locked to. If that was one of the t-Mobile phones that was supposed to be unlocked, it may have been the t-mobile phone. As I said earlier and KiltedTim repeated, check with Apple care to find out who it is locked to. Apple will answer that question, but cannot unlock it. Only the carrier it is locked to can unlock it.
I bought a used iPhone 5s "unlocked" that works perfectly on T-Mobile, but when I put in a Cricket SIM, it did not work. Does anyone know why this might happen?
