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Prepaid SIM for iPhone 4 (US)

Prepaid SIM for iPhone 4 (US)

Old Jul 12, 2011, 10:08 am
  #1  
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Prepaid SIM for iPhone 4 (US)

I'm heading to LAX in a few weeks and was wondering if any operators offer this or if a mobile broadband rent would be a better choice, roaming is a ripoff.

Thanks.
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Old Jul 12, 2011, 1:21 pm
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Originally Posted by AY ay ay!
I'm heading to LAX in a few weeks and was wondering if any operators offer this or if a mobile broadband rent would be a better choice, roaming is a ripoff.

Thanks.
i use AT&T paygo but it's a normal size sim since they won't sell anything for the iphone on prepay, including data.
so i cut the sim down which is easy (did it in the rental car parking lot with my swiss army knife.).

you need to go to unlockit.co.nz while on wifi to install a new profile. follow their instructions. easy.

no other companies in the us are on the same GSM bands so att is your only choice as far as i know.
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Old Jul 13, 2011, 4:26 pm
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Originally Posted by BenSenise
i use AT&T paygo but it's a normal size sim since they won't sell anything for the iphone on prepay, including data.
so i cut the sim down which is easy (did it in the rental car parking lot with my swiss army knife.).

you need to go to unlockit.co.nz while on wifi to install a new profile. follow their instructions. easy.

no other companies in the us are on the same GSM bands so att is your only choice as far as i know.
You can use T-Mobile, but only on EDGE. T-Mobile's 3G bands aren't compatible with the iPhone (or least the ones available at present.)
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Old Jul 14, 2011, 5:39 am
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Originally Posted by BenSenise
i use AT&T paygo but it's a normal size sim since they won't sell anything for the iphone on prepay, including data.
so i cut the sim down which is easy (did it in the rental car parking lot with my swiss army knife.).

you need to go to unlockit.co.nz while on wifi to install a new profile. follow their instructions. easy.

no other companies in the us are on the same GSM bands so att is your only choice as far as i know.
How much would a SIM like that go for? Also what are the charges for lets say the use of 1GB of data?
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Old Jul 14, 2011, 8:03 am
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http://www.mysimplemobile.com/index.aspx
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Old Jul 15, 2011, 6:11 am
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Best advice I can give for US is to go to Walmart and buy the $9.98 samsung gophone plus some calling credit.

Getting a Micro SIM cutter maybe the challenge - ebay or amazon is the best place.

Activate the phone on line and choose a smartphone tariff. Add your calling credit. Add a data package - best value is 500 mb for $25 valid for 30 days. Use the IMEI from the Samsung phone. You can keep this phone, give it away or as I did recycle it for charity.

Now your SIM is active you can cut it down and pop it into your iPhone.

I initially got a $100 voucher as it gave me 12 months connectivity.

To get data working you need to change the APN to AT&T settings. This can be done manually or with a wifi connection open safari on your iPhone and go to www.unlockit.co.nz and follow the instructions.

You can now make and recieve calls and use data and because you chose the AT&T smartphone tariff it allows free wifi access to AT&T hotspots.
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Old Jul 15, 2011, 6:59 am
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@Dan Dare
Great advice, thanks will ask a friend to pop into Walmart and send the phone to me so I can activate it when I'm at the airport in the US!
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Old Jul 16, 2011, 12:56 pm
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Originally Posted by thomas199023
Great advice, thanks will ask a friend to pop into Walmart and send the phone to me so I can activate it when I'm at the airport in the US!
You did read what he said... $25 USD for 500mb 2x= 1gb which would be $50 USD in data charges alone. The mysimplemobile would be $60 unlimited everything(data, US calls text) and comes with $5 in international calling credit.
Seems like a better deal IMHO...
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Old Jul 16, 2011, 1:46 pm
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I've bought an att card in ebay and charge the sim card everytime I go to the US. that gives you 30days of data.

here the process documented:

http://wpjrnl.com/2010/11/07/activat...3g-for-iphone/
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Old Jul 22, 2011, 10:44 pm
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Originally Posted by thomas199023
How much would a SIM like that go for?
SIM card is free at AT&T stores.
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Old Jul 26, 2011, 6:00 pm
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If your iPhone is unlocked and you don't mind slower GSM data, Simple Mobile is your only real option - and there is no reason not to use them unless you need coverage outside of TMO's limits.

Now if your iPhone came unlocked/unbranded, there is anecdotal evidence that you *will* get 3G data while on the Simple/TMO network - but not if you did the software unlock/hack.
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Old Jul 26, 2011, 6:35 pm
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Originally Posted by BenSenise
SIM card is free at AT&T stores.
Not true at all ATT stores, I have heard of some that try to charge up to $25 for a sim card.
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Old Aug 1, 2011, 10:53 am
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Originally Posted by planemechanic
Not true at all ATT stores, I have heard of some that try to charge up to $25 for a sim card.
+1

My personal experience has gone both ways on this one. I've been charged $25 in store A, and $0 in store B.
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