Activating an iPad 3G Micro SIM without an iPad
So you’d like to turn that old iPhone into something a little more useful than an iPod touch, right? Well now you can, just order a replacement SIM from AT&T for $15 (which should come pre-scored so you can use it as a full size or micro SIM).
You can order your “replacement” SIM here: http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-phone-service/accessory-details/?q_sku=sku4530230
After you’ve installed your new SIM card in your iPhone, follow these steps.
Step 1: In order to activate your new SIM without an iPad you’ll need to make AT&T think your browser is actually an iPad. In Firefox you can do this by downloading User Agent Switcher and entering the following information under User Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (iPad; U; CPU OS 3_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/531.21.10 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.4 Mobile/7B334b Safari/531.21.10
Here’s the play by play… After downloading User Agent Switcher, go to Tools -> Default User Agents -> Edit User Agents
Then click New and select User Agent
Now enter iPad in the description field, and Mozilla/5.0 (iPad; U; CPU OS 3_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/531.21.10 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.4 Mobile/7B334b Safari/531.21.10 in the User Agent field. Leaving everything else blank.
Click OK , then click OK again to dismiss the User Agent Switcher screen.
Finally switch to your newly created User Agent by going to Tools -> Default User Agent -> iPad
Step 2: For this step you’ll need both your IMEI and ICCID numbers, which you can find under Settings -> General -> About on your iPhone. Visit https://dcp2.att.com/OEPClient/openPage?IMEI=A&ICCID=B in your browser, replacing A with your iPhone’s IMEI number and B with your new Micro SIM’s ICCID number.
Step 3: Register for either the $15 or $25 a month data plan.
Step 4: Make sure your iPhone is connected to a WiFi network, then visit http://unlockit.co.nz and tap Continue.
Step 5: Tap Custom APN, then enter Broadband in the APN field.
Step 6: Leaving the remaining fields blank, tap Create Profile, then tap Install, followed by Install Now on the popup.
And there you have it, your very own data only iPhone without having to buy an iPad 3G.
Aaron Nelsen is the webmaster and senior technology editor. He's a career geek, coffee enthusiast, Apple fanboy, and accomplished barista pimp. They've written 407 articles for Hijinks Inc.
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The latest chapter in the continuing saga of the Micro SIM!!
Wonder if you have a window version for PC user? Very good post indeed!
Anyway.. I’ve been using the Ipad data plan for more than a month. Do you know any better way to view data usage without an ipad. Lately I’ve been using the iphone data usage info, but it doesn’t tell me how much data I’ve been using in a month.. no date, time, or anything. I’m not sure if my wifi is included in these calculation either.
This will also work with Firefox on Windows, all the steps are the same.
As for data usage tracking, you have to manually reset your count every 30 days in order to track it. And no, WiFi usage is not included in those numbers.
Hi,
I am wondering if you can provide me with the activation URL for one of the following provider in Canada : Rogers, Bell, Telus, Fido
Thank you
Absolutely!
URL for Rogers is: https://www.rogers.com/web/HSPA.portal?dev=cp&SIM=A&IMEI=B
APN should be set to: rogers-core-appl1.apn
Hi, I’m a little confused about the “APN should be set to: rogers-core-appl1.apn” comment. Is that in place of entering Broadband in the custom APN field in step 4? Or is it a field that needs to be filled out on the Rogers activation URL?
Thanks in advance
What about for Bell? Thanks! Very helpful stuff on your blog.
I know the APN setting should be: pda2.bell.ca
Don’t know what the activation URL is though.
At step 3, I select the data plan from the web page pointed by the URL, right ?
I look at the web page and yes, I select the data plan from the web.
The more important question is : Will I be able to tether my cellular data plan with my laptop ?
Hi this is a good tutorial.
I was wondering if it’s possible to also cancel your plan without an ipad.
I have found out that you require a ipad to also cancel your plan as well
Will this work for firefox on windows too? i just installed the user agent switcher, entered the ipad info, then tested it by going to youtube. It redirected me to m.youtube.com. So does this mean that it works and thinks im an ipad?
Yes, the steps are the same for Firefox on Windows.
after i sign up for the plan and agree to the tos i get a an error that says at&t is unable to process your request please try again later
For those that get an error ‘unable to process your request please try again later’….
I too got this error when using the iPhone IEMI number.
The solution….
Go to http://imei.sms.eu.sk/IMEI.html
Enter any 6 digits in the ’6 Digit Serial Number:’ field and click ‘Generate IMEI’
Use this IMEI number in the activation URL instead of your iPhone IMEI.
Note:You will need to use a different email address the second time around as although the process didn’t complete you cannot use the same email address again.
Data plan is now working great.
Are you with AT&T or Rogers ? Because I have followed this step-by-step using a generic IMEI and I have no service on my iPhone … The APN is well set to rogers-core-appl1.apn
I am using an AT&T iPad replacement SIM with an unlocked iPhone 3GS (which is locked to AT&T). I’m not totally sure but I believe that unless your iPhone has been unlocked then you must use a SIM from the same provider as the phone.
Thanks, paulb. It works for me.
Can you please also give a link to AT&T page where we can see data usage and where it is possible to change/cancel data plan?
It is possible to access account manage page from iPad (as we can see from this screenshots: http://apple.com/ipad/3g). But how to access manage account page from iPhone or PC? Do anybody knows the direct link to AT&T?
What happen if I have an iPhone lock with Bell and I try to have a data plan (using your technique) with Rogers. Will it work or I need to unlock the iPhone first ?
I hopped onto AT&T.com and ordered the iPad microsim. That was Tuesday. The site says they are backordered. This seems a little silly – are they catching on to our little hack?
Has anyone had any luck ordering an ipad SIM? Any other routes for getting one?
I ordered my iPad SIM through the AT&T site. Before this I called a number of AT&T stores to see if I could buy one locally but they all said the same thing…not available in stores, online purchase only.
Thanks for such a great step by step guide! I just received my ipad micro SIM, and I was able to access the URL replacing A&B but for some reason it does not let me type anything in! I’m using windows vista and firefox, any feedback is appreciated!, ty
I got it! I had to disable “styles” on safari and was able to enter my information, however, now I keep getting the following error:
AT&T is not able to process your request. We apologize for any inconvenience. Please try again later (C50000000006)
has anyone seen this? Thanks!
Try this and see if it helps…..
The solution….
Go to http://imei.sms.eu.sk/IMEI.html
Enter any 6 digits in the ’6 Digit Serial Number:’ field and click ‘Generate IMEI’
Use this IMEI number in the activation URL instead of your iPhone IMEI.
Note:You will need to use a different email address the second time around as although the process didn’t complete you cannot use the same email address again.
Data plan is now working great.
Hi, I had seen your post and tried that but it did not do it either, I got this SIM from Ebay, so I’ll order one from ATT directly to see if that makes a difference! I really appreciate your reply. I’ll let you know how it goes with the new one.
Great, thanks and good luck!