Filed under: iPhone
5 Things You Might Not Know About an Unactivated iPhone
Not much I can do about my unactivated iPhone so here are a few things I've figured out while waiting for my iPhone to start working.
1. The SIM number is listed on the box. You'll find both the SIM number (the subscriber identity module or ICCID) and the associated IMEI (the international mobile equipment identity) on the bottom of your iPhone box. They are the bottom-most two barcodes, left and right. The IMEI consists of 15 numbers that uniquely identifies your mobile phone. The SIM number is a 20-digit identity that allows you to access the AT&T network.
2. You can display your SIM and IMEI numbers on the un-activated iPhone. Press the little "i" button on the main screen.
3. Attaching peripherals to the unactivated iPhone's dock connector may produce odd effects. I attached speakers and it offered to put my iPhone in Airplane mode (not a good idea, by the way). TUAW reader Tim O. connected a Kensington Pico FM Transmitter and was able to access the iPod application.
4. You can turn the iPhone off and on--but you probably don't want to. The press the sleep/wake and menu button trick works in terms of turning your iPhone off but it may have unpredictable results. Doing this (under instructions from the AT&T tech) apparently (but not provably) wiped my first SIM card.
5. Tapping the screen keeps it awake before you can adjust those activation-required settings. This is particularly helpful when you're trying to read the ICCID and IMEI numbers off your screen to the AT&T tech.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ryan said 10:08PM on 7-01-2007
The iphone goes into airplane mode to stop from interfering with speakers, or at least that is what I understand. How is that not a good idea?
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Erica Sadun said 10:09PM on 7-01-2007
Ryan: It's not a good idea because there's no way to turn that option off before activation.
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Mickey said 10:20PM on 7-01-2007
Another tip... you can preload your iPhone with content via iTunes. Just drag it from your library and drop it onto your iPhone and watch it copy over.
I wish i could verify for you that it works, but im still waiting for activation.
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andersonoscar5 said 10:39PM on 7-01-2007
Sweet, glorious specs of the 11.6 millimeter device (that's frickin' thin, by the way) include a 3.5-inch 480 x 320 touchscreen display with multi-touch support and a proximity sensor to turn off the screen when it's close to your face
http://www.iphone-converter.org/
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MacNewb said 11:04PM on 7-01-2007
Wow, Oscar... ad much?
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SoLo said 11:20PM on 7-01-2007
This may or may not be a useful piece of advice.
I kept the original sticker from out of the box covering the screen on my iphone and realized the sound quality was really weak coming out of the receiver when I was talking to someone. I then peeled off the sticker, and it was much more loud and clear. I was actually planning on heading down to the apple store to have them take a look, but glad I realized that the sticker was muffling the sound.
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Stephen said 11:33PM on 7-01-2007
Adding contents to your iPhone before activation is useless. I did that and there was nothing there when I finally got my activated email almost 48 hours later.
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john carey said 11:52PM on 7-01-2007
you can also dial all sorts of pointless numbers and once the phone is activated you will see these numbers you attempted to call in your call history.
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joe said 11:54PM on 7-01-2007
you can listen to your music that you drag to your iphone while waiting for activation by plugging in the headphones and pressing the button. This just makes it an over priced suffle though. Once activation happens though, it erases all of the music you put on it anyways. Very easy to use though and you can type faster than it can keep up with you.
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josh k said 12:24AM on 7-02-2007
you still can't get an iphone if you have a business account phone paid for by your company right? would love to know a way to get around that without getting an individual acct.
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Ryan W. said 11:40AM on 7-02-2007
How long do most people wait for activation? Im an ATT cust, It been way over 24hrs! Getting really tired of this bullshit!
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Matt S. said 12:13PM on 7-02-2007
Erica, can you elaborate on the SIM card issue? I'm not sure I understand...turning the phone off wipes the SIM card?
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Fay said 12:37PM on 7-02-2007
The iPhone is eye candy!
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melody said 2:29PM on 7-02-2007
you can also make it vibrate by moving the ringer button. pretty sweet. still enjoying my unactivated ipod... it's been almost 70 hours that i've had the iBrick!!
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ciprol said 5:03PM on 7-02-2007
Is iPhone SIM locked? Or can one use any GSM compatible SIM card in it?
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Jason said 7:57PM on 7-02-2007
I'm not certain I understand the turning it off and on part. Can someone elaborate on that for me please?
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Justin Bell said 9:23PM on 7-03-2007
I can't wait 'till they come out here next year. Then it will just be a normal cellphone -- none of this "activation" stuff you guys have to put up with. When I got my Treo, I just bought it from the computer store and put the SIM card from my old phone in when I got home, and that's the way it should be. Every time I start to get jealous of the iPhone, I just remind myself of this. Seems to do the trick, for now, you lucky bastards...
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