UK iPhone reportedly functioning with Vodafone
Yesterday, TUAW posted about using iASign to activate iPhones on non-iPhone AT&T plans. Today, TUAW reader AJ reports that he's used iASign to activate his iPhone with Vodafone. He writes that at first he bought an AT&T prepaid card on ebay and used iASign to get it working. After doing a little thinking (how would he top off the card, and wasn't a US phone number going to be pretty useless in the UK?), he popped the AT&T-branded US SIM out of his iPhone and put it into an old O2 XDA handset, which he brought to the Vodafone store.
At the store, he had them add the phone to his current Vodafone contract. When he returned home, he put the Vodafone-compliant AT&T SIM back into the iPhone, and used iASign to activate it. He reports that he's made a call using the Vodafone network although the iPhone itself still says AT&T in the corner. He's also confirmed that his Vodafone number is assigned to the phone. Visual voicemail is, sadly, a no go but SMS text messaging works fine.
Update: This post is causing quite an uproar over at the #iphone IRC channel. Participants there suggest this method should not have worked. SIM numbers are network specific and Vodafone should not have been able to use an AT&T SIM. Specific questions that remain are: How and why vodaphone accepted the AT&T SIM and "reprogrammed" it and how the network accepted a different CCID (thanks Spoonet). More as this develops.
Update 2: I asked another TUAW reader to try this in Canada. He writes: "Rogers wouldn't take the SIM card number since the network prefix wasn't for Rogers, i.e. 8930. Back to square one." One user, puescho, tried calling T-Mobile in Germany and was told that a technician said this was not possible.
Reader Comments (Page 4 of 4)
julian west said 7:03AM on 7-24-2007
Yeah, I have a question a bit like H. Bennis', but different: does anyone know if apple are going to produce an unlocked iphone - i.e. one that will work with SIM cards in ANY country? I travel constantly and so own my own phone and just buy pre-paid SIMs in whatever country I'm in, so people locally don't have to make a long-distance call.
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jennifer farley said 12:31PM on 7-26-2007
can u help me i have ,my new card but they will not activate it,,,500 bucks for the one can do it i swaer.......write back asap
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jdavies said 11:51PM on 7-26-2007
I've just picked up a new iPhone in the US and hacked it to work without AT&T activation. I live in the UK and have a Vodafone account, I'd be happy to try this out but I will need to find the same guy who did the last one or someone in a Vodafone store with a little bit of brains. Any leads please let me know, I'll be back in the UK on the weekend.
I've read conflicting reports on this and don't personally know enough about GSM/SIM security to be able to form an educated opinion but I am a techie and happy to try things out.
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PhAdE said 8:53PM on 7-29-2007
For what it's worth I think the #iphone channel is on irc.osx86.hu
Why do people name the channel but not the network it's on?
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Mark W said 7:41AM on 7-30-2007
Just saw a site called www.mobileshop.com that is listing the iPhone as a pre-order on o2 or Vodafone. Is this possible?? Anyone heard of these guys before?
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J Hutch said 7:47AM on 7-30-2007
OK so this post has made me decide to go buy an iPhone. Not that it took much convincing. I'm in Ireland so for the time been no official way to but one. I've asked my friends in the States to go but me one. Problem is they tell me that the can't walk out of the store without signing up for a contract. I thought you signed up when you activated it through iTunes. No amount of blagging on my friends part is going to let him leave the store with an unsigned iPhone. Whats' the story do I need to get him to use a particular line or what? Cheers.
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birdy said 9:18PM on 8-03-2007
hey guys, like most of you im massively confused about the new apple i phone working in the uk.
im lucky and currently workin in new york but stayin in connecticut and know where the apple store is as i passed the SMALL que the other week waiting for its release that eve at 6pm...
basically i need a new phone and want the new apple phone full stop!!
so armed with all your questions and i'll remember none tomo when i go into the store and try and buy one??
so i'll let you all know tomo eve (dont forget where 5 hours behind here you eager folk)
and if i do manage to walk out with an apple phone and cant port the number (pls dont pick up on any loose jargon i use i obviously dont know what im sayin)... then im gonna sell it when i get home in Nottingham to any one with cash and an understanding that it probably dosnt work in the UK or i cant get my o2 contract to do something with it.. i'll also buy some pre paid AT & T time with it if possible.
wish me luck guys.. and i'll let you all know asap if i can purchase an iphone with out a contract in the shop ;-)
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birdy said 7:48PM on 8-05-2007
hiya guys.. well like i said i was gonna buy the apple i phone and i have successfully done so!!!
with no contract to sign to take it out of the shop, i bought the 4gb apple i phone and also a nice case to pop it in now all i have to do is get some official help from you guys or from the net in general to get her fired up to a uk based network.
i am currently on o2 which will also work in a vodafone related phone so any help would be an advantage guys.
i did ask if i could buy a AT&T pre pay card but it dosnt work like that apparently... you have to go through the phone settings and when asked about you social security you enter ....... well thats the bit i dont want to tell you right now but i can get onto AT&T in the pre paid mode by doing what i was told to enter
thanxx guys
birdy
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Michael said 1:47PM on 8-26-2007
Just to elaborate on what has been said earlier, I worked directly for vodafone where I had access to the main system for all vodafone pay monthly account management called gemini. When activating a sim on this system there is a drop down box where you select the the first 11 numbers of the sim for USIMs this box contains 3 prefixes 89441000300, 89441000301, and 89441000302, and allows nothing else. sims of this kind can only be obtained from vodafone, and there is no way an AT&T sim could be activated, basically this "hack" is a lie.
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lil-ben69 said 12:58PM on 9-16-2007
hello can anyone help me im from the uk i got my iphone from ebay boxed and sealed i turn it on and it says activate iphone how do i do that without using itunes because i want it to be unlock so i can use my o2 sim in it
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Elijah Samaroo said 8:59AM on 11-26-2007
I bought a UK iPhone on o2 anyone knows how to put AT&T on it? I need help!
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