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PlayMoneyPro

macrumors member
Original poster
Nov 9, 2017
35
27
Northern CA
Looks like there was a similar thread related to 15.4 and TMobile but here is my situation:

- Switched from AT&T today to Verizon - new iPhone 13 Pro, running 15.5
- Set up phone from iCloud backup
- Everything seemed fine, other than the iMessage saying "Activation Unsuccessful"
- I can send/receive messages from an email but not from my phone number - I see the number as an option under sent/receive but when I click it, it does nothing
- Called Apple, Verizon, AT&T - they all blame each other
- Tried all the stuff found on google - reset network settings, log in/out of Apple ID and iMessages and FaceTime. Nothing works

Now I face missing tons of texts tomorrow when the workday starts. If anybody has any other suggestions, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Update: Apple is saying it can take 24-48 hours to activate. Is that really a thing? If somebody texts my phone number during this period will it still come over as SMS, or will I miss it?

Thank you!
 
Last edited:
Can you make phone calls, or text other people without iMessage? It sounds like the port isn’t complete yet from AT&T.
 
Can you make phone calls, or text other people without iMessage? It sounds like the port isn’t complete yet from AT&T.

Yes, I can receive/make calls using my new phone with the new Verizon account. I'm receiving SMS text messages on the Verizon phone but can only send iMessages using an email address. It won't let me select my phone number in iMessage.

It sounds like it can take up to 24 hours for it to be "activated" which kind of blows my mind but that's what Apple support told me and instructed me to reach back out to them after 24 hours if it's still not working.
 
Not unusual when a number is ported from one carrier to another. Apple probably told you but just in case, for the “24 hours” you should turn iMessage on and LEAVE IT ALONE - continuing to switch it off/on periodically to “See if it’s behaving better” will just lengthen the process.
 
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Yep, it’s normal. When I ported between carriers last year, it took several hours after the port was completed to activate iMessage. The carrier switch took place in a store around 6 PM, the number port completed around 7 PM and while everything else worked I didn’t have iMessage/FaceTime until I woke up the following morning. It took me by surprise at the time too…
 
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