SIM card not supported. What do I do?

[mcsolas]

I bought a carrier unlocked iPhone at Best Buy a little while ago. It worked in the US with Tmobile for a short time. I then traveled to Costa Rica, where when I put the SIM card in, it wouldn't work. The message was the SIM card wasn't supported and to contact my carrier. Applecare said there is nothing stopping it on their end but didn't suggest any solutions.

I went to youtube and found a variety of videos and realize that it needs to be unlocked. For this, I saw a lot of services, all around $100 that offered to help the unlock process. Can I do this process myself without paying or is it necessary to use those services? If so, I wanted to see which one(s) are the most recommended to use in this forum.

 

[Goatllama]

As far as I know the carrier is in full control of this process. If there are other, more dubious methods, I'd probably recommend avoiding them. Unlocking and 'SIM unsupported' messages seem to stump everyone, though. So many variables can cause incompatibility.

 

[mcsolas]

I have gotten such a run-around from Tmobile.. At first they said they would process the unlock, then denied it because they texted me a single message when I got here and I had a .50 cent balance on my account. So I paid that. Then they denied. They also said that because I was trying to cancel my account, they wouldn't do it. (Wasnt trying to cancel / never indicated I wanted to)

the 2nd request saying that I hadn't spent $100 yet on their service since I insterted their SIM, and by doing so, now had a ... contract with them to spend that amount. (very interesting that part)

So.. I paid them an extra amount indicated by the rep, just under $70 more. After that for the 2nd time the rep said that it looked good and they would process unlock. They denied it, and also stated because I had asked twice, they would deny all future unlock requests for the next two months. How is that for a corporate policy.

I contacted them again by phone, I think between chat and phone, this was the 7th or 8th point of contact. About 6+ hours in and they finally tell me that the phone isn't locked and thats why they couldnt unlock it. (ok so why did the rep tell me to pay that $70 to process it!? very fishy)

They also have told me they would call me back and never did.

So, I began the process as a happy customer, planning to stay with them for the foreseeable future. After being lied to, treated like I was leaving ( more like pushed towards the door ) and charged fees for services not rendered, then told later that they couldnt have ever done so in the first place... well I have really had it with them and once I run out the credit they swindled me into paying them, I dont care what I have to do, but I dont think I will be a customer much longer.

Thus.. I am willing to try anything. I tried to work with them. Applecare as well I have contacted several times. Both companies I am furious with as they simply blame the other company for the situation. As a consumer, I find fault with both parties. I paid good money for this phone , and I cant use it. There is a problem there.

I am going to go to the carrier here and ask if they can help. Still though, I am willing to consider other options. I can't use the phone where I live.. this is a problem.

 

[Goatllama]

I have gotten such a run-around from Tmobile.. At first they said they would process the unlock, then denied it because they texted me a single message when I got here and I had a .50 cent balance on my account. So I paid that. Then they denied. They also said that because I was trying to cancel my account, they wouldn't do it. (Wasnt trying to cancel / never indicated I wanted to)

the 2nd request saying that I hadn't spent $100 yet on their service since I insterted their SIM, and by doing so, now had a ... contract with them to spend that amount. (very interesting that part)

So.. I paid them an extra amount indicated by the rep, just under $70 more. After that for the 2nd time the rep said that it looked good and they would process unlock. They denied it, and also stated because I had asked twice, they would deny all future unlock requests for the next two months. How is that for a corporate policy.

I contacted them again by phone, I think between chat and phone, this was the 7th or 8th point of contact. About 6+ hours in and they finally tell me that the phone isn't locked and thats why they couldnt unlock it. (ok so why did the rep tell me to pay that $70 to process it!? very fishy)

They also have told me they would call me back and never did.

So, I began the process as a happy customer, planning to stay with them for the foreseeable future. After being lied to, treated like I was leaving ( more like pushed towards the door ) and charged fees for services not rendered, then told later that they couldnt have ever done so in the first place... well I have really had it with them and once I run out the credit they swindled me into paying them, I dont care what I have to do, but I dont think I will be a customer much longer.

Thus.. I am willing to try anything. I tried to work with them. Applecare as well I have contacted several times. Both companies I am furious with as they simply blame the other company for the situation. As a consumer, I find fault with both parties. I paid good money for this phone , and I cant use it. There is a problem there.

I am going to go to the carrier here and ask if they can help. Still though, I am willing to consider other options. I can't use the phone where I live.. this is a problem.

This is very typical for this situation. However, Apple does not control the unlocking process when it comes to SIM cards, and are not to blame. It would be a waste of your time to contact Apple Support further, as they can almost literally do nothing about this. It might even be a good idea to try and get in touch with Best Buy to confirm the actual status of the phone upon purchase, as sometimes that can be misconstrued as well.

 

[mcsolas]

This is very typical for this situation. However, Apple does not control the unlocking process when it comes to SIM cards, and are not to blame. It would be a waste of your time to contact Apple Support further, as they can almost literally do nothing about this. It might even be a good idea to try and get in touch with Best Buy to confirm the actual status of the phone upon purchase, as sometimes that can be misconstrued as well.

I was very clear that I needed this phone to work in multiple countries. The only thing they said was that it needed to be carrier unlocked. That is what it says on the receipt. Oh yeah, forgot about how many times I have been scolded by both Apple and Tmobile for buying my phone at Best Buy. I was traveling. I needed it, I bought it. Before, when I switched sims it didn't do this on 2 prior phones. I had honestly never paid much attention to this and I had no idea this was going to be such a problem...

I am going to hopefully go by the carrier here tomorrow and see if we can make progress here locally

 

[Goatllama]

I don't see why they would scold you. The one(s) who should be scolded are the people who make the obscure rules for how unlocking works from carrier to carrier, and those who just want to sell the phone without going into all the details that could be cause for trouble in the future. I've not met anyone who could accurately describe how it works (worked as Apple Support for two years and had many frustrating calls where I called the carrier with the customer on the line and tried to understand the bull****). Good luck! Hopefully they can get this $#!@ straightened out.