iPhone 7 A1661 Doesn't Work with Metro PCS? Help?

[bbddpp]

Just sold a A1661 iphone 7 plus, purchased from Target (Verizon branded, but never used on Verizon) removed the cricket sim that I used for a year and sold it to a Metro PCS user. The user is now getting the message:

"The SIM card that you currently have installed in this iphone is from a carrier that is not supported under the activation policy that is currently assigned by the activation server. This is not a hardware issue with the iphone. please insert another SIM card from a supported carrier or request that this iphone be unlocked by your carrier. Please contact Apple for more information."

Cricket verifies the phone is not locked to them in any way. Running ESN checker shows whitelisted and clear (it does show that AT&T and Cricket both had the phone on its network before, but Cricket says they can confirm the phone is not locked to their network). Do I need to call AT&T or is there some reason this phone won't activate with a Metro PCS sim?

I'd really appreciate any insight or help, thanks so much.

 

[Sherry_B]

That specific model can be used on either CDMA or GSM networks, so not sure what's happening. When you say AT&T (GSM), do you mean Verizon (CDMA)? You said it was Verizon branded, but later say it showed being used on AT&T and Cricket. A little confused.

Not sure that it matters so stating as merely and FYI only; Metro PCS is a subsidiary of T-Mobile (GSM). Cricket is a subsidiary of AT&T (GSM).

Going by what the error message says, it looks like you need to contact Verizon (or whom ever the phone is branded under).

Someone else may be able to narrow it down a bit better than I can. I didn't look at the supported bands.

 

[bbddpp]

Can’t thank you enough for the reply! I bought the phone at target on release day last year. It is the a1661 which from what I understood was the Verizon model that worked with all carriers and was unlocked. I came home and put in a cricket SIM card and it activated right up. Cricket says and esn checks show the phone is not locked. So I’m not sure what to do now. The metro pcs people are telling the buyer the phone is not unlocked and cricket is telling me something different. I didn’t think cricket even locked phones and since it’s the only sim I ever put in there I can’t see how it would be locked to Verizon or anyone else. Frustrating.

 

[Sherry_B]

I didn’t think cricket even locked phones and since it’s the only sim I ever put in there I can’t see how it would be locked to Verizon or anyone else. Frustrating.

I do see why it would show Verizon since it's branded by Verizon, but not sure why it's giving the error. I do hope you get it sussed out, and that at the very least Verizon will be able to fix it. Keep us updated?

 

[bbddpp]

I will. I will be calling Verizon first to have them check their database, just to be sure, though the phone was never actually activated with them so it may be frustrating. Going to try Apple as well. Cricket already told me that the phone is not locked to them. The site I sell it through has an IMEI checker which says "device appears to be activation ready" so this is a really weird one. I'm going to try both AT&T and Verizon to see if they somehow sim locked my phone even though it worked fine with a cricket SIM and never once was set up on Verizon. Seems that buying a "Verizon iphone" which is supposedly unlocked still may be different than just buying an Apple unlocked phone. The weird thing is I'd expect I'd have had the same problem when I put in the Cricket sim as well in that case but that worked perfectly.

 

[Sherry_B]

. Seems that buying a "Verizon iphone" which is supposedly unlocked still may be different than just buying an Apple unlocked phone. The weird thing is I'd expect I'd have had the same problem when I put in the Cricket sim as well in that case but that worked perfectly.

I've always bought unlocked phones directly from the company (Apple, or Google Play). When you buy that type of unlocked phone, it really is unlocked. There is no carrier attached to them. I do this so if I am unhappy with my carrier I can remove the sim and go to another carrier, which I've done without any issues at all. This is why GSM carriers are so popular with their BYOP (bring your own phone) prepaid plans. It's nice that you can now get some unlocked phones that support both CDMA and GSM, which gives people more options.

Sorry you're having to go through this frustrating ordeal. Hopefully you'll get it fixed soon!

 

[prestigiouswireless]

You really shouldn’t have that issue but it sounds like it may have to be unlocked by Verizon. You may want to try sticking a Verizon SIM card in their and reset the device. The SIM card doesn’t need to be active either.

 

[rambo47]

All Verizon 4G phones come factory unlocked. Sometimes using an MVNO carrier doesn't lock the phone but screws up it's ability to be used on other carriers. Not sure if it's Metro PCS firmware that was installed or something else. I'd try wiping the phone and setting it up again.