Getting a free iPhone 3GS...

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

If you jailbreak your iPhone you can hackivate it which means it will activate and you WILL NOT need a data plan.

 

[Childs]

I had the original iPhone, and have switched phones many times since 2007, but eventually always go back to the iPhone. I just pop my sim card in and have never been hassled. If you buy a subsidized phone, data is part of the contract. But you can buy one outright and there are ways around it. As Chaotic said, you can simply jailbreak and activate the sim, and you can go on ATT or switch networks. You just have to call and disable data on your account and you should be fine.

If I was the only one to do it I would feel very special, but alas I read what other people did and used software that other people wrote. The exception is that I use an iPhone without data, not that it can be done.

 

[zylander]

You are full of shit. The only way you could use the iPhone without a data plan, on the AT&T network, would be to use it without the phone functionality AT ALL, and only use apps for TXT and phone calls via Wi-Fi. As soon as you are on AT&T's edge network, as soon as your SIM is entered into the phone and the phone used, a Data plan would be added as the network knows right away that its an iPhone on the AT&T network.

I've seen people try and do SIM swaps and it only works for a few days, or weeks at most.



No what would make sense is for the OP to sell the iPhone since he obviously doesn't need it, and he cannot get around the $30 /month for Data so his choice is to pay the 30$ a month, or sell it for an obscene amount of money on eBay and buy something else.

Maybe you got in on it before Sept 6 of last year and they grandfathered you.

http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/techbeat/archives/2009/08/att_to_require.html

I can post numerous links that show that AT&T made it a mandatory option on the iPhone - and I can post numerous users experiences confirming that its true - others have also said the same thing as me in this thread.

I am helping the OP by letting him know that he cannot do what you have indicated you have done. You are the exception, or like I said - somehow got grandfathered in.

OP will need a data plan to activate his iPhone and he should expect to have to pay for it.

No, YOU are full of shit! Multiple people have already told you their experiences and how to use an iPhone without a data plan but you continue to ignore them.

Yes, if you buy an iPhone from Apple or ATT they will force you to add a data plan to your account before giving you the phone. However, if you are not buying a phone from the store and instead are getting one from a friend you can jailbreak it and do the modifications that I or other members have mentioned THEN pop in your SIM card and it will work just fine.

OR, even if youa re buying an iPhone from say, ATT; you will be forced to add on the data plan and have to pay for it that first month, however, after that first month you can call them up and cancel the data plan. After that, as long as you keep your phone jailbroken and never try to access data, they will not add the data plan back onto your account.

And before you start mouthing off about how you can not cancel the iPhone data plan and that it is part of your contract, let me leave you with this bit of info. My current 3GS I got by using the upgrade on my friends ATT account. He used his upgrade to get a 3GS for me, I paid for the phone and the data costs for the first month. He canceled the data plan on his account and I put the 3GS onto my account and added a data plan.

 

[MJinZ]

Let me clarify. If you jailbreak it you can activate it to be used with any AT&T sim card. If you unlock it you can use it on any carrier. What this means is that you can use it without having to pay any data because you won't be using the data, you'd just be using it as a regular phone. And AT&T does know that you are using an iPhone without a data plan but has yet to do anything about it.

An iPhone without data is like ... um... a computer without internet.

 

[Childs]

An iPhone without data is like ... um... a computer without internet.

Or like, a phone + iPod?

 

[CTrain]

An iPhone without data is like ... um... a computer without internet.

Bad analogy.
A computer is almost useless without internet.
But an iphone.
Make calls. SMS. Play games. Use it as a music player.
Oh and guess what, if theres wifi, you can still access data information.

 

[zylander]

Bad analogy.
A computer is almost useless without internet.
But an iphone.
Make calls. SMS. Play games. Use it as a music player.
Oh and guess what, if theres wifi, you can still access data information.

How exactly is a computer without internet useless?

 

[MJinZ]

Bad analogy.
A computer is almost useless without internet.
But an iphone.
Make calls. SMS. Play games. Use it as a music player.
Oh and guess what, if theres wifi, you can still access data information.

Nah, I like my analogy.

A computer is severely limited in convenience without internet. It can still do plenty of things just like the iPhone, it's just cut off from data and voice communication with the world.

Iphone would be severely limited without internet. It becomes nothing more than like a Razr. Yes, Razrs can be used as Mp3 players. I used a Motorola phone as my primary Mp3 player for years in college.

 

[Kaido]

OP, I'm going the opposite way - using an iPad chip in my 3GS for data-only (activate on a 3G iPad, then use a MicroSIM to SIM adapter from eBay). Then you can just use a VOIP solution with push notifications for calls (free on WIFI, then use the 3G when you're not around a hotspot). Something like Google Voice with Sipgate or Skype should be great.

 

[basslover1]

Nah, I like my analogy.

A computer is severely limited in convenience without internet. It can still do plenty of things just like the iPhone, it's just cut off from data and voice communication with the world.

Iphone would be severely limited without internet. It becomes nothing more than like a Razr. Yes, Razrs can be used as Mp3 players. I used a Motorola phone as my primary Mp3 player for years in college.

No, it would be an iTouch that makes phone calls.

 

[CTrain]

How exactly is a computer without internet useless?

Pretty freaking useless nowaday.
Whens the last time anyone ever sat down and spend 1-2 hrs on the computer and NOT have to access the net 1 single time ??
Beside maybe playing games, I can't fanthom being on a computer for long if I cn't access the net.

 

[CTrain]

Nah, I like my analogy.

A computer is severely limited in convenience without internet. It can still do plenty of things just like the iPhone, it's just cut off from data and voice communication with the world.

Iphone would be severely limited without internet. It becomes nothing more than like a Razr. Yes, Razrs can be used as Mp3 players. I used a Motorola phone as my primary Mp3 player for years in college.

You're just one bad analogy after another.
Like a Razr ?? LOL.
Did you even stop to think that the iphone is wifi capable ??
Its not like there isn't a gazillion free wifi hotspot everywhere in the world.
I have brought my iphone with me when I traveled to Southeast Asia on several occasion and its my most prized gadget and guess what ??? I don't have a data plan when I go there.

 

[zylander]

Pretty freaking useless nowaday.
Whens the last time anyone ever sat down and spend 1-2 hrs on the computer and NOT have to access the net 1 single time ??
Beside maybe playing games, I can't fanthom being on a computer for long if I cn't access the net.

You have got to be kidding.

Word processing, audio/video editing, 3d design, programming, web design, offline games (Morrowind and Oblivion), photo editing, watching movies, playing music.

HTPCs are used to watch movies and tv shows which in some cases does not require the internet. I dont use the internet on mine.

Many retail stores have kiosks setup with computers that display advertisements or ways to use a product that do not use the internet.

The list is endless...but I guess if all you do is go on facebook and youtube a computer wouldnt be of much use to you without the internet.

 

[CTrain]

You have got to be kidding.

Word processing, audio/video editing, 3d design, programming, web design, offline games (Morrowind and Oblivion), photo editing, watching movies, playing music.

HTPCs are used to watch movies and tv shows which in some cases does not require the internet. I dont use the internet on mine.

Many retail stores have kiosks setup with computers that display advertisements or ways to use a product that do not use the internet.

The list is endless...but I guess if all you do is go on facebook and youtube a computer wouldnt be of much use to you without the internet.

Give me a break.
The whole point was the analogy of having a computer without having access to the net is useless.
We all know computer are used for all type of things but it all revolves around being able to access the net for information.
All the stuff you've mentioned, at some point you have to access the net for information.
I would like to know anyone who has their main computer at home and not have access to the net...anyone ??
If you don't think being able to access the net with a computer is the #1 essential thing, I'm not going to argue with you.

 

[zylander]

Give me a break.
If you don't think access to the net is the #1 essential to having computer, then I'm not going to spend my time argueing with you.

For the average person, yes, internet is probably the #1 reason for owning a computer. But blatantly stating a computer without internet is useless is far from accurate. If one day the internet ceased to exist, would you just throw your computer away?