Swapping SIM Card Between Nexus 5 and Other Phones

[Small_law]

I'm certainly not new to Android, but my Nexus 4 is the first GSM phone I've owned. Thinking through service options for the Nexus 5, I came up with a few questions about sharing a SIM card between two phones on AT&T. I'm currently using T-Mobile prepaid service.

Assuming that the Nexus 5 supports LTE (a fairly safe assumption at this point), once I get the phone, I'm likely switching to AT&T for LTE service. It doesn't look like a prepaid Go Phone plan will work for me because of the 2 GB data limit. First question: can you bump the data up on a prepaid AT&T plan to around 5 GB/mo., or do you need to enter a new service agreement to get that much data each month?

Assuming that I need a service agreement to get 5 GB or more allotted each month, I'm likely to get a second phone on subsidy. It wouldn't make sense to enter a two-year service agreement without getting a new phone. Second question: if I were to get an iPhone 5S on contract with AT&T, how much of a pain is it to swap the SIM card back and forth between that iPhone and a Nexus 5? I know I'd have to get a nano-to-mirco SIM adapter; the LG G2 uses a micro SIM, so the Nexus 5 probably will. I'm wondering about the provisioning; do you have to call AT&T every time you switch phones to make sure you're getting LTE service? Is it easier between Android phones? Is it as simple as powering down a phone and swapping the SIM card or am I inviting an AT&T tech support nightmare into my life every time I want to switch phones?

It's hard to know for certain without having the Nexus 5 in hand, but any help would be appreciated. I may just stick with T-Mobile if it's too complicated. Thanks.

 

[jdbii]

As to your first question on the prepaid side, you can pay $10 for each extra 1GB of data on the $60 Go Phone plan. So 5GB of data would come out to $90 monthly. See "Data Packages" about halfway down this page. Prepaid Cell Phone Plans, GoPhone Plans, & Prepaid Smartphone plans from AT&T
AIO Wireless (owned by AT&T) is $5 bucks cheaper but LTE speed is limited to 8 Mbps. Their plan is $55 for 2GB so adding 3 extra GB for a total of 5GB with them is $85. Cell Phone Plans and Features | No Contract Cell Phone Plans with Unlimited Data | Aio Wireless

Don't know about your second question, but I will be interested to see what size sim card ends up on the Nexus 5.

 

[Small_law]

Thanks for the info on the pre-paid plan. I didn't know that was available. If the Nexus 5 supports LTE, that's likely the route I'll take.

From the pictures that are out there and the fact that it's based on the LG G2, I'm thinking it's going to use a micro SIM card. There are adapters for nano SIM's to fit micro SIM slots, but I've heard that a cheap adapter could actually harm a phone's SIM reader.

My bigger issue is with provisioning. If I have to spend an hour on the phone with customer support every time I want to switch phones, it isn't worth it at all.

 

[JonK]

Swapping SIMs is as simple as it sounds regardless of what OS the phone is running. Swap the SIM and the phone with the SIM is now activated (as long as that phone is either SIM unlocked or locked to the same carrier as the SIM). I have done this with no problems on VZW. ATT and Tmo have been doing it for ages. Nothing to worry about.

 

[Small_law]

That's great to hear. Constant communication with AT&T customer support is a thing that haunts me in my nightmares. If I can just swap the Sim card between the phones and change a few settings, I would be good to go. Thanks.

 

[JRDroid]

The only headache in this scenario is iMessage. You either need to always keep it off or turn it off when your going to put your SIM in the N5 and switch it back on when you go to the iPhone. iMessage doesn't like you switching your SIM into another, non iOS device.

 

[ne0ne]

The only nano to micro Sim adapter I would ever trust.


http://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?t=320772


Sent from my XT1058 using Tapatalk 2

 

[sonicresidue]

Make sure iMessage is turned off in the iPhone before switching sim cards. Also, you might have to tweak the APN settings on the Nexus (Don't know if you can do this on the iPhone). With the Nexus 4, there were reports of the phone having some minor performance issues since AT&T doesn't officially support the device. If your account is set up with an iPhone you may not have a huge problem, though.

 

[N4Newbie]

As to your first question on the prepaid side, you can pay $10 for each extra 1GB of data on the $60 Go Phone plan. So 5GB of data would come out to $90 monthly. See "Data Packages" about halfway down this page. Prepaid Cell Phone Plans, GoPhone Plans, & Prepaid Smartphone plans from AT&T
AIO Wireless (owned by AT&T) is $5 bucks cheaper but LTE speed is limited to 8 Mbps. Their plan is $55 for 2GB so adding 3 extra GB for a total of 5GB with them is $85. Cell Phone Plans and Features | No Contract Cell Phone Plans with Unlimited Data | Aio Wireless

Don't know about your second question, but I will be interested to see what size sim card ends up on the Nexus 5.

I never gave much thought to this, but according to this recent New York Times article http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/10/t...a-phone-and-plan-that-fit.html?pagewanted=all the coverage offered by AIO Wireless is not the same as that offered with AT&T's "regular" plans, even though it uses the same network. The same seems to be true for all the carriers who offer both prepaid and pay as you go plans.

Check out the article; it is an interesting read.

 

[petaf]

Thanks for the info on the pre-paid plan. I didn't know that was available. If the Nexus 5 supports LTE, that's likely the route I'll take.

From the pictures that are out there and the fact that it's based on the LG G2, I'm thinking it's going to use a micro SIM card. There are adapters for nano SIM's to fit micro SIM slots, but I've heard that a cheap adapter could actually harm a phone's SIM reader.

My bigger issue is with provisioning. If I have to spend an hour on the phone with customer support every time I want to switch phones, it isn't worth it at all.

I constantly switch my AT&T SIM between my Note 2 and HTC One without a problem!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using AC Forums mobile app

 

[21stNow]

Swapping SIMs is as simple as it sounds regardless of what OS the phone is running. Swap the SIM and the phone with the SIM is now activated (as long as that phone is either SIM unlocked or locked to the same carrier as the SIM). I have done this with no problems on VZW. ATT and Tmo have been doing it for ages. Nothing to worry about.

This isn't true with AT&T. AT&T codes the data plans based on the OS (I think that Android and Windows Phone are lumped together). I have switched between an iPhone and Android phone only briefly, and it was a while ago so I don't remember the true data performance on the device. I have tried to switch back and forth between a BlackBerry Z10 and an Android phone; since I had the BlackBerry data plan active on my line, data did not work at all on my Android phone. I switched the data plan back to Android since I was not keeping the Z10.

To the OP yes, you would have to call in when you switch between an iPhone and an Android device. You may get some data service, but it will probably be very spotty or inconsistent if you have the plan for one OS on your account and you switch the SIM card to the other phone. If you want to switch between Android devices only, this is no problem as I do this from time to time. The big headache with calling in to change the data plans is that AT&T does not know how to properly compute pro rata charges for data, so you are billed an extra day's worth of data each time you change your data plan. That's another call to AT&T to get them to fix it.

 

[ctowne]

I've thrown my sim card (Straight Talk AT&T) in about 100 different phones (GSM) and they all work instantly. You will not have a problem switching between devices.

Right now just about every day I switch back and forth from my iPhone 5 to my HTC One, and back again.

 

[21stNow]

I've thrown my sim card (Straight Talk AT&T) in about 100 different phones (GSM) and they all work instantly. You will not have a problem switching between devices.

Right now just about every day I switch back and forth from my iPhone 5 to my HTC One, and back again.

The OP is thinking about moving to AT&T, not Straight Talk. Different carriers/providers handle data plans differently. I never had a problem with data when I switched my SIM cards to different phones when I used MVNOs. However, AT&T works differently.

 

[ctowne]

The OP is thinking about moving to AT&T, not Straight Talk. Different carriers/providers handle data plans differently. I never had a problem with data when I switched my SIM cards to different phones when I used MVNOs. However, AT&T works differently.

I had AT&T before and it worked the same as now

 

[21stNow]

I had AT&T before and it worked the same as now

I won't argue with you. My experience has been different. Either way, AT&T will tell you that you have to have a data plan appropriate for the device that you are using. I won't advise the OP in a way that is contrary to AT&T's stance on this.

 

[qnet]

I switch phones a lot and go back and forth between carriers. From my experience with Tmobile, you can switch your sim card back and forth between a Iphone and Android with no problem. I'm not sure about AT&T as far as between IOS and Android. I've switched between Android phones with no issue.

What I've noticed is, the phones with side-loading sim trays, like the Iphone 5 and Nexus 4 are much easier to swap around and use adapters with. The tray holds the nano-sim adapter and sim card well. The phones that have given me problems are the Samsung phones. It can be done, but you have to be extra careful and can damage your phone. The way the sim card slides into the Samsung phones, if your sim card is not secure within the adapter, it can slip out, get stuck, and the adapter will damage the contacts. I've had to replace the sim tray in a galaxy S3 becuase of this.

Right not I'm using a Moto X and LG G2 on At&T. I swap the sim card betwen those two phones with no issue. Earlier this year I had a Iphone 5 on Tmobile and swapped the sim between it and a Nexus 4. At&t I'm not sure about. I had a Iphone 5 with them this year when it launched but, I didn't keep it that long.

 

[ctowne]

Honestly just try it and see what happens. You've got nothing to lose...

 

[brett_f]

I currently have AT&T (post-paid) service. I have an iPhone 5 and a Nexus 4. I switch between them at will, with the only catch being that I have to remember to turn off iMessage. AT&T has me provisioned with an iPhone LTE unlimited data plan. When on my Nexus 4 I get typical HSPA+ speeds, and I get LTE on the iPhone.

It works fine every time. I have visual voicemail when on the iPhone and I forward my voicemail to Google Voice when I'm using the N4.

I would expect things to work the same when I get the Nexus 5.

 

[phositadc]

On post paid service I switch between an android and iPhone 5s all the time and all I ever do is switch the Sim card from one phone to the other. Never called ATT.

You have to be on an android or iPhone data plan that supports LTE, but once you are, all you have to do is swap the Sim.

It used to be different, back in the days of blackberry etc, and each OS really did require a specific plan. But that is no longer true.

Sent from my Nexus 7

 

[ryanjma]

This might be a dumb question, but would you need any sort of sim card adapter to switch between the Note 3 and the N5?