Getting 3G onto the Apple iPad Without Actually Buying a Microsim
My latest gadget purchase was the Apple iPad, the 16GB 3G version to be exact. While I already did have a data plan on my mobile, I wasn’t about to subscribe to one of the new microsim data plans from either SingTel, StarHub or M1, simply because those plans are a little too rich for my taste.
What’s more, getting data on my 3G iPad wasn’t so tough, all that needed to be done was to sign up for a multi-sim plan, and cut that sim down to microsim size. At a cost of just S$5 a month, I can get a secondary sim card to use in the iPad for 3G purposes, and at the same time, continue using my same mobile data plan. After all, i’ve yet to really come anywhere near the 12GB monthly limit.
To start, @longadin(1) kindly provided me with a handy printout from buy-microsim.com(2), which had a template I could refer to to figure out which bits of plastic on my sim card were safe to chop off.
Once the necessary lines were drawn out, simply whip out the scissors and chop away. I recommend you leave some excess plastic on to begin with, so you don’t accidentally cut off too much. Its way easier (and cheaper) to just trim the sim card down to size, than have to go out and pay for a new one because you cut off too much.
Chopped, and fitted into the microsim tray of the iPad. Not too much trouble, thankfully.
Its also important to note that you can’t exactly get 3G up and running from the get go, as the iPad’s 3G settings need to be configured appropriately. Else you’ll simply face an error message to the tune of “Cellular data not subscribed”.
In the case of SingTel, simply head to Settings > Cellular Data > APN Settings and use the following:
APN: internet
Username: guest
Password: guest
Once done, that’s pretty much it. Took me all of five minutes to tape down my new secondary multisim, mark down the lines, and chop away. Factor in the time taken to get the newly chopped sim card into the iPad and to enter the appropriate APN settings, and you’ll need less than 10 minutes tops.
Links referenced in the above blog post:
(2) http://www.buy-microsim.com/index.php?main_page=page&id=6
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