One of the issues with some of the major carriers within the US is that they rely on the IMEI number (serial number) of the phone to determine whether the phone can work with their network.

Unfortunately, this means that phones that were not purchased within the US are not within their system, so they may assume it will not work with their network (or to get you to buy a phone from them).

Fortunately, there is a way to bypass this by manually connecting to the network.

Consumer Cellular’s Access Point Name (APN) will need to be installed in the phone in order for it to connect to cellular data. Consumer Cellular operates on two different networks: AT&T and T-Mobile. If you’re unsure which network you’re using, please contact them at (888) 345-5509.

Consumer Cellular: AT&T

1. Reset Mobile Network settings in Settings ➔ System ➔ Reset options ➔ Reset Wi-Fi, mobile & Bluetooth and then reboot the device.
2. Once you have restarted the phone go to:
   • Settings ➔ Network & Internet ➔ SIMs ➔ Access Point Names
   • Select the Menu (tap the 3 dots on the top right).
   • Select “New APN“.
3. Type in the following details:
   • Name: Custom APN
   • APN: ereseller
   • Proxy: Not set
   • Port: Not set
   • Username: Not set
   • Password: Not set
   • Server: Not set
   • MMSC: http://mms.vtext.com/servlets/mms
   • MMS proxy: https://proxy.mobile.att.net/
   • MMS Port: 80
   • Leave the rest of the fields as they are.
4. Select the Menu (tap the 3 dots on the top right).
5. Select Save.
6. You will return to the list of access points. You should see the new network we just created named “Custom APN“.
7. Make sure it is activated by tapping on the circle next to it.

That’s all! You can now check to see if your internet connection has been restored. We have gone through this process with many clients and it has been successful.

Consumer Cellular: T-Mobile

1. Reset Mobile Network settings in Settings ➔ System ➔ Reset options ➔ Reset Wi-Fi, mobile & Bluetooth and then reboot the device.
2. Once you have restarted the phone go to:
   • Settings ➔ Network & Internet ➔ SIMs ➔ Access Point Names
   • Select the Menu (tap the 3 dots on the top right).
   • Select “New APN“.
3. Type in the following details:
   • Name: Custom APN
   • APN: wholesale
   • Proxy: Not set
   • Port: Not set
   • Username: Not set
   • Password: Not set
   • Server: Not set
   • MMSC: http://wholesale.mmsmvno.com/mms/wapenc
   • MMS proxy: https://proxy.mobile.att.net/
   • MMS Port: Not set
   • Leave the rest of the fields as they are.
4. Select the Menu (tap the 3 dots on the top right).
5. Select Save.
6. You will return to the list of access points. You should see the new network we just created named “Custom APN“.
7. Make sure it is activated by tapping on the circle next to it.

That’s all! You can now check to see if your internet connection has been restored. We have gone through this process with many clients and it has been successful.