Apple iPhone 5 and FreedomPop

FreedomPop is an MNVO in the U.S. which offers cellular service on Sprint's network. They first made a name for themselves with their Freedom Sleeve, which brought 4G connectivity to the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S. The carrier recently started offering the Apple iPhone 5 on its network coupled with a free plan, which meant you wouldn't have to pay for monthly calls, texts and data after paying the initial cost for your phone.

FreedomPop sells the refurbished iPhone 5 for $399 without the requirement of a monthly contract. This is a Sprint compatible iPhone, which will only work on the Sprint network. Once you purchase the device from FreedomPop it will be activated and shipped out to you with the FreedomPop apps installed. These apps generally replace the regular Phone and Messaging apps on your iPhone as FreedomPop uses internet to send and receive calls and text.

Freedompop also offers users the option to (BYOD) bring over their own devices, but you have to make sure your device is compatible before activating it on their network.

If you are an iPhone user, you can bring over your Sprint compatible iPhone 4, iPhone 4s or iPhone 5 to FreedomPop. If you are considering an iPhone 4S of iPhone 5, you could purchased a pre-owned iPhone from Amazon or eBay and use it with FreedomPop. If you are purchasing a pre-owned iPhone, make sure:

• It is a Sprint iPhone
• It has a Sprint SIM card

If you are looking to purchase an iPhone on Amazon, and come across the iPhones sold through Amazon Warehouse Deals, please note that they are not unlocked as listed by Amazon. These devices are in fact locked to their specific networks and will require you to purchase a separate SIM in order to use them. be sure to check out our guide to purchasing an unlocked iPhone for our negative experience with purchasing one of these devices on Amazon.

If you do happen to purchase a Sprint iPhone from Amazon Warehouse Deals, make sure that you head over to an Apple Store (after calling them and setting up an appointment) and getting a Sprint SIM card. You will need these before you are able to activate.

[NOTE] Sprint Stores are not at the least helpful when you need to purchase a SIM card, and Best Buy charges $30 for the Sprint SIM. The Apple Store seems like the only viable solution to obtaining a new SIM card, and we hope FreedomPop will eventually offer their customers SIMs themselves.

When you follow the BYOD link on FreedomPop, you will be required to enter your Phone's ESN/MEID/IMEI along with the SIM Card ICCID number. You will also have to pay an additional $20 activation fee before your device can be activated on FreedomPop's network.

Once you have activated your device, you can select a new phone number (or transfer your existing one) for your FreedomPop account.After the phone has been added to your account:

1. Connect to a Wi-Fi network
2. Restart your phone
3. Download our FreedomPop Free Text and Talk App from the App Store and use it for texting and calling (Note: The native iPhone Dialer and Text App will no longer work)
4. When the activation completes, your phone is ready for use.

If you are still having issues connecting to FreedomPop after activating

• Make sure that Cellular Data is switched on by heading to Settings > Cellular and switching Cellular Data to the ON position.
• You may also need to perform a network reset by heading to Settings > General > Reset and clicking Reset Network Settings.
• Additionally you can also try performing a profile update on your device:
• Connect to a Wi-Fi network
• Tap the phone app
• Dial ##873283# on your native iPhone dialer
• Tap Call
• Starting Service Update message will appear - tap OK
• If update is successful Service Update Complete message will appear after about a minute - tap OK

If none of the above steps help you activate your account, you may need to contact FreedomPop directly for additional help.

[UPDATE] Based on my experience activating my iPhone 5 on Freedompop, I had to share a few additional tips to new users... Before you activate your BYOD on FreedomPop you will need to get a Sprint SIM card... But you have to also ensure that you have a 06R SIM and not a 06C SIM... This is a SIM identifier number which can be located on the bottom left side of your SIM card...

Due to the difficulty in obtaining Sprint SIM cards from Apple and Sprint, I have also been advised that Ting SIM cards.. You can purchase a Ting SIM card by heading to ting.com 

source - FreedomPop (BYOD)