No prepaid iPhone
I got a new iPhone today, and thought I would try to activate it with a prepaid plan - known as a GoPhone with AT&T. This would allow me to not have to sign a contract and since I use almost no minutes anyway, it would be $5/month cheaper than the lowest postpaid plan. I quick google search shows that there used to be a nice hole in the activation process where you could send in a garbage SSN like all 9’s, fail the credit check, and then get an option to go with a prepaid “pick your plan” option. It looks like that hole has been closed by Apple or AT&T. This looks like a server side fix - since it allows you to submit the form before telling you the SSN is no good.
There’s really no other apparent way to activate prepaid without having terrible credit. I guess that’s the punishment I get for good credit - no choice. Now I get a 2-year relationship with AT&T - a company I had managed to get rid of for a few year.
After a regular activation, the phone has been pretty good. We’ll see if the number ports over from prepaid T-mobile ok. I bet it won’t be ported into AT&T for at least 24 hours.