Unable to Activate Used iPhone? Here are 4 Methods to Activate iPhone Without iTunes
Last Updated on April 25, 2023 by Joanna LakeAn old iPhone is still able to work after years, such as iPhone 6s, iPhone 7 or 8. However, years of using has given it too much pressure, data and contents have taken up this aged iPhone.
It gets slow, so you want to give your iPhone a rebirth. Or you’ve just bought a secondhand iPhone and try to give it a fresh start.
To achieve these goals, you need to activate your iPhone. This paper here is going to teach you how to activate the iPhone.
Activate Your iPhone without iTunes
If you want to activate a used iPhone, you need to reset it first. Only after the reset, your aged iPhone will be completely erased and can be reactivated.
Therefore, we need to focus on how to reset the iPhone in the first place. Except for resetting the iPhone with iTunes, there are several ways to activate the iPhone depending on.
- Method 1: Activate It via Settings with the Passcode of the iPhone
- Method 2: Activate It via iCloud with the Apple ID and Password
- Method 3: Activate it via iPhone Unlocker
- Method 4: Activate a Used iPhone When You Don’t Have the Registered Apple ID & Password
Also, you might encounter some issues while activating your device, you can also find solutions here.
Method 1: Activate iPhone via Settings
Step 1: Reset Your iPhone
If you still have the passcode of the device, unlock it. And go to Settings ⟶ General ⟶ Reset ⟶ Transfer or Reset iPhone ⟶ Erase All Contents and Settings.
Touch the Continue button, then it will ask you to enter your password to confirm the Reset.
Then it will upload iPhone data to iCloud, after that, you will see a White Apple screen appear. (If the Find My iPhone is on, you will need the Apple ID’s password to turn off the activation lock or remove the Apple ID with iPhone Unlocker)
Just wait for the completion. When the White Apple screen is gone, and the iPhone is completely turned, the reset is done.
Step 2: Power on your iPhone and Activate it
Power it on to set up your iPhone. Make sure your device is connected to WiFi or inserted with a SIM card.
Just follow the instructions on the screen. You could choose Language, Time, Settings and data on this iPhone while activating it. You could restore data from iTunes or iCloud, or set it up as a New iPhone.
Your activation of this iPhone would be complete when you finish all the instructions.
Method 2: Activate iPhone via iCloud
If you have the Apple ID and password on this iPhone, also, Find My iPhone is enabled on this iPhone, you could use iCloud to reactivate your iPhone.
Step 1: Reset your iPhone
Open a browser on your PC or other phones, visit iCloud/find. Log in with Apple ID and password.
Click All Devices, click on the icon of the device. If you want to activate an iPhone 12, click on iPhone 12. A pop-up appears.
Click Erase iPhone on the 3 options below. Enter your password to confirm.
Step 2: Activate your iPhone
Power on your iPhone and set it up. Follow the on-screen instructions. When you finish setting up your iPhone, you could have a “new” iPhone.
Method 3: Activate your iPhone via iPhone Unlocker
iPhone Unlocker is one of the best tools for erasing and unlocking an iPhone, it demands no password or passcode so it doesn’t matter if you can’t remember any.
With the resetting effect of iPhone Unlocker, you could definitely have access to reactivate your iPhone with little effort. If you want to activate your iPhone, just download it and click a few buttons, then, your iPhone could be reactivated like a new one. Let’s check that out.
Step 1: Download and Launch iPhone Unlocker on Your PC
Step 2: Connect Your iPhone to Your Computer with a USB Cable
Step 3: Choose Unlock Apple ID to Wipe All the Content and Settings
Four functions are presented, click on Unlock Apple ID on the interface, then select Start Remove. Here, Unlock Apple ID enables to remove Activation Lock, and all the data and settings will be completely deleted.
And the other three are Unlock iOS Screen, Resetting Screen Time passcode and Bypass MDM, which we don’t need right now.
It will ask you whether you have got a screen passcode and turned on Two-Factor Authentication, click Yes, then, download a firmware for wiping your iPhone.
When the download is done, click the Start Remove button. When it’s done, you can activate your iPhone.
Step 4: Activate your iPhone
Power on your iPhone and follow the instructions, you could activate your iPhone. When you finish activating your iPhone, you can use it like a new device.
Cautions:
- The data on this iPhone would be erased.
- In order to have a thorough and normal scan, the latest iTunes needs to be installed on your PC.
- The iOS system on your iPhone would be upgraded to the latest.
Method 4: Activate a Used iPhone When you Don’t Have the Registered Apple ID & Password
When you purchase a secondhand iPhone whose Find My iPhone feature is on and, it’s pretty difficult to activate the iPhone without previous Apple ID & password, since Activation Lock will be on if the Find My iPhone has turned on.
Find My iPhone
Find My iPhone is an iOS security layer that enables iPhone users to locate the iPhone and trigger an Activation Lock on it.
Once Find My iPhone is enabled on an iPhone, you must enter the PASSWORD of the Apple account to turn off Find My iPhone and then reset the iPhone. If you don’t have the password, you cannot turn it off and activate your iPhone.
Activation Lock
If your iPhone has an activation lock that linked previous Apple ID when you set it up, the Activation Lock screen would still appear even after resetting the iPhone.
Maybe you need to contact the previous users to get the Apple ID and password. Or bypass the Activation Lock with 4MeKey right away.
You don’t need to enter the password to shut down Find My iPhone or Activation Lock once you apply to the program.
Tenorshare 4Mekey is a professional tool for bypassing Activation Lock as well as Find My iPhone, we can use it to activate a used iPhone due to its special capability.
Once Tenorshare 4Mekey is launched, it will help you jailbreak your iPhone. After the jailbreak, the program will reset the iPhone and you can activate the iPhone just like a new one.
The Find My iPhone feature and the Activation Lock will be perfectly blocked. And you can log into your own Apple ID or download apps on this iPhone.
How to Remove Find My iPhone Activation Lock without Previous Owner
Step 1: Download and Install the 4MeKey on Your Computer
Step 2: Connect your iPhone to PC. Then open 4Mekey, select Start to Remove on the interface.
Step 3: Click the Start button, then choose the Next button to make sure you accept the agreement.
Step 4: Then it will download the jailbreak file. When it’s downloaded, plug in a flash drive to your computer, and it will save the jailbreak environment in it. Click Start, then follow the guide to jailbreak the iPhone.
Step 5: After that, open the program, click the Start button two times, then you will find the activation is removed. Choose the Done button and you can set up the iPhone without activation.
After setting up your iPhone, you will be able to access many services, like using the App and sign in to the App Store with your Apple ID.
While the SIM card and iCloud will be blocked, which means you won’t be able to make a phone call or backup your iPhone to iCloud.And you should avoid factory resetting your iPhone since the activation lock will show up again, which means you will need to re-block it with 4MeKey.
Some Common Errors While Activating iPhone
While you’re activating an iPhone, there might be some troubles.
“No Sim” or“Invalid Sim”
This situation is resulted from:
- No SIM card is inserted into this iPhone.
- This SIM card cannot fit in your iPhone because of a SIM lock, you could contact your carrier for unlocking.
- Your cellular connection is not stable, try it later or restart your iPhone.
- The SIM tray is so damaged that it could not normally identify your SIM card.
Is it possible to Dismiss The No-Sim Card Pop up Message?
iPhone Keep showing a No-SIM card? You can insert a SIM card or turn off mobile data on your device: Go to Settings ⟶ Mobile Data, toggle the button to turn it off
Summary
Now you’re all set to activate a used iPhone, even if it has been linked with previous Apple ID. In this article, we have offered 4 methods to activate your iPhone:
For those who know the iPhone passcode, directly activate the iPhone on Settings. Suppose you have already forgotten the passcode, the iCloud website will help activate your iPhone with Apple ID and password.
Forgot Apple ID & Password? iPhone unlocker will be able to remove the Apple ID & Password from a used iPhone. Moreover, if the iPhone has been activated yet, use 4MeKey to remove the Activation Lock.
Hoping that this paper could help you activate your iPhone like a new one. Enjoy your time. Feel free to ask us if you have a question.
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You can activate your iPhone with a stable WiFi, then you don’t have to connect your iPhone with a computer. Plus, you can set it as a new iPhone or restore from iCloud backup.
Of course you can. Besides restoring a new iPhone with iTunes, you can transfer the data from your previous data or restore from a iCloud backup.