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Active Contributor
February 20, 2026
Question

sim not activating in 4g only phone

  • February 20, 2026
  • 4 replies
  • 148 views

Had a new SIM card for my daughter who will be using an old phone that is 4g only. The SIM card won't activate in the phone.

My own SIM which used to work in this phone also will not activate, but a works SIM on Vodafone has no issues so it's clearly a network rather than phone issue.

Is ID trying to remove 4g access or would you expect this to register.

Phone is  a Xiaomi Mi 6

    4 replies

    Lamiya C
    iD Mobile Employee
    iD Mobile Employee
    February 20, 2026

    Hi ​@leekrobo ,

     

    I’m sorry you’re experiencing this issue. Since your Xiaomi Mi 6 is 4G capable, the SIM should normally register. Here are some troubleshooting steps you can try:
     

    Restart the phone – Power off, remove the SIM, reinsert it carefully, and turn it back on.

    Check SIM placement – Ensure the SIM is in the correct slot and sits firmly.

    Test another phone – Insert the SIM into a different 4G phone to see if it registers.

    Network settings – Go to Settings → Mobile Network → Network Operators and try selecting iD Mobile manually.

    Airplane mode toggle – Turn on airplane mode for 30 seconds, then turn it off to force a network refresh.

    SIM activation wait – New SIMs can take up to 2 hours to activate after being issued.

    Check for account issues – Ensure the account is active and the SIM is assigned to it.
     

    If after these steps the SIM still won’t register, we may need to send a replacement SIM or escalate to our technical team.

     

    Lamiya

    Did my comment help answer your question? If so, don't forget to mark the response as the Most Helpful Answer.
    leekroboAuthor
    Active Contributor
    February 20, 2026

    Hi Lamiya

    Already tried:

    Restarting phone

    SIM placement in SIM tray

    Manually setting network which states network not available ( had auto detected it as id prior to this)

    Tried in a 5g phone and it was fine. Set it to 4g and it was still fine. Don't have another 4g only phone to try with 

    Tried toggling airplane mode and no luck

    SIM is activated as works fine in another phone and was left overnight in the mi 6 and also travelled to another area to see if a different antenna helped but no luck there either 

    Account is active and has SIM assigned to it, been able to add it to my id mobile app

    Also tried a factory reset and that didn't do anything 

    iD Mobile Employee
    February 22, 2026

    Hi ​@leekrobo 

     

    Thank you for letting us know.

    It appears that the Xiaomi model you’re using is not fully compatible with the iD Mobile network. The Mi 6 is not included on our list of approved handsets, which may be why you’re experiencing issues.

     

    Here is the list of the Xiaomi phones that will work with iD Mobile.

     

    Model

    Wi-Fi Calling

    4G (VoLTE Calling)

    Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G

    Yes

    Yes

    Mi 12

    Yes

    Yes

    Redmi Note 11

    Yes

    Yes

    Redmi 10C

    Yes

    Yes

    Mi 12 Lite

    Yes

    Yes

    Mi 12T Pro

    Yes

    Yes

    Redmi A1 4G

    Yes

    Yes

    Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G

    Yes

    Yes

    Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G

    Yes

    Yes

    Redmi Note 12

    Yes

    Yes

    Mi 13T

    Yes

    Yes

    Redmi Note 13 + 5G

    Yes

    Yes

    Redmi Note 13

    Yes

    Yes

     

    Michael Z

    Did my comment help answer your question? If so, don't forget to mark the response as the Most Helpful Answer.
    leekroboAuthor
    Active Contributor
    February 22, 2026

    Hi Michael 

    Is this because it's handsets that are resold through id specifically and also removing older handsets?

    I have a mi 11 and mi 13 pro that are fully compatible that are also not in your list but have no connectivity issues. Also as previously mentioned the mi 6 has been compatible in the past