XT users - A fix is coming
When iOS 4 was released to developers in beta form, the first thing we did was get to work on getting our bundles to work. Unfortunately, as you may have heard, we were unsuccessful and it meant that users lost their fancy carrier icons and the ability to use their voicemail button. Well, in an interesting turn it seems that users on XT may soon regain the functionality of that button.
After we made the carrier bundle announcement there were comments from some readers who were telling us that their voicemail button was still working and they were on 2degrees. We ran some tests of our own and found that yes, it was true. But why would it work on 2degrees and not on XT? We wondered if it may have something to do with how the voicemail information is loaded onto the SIM but we were un-sure.
We asked some questions and it turns out it is the SIM card causing the problem. Within the database tables on all SIM cards is a field called ‘MBDN’ which stores the voicemail information and the Telecom XT SIM cards don’t have this info loaded. Apparently only a few phones use this field and this includes the iPhone and the Blackberry (yes, XT users with a Blackberry are affected by this too).
New XT SIMs on their way
So the fix? @Telecomnz have confirmed to us that new SIM cards are on the way and they will have this field populated. This is great news and means that once you get your hands on the new SIM card the voicemail button on your iPhone will work. It means the only thing you won’t have that the bundles provided is the custom XT logo.
It’s interesting as this is something that must have been an issue prior to iOS 4 but we’ve not picked it up before because the bundles circumvented the problem for all providers.
Now, before I finish I must point out that we don’t know the details of how Telecom are going to manage the roll-out of these new SIMs and what the options will be for existing SIM-holders. If you are an XT user with a Telecom-supplied Blackberry then you could probably argue that they should provide you with a replacement SIM for free as this is a Telecom supported phone. But as the iPhone is not a supported device (and the only two phones that are affected are the Blackberry and iPhone) then they don’t really need to provide anyone else with one for free. This means that if you want one you could end up being charged for a replacement to give you the ability to use the voicemail button, but we just don’t know at this stage.
We’ll update the site with further details when we hear them. But until then, remember if you’re an XT customer you can still access voicemail by several means, it’s just that the dedicated voicemail icon (which is essentially a speed-dial button) will not work.
It maybe that they implement this on the shipment of Micro Sims coming XT’s way so that will be great for those that buy a new Micro Sim (rather than cut up their old Mini Sim). Guess it will just be a case of us current Iphone users on XT pulling the old “my sim has died…need a new one” and getting a MicroSim replacement at the same time..two birds/one stone.
(camtab has made 468 comments)
That’s good news… I have held off iOS4 on my wife’s iPhone as she is not one who likes to change her method of retrieving her voicemail. Surely Telecom would swap the SIM for free as an act of good customer service (considering their recent past issues)?
Word is from my old Australian telco is that the iPhone 4 is being launched with them in a matter of weeks http://twitter.com/Optus/status/16888459600 (taken with a grain of salt). If this is correct, I’d be looking at a Mico SIM swap then.
As I am on an open contract with Telecom, I might try “you could give me a Micro SIM for free or I’ll go sign up with Vodafone and get one with them”
(oobidub has made 33 comments)
@ camtab: it will be on both MicroSIM and the normal SIMs
They should offer replacements for those affected, I think. iPhone users certainly make up a decent chunk of their userbase.
(Mak has made 222 comments)
This is good news. But Telecom needs to offer a free upgrade path, either for those effected or for those who use an iPhone and want to move to the MicroSim. Even if you go into a store and prove that you have an iPhone. I don’t think that we should have to pay to buy another piece of plastic!
(Allan has made 42 comments)
is there any idea or when the iphone4 will be offical in nz
(brycebeattie278 has made 13 comments)
@ brycebeattie278: At this point in time New Zealand are set for an end of July launch. No specific date at the moment though. Hope that helps.
(Paul has made 323 comments)
Voicemail button does not work on my 2Degrees iPhone 3GS with iOS4. But then neither do any of my web links. Can’t even get 202 to work from the home screen floowing your instructions. Have I missed a setting? Other web links on the home screen do not work either.
(irncpl has made 31 comments)
@ irncpl: what do you mean by "other web links on the home screen do not work either"? I'm guessing you're talking about web clips (which is when you save a safari bookmark to your home screen) but if none of them work for you then something is very wrong somewhere… Not sure why your voicemail button wouldn't be working for you on 2degrees but we tried it ourselves after somebody else brought it up and it worked for us.
(Steve Lawrence has made 645 comments)
I upgraded yesterday to ios4 and thanks to this forum i now know why my phone has some differences from before. However, my main gripe is that i’ve lost ALL of my contacts list!! I use the phone for work and now i’m annoyed. Is there a fix for this at all or am i going to have to go through my old address book and load everything manually again? I agree the phone is superb and i’m not upset about using the logo or the voicemail function but my contacts list???
(PaulG has made 2 comments)
Hi Paul — updating to iOS 4 should not have caused your contacts to be erased so something has not gone right. However, the fix depends on a few things — how did your contacts get on there in the first place? If you use a Microsoft Exchange, MobileMe or GMail account the contacts were probably synced over-the-air from those accounts and should sync back again as long as you’ve got the account setup and have contacts syncing switched on. If you entered them manually into your iPhone, they should have synced back to your computer via iTunes so restoring from a backup should reinstate them.
(Steve Lawrence has made 645 comments)
So what about the poor old BlackBerry users? It's been a problem for them all along but Telecom don't care – as soon as it might be an issue for those poor iPhone users with iOS4 then suddenly it can be fixed?
Firstly it's unbelievable this field was overlooked in the first place in the SIM customisation process, and secondly it's not a good look to treat BB users as 2nd class.
(bob has made 3 comments)
@ bob: I actually think the fix is for the BlackBerry users and it's therefore a bonus for iPhone users. Telecom haven't said the fix is for iPhone users they said that the fix is for BlackBerry users and will also resolve the issue for iPhone users.
@ Steve: Sorry, yes meant web clips. I’ve tried with the NZ Met Office and one or 2 others and none fire up. I’m guessing there’s a setting awry somewhere, but blowed if I can find it. Unless of course there’s something else adrift. When I press the Voicemail button I get the message “Cannot connect to Voicemail” on the screen. The web clips just ‘flash’ basically and nothing happens. The web page does not open.
(irncpl has made 31 comments)
Thanks for that Steve. I looked at the restore button but didn't have the confidence to hit it!! It said it would erase all my stuff and restore to factory settings. Does it then re synch so to speak and restore the photos and cantacts etc?
(PaulG has made 2 comments)
Yes i was talking to a person in telecom and they said they will be out within the nxt 2 months thats all that they would tell me and ive got the email to prove hat im not lying
(lakeview01 has made 198 comments)
have we had any news as to when these sim cards will be available?
(kara has made 4 comments)
Serious? 2 months? That's way too long. Do they not want people to put the new iPhone on their network?
Cheers,
Allan
(Allan has made 42 comments)
Went into lower hut quensgate telecom today to ask when the updated sims are coming and the guy just tryed to point me to this site to load carrier bundles and wouldnt even listen to me about new sim cards, i pefer telecom to vodafone but their coustomer service really suks! They wouldnt even give me the apn adress when i first got my iphone
(deFusion has made 12 comments)
@ kiwiav8a:
How did u get the V3 sim card rung telecom they said they wont be out for another month?
(lakeview01 has made 198 comments)