iPhone 5 searching – won’t connect to cellular network at all
Last night my iPhone 5 started to lose my connection to AT&T. I am in downtown Pittsburgh on the 9th floor, so I’m in no fringe.. I turned off LTE when it started happening and it would switch to 4G, but that quickly stopped working, too, and it just shows “Searching…” Sometimes now it will show 4 bars for 10 seconds, then 1 bar, then Searching.
I read some discussion about the issue and:
- activated Airplane mode and deactivated
- turned off the phone and booted it back up, with no success
- did a Network Reset (Settings > General > Reset > Network Reset), but that did nothing other than delete all my wifi network passwords.
- did a hard reset by holding in the sleep and home buttons for a while
- popped out the SIM card with a paperclip (right side of phone) and pushed it back in
- swapped the SIM card
Here are some threads with similar issues:
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1452223
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1450043
Here’s what it looks like:
CONCLUSION:
After visiting an AT&T store in Cranberry Twp, PA and swapping the SIM card with no change whatsoever, we have concluded that there is a problem with the iPhone 5 connecting to any SIM card. Thanks for the good experience there, Roger.
To check to see if this is your problem go to Settings > General > About and check to see if you have a ICCID line:
My ICCID line will appear if it shows AT&T in the top left, but disappears when it says “Searching..”
(If you have this happen, make sure to show the Apple Store tech as this is the smoking gun.) So, my iPhone 5 can’t read the SIM card. Now the question is whether this is isolated of will show itself like a timebomb. Is it SIMgate??
Next I went to the local Apple Store and Play Store Download Matt did some quick diagnostics and didn’t find any known issue, so he pulled out on the 16 specially-packed non-retail iPhone 5s in stock for this type of situation. He had me backup to iCloud, restore on the new one and off I went. Despite taking some time, AT&T and Apple really took care of this well.
PLEASE COMMENT IF YOU HAVE THIS PROBLEM AND WHETHER REPLACING THE SIM WORKS.
[UPDATE 3/17/13] Here is a site with some good suggestions on what to do if you have this problem. If the ICCID is gone, I suspect replacement is your only cure.
I’m having identical problems too but I’m on SaskTel. I bought my iPhone 5 from Apple and got the nano SIM from SaskTel. Within two days it quit working and unfortunately SaskTel is terrible for helping with these sort of problems. They would rather sell me another SIM card then help. I also don’t know anyone else with an iPhone 5. I’m trying a system restore on it but it looks like I’ll be taking this one up with Apple.
After 1 week, my phone displayed ‘searching’ and would not connect to network. In general settings it said network not available, no carrier. I could not make calls. I contacted Apple by another phone and went through a similar procedure as posted at the start of this thread. I ended up backing up phone on iTunes, restoring phone and then reinstalling from the back up.
This fixed the searching issue temporarily but since then, it’s happened a couple more times. I am not happy at all with this and am taking it into the Apple store tomorrow. I am not convinced that its a network issue and feel it is more likely to be an issue with the phone. I won’t be happy unless they replace it.
Will update on my experience!
Same exact problem. Happened the first time after I went into a garage where my phone always loses connection with the network. When I left the garage, my phone wouldn’t reconnect to the network for 15 minutes or so. Then, it happened again, most recently, after I had been in a remote area for a couple of days. When I got back to a place where others on the same network had full service, my phone wouldn’t reconnect with the network. Back home now where I usually have full service now and it still won’t reconnect. It’s been about 5 hours. Have tried everything except replacing SIM.
I have the exact same problem happening now and I have Verizon service. iPhone won’t let me place calls texts or connect to the Internet. I have tried the reset, reboot and neither have worked so far. I also tried airplane mode with nothing.
I am facing the same issue. Bought my phone a month back here in dubai, but in last couple of days this problem of ‘Searching’ for Network has started. Today I was surfing and suddenly the phone started searching for cellular network. And it just doesn’t do anything. Its been more than 5 hours now and did restart, sim removing and replacing, hard reset etc. Nothing seems to work.
I had the exact same problem w/ AT&T. The phone worked fine for a month or so, and then this problem occurred.
I called AT&T and they tried doing a “soft reset” with the signal, while I shut my phone off, which didn’t cure anything.
As stated, because I was still in the 90 day period, I was able to go into an Apple store and swap the phone out. Even popped the same SIM card into the new phone and it works, which reconfirms its a phone problem and not a service problem. I’m hoping because of the rushed production, that this was only a problem with that batch of phones and that this new one won’t experience the same issues.
i am in Austraila and have only had my iphone 5 for two months and after turning my iphone onto airplane settings for a recent flight, the phone won’t connect and is continuly in searching mode. what a pain
This certainly appears to me as an Iphone5 Hardware problem (not software). The iphone5 has two devices (chips) for cellular connection, one for non-LTE and one dedicated for LTE. I suspect tht there is a timing problem where the selection of the two cellular radio devices each think they are not selected – so none get selected. We all may be heading for a class-action suit against Apple.
Actually it’s one chip: the Qualcomm MDM9615M (http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPhone+5+Teardown/10525/3)
The problem appears to me to be that the phone can’t read any SIM card anymore.
Brian, it’s not that the phone can’t read it anymore, it’s that the phone stops reading it, reinitializes it and reads it for a little bit, and then stops again – an endless loop.
I shouldn’t have messed with the new phone the store gave me (but I did), I turned off cellular data and then back on. While I did not experience the same SIM card issue (as above), the phone did struggle finding any LTE service, and wasn’t operating too well on 4G, despite having almost full bars.
If anyone else is experiencing the problem above, one thing I did not try, which in some ways I wish I still had the problematic phone, was to turn off the Cell Network Search and then reset (or turn off/on) the phone. The Cell Network Search can be found here:
Settings -> Privacy -> Location Services -> System Services (at the bottom)
_______________
The reason I’d like to try that is to see if there is a problem with the modem when searching for new cell towers, since the device seems to work, just not for long (only a couple minutes for me) before losing signal (voice/data). I remember that I had also tried turning off LTE, which didn’t seem to affect anything, so I don’t the problem was with that per say.
I am having the exact same issue with my first run iPhone 5, you describe what is happening to me exactly and when i check to verify it with the ICCID line trick sure enough its the same results. the only problem for me is that I live on Maui and we do not have an Apple store here 🙁 luckely I will be in Portland next week but withhow much i rely on my phone for work this is becoming a major hassel.
Just to let you no, same problem in the UK. Just get a message saying “no service”. Which could just as well apply to Apples customer relations team, who have been appalling. I’m trying to reject the phone and get a refund but they just keeping sending new phones to me to see if they work; I’m about to get my third.
No more Apple products for me if this is their idea of customer service!!
KattaK / S Whitehouse and everyone else,
Please read my comment above and turn off “Cell Network Search” and report back.
Not saying it will solve the problem, just trying to isolate the cause. We realize it happens regardless if LTE is enabled.
vol7ron and everyone else,
i have an update for you guys now that I have had the chance to talk with a genius at the apple store. Basically it was a waste of time for me. The genius i talked with, Chad, was very nice but in the end I am still having the same issue today. He talked to me about my phone and basically was saying that it is the phones inability to read the sim card either dude to a sim card tray issue or a bad sim card. so he inspected the tray and agreed it looked fine, then he had me reset my network settings under Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network settings. he said this would reboot the antenna software. he went on to say that should you still have the problem to go into an AT&T store and ask for a new simcard because the issue might be there. So I will go into a store today, hopefully it wont cost me anything or else!
Also vol7ron i have turned off the “Cell Network Search” just now and will let you know if that changes anything before i try a new simcard.
thanks all for your help and diligence in this issue.
aloha
KattaK, thank you!
As I may have mentioned in my first post, I am using the same SIM card in the new phone that they issued me and I haven’t had the same problem (yet). Mind you, these are the phones they keep behind the counter for replacement in case of malfunction.
I’ve read that others have tried to pullout and then put back in the same SIM card, to make sure it was seated okay. I am really doubtful it’s a problem with the SIM card itself and think it has to do with the tray, or the controller/modem.
As for resetting the Network Settings, I did not try that and didn’t really want to mess with it. Re-inputting passwords is not my idea of fun; though, a friend of mine had problems connecting devices via Bluetooth and the Genius suggested they reset the Network Settings, which worked. So maybe these behind the scenes network settings are doing more than meets the eye.
I too had the same problem with the iphone 5 on the Verizon network. My phone worked for a couple of months just fine. One day while sitting on a charger doing nothing, it went into “searching” mode and would not come out. I did the network reset and even popped the SIM chip out and back in. When that did not work Verizon tech support had me get into the Itunes account and do a wipe and restore of the phone. It downloaded the software just fine, extracted it, did the software restore, did a firmware restore and then took a -1 error. Basically this is a hardware problem. I wound up at the Apple Store and they said the phone was toast. They did pop the old SIM chip out of the old phone and pop it into the new phone. So the SIM chip was OK, the problem had to be with the firmware/chipset.
Really simple, I had the same exact problem as everyone else. Iphone 5 on verizon kept saying “searching…” after about 3 hours of wasting time with customer support and doing all the trouble shooting, I took it into my local verizon store, replaced the sim card, and it’s as good as new.
So after finally convincing the genius that i need a new phone, and getting the new phone, the problem is now resolved. no more searching and no more sim card reading issues. I did replace the sim card before getting a new phone and that DID NOT help the issue, infact it seemed to be a little worse. Now one thing i did not mention to the genius was i did do a factory un-lock on the phone to make it more usable internationally. Did anyone else who is having the same issue also factory un-lock their phone?
Mine was not unlocked.
I purchased my iPhone 5 from an AT&T store in the states about two weeks ago. The phone worked fine for two days. I had my phone factory unlocked because I am stationed in Germany. Once I got back to Germany, I put my German sim card in the phone, made a 20 min phone and sent a few text messages. Then my phone lost signal and it was in the “No Network – Searching” loop. I wiped and restored my phone…after two days I was finally able to pull a signal. The phone worked great for about a week until my battery died Saturday night. When I turned my phone back on….no signal. I have since wiped and restored my phone atleast 30 times. I broke down and bought a new sim card yesterday. My phone immediately pulled a signal and within 10 min began the “No Network – Searching” loop. Nothing I do has worked! Trying to replace my phone isn’t going to be easy since I am in Germany.
Any suggestions would be extemely helpful!
Mine is doing the exact same thing. I tried resetting, removing and reseating the SIM card, restoring from scratch, and updating and it’s still messed up. It’s definitely a hardware issue.
Wow, guys welcome to the searching loop club. I’m actually stuck with the same exact problem and I noticed based on my research that its a problem usually with the AT&T phones. Only AT&T uses the model A1428. My sister sent over this phone to me from the states because I live in S. Korea now and here I can only get 3G no LTE but if I got the model A1429 then I could have used LTE. Anyways I got unlocked and it worked like a champ until I changed my phone number. After I changed the number it worked for about 4 hours and it jumped into the searching and then no service loop. On lunch I wanna go to the apple service center and show them what I found on this site about the phone not showing the the ICCID number when searching. Hopefully they will replace my phone because if they do they will give me the model that I can use LTE.
Hello all,
I am having the same issue! I am on Verizon, so there goes the AT&T theory. My phone was working beautifully for about a month or two, when two days ago, it started searching. Vol7Ron, I tried that little trick of turning off “Cell Network Search.” It did nothing.
The problem has worsened today, as now, in addition to the search loop, my phone can no longer do any activities involving data. That’s right: web, email, you name it. It says “Could not activate cellular data network: service option not supported.” But about 6 hours ago, it was doing those things just fine. Whaaaat?
I have an appointment at the genius bar tonight. I plan to show them my ICCD (which disappears when it is searching). I’m hoping they’ll replace the phone.
Thanks for trying. I didn’t think it’d work, but wanted to know for sure. Brian should update the post with everything we’ve tried
You are probably right 🙂
Same problem, different circumstances. Hope to help pinpointing the problem and maybe find a solution.
I have the A1429 from the apple store in Holland. Used it successfully with Dutch, Jordanian and Lebanese sims. Unlocked phone, so no hacks applied.
– searching problem occurred while hooked to iTunes and battery down to 1%. Lebanese sim.
– sim-swap, on-off, network-reset, soft reset etc no results.
– problem persists with all sims.
– funny thing is that even after a soft reset with no sim installed, it goes into searching mode. Does not prompt me to insert a sim.
– all the while, wifi is still working.
Seems to point to either a tray or a radio problem, right?
Final test before entering despair mode is a complete iTunes-wipe. Doubtful if that will solve the problem, but will do that anyway.
I had the same problem with the searching message and i tried to backup my phone and restore it. however, it fails every time i try to restore it and the result is that i have a phone which i am not able to restore and is currently not working at all as the software was erased. i was told that this is a hardware problem, is that possible?
Same issue… Took it to best buy and nothing worked and it was determined to be a hardware issue. Getting a new (refurbished) replacement iphone 5.
In my case (see above) the problem was solved (with the help of an apple tech guy on the phone) by resetting the phone from within iTunes. Resetting from the settings tab on the iPhone did *not* do the trick.
After resetting from iTunes it downloaded the newest system software, installed it.
I chose to configure it as a new iPhone (so not restoring it from the local backup). Only after the initial setup, upon connecting to iTunes did I restored the backup when prompted.
Ever since (couple of days ago) the searching issue is gone.
Hope this helps someone.
Good thing is eventually you will restore your data, so no apps or their data and settings get lost.
6.1 made mine worse. I’ve tried everything at least twice, too.
Same exact problem after I upgraded the software today. Apple have dropped the ball – again! Angy!
Hey
I live in South Africa and have had exactly the same issue. Backing up the phone now to try a full reset and restore.
Wish we could get some feedback from apple.
The only feedback from apple is them saying it is a software issue and to try to do a full erase and restore. However this will not fix the issue in most cases as in my case. The only thing that will gaurentee a fix is to replace the phone, however I had to ask the genius helping me to please replace the phone as they still aren’t admitting it is a hardware issue. It took me 3 times going to the apple store to convince them to give me a new phone. I hope apple admits there is a hardware issue with some phones.
Same issue wth an iPhone 4S from Virgin Mobile in Australia. It is under contract, so they require me to send off my phone for “repair” and then wait for it to return. They have said I can go to the Virgin store for a loaner phone which I am sure will be a crappy old phone. Not impressed.
Hey guys, I read through the thread and tried everything except to restore and nothing worked
Then I got it to work buy turning it on to airplane mode > forced it off with home and power button > turn it back on after 5 secs > turn off airplane mode and it found Rogers right away
Hey All,
From Australia. Same issue went out of service on a boat since returning iPhone5 has been on searching…
Only had the phone for 2months.
I live on an island with no apple or any phone store ergh….going to be a long process to get fixed! Not impressed.
Tried everything as mentioned above still saying searching……….
Same problem with iphone 5 here. Tried all the above suggestions except doing a complete restore from iTunes – nothing has worked. The phone gets the wireless signal, but won’t update or connect to the Internet. Is this a SIM card issue or should I try to erase and restore? Any latest updates on what Apple is doing about the issue? Probably headed to my local Verizon store today…
We might have to go legal with these peple because I am also experiencing the same problem on my iphone 5
I live in the USA with Sprint service. Usually my phone goes into the searching loop with about 4-5 bars of service. Apple told me to restore it in iTunes, and I tried it. My family has other iPhone 5s and iPhone 4Ss and they all work perfectly on Sprint. The restore did not work. This is my third replacement, due to various replacements, and the rude Apple Store nearby refused to be of any convenience. I am very unhappy with Apple’s service and this is the first time I have ever been let down by them. BTW my iPhone is A1429.
Thanks
I’ll join in. They replaced my phone, but not my $30 bodyguardz protectors. Nor was i compensated for days spent trying to fix something i thought i had done, nor hours spent explaining the problem to three different Apple employees.
So yes, I would jump on a suit.
I would b sign my name to a suit. I have had to drive and hour one way three times to an apple store and have spent hours on the phone with verizon and my iPhone. I have been issued a new phone and a new SIM card for the new phone but after a few hours my phone is searching for service again. I’m at my wits end here.
I am experiencing the same issue. Got a new SIM. Did not work. Got a new phone. Did not work. I am so frustrated. I live in the US with a Verizon phone.
Hi there, I had exactly the same issue with my Iphone a couple of times already. I got it with a KPN contract in the Nederlands, they do not seem to have a clue about it, they replaced the SIM and made me come to the store for a whole while, been without a phone for 11 days. It seemed that the phone did not recognised the SIM card, no promts to add the pin came up. At the end I loggin apple on my IPhone conected by Wifi and try to call them and the npromt came up, and I could add the pin. That seemd to have stopped the loop for now anyway. I will have to go to Apple store to have it had a look at, dont want it to happen again.
Same problem for me.
I can’t get the issue to make any sense. I send my iphone 5 to service. They gave me a brand new iphone 5 since they couldn’t fix it. My new phone did the exact same thing only 9 hours after i got it. I can’t figure out the specific problem. I have borrowed an iphone 4 which has no problem with the same sim card i have always used. I have search the web so much and no one seems to know what the heck is going on. It is so frustrating! I know that if I send my phone in to service again – same thing will happen again if I get a new one. :/
Doesn’t the iPhone 4 take a different size SIM than the 5?
Yes. Iphone 4 is compatible with micro sim and iphone 5 use nano sim. I use an adapter (nano to micro)so it fits with the iphone 4.
Hi another UK user with the same issue
Got my iphone 5 on launch as an O2 upgrade after having a faultless iphone 4 for 2 and a bit years,
3 weeks ago my 5 would hardly connect to the charger cable, so they swapped it out for a refurb one, and the searching issue has been ongoing for a couple of weeks now but it’s reached the stage where I’ve had no signal for 26 hours now !!!!
I have an apple store appointment in 2 days time as its 140 miles round trip to my nearest store (again) but I’m at my wits end with this situation and basically having no phone at all now
iPhone5 32GB AT&T 6.1 Jailbroken
Phone has been stuck in searching.
Removed Sim and still phone was stuck in searching. Even rebooted with no sim and still searching. Replaced sim with another sim still nothing. Tried Airplane trick nothing
Tried location services nothing.
No ICCID displayed in settings
Restored to 6.1.4 resolved my issue ….. for now
But my service bar is only reaching 1 bar max.
iPhone5 16GB AT&T, A1428, 6.1 Jailbroken
a dead battery，after reboot my phone, it has been stuck in searching.
1.activated Airplane mode and deactivated
2.turned off the phone and booted it back up, with no success
3.did a Network Reset (Settings > General > Reset > Network Reset), but that did nothing other than delete all my wifi network passwords.
4.did a hard reset by holding in the sleep and home buttons for a while
5.popped out the SIM card with a paperclip (right side of phone) and pushed it back in
6.swapped the SIM card
all of these like water off a duck’s back
This morning, I just fixed my cell phone.
I wanted to restore to IOS6.1.3 this morning to fixed the Phone has been stuck in searching.
Connect the computer, open iTunes and click on restore, white Apple, connecting iTunes logo appears on the phone screen, the computer indicates that the firmware is not suitable for my device…
After that,cell phone reset,search for signal operators appeared
I am a lucky men!Now my phone is still ios6.1 and Jailbroken.