AFAIK, most, if not all iPads, come unlocked.

Using any SIM is straight forward. Cut it up, stick it in, set the APN, and you're done.

Of course, there are a few exceptions.
Last I heard, AT&T was actively blocking iPads from connecting to their network when not using an iPad specific data plan. Not sure about the validity of this claim, but it might be worth checking.

Hi all you Simsters,
Here in Australia I use our "National" carrier Telstra due to it's extensive coverage for my iPhone 4.
When we bought our iPad last year we found the most inexpensive option for 3G was with VodaFone and got one of their micro-sims on a "prepaid" basis. Trouble was remembering to "top it up" before the expiry to conserve the unused (initial 1Gb) data allowance... As it wasn't in daily "outdoor use" we're without data again, and last time we looked, it's become much more expensive to recharge, with the minimum cost rising from $9.95 to $49.95!
So I've done a little test earlier today and taken my iPhone 4 Telstra microsim and popped it into the iPad: no problemo! data works fine, so basically it would follow that any data plan enabled microsim should provide "Wireless 3G" freedom.
Now I see that a certain retailer is offering a VodaFone "dongle" for $99 ("half price") with 15Gb of included download and 365 day expiry. Me thinks that this ought to work in my favour, if the "dongle" sim is not a micro I'll get a "cutter" off eBay (~$20 shipped w/- adaptors to resize up to "sim") and simply insert modifed VF sim into iPad and have shiploads of data for the next year for peanuts.
I'll return with a report on the outcome of the "experiment"

I hope my query is correctly posted here. I am about to visit Florida in March with my UK iPad. Other posts in this forum show that I can get a microSIM from AT&T for $15 (or free if I smile nicely) and a data package of 2Gb for $25. However I am worried that a US iPad may have a different OS version and therefore my "settings" page will not have the registration form that the US version uses to activate and pay AT&T SIM on-line. In the UK we can use several providers. Does AT&T still have a monoply on the US iPad or are there other providers I can approach? If it is a monoply this might be enforced by differences in the US iPad perhaps? Thoughts / reassurance would be welcome.

Originally Posted by bundat

AFAIK, most, if not all iPads, come unlocked.

Using any SIM is straight forward. Cut it up, stick it in, set the APN, and you're done.

Of course, there are a few exceptions.
Last I heard, AT&T was actively blocking iPads from connecting to their network when not using an iPad specific data plan. Not sure about the validity of this claim, but it might be worth checking.

I can confirm this. I swapped sims and set my APN to "phone". It worked fine, but that night I got an email from AT&T saying that if I continued to use my iphone sim card in my ipad they would shut my data off.

Originally Posted by snakattak

Hi all you Simsters,
Here in Australia I use our "National" carrier Telstra due to it's extensive coverage for my iPhone 4.
When we bought our iPad last year we found the most inexpensive option for 3G was with VodaFone and got one of their micro-sims on a "prepaid" basis. Trouble was remembering to "top it up" before the expiry to conserve the unused (initial 1Gb) data allowance... As it wasn't in daily "outdoor use" we're without data again, and last time we looked, it's become much more expensive to recharge, with the minimum cost rising from $9.95 to $49.95!
So I've done a little test earlier today and taken my iPhone 4 Telstra microsim and popped it into the iPad: no problemo! data works fine, so basically it would follow that any data plan enabled microsim should provide "Wireless 3G" freedom.
Now I see that a certain retailer is offering a VodaFone "dongle" for $99 ("half price") with 15Gb of included download and 365 day expiry. Me thinks that this ought to work in my favour, if the "dongle" sim is not a micro I'll get a "cutter" off eBay (~$20 shipped w/- adaptors to resize up to "sim") and simply insert modifed VF sim into iPad and have shiploads of data for the next year for peanuts.
I'll return with a report on the outcome of the "experiment"

hey mate, would love to hear how this goes. i'm with vodafone as well, the 'net on the sim works on my n95 over 3g so i'm assuming if i cut it up using something like u were talking about off ebay, that would work? obviously i would need to upgrade to a 3G ipad but that goes without saying lol.