Friday, December 31, 2010

SIM Card Registration Failed Solution

Few days ago I sent a message on twitter "Anyone know the reason for Nokia's SIM Card Registration Failed problem?". Got quite a few solutions from my friends . It is the most common problem with Nokia mobile phones. Restarting the phone few times or removing SIM and cleaning the contacts also fixes the problem. Try some of the solutions that worked for me.

Solution 1: Blocked SIM or Faulty SIM

In countries like India, you need to register your SIM card. The cell phone company blocks the SIM if they don't receive the application within few weeks of activating the phone. Please check if this is case.

Take out the SIM and test it with a different phone, if the phone fails to read the SIM, get the SIM replaced. Few days ago this worked for a friend with a brand new Nokia handset here in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Solution 2: Clean SIM Contact Pins

Take out the battery and SIM card. Use a clean eraser to wipe the gold contacts of the phone and on back the SIM card. Replace the SIM and make sure its firmly held in place. Few phones tend to start to working when you bang them on your palm a few times due to this reason. Tighten the tiny screws on the back panel of the phone near the SIM card if they are loose.

Solution 3: Phone Software/Hardware Issues

Despite all your efforts, the phone refuses to work then try to the phone repaired or replaced. Some users found that the cellphone firmware upgrade tends to fix this issue. I got a Nokia phone firmware upgraded, it fixed the problem for few months. But the phone started to have the problem again.

Unfortunately there seems to be no sure fix for this problem. Most cell phone service centers including Nokia Authorized shops often fails fix this annoyance. They even charge you service fee just for checking the phone :( .

I would love to hear your experiences, have you had this problem? Did you manage to fix it. Thank you ajuonline, BasilKurian, geohacker for your suggestions.

53 comments:

  1. After working for about a year troubleshooting mobile phones, usually Solution 1 and 3 are the most helpful - not necessarily an upgrade to the firmware, but at least a re-install of it.

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  2. Thanks for sharing what works for you Kim!

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  3. hi i'm here in jordan i have a roaming sim card and it says that sim card registration failed..what will do?

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  4. @Anonymous, my guess is that your cellphone operator doesn't have work in Jordan ?

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  5. mine worked when i inserted a sim card (#2) from a different network than what i am using. turned it off, removed #2 then inserted MY sim card (#1). it lasts while you don't turn off your phone. mine unfortunately turned itself off b/c of dead batt. My phone is nokia e71.

    Another one i tried is turning my phone on w/o a sim card. It's status became offline. then i turned it off. Inserted #1 sim and turned it on again. A dialog box showed, "continue using phone in offline mode?" wait for like, 15 mins before you answer then answer NO. with offline mode, the phone won't be able to send that the phone is blacklisted or reported stolen or it's registered to a specific sim network.

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  6. Im here i Cape Breton Island NS Canada i got the same problem with the 2 I have ...Im going to dump them and go to the super store and buy a 30 dolla phone ....I had enough ...grrrr heheheh

    all is kewl though cool
    from ladyrock

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  7. Thank you Acey and Ladyrock for sharing your comments.

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  8. Hello, I bought a dual sim phone in China before Christmas, when I put in the sim cards I was told that the cards had failed to register. My brother in-law got an identical phone and his works perfectly. Can anyone explain this? Thanks.

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  9. Hi after looking on my service providers website found no info...?
    tried a different phone still came up as sim card registration failed.
    Then found your website and tried solution 2.
    and yes it was a solution .
    no more error message
    thanks heaps

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    Replies
    1. why my nokia c3-00 turning off when i inserted a different sim card???please help me....

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  10. 4Th Solution : Change ur Battery ;) , tried b4 and worked , u ll never regret.

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  11. Islam I don't think faulty battery causes this issue.

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  12. Dear I am form Pakistan and have the same problem of sim card registration failed with my secondhand nokia x3-02. I checked it with my own sim but it did not work. But when i put my sim in any other hand set it works. When i put Zong sim in the nokia X3-02 fone it works in there but other sim doesnt work in it. I want to know the reason. why is it making this problem. People say that my fone is blocked by the company. But if this was the case than i would have found imei result as stolen. Please tell me the solution I will be very thankful to you. My email Address is kundikhan.kundikhan@gmail.com

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  13. @Muhammad Daud Kundi, Interesting problem, does SIM cards from other phone company work in your Nokia?

    If the solutions listed in the blog does not work for you. Take your phone to a good nokia phone repair guy.

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  14. i think solution will be apt for the problem i am facing!

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  15. Glad it works for you @Anonymous

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  16. Just had it happen to me.
    Solved by removing battery, leaving for a few minutes, put battery back in. All ok.
    This is the same fix for the Blackberry mobiles that my workplace uses.

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  17. What I did to is to use another phone for my current SIM card.
    I wouldn't want to replace my sim because its got a lot of contacts already in it and the hassle of replacing it is too much burden. :(
    Try inserting the SIM to another phone. It did the trick for me.

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  18. im in usa but it doesn't work

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  19. don't worry Europe doesn't work either

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  20. Hello, i am facing the same problem, i used two different sims on my nokia X2-01 and it shows sim card registration failed on both sims sometimes and works fine otherwise. Is there any permanent solution for this? Or i am thinking to throw away this phone.

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  21. Top solution: Don't buy a nokia haha, this happened to me all the time but I have an iphone 4s now
    Just curious, what phone do you guys have that this happens to (the actual model e.g C3,E5 etc)?

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  22. After 3 yrs my Nokia is showing SIM card registration failed. I've dropped it thousands of times but it has been ok til now. :(

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  23. I'm in South Africa and I have two Nokia's - nokia e72 and nokia e5 and it does it two both with different sims in. I have to turn phone off and turn back on and they'll work for a few days fine then do it again. I have done the sim swop thing and it hasn't helped. I am going to try your solution 2 and see if that works.

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  24. cleaning the sim really works...

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  25. I also experienced this one sometimes. I tried solution number 2 and it works. Thanks buddy for sharing!

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  26. my sim had a problem yesterday and I thought I have no choice but to buy a new one~ I searched for solutions on the net, tried the solution no. 2 and it worked!!! thank you so much for sharing those tips!

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  27. PLEASE READ THE WHOLE THING IF EVERYTHING U TRIED FAILS THIS POST MAY HELP YOU...
    IT HELPED MEE A LOT..!

    ''WHAT I FELT LIKE'':-
    For almost a week my nokia C3 was irritating me like hell. At one point i was almost going to keep banging it with a hammer.

    ''PROBLEMS FACED'':-
    It used to get hanged A LOT!
    it kept saying SIM CARD REGISTRATION FAILED..
    I WAS ALMOST REBOOTING IT AROUND ''25-30 TIMES A DAY!!!''

    ''WHAT I TRIED DOING'':-
    I tried almost everything a human could think of:
    1>i tried restoring the factory settings twice,
    2>i tried deleting some apps (although a had quite a few of them)
    3>I tried clearing some memory(even though i had a 4GB SD card) i tried formatting the Memory card.
    4>I tried using an eraser to rub almost every part of the phone that i could.
    5>I even tried reinstalling the phone software, bt each time i tried that it got interrupted and i had to reboot the phone and then continue the installation. Bt unfortunately it never got reinstalled properly!

    ''WHAT ACTUALLY DID THE THING!'':-
    I JUST STUFFED THE PLACE WHERE THE BATTERY IS INSERTED!
    .
    .
    ATLAST I dont know what i thought or how this came to my mind or what or...or... The questions r innumerable as-to how i got this idea:

    I TOOK A SMALL REGULAR PIECE OF PAPER- AROUND THRICE (or twice)THE LENGTH of my battery BT THE SAME WIDTH AS THE BATTERY.
    FOLDED IT 2 OR 3 TIMES AND MADE IT EXACTLY THE SIZE OF MY BATTERY. THEN I KEPT THAT PAPER BELOW MY BATTERY!
    .
    .
    (I.E. I JUST STUFFED THE PLACE WHERE THE BATTERY IS INSERTED!)
    and HOLA my Phone is new again and it works just perfectly without ANY problems!

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  28. Second suggestion worked : I just pulled out battery and fitted SIM properly and SIM started functioning
    gr8!!!

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  29. Sim card is working but it is not work in my nokia and sim card registration failed

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  30. Problem:
    SIM Card Registration Failed

    Causes:
    1. It might be your SIM card not open for long months. (check solution 1. & 3)
    2. If your SIM Card is NEW, It might be your SIM card factory defect. (check solution 2.)

    Solutions:
    1. It might be your SIM card expired.
    2. Go to the nearest or visit (NETWORK SERVICE PROVIDER/NETWORK BUSINESS CENTER).
    3. You need to change your SIM card into NEW SIM card.

    by: Xphinx

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  31. Thanks 4 all advise you are metioned

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  32. Hey i am Kayondo Baker in Uganda,
    that solution of using a piece of paper i have helped too much thanks

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  33. Use a piece of paper round it twice or thrice make sure that it exacly fits to size of battery en put it below your phone after your phone will be brand newed thanks.

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    Replies
    1. That's a good hack. I used to do that with loose battery on my old nomad music player. :)

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  34. I passed through the sim card registration and have my sim actiated but when i try verifying my number in applications like whatsapp and true caller they say that "the number is not valid in india" ! Any help would me appreciated .

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  35. Hi I have this problem with my Nokia N97 can anyone
    Help?

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  36. just gotta wait now for my phone to switch off hopefully it don't but I tried option 2 keep u posted

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  37. i tried this solution, i got some problems to my n 6300

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  38. I am facing same problem from last one month with my new Nokia Aasha 311 mobile and its very irritating to switch off and switch on again and again. Was looking for some solution for this problem thanks in advance I hope it will fixed now!!

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  39. Dear I am form Pakistan and have the same problem of sim card registration failed my Nokia 2700. first my cell pic the ufone sim but after some days also block this network sim i do every thing with my cell tell my problem. actually my handset many days switch off.

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  40. I also have a nokia 5230.. Sim works for some time, random time, then i lose my connection and says sim failed to register, i have to get the sim to an older phone to register and get it back on 5230 to work, but does it all the time, is there any fix? Because it makes my nokia "useless" .. calls end randomly because sim fails to regist, useless for me to use it but i really like the phone, if someone found a fix i would like to know, paper hack didn't work :s

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  41. Any fix for 5230 sim registration fail? i can't fix it with the "paper hack" on battery :c It's just sad :c i have to switch sim all the time to old phone and get it to nokia again..

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  42. hello any body i have x302.5 handset only accept mobilink sim another sim not work in my phone i am from pakistan whats solution for it help me

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  43. hey i m fr0m pakistan..actualy i hv a nokia phone nd thers is n0 problm in my phone bcoz when i put other sims in it ...it was pr0prly w0rkng.....but the prblm is that sim card regstraxn fail occure in my phone while i m using my zong sim for 2 years nd dont want to change it ..plzz give me the s0luxn....

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  44. great, very many thanks:)

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  45. Hi All, M also using E71 and currently have 4yrs.
    I also suffered the same problem of insert a sim card and restarting the phone works but it was very annoying. I have dropped the phone countless times and few minutes ago, I fell on stairs and it banged the floor with the screen.

    I got the message registration failed...after several restards it failed and I just lifted small three delicate pins that read the Sim card and m back on business...

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  46. Nokia C3, the past 3 weeks its been saying sim card registration failed, had to buy the cheap phones now but i have not given up...am gonna try these solutions now

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  47. Network is not coming in uninor.i hv bought a new sim of uninor..n network is not coming to contact customer care..n get it activated ...wat to do?

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  48. Problem solved - I have experienced all of the problems listed by you all. I cleaned the contacts of phone and SIM card and still failed. Then I was suspicious about the fit of the SIM card and the battery, so I used some some soft paper like tissue paper or even toilet paper. Tear of a bit and fold it over and over until you get right shape and thickness and close the SIM Card holder. The I did the same of the battery with the paper under the battery, then replaced the back cover with a good amount of pressure and it booted it self up whilst I was replacing the back cover. The lesson is that the Sim Card holder and/or the back of the phone cover may not be applying enough pressure. Solved.

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  49. Hi from Canada, the paper stuffing solution worked for me just when I thought my phone was broken. Many thanks!

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