APN greyed out

[Amnotnick]

Hi, just got a K-touch phone from aliexpress that runs Android 8.1 The APN settings are greyed out and cannot be edited. After messing around for several hours I got the adb method to open up a new APN dialog......also greyed out. From everything I've read it seems the real problem is with the sim card. It comes with 3 APN , one kodoo and two telus but of course none PM. Does anyone have a fix or know if PM can issue new sim cards with the proper APN?

[computergeek541]

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@Amnotnick wrote:

No, I can not. It apparently has to do with android 8 and higher.

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Too my knowledge, this nonsense started with Android 8.1, but it was not universal to all devices. Many running 8.1 still allowed the APN settings to either be edited or new ones to be added. 

[Amnotnick]

computergeek541 wrote:

"Once again, sim cards do not come with APN settings"

If the data is not on the sim how come it changes when I change sim ? This issue is all over the net with various phone brands. My phone is unlocked. (as far as carrier is concerned)

[Amnotnick]

No, I can not. It apparently has to do with android 8 and higher.

[gpixel]

@Amnotnick can you edit the settings when you insert your virgin simcard? if you can you may not even need the freedom sim

[computergeek541]

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@Amnotnick wrote:

It definitely is a PM sim card problem since the sim card comes with 3 incorrect APN! Also since a Freedom mobile card supposedly allows editing then it's clearly a sim card issue. When I put in my old Virgin sim I get a different set of APN. I managed to get the new APN dialog to pop up using abd but it poped up greyed. 

From what I read PM should be able to push an APN setting. 

Also, I had the sim in a finow android 7 phone which allowed me to add APN and it worked fine. And that confuses the issue as to where the APN data is stored. I wonder if there is a way to push a new APN with adb. I guess I'll try the Freedom card....stay tuned!

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Once again, sim cards do not come with APN settings. It is up to the device manufactuer to properly program them. These settings are saved on the phone. This issue isn't specific to Public Mobile either.

While it is true that the settings aren't configurable on phones with this issue when a Public Mobile sim card is inserted, this issue also happens with some other carriers' sim cards as well. It's a device software issue. If you take your same Public Mobile sim card and insert it into a phone that doesn't disallow the changing of APN setttings, this wouldn't be an issue.

As for the settings not being already on the phone, that's 100% on the device maker.

On some devices with this identical issue, the problem was solved after the manufactuer released a software update.

[Amnotnick]

It definitely is a PM sim card problem since the sim card comes with 3 incorrect APN! Also since a Freedom mobile card supposedly allows editing then it's clearly a sim card issue. When I put in my old Virgin sim I get a different set of APN. I managed to get the new APN dialog to pop up using abd but it poped up greyed. 

From what I read PM should be able to push an APN setting. 

Also, I had the sim in a finow android 7 phone which allowed me to add APN and it worked fine. And that confuses the issue as to where the APN data is stored. I wonder if there is a way to push a new APN with adb. I guess I'll try the Freedom card....stay tuned!

[computergeek541]

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@Amnotnick wrote:

Hi, just got a K-touch phone from aliexpress that runs Android 8.1 The APN settings are greyed out and cannot be edited. After messing around for several hours I got the adb method to open up a new APN dialog......also greyed out. From everything I've read it seems the real problem is with the sim card. It comes with 3 APN , one kodoo and two telus but of course none PM. Does anyone have a fix or know if PM can issue new sim cards with the proper APN?

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It's pretty common for APN settings not be editable on many Android-based devices. I know that you can't edit the existing ones, but does it allow you to add a new one?  On my device, I can only add, but not edit. The Freedom Mobile sim card suggestion is a good one for situations in which you can't add a new APN either.

A new Public Mobile sim card won't do anything. APN settings are not saved on the sim card. While it is true that the settings aren't changable on some Android device when using a Public Mobile sim card, this is actually a software issue of the device maker.  There are many devices that allow these settings to be changed (although changes often aren't needed).

[Jb456 · Accepted solution]

Try a freedom mobile sim card if you know anyone that has one to edit the APN settings or locate a kiosk that deals with Freedom to see if they would let you borrow a sim for a few minutes to edit the APN.

A roam mobility sim card may work as well.

If you're in Mississauga area Canadian Cell Supplies offers pickup. They also ship free in Canada. A freedom sim is currently $3.33 plus tax.

https://canadiancellsupplies.com/collections/sim-cards

Can't say this will work for you however many other types of phones (from those types of sites) with greyed out APN was the solution for them. 

Here are APN settings if you get a sim.

First one is from my phone.

 

If they don't work for you try these

 

Best of luck and keep us posted.