Follow these steps to set up your new Cellular Data account:
1. Tap Settings > Cellular Data > View Account
2. The Cellular Data Account management window loads. Enter information or select an option in the following sections and tap Next when you are finished
– User Information: Enter your first and last name and your phone number.
– Login Information: Enter an email address and a password. This creates an AT&T account, allowing you to log in to the account later to make changes or view your usage statistics.
– Recurring Domestic Plan Options: This allows you to choose the type of plan you want to use.
– Payment & Billing Information: Complete this section with the billing information you’d like to use to pay for your Cellular Data account.
3. The Terms of Service agreement loads. Take a minute to read this agreement. Tap Agree to continue.
4. The Payment Summary loads. This shows you a summary of the account and plan you have selected (Note: You can also add an International data plan on this screen by tapping Add International Data, or you can access your account later to manage your plan options. If you need to use your iPad internationally, you must sign up for the international data plan while in the United States.)
5. Tap Submit to complete the creation of your Cellular Data account. The Congratulations screen loads. This lets you know that your account has been created, and that AT&T is activating your iPad. Tap OK to finish and return to the Settings screen of your iPad Wi-Fi + 3G.
Your iPad will notify you when your Cellular Data connection has been activated.
Apple offers more info, with screenshots, here.
If you already have a login/account from having an iPhone, can/should you use it? I would assume so, but surprised it wasn’t mentioned.
Oops, looks like this is a new, separate acct, no matter what!
@LeeSweet – Thank you, Mr. Painfully Obvious.
Well, I was surprised at first reading you couldn’t use your normal ATT acct, but then it says ‘one will be created’ no matter what. Guess it works (same email) for multiple iPads?
Does anyone know if you can create your account if your not on a WiFi network? (i.e. if you’re in the car and need to surf)
It would be nice to sign from anywhere, anytime.
Watch out for RECURRING charges each month if you don’t need the 3G service!
You don’t need any special connection to sign up, is what we all assume. Just like you can call 911 on a phone that’s not ‘on’, you can use 3G to activate your data account for use.
Sigh. Mine is in Hong Kong waiting for FedEx to move it to the next stage of the journey to my eager house…
Appel?
Buy a wifi-only version and check out Sprint or Verizon’s MyFi or Sprint’s Overdrive mobile hotspots.
Screw the terrible AT&T;3G data network
I not sure how many iPad buyers will be affected overall, but everyone in my town, Bridgehampton, NY, certainly will. You see, we don’t get our mail delivered at home. We all have PO boxes, and get our mail, including our credit card bills delivered to our boxes.
When I tried to activate my shiny new iPad today, the ATT screen kept rejecting my credit card info, telling me to choose a card with a physical street address. The irony? My iPad was delivered to my street address by Fedex, and all my ATT charges for my iPhone have been going to my po box without issue for years.
When I called customer service and asked them to solve the issue, no one, including the supervisor on duty could figure out what to do. I recorded the call, and told I was doing so, and they said they understood my frustration and would alert upper management. I mentioned that the fedex driver told me that he had delivered a lot of 3G ipads to this area today, so I know I am not alone.
I told them I’d be interested in seeing how quickly they could address the issue (no pun intended).
Who is this “Appel” you speak of?
We spend over $220 per month on our two iPhones and two other normal phones.
This is getting ridiculous
There needs to be a family plan for cell phone internet access.
Oh and tethering too.
https://www.wireless.att.com/cell-phone-service/checkout/cannotBePOBox.jsp
Question for everyone and this is not Apple’s fault: How are you all finding the service on your 3g? Incredibly slow down here in the West Palm Beach,Fl area. No difference noticed compared to our iPhones . Disappointed.
@LeeG1
If mail is addressed to you at your residential address does the local PO return it to sender or automatically divert it to your PO Box?
If they divert it to the PO Box then possibly using your actual residential address on the Att 3G account might be worth a try.
Does your credit card company have your actual residential address on file, but use your PO Box as a mailing address?
Don’t get a 3G iPad, the video programs suck on it. It’s not that AT&T;’s 3G can’t handle it, they just block some apps like the ABC one from using 3G. And then others like Netflix and YouTube have the quality lowered extremely when using 3G on the iPad. Just use MyWi to make your iPhone a WiFi access point and connect to it on your iPad. I do it all the time and I can watch YouTube, Netflix and ABC in perfect quality. AT&T;download speeds in my area are on average around 2.5Mbps. That’s plenty of speed to do high-quality video streaming, and it won’t be blocked on your iPad because it’s connecting over WiFi. You’ll not only save money, but also cut down on frustration.
Let’s say I buy the iPad 3G. What do I get for 285 (or whatever the number is) MB/month? Ten hours of video? 20 hours of e-mail?
Also, what happens when AT&T;goes to 4G? Does the iPad automatically convert to the new speed? Does the iPad become obsolete? Please advise.
@Mat Ernest. 3G is a very vague term. AT&T;’s 3G technology has a max speed of 7.2Mbps, that’s faster than Sprint’s 4G. Sprint and Verizon’s 3G technology has a max speed of only 3.1Mbps. We really need to stop using “terms” like 3G and 4G and just start reporting on the actual download speeds.
@Scott
If you want GPS, pairing a Wi-Fi iPad with a hotspot won’t work.
@Hiflier
It’s the same AT&T 3G network. It doesn’t make any sense to expect the performance to be any different.
@Tim
And reporting the maximum theoretical data throughput helps how? The real world performance is what matters, and it will wary widely by location, load, and distance from the nearest tower. So AT&T 7.2Mbps 3G may actually be slower than Sprint or Verizon 3G, despite the 2x difference in max throughput. Add in the fact that AT&T is host to the biggest consumers of mobile consumer bandwidth – the iPhone and iPad – and you would expect the AT&T network to bog down sometimes.
I am not making excuses for AT&T. They are accepting new iPhone and iPad accounts and are obligated to meet their commitments to their mobile customers. But I find it difficult to believe that any other domestic cell network would fare any better, overall.
@Macrelated
Great ideas and questions, but the answers are unfortunate. When mail is addressed to the house, it is always returned to sender. Also, even though the credit card companies have the house address on file, like for when they overnight replacement cards via Fedex, the mailing address is always the PO Box, so the ATT form rejects my attempts to use it.
Update: ATT called last night to tell me that they are still looking for a solution!
@Dan
Thank you for that link to ATT. What is different about my iPad situation is that, unlike my iPhone accounts, which are also billed to a PO Box, ATT is unable to plug in my physical address to supplement my billing profile.
I have also been bitten by the AT&T;PO Box bug. I tried to activate my new 3G iPad last night and it would not accept my PO Box billing address. I called AT&T;and attempted to give them my physical address along with my billing address but was informed that I would have to change my credit card billing address to my physical address! I can’t do that! I have have received all of my mail at my PO Box for the last 26 years because of mail theft problems. I have an active AT&T;cell phone account with 5 phones that is billed to my PO Box. Yet I cannot have a PO Box for my iPad? I believe the solution is simple for AT&T;, just add a line on the signup for your physical address. Who knows when that will happen? I am left with my new iPad and no 3G connection…..
I am using a physical address but still getting the please validate e highlighted address information and retry. I verified with my bank that the address is exactly correct. I have tried two different cards from two different banks, same problem.
AT&T;keeps wanting to transfer me to apple .. Apple says it is an AT&T;issue which I tend to believe.
Has anyone had this issue? Any success in resolving it?
Thanks for the info about the PO box issue. I was planning on visiting the Apple store today and buying a 3G… but do NOT receive any postal mail at my physical address and haven’t for 22 years. Odd this wasn’t an issue when upgrading to and registering my 3GS iPhone last Summer since per the blurb at the ATT link, the rule went into effect in 2002. Not sure what to do now… really wanted (and waited for!) the 3G iPad.