How to Activate Sprint PCS Prepaid Cell Phones
Prepaid cell phones have become increasingly popular as they let you control the costs of your cell phone bills easily. Sprint PCS prepaid cell phones use the same nationwide network as their regular plans. Figuring out how to activate a Sprint PCS prepaid cell phone can be confusing--not because the process is difficult, but because documentation on it is hard to find. You will need to have both the serial number of your handset and the ESN (electronic serial number) in order to activate your Sprint PCS prepaid cell phone
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Things You'll Need
- Battery charger
- Phone serial number
- Phone ESN number
- Sprint prepaid phone card (or credit card)
Instructions
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1
Plug the battery charger into the phone and into a power source. Let the battery fully charge.
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2
Locate the serial number and ESN number for your phone. It will printed on the material that came with your phone (packaged with the manual). If you cannot locate the numbers on the included material, remove the battery of the phone and look for the numbers written on a plaque attached to the inside of your phone or the inside of the battery cover. Write these numbers down and replace the battery in your phone.
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Turn your phone on.
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Dial *2 and wait until you are connected to Sprint Customer Service. Customer Service will activate the phone and will need the serial number, ESN number and your name and address to do this. Any free minutes included with your phone will also be activated at this time. You can also activate any additional prepaid minutes that you purchased on a card or register your credit card for automatic refill payments. You will also receive your phone number from Customer Service once they have activated the phone.
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Tips & Warnings
Put a copy of your serial number and ESN number in a safe place. Should your phone be lost or stolen, you will need these numbers to turn off the service to that handset.
Avoid purchasing used Sprint PCS prepaid phones as there is no guarantee that they are not stolen. You will not be able to activate the phone if the ESN has been flagged as stolen with Sprint.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit cell phone image by robert lerich from Fotolia.com
