How To Disable Data Access in iPhone Using FakeAPN

As far as i know, most of iPhone which is sold from a carrier comes with a contract included the data access through it’s 3G network. That’s the same case with me here in Japan. Softbank as the official carrier offers the data access in a flat-rate packet with a price range based on the usage. But after used it for few months i found that the price is so expensive and decided not to use it anymore. To do that i use what’s called FakeAPN and it works fine until now on my iPhone 3G and i think it should also works fine in iPhone 3GS.

SoftBank Flat-rate packet for iPhone

Basically the FakeAPN sets the APN on the iPhone to a random value. A valid APN is needed to be set correctly on the iPhone for it to access data. And by changing it to a random value it will make th edata access not work which means disabled on the iPhone. We should be able to set it manually  however for some iPhones by default, the APN Settings are hidden so you can’t change them. According to the latest info, thhe “FakeAPN” is not needed for iPhone OS 4.0 anymore as the feature is build into the OS.

Well, to do this is really simple:

• Open the website of the FakeAPN www.unlockit.co.nz from the iPhone browser. You may use a Wi-Fi network while doing this.
• Once the website is opened it will guide you to the next steps. There will be two options available whether to “Disable Data (FakeAPN)” or to set “Custom APN”. In my case i just select the first option.
• On the next step you will be asked to install the FakeAPN. Once the installation is done you data access will be disabled.

That’s all. If the installation is successful, you will find the FakeAPN profile on “Settings – General – Profile”. If you want to enable the data access again later, just go to this section and remove the profile. I have tried this and so far i have no problem. For data access i use Wi-Fi instead of the 3G network and it saves me almost 80% of my phone bill. Hope it works for you too.