Ryan Haines / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Some Xfinity and Metro by T-Mobile customers can’t activate their new Galaxy S25 Ultra phones due to delayed system updates.
- Xfinity has reportedly informed customers that they can only activate their brand-new flagships after February 5.
- The issue seems to be affecting those who use an eSIM instead of a physical SIM card.
Xfinity Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile customers are facing frustrating delays in activating their brand-new Galaxy S25 Ultras even though they were first in line to get their pre-ordered units. It looks like the carriers weren’t able to keep up with Samsung’s ultra-fast shipping speeds.
Xfinity users are reporting on Reddit that their freshly pre-ordered Galaxy S25 Ultras are being blocked from activation until at least February 5, when the carrier is expected to complete the necessary system updates to support the device. This has left customers questioning the point of pre-ordering a phone that cannot be used for several days.
“Xfinity mobile says their systems will be updated to include the S25U by Feb 5th, at which time I can activate my device. I’m still not happy,” wrote a Redditor, who was previously given a February 7 activation date by the carrier.
It seems the situation is not unique to Xfinity. Some Metro by T-Mobile customers are also reporting problems with device activation. One customer said the carrier informed them that their current plan was incompatible with the S25 Ultra and offered them the option to switch plans. However, they did not want to make the change.
“I’m having the same issue with Metro as it says that my current plan is not compatible. It does seem to give me an option to switch to another plan that is supposedly compatible, but I think it might be that the network hasn’t been updated for this phone to work on. Thankfully I have until the 14 to trade in my phone, but it’s really annoying that I won’t be able to use it until I’m allowed to activate it,” they wrote on Reddit.
Both carriers’ issues appear to be linked to the fact that the affected customers are using eSIMs.
Another Metro customer found a workaround, suggesting that the activation snafu could be bypassed by switching to desktop mode in the mobile browser while performing the activation. After completing the process on a separate phone, they were able to successfully activate their Galaxy S25 Ultra on Metro.
“What I did was go to the website through my other phone’s browser. At first, it gave me that same error about the plan not being compatible. I closed the page and reopened a new tab and changed the website to desktop mode and redid the swap devices process, and it let me through the second time and was able to switch to the S25 Ultra,” the user explained.
Both carriers’ issues appear to be linked to the fact that the affected customers are using eSIMs, rather than traditional physical SIM cards. It seems that the networks have yet to fully upgrade their systems to support the newest flagship devices, which officially go on sale on February 7.
As of now, both Xfinity and Metro have not acknowledged the problem. We’ll contact the carriers for clarification.
