How to fix your HTC U12/U12 Plus smartphone that won’t detect your SIM card, SIM card not inserted error [Troubleshooting Guide]
When a smartphone failed to detect the SIM card or shows a SIM card error, network-related services won’t be available. Hence you won’t be able to send and receive text/SMS messages. Incoming and outgoing calls are likewise affected. In most cases, such problems are attributed to software errors. There are also some cases where hardware damage is to blame.
This post tackles a pertinent issue on the new HTC U12/U12 Plus device. Read on to find out what to do if suddenly your new HTC smartphone failed to detect your SIM card and keeps showing a SIM card not inserted error prompt.
Before going further, if you found this post because you were trying to find a solution to your problem, then try to visit our troubleshooting page as we’ve already addressed most of the commonly reported issues with the phone. We’ve already provided solutions to some of the problems reported by our readers so try to find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work for you and if you need further assistance, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit.
How to troubleshoot HTC U12 that won’t detect SIM card
First off, make sure that you’re using a standard nano SIM card for your device. The use of modified card is discouraged to prevent damaging the card tray or card slot. A modified card may be just thicker than the standard nano SIM card and therefore won’t fit properly on the tray. Contact your carrier/service provider for more options on how to get a new SIM card for your HTC U12/U12 Plus. If you’re already using the standard nano SIM card and it has just occurred that your phone failed to detect the card, then this may be due to some software errors on your device that need some fixing. The following methods can be deemed among the potential solutions you can try on.
First solution: Reboot/soft reset.
If it suddenly occurs on your device to fail detecting the SIM card and prompts a SIM card not inserted error, then it’s probably just a random software glitch, which can be remedied by a soft reset or restart on the phone. Here’s how to soft reset your HTC U12/U12 Plus smartphone:
- With your device powered on, press and hold the Power button and for a few seconds until the menu options appear.
- Then tap Restart. Your phone will then reboot or soft reset.
See if the SIM card not detected error is gone afterwards. If your phone is still unable to detect the SIM card, then you’re likely dealing with a more complex software problem that needs further troubleshooting.
Second solution: Remove and reseat the SIM card.
Your SIM card might have been dislodged from the card slot and so your device can no longer detect it. In this case, you will need to reseat the SIM card on your phone. Follow these steps to remove and reseat the SIM card on your HTC U12/U12 Plus smartphone:
- Position your phone face up.
- Insert the tray eject tool or a small bent paperclip into the provided tray eject hole. Be sure not to obstruct the tray when inserting the eject tool into the tray eject hole to prevent causing damage to the eject mechanism inside the slot.
- Gently push the tip all the way into the hole until the SIM tray ejects.
- Then pull the tray out.
- Remove the SIM card from the card slot and check for any visible signs of damage. If everything looks good with the card, place it back into the card slot with the gold contacts facing down.
- If necessary, place your microSD card into the its designated slot of the tray. Be sure to align the cut-off corner of the nano SIM card to the notch of the holder to secure it.
- When the SIM and SD cards are secured, reinster the tray into the tray slot. Make sure it’s facing up so that the cards won’t fall out.
- Steadily slide the tray all the way into the slot until the tray is fully inserted and doesn’t protrude from the slot.
As soon as the card tray is locked and secured in place, you can turn on your phone. See if that fixes the problem.
Removing and reseating the SIM card can also clear minor errors and glitches affecting the SIM card reader system on your phone.
Third solution: Update phone software.
Installing software updates on your device is recommended to get the latest performance enhancements, bug fixes and security improvements. Updates are also pushed to clear issues and persistent software errors on the phone. That said, updating your HTC U12/U12 Plus software to the version available can possibly clear the SIM card error. To manually check for new updates on your HTC U12/U12 Plus, follow these steps:
- Swipe up from the Home screen and then tap Settings.
- Tap System.
- Select About phone.
- Tap Software updates.
- Tap Check now to begin searching for new updates available.
If there’s a new update, you should see a notification highlighting the details on what the update is for and new features it brings. Follow the onscreen instructions to download and install the update then.
Fourth solution: Reset network settings.
Network problems and errors can also be attributed to an erratic configuration, particularly on the network settings of your phone. To clear this out, performing a network settings reset on device can help. Doing so will likewise clear and reset the APN settings on your phone. If you wish to give it a try, then follow these steps to reset network settings on your HTC U12/U12 Plus:
- Swipe up from the Home screen.
- Tap Settings.
- Tap System.
- Select Reset to continue.
- Tap Network settings reset from the given options.
- Tap RESET SETTINGS.
- Then confirm reset by tapping on Reset settings again.
Your phone will then instigate the network reset and then restarts automatically when done. After it restarts, you will need to reconnect to your Wi-Fi network and Bluetooth devices. Network-related issues should already be gone by then.
Fifth solution: Factory reset/master reset.
A factory reset may the ultimate solution if the conflict is attributed to a fatal system error or major network system data corruption. This will remove all data on your phone storage, including downloaded apps, registered accounts, customized settings as well as system and app data. Major errors inflicted by data corruption are likewise cleared in the process. Just be sure to back up all your critical information beforehand, if you wish to give this reset a shot. A faster way to master reset your HTC U12/U12 Plus is through settings. Here’s how it’s done:
- Swipe up from the Home screen then tap Settings.
- Tap System.
- Select Reset.
- Tap Factory data reset option.
- If you don’t want to erase SD card contents, deselect or remove the checkmark from the Erase SD card option.
- Tap Reset Phone to continue.
- Then tap Erase Everything to confirm.
Allow your device to complete resetting the entire system and then reboots by itself. After it restarts, you can continue with the initial setup process and set up your phone as new. Software errors should already be gone at this point.
Seek further assistance
For other options and applicable solutions, contact your network service provider or carrier. Should you suspect that the problem is attributed to a faulty SIM card, then you can request your carrier to re-provision your SIM card and account services.
Service is also an option to consider to rule out hardware damage from the underlying causes. A damaged SIM card tray or relevant component may also be the main reason why your HTC U12/U12 Plus is unable to detect your SIM card and just keeps prompting the SIM card not detected error. To confirm that, you will need a technician’s aid.
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