I got my mother-in-law signed up with Ahamo last week on a regular SIM and fresh number, no problem. Trying to get myself signed up with week (e-SIM, porting from OCN) and I'm wishing they had brick and mortar stores simply so I could go yell at someone.
First of all, did the application in the browser on PC and when it got to ID verification, the app crashed while scanning my MyNumber card three times before it worked, and then it threw me over to their phone app, and failed. Like the phone would say I was verified, but when I clicked to continue on the PC, I got an error page and HAD TO START THE ENTIRE APPLICATION OVER FROM THE BEGINNING. This happened six times before I tried registering directly on the device. After another app crash, I finally got the verification to swap back to the phone browser with no error. Wonderful.
Woke up this AM to an email saying that my application was denied because foreign residents must ONLY use their Zairyu card as ID (which it didn't say anywhere, and the site RECOMMENDED using the MyNumber card). Since then, I've attempted five or six times, and between app crashes and the browser throwing an error once my verification is complete (yes, even on the device now), I haven't managed to finish the process. And I still have to do this for my wife and kid.
Buggy apps, opaque rules, yeah, checks out, I am living in Japan.
Thanks for reading. Needed to vent somewhere. Have wasted HOURS on this now.
Anyone have any suggestions? I'm not married to Ahamo, but not really convinced I'm going to have an easier time porting my number to any other provider.
UPDATE: Finally got signed up and approved. Activated only to discover that Docomo whitelists esim EIDs. So it wouldn't work with my physical esim adapter. Fine. So I decided to change to a regular SIM. Except the app wanted me to log in again. With SMS verification. Which I couldn't do because when I activated to install the esim, my OCN SIM was deactivated. An hour with support chat ended with them telling me to go to a Docomo store. I had the afternoon off today, so I went. After two hours or so (45 minutes waiting, over an hour sitting with a staff member), it's sorted. 4900 yen and change to have them issue me a physical SIM, I was told. I balked, obviously. If I could have logged in, I could have handled it myself for ~1000 yen and a day's wait. But there did not seem to be a way to get around that SMS verification. I was then told I could do the online part on the phone. My Japanese is fine for in-person stuff, but on the phone… yeesh… I do a lot worse with phone level sound quality and when I can't see a face or body language. I told that to the staff member and she called up the online number and told them that. Not sure what happened there, but after confirming my number one more time, she issued me the SIM for free.
So I'm back to a physical SIM, which sucks, but I can live with it. (Really don't see the point of an esim if it's locked to a device, anyway. Am rethinking ordering an esim for my wife when I change her over. If her phone dies, it's going to be a pain transferring that esim to another device.)
by stagerabbit