Yeah, the oligopolies. Bell and Telus now share the same network, and they hold each other’s stock, so they are essentially one company now.
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iPhone 15 Rumored to Lack SIM Card Tray in France and Likely Other Countries
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That’s a sound bite smear campaign by the narrative amplifying networks. Oh, China the boogeyman. It’s pure fear mongering.
It only applies to disputed minority regions like Xinjiang and Tebet to combat PsyOp and terrorism.
For normal travellers and business people, you will never end up there in your life, unless you married a Chinese or something. Even then it’s rare unless you are a PR of China.
Yes, I’ve been there, but I’m not typical.
It’s horror
It’s not so much about carriers supporting esim or not. It’s definitely about how to swap esim: it will be fine with just esim only when swapping esim between phones can be done offline with only a simple interaction between the two phones. Anything short of that is just not acceptable. And I’m not even talking about having to get shipped a QR code to a local address, a new activation fee that can be very high, having to connect to the internet to activate while being abroad and having no internet connections, etc.. 🤦🏻♂️
Not even a shred of truth. Westerners can't tell the difference between Asians.
Chinese people have a problem of mixing hatred for the country as being to them as well. They aren't representative of China.
Japanese people, people from Hong Kong, Taiwan etc don't have a problem, only mainland Chinese people for se reason.
How can it be a scam if it works as advertised?
On the other hand, I’m still waiting for the $1million I inherited from Prince Abuja from Kabunda. I paid the $1000 deposit….
Been eSim only since iPhone 13 PM (first generation that supported dual-eSim) and now the 14PM.
Welcome change imho, eSim is just so much more convenient „when it works“. The fact that you can simply disable your Sim Pin is well worth the upgrade to eSim (so your phone can connect to your mobile network automatically after being turned on).
Welcome change imho, eSim is just so much more convenient „when it works“. The fact that you can simply disable your Sim Pin is well worth the upgrade to eSim (so your phone can connect to your mobile network automatically after being turned on).
They are not supported amongst most low cost local providers globally at the moment especially on PAYG. Look at Germany, Australia and Japan (places I’ve been in the last 12 months), yes you could get them but usually only on contract and often only on one or two providers. I’m sure the situation will improve in the next few years but really it’s only the US at the moment that has decent eSim compatibility
My new carrier (Mobile Vikings) in Belgium offers pre-paid esim, and you can simply dowload a replacment at will if you swap phones, which I’ve already done. Then there is Airalo which I’m using in the Caribbean right now to post this message. Moral of the story, things are catching up, slowly but surely.
Thats good to hear. I did actually consider getting another EU sim as they all roam throughout!
EU sims even roam for no extra in Martenique and Guadaloupe. I know, because I’m doing it right now.
If you live in Thailand, you should know that getting a local Thailand-only AIS eSIM is trivial, takes a minute online, I just did it a few weeks ago. AIS also makes an excellent travel eSIM plan for all of Asia that works in all of the countries you listed above, providing LTE + 5G (where available) data for super cheap: https://esim2fly.com/product/ais-sim2fly-esim-asia-instant-delivery-for-dual-sim/
Very strange. The Orange (France) eSIM was the easiest, fastest, cheapest, best all-Europe eSIM I have ever used there. Includes a phone number also! I was pulling 400mbps down in Paris and Brussels: https://travel.orange.com/en/all-inclusive/orhldeur20gb/
Maybe you should have gotten off the couch rather than make such a flippantly racist comment? I know you'll be surprised to hear Somalia has one of the fastest, cheapest mobile networks in the developing world. When I went to Somalia for work several years ago, I was easily able to get 150mbps down, even in smaller towns -- and eSIM was fully supported. Don't get me wrong, the hotels/other infrastructure were not up to cosmopolitan standards, but the mobile cell phone network there was top-notch. I'd be hard-pressed to get 150mbps down in many parts of small-town America.
The problem is traveling. Go to any other country. And I have Tru not AIS.
The problem is it’s so much cheaper and easier to buy a SIM card traveling in the developing countries. And have data usually unlimited that works for up to 90 days.
You can debate this all you want. But it’s a fact, that the world isn’t ready for eSIM. And even in Thailand you have to go into the actual mobile store to get an eSIM activated. That’s missing the whole point. And there are lines and it sucks. Used to be so easy. And the thing is, I just won’t buy another eSIM only iPhone as long as I can buy an iPhone from any other country and have SIM and eSIM capable iPhones. USA sucks to buy an iPhone in due to Apple not considering travelers needs.
I will debate it- you simply do not have to go to any store at all to activate AIS eSIM, I literally did it online a few weeks ago with QR code. I liked AIS so much that I got the AIS sim2fly all-Asia plan eSIM, which offers huge amounts of 5G data in most Asian countries for traveling, even the developing ones you mention - very cheap, and can be activated easily without going to any local store. very hard to get 5G travel SIM or even eSIM. Also, even if you have True you can install AIS using dual eSIM (which is supported even on recent iPhones with a SIM slot) for travel purposes.
Once Apple removed the DVD drive from laptops, they went extinct within a short time... this "inconvenience" will lead to very quick change in next few years.
Good for you. I don’t use AIS and I have traveled to over 90 countries. Thailand is one of many. This isn’t like a DVD. It isn’t an inconvenience, it’s a complete lack of regard for American travelers. The rest of the world still have SIM cards. And you can buy eSIM only all you want. But I will not use another eSIM only iPhone for at least five years or until the world is ready.
Removing the physical SIM slot, at least for the next iPhone model, is a really bad idea in my opinion. Take, for example, Greece. If you visit Greece and you want a cellular plan that is actually native to Greece, they do not, as far as I can tell from the Internet, issue eSIMs to prepaid customers. Only regular residents with postpaid plans can get issued an eSIM. Now, if you go online, you will find companies claiming to offer eSIM-based plans for Greece, but in reality, none of them are actually native to Greece and will cause your device to operate in roam mode. There is no native Greek eSIM-based plan from any of the country’s providers that a visitor can have issued as far as I can tell.
iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models could launch without a SIM card tray in France this year, according to information obtained by French website MacGeneration. This means the devices would work with eSIMs only for cellular connectivity.
If the SIM card tray is removed in France, it would likely be removed in at least some other European countries as well, as Apple typically sells one iPhone model in most of Europe. For example, the iPhone 14 Pro model A2890 sold in France is also sold in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and dozens of other countries.
Apple already removed the SIM card tray from all iPhone 14 models in the U.S. last September, forcing customers to use an eSIM, a digital SIM that allows users to activate a cellular plan without having to use a physical nano-SIM card. Apple has a support document with a list of carriers that support eSIM technology around the world.
When the iPhone 14 series launched in the U.S., Apple promoted eSIMs as being more secure than a physical SIM since they cannot be removed from an iPhone that is lost or stolen. Apple added that up to eight eSIMs can be managed in the iPhone's Settings app, eliminating the need to obtain, carry, and swap physical SIM cards while traveling. iPhone 13 and newer models can have two eSIMs active at the same time.
With eSIM availability rapidly expanding, the removal of the SIM card tray beyond the U.S. seems inevitable, even if the transition takes a few more years to be fully completed. Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 15 series in September as usual.
Article Link: iPhone 15 Rumored to Lack SIM Card Tray in France and Likely Other Countries
This is my point. They eliminated physical SIM in the iPhone 14 series in the USA. It has made travel a nightmare for me.
I believe Apple has done it to help US carriers make tons of cash from Americans traveling with their Us carrier plans which can cost more than $20 USD per day. Whereas most places have a physical SIM card that costs less than $20 and will last unlimited phone texts and data for a month or two.
All about the Dollar. Nothing to do with advancing anything else.
I used to pay Verizon $1500 per month while traveling internationally. Now I pay local SIMs and never add up to $100 USD per month.
It would be great if eSIMs worked as well as some Brag. But even my Thai eSIM only works when I go into a True location not at the airport with my passport. The eSIM could be better but the rules and etc are not. Not to mention all the carriers that don’t have them especially in developing markets.
Apple and the mighty dollar. I truly believe this is Tim and co pocketing some cash by US carriers to allow them to charge astronomical prices for roaming internationally. And those who are stuck without SIM slots just get screwed all the way around.
I actually messaged Apple support today and was told that I can buy an iPhone 13 or 13 mini or 12 series in the USA to get a physical SIM slot or just buy an iPhone in any country other than USA. The rep seemed really nice and stated that many people request this information and have had the same issues I have.
It’s not just travelling. I use my iPhone as Dual SIM where I take my work SIM out of my work phone and pop it into my iPhone. My personal line is an eSIM. They don’t mind me doing this and I can easily pop it back into their work phone anytime I want. They won’t support me turning it into an eSIM to use on my own personal phone however.
It’ll mean I either have to carry two phones or switch to one of the many dual SIM Androids if I want to have a single phone.
It’ll mean I either have to carry two phones or switch to one of the many dual SIM Androids if I want to have a single phone.
Yeah. I bought a Nothing Phone 1, but I am planning to upgrade it to the Phone 2. The software isn’t as good but the hardware is far superior in usability. It’s obviously not as fast, but not having that dynamic island is awesome. Just a hole punch in the Nothing Phone and it feels far more satisfying in the hand with rounded corners compared to iPhone.
(Off-topic) Why is it that the Nothing Phone’s rear LEDs are shaped so eerily like the Apple logo?!