Earlier last week, the Brazilian website Blog do iPhone released rumors that Apple may launch the “iPhone 15 Pro” model without a SIM card slot in some market areas. However, during the weekend, an anonymous whistleblower revealed to MacRumors- Apple has sent a proposal to major US carriers, hoping that they can prepare for the launch of eSIM-only smartphones in September 2022.
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The whistleblower shared a highly credible document outlining the timetable for the implementation of the plan, although the document did not specifically mention the names of Apple or iPhone.
As part of the transition, it is said that certain US carriers will begin offering specific iPhone 13 models without nano-SIM cards in the second quarter of 2022.
At that time, the iPhone 13 sold on Apple’s official website or retail stores may be transformed to this solution. Even if a SIM card is included in the box, it is only used to turn on the Internet and activate the eSIM cellular mobile network by referring to the instructions on the screen. Service only.
MacRumors speculates that if September 2022 is the “deadline”, Apple may start to remove the physical SIM card slot in the iPhone 14 series smartphones in the fall of next year, instead of the iPhone 15 series models that were rumored earlier. As for the truth, there is still time to test.
【Background information】
It is reported that eSIM is a digital SIM card that allows users to activate cellular mobile network services without using a nano-SIM card.
Currently this service is not enabled in all market regions (100+), but the scale of operators supporting eSIM is rapidly expanding (100+). By 2022, Three of the United Kingdom and Vodafone of New Zealand will also join this camp.
In fact, the iPhone 13 series smartphones already support multiple eSIM profiles so that users can digitally subscribe to multiple carrier packages and switch between them freely.
Finally, for mobile phone manufacturers, the popularization of eSIM will also help them further optimize the space layout in the fuselage.
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