When Apple first launched its iPhone 14 series in 2022, one feature that stood out on U.S. models was its exclusive use of eSIM—so no more physical SIM card tray. That’s right, Apple decided no more swapping in and out a tiny gold card. No more losing it when you travel. No more hunting for a paperclip to eject it.
Instead, you get eSIM, permanently buried somewhere in your phone. Is eSIM better? And should you use it? There are certainly a number of clear eSIM benefits. Enough, in fact, that the team behind ExpressVPN recently launched its own eSIM service, via new sister brand, holiday.com.
Read on for your complete guide to eSIM technology.
Types of SIM cards
A SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card is used to identify you to the mobile network you’ve registered with, allowing you to make calls and send SMS messages.
SIM cards have traditionally existed as physical cards that are removable and transferable to other phones. This means if you have a new phone, you can simply remove it from the SIM card tray of your current phone and insert it into the new phone. All your information stored on the SIM card, such as your phone number, text messages, and phone contacts, will move over to the new phone. But if you want to change to a different mobile network, you’ll have to get a new SIM card.
There are mainly three types of physical SIM cards. They are standard SIM, micro SIM, and nano SIM—each one smaller than the next. In recent years, eSIM has emerged as a new form of SIM card.
Read more: Ultimate guide to mobile security for iPhone and Android devices
What is an eSIM card?
eSIM stands for embedded SIM. It’s a SIM card embedded directly into the motherboard of your device. You can’t remove it and put it in another device.
An eSIM has the same functionality as a regular SIM card. The difference is that an eSIM is rewritable or programmable. This means you can change your network operator without swapping anything out. Everything is handled electronically on your device.
At the moment, eSIM mostly exists in a dual-SIM setup: A physical SIM card is still required as the primary SIM, while eSIM is supported as the second SIM. However, some manufacturers (like Apple in the U.S.) have made the jump by excluding physical SIM card slots in more recent years. Only eSIM is supported on these phones.
How does eSIM work?
The steps for using an eSIM are roughly like this:
- Order an eSIM plan from a carrier’s website or app.
- You’ll receive a QR code and additional information from the carrier, by email or generated on their website/app.
- Scan the QR code or enter the information to activate your eSIM.
Which devices support eSIM?
Most phones offer support for eSIM in a dual-SIM setup, where a physical SIM card is still required and the eSIM is used as a secondary SIM. The U.S. variants of the iPhone support only eSIM, doing away with physical SIM card slots since the introduction of the iPhone 14 family.
That said, you can’t use eSIM everywhere as it’s not supported in certain countries, like China. A separate phone might be required if you use an eSIM-only phone and are traveling to a place where you need to insert a physical SIM into your phone.
Advantages of eSIM
1. Use more than one number on your phone
Want to use one number for work that’s separate from your personal number? You can have multiple numbers and plans on one eSIM. You can easily switch between numbers that you use to make calls. No more fumbling with various SIM cards or, worse, carrying around multiple phones.
2. Makes switching carriers or numbers easier
If you find a better mobile plan and want to switch, traditionally you would need to take out your old SIM card and insert a new one from the network operator. This might require you to go to a physical store to get your new SIM card. With eSIM, you can simply activate a new number or carrier by scanning a QR code. It takes only a couple of minutes to complete the whole process and get connected.
3. Prevents identity theft
If you lose your phone with a physical SIM card in it, someone who finds your phone can pop out your SIM card and use it on their phone. They can make calls and send texts while pretending to be you to commit identity theft, or worse, use your phone number to try to log into your social media or bank accounts to get your personal information. SIM-swapping attacks, in which someone pretending to be you claims they lost their SIM card and ask the carrier to link your number to theirs, are also impossible with eSIM.
Read more: What you should do after losing your phone
4. Protects your phone from damage
Phones that support only eSIM, like iPhone 14, will not have a SIM card slot anymore. This means there is one less opening on the frame of your phone to let in dust and water to damage your phone.
Disadvantages of eSIM
1. More easily tracked by network providers
If you have a phone with a regular SIM card, you can remove it from your phone to be less traceable (There are still other ways to trace you, though! Use a burner phone to increase your anonymity.) If you have an eSIM, your phone will be constantly active on your carrier’s network.
Read more: Go incognito: Avoid surveillance in real life
2. More difficult to transfer your SIM data
Traditionally, if you buy a new phone, you’ll have to move your personal data such as your phone contacts to your new phone. Often all you have to do is pop out the SIM card from your current phone and insert it into your new phone. This will be trickier with an eSIM as you can’t physically move it. You will have to download and retrieve your data from the cloud. The whole process will take longer than just working with a transferable SIM card.
3. More risk in the event of data breaches
For traditional SIM cards, all your SIM data is stored on the card, to which only you have access. With eSIM, your data will be sitting on the backend server managed by your network operator. It’s vulnerable to data breaches or hacks.
Looking for an eSIM? Don’t forget to check out holiday.com’s eSIM, the new product from the team behind ExpressVPN.
FAQ: About eSIM
Is eSIM better?
eSIM is better in several ways. eSIM can be especially convenient for people who need multiple phone numbers, such as businesspeople or frequent travelers, as they can switch between different numbers using one eSIM. It also makes getting a new number or changing mobile carriers easier, as you don’t have to go to a store or wait for a new SIM card in the mail—using eSIM lets you scan a QR code to instantly get set up with your new phone plan. eSIM also takes up less space in your phone, which means your phonemaker could pack more technology into it.
A major privacy drawback of eSIM, however, is how easily your phone service can track your every move, as there’s no removing eSIM. The only safe choice to maintain your location privacy would be to leave your phone at home. On the other hand, eSIM prevents SIM-swapping attacks, a method of identity theft in which someone pretending to be you claims they lost their SIM card and asks your phone service to link your number to theirs.
Is my phone eSIM-compatible?
Many phone models offer eSIM support these days. For example: iPhone 11 and above, Samsung Galaxy 20 and above, and Google Pixel 3 and above. However, iPhone 14 in the U.S. is the first series to exclusively use eSIM. It’s important to note that some countries do not support eSIM even if the feature is offered on your phone model.
Comments
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Please advise re eSIM and traveling from the US to Europe
So why would Apple switch to the eSim?? What are the true underlining reasons. So big brother knows everything about where you are and where you have been? There is no advantage that I can see. Who actually changes sim cards in and out of their phone? The CIA?