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Apple SIM

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Re: Apple SIM

#31

Post by mvid »

I'm surprised Apple has created a proper Fi competitor yet. It would fit so well into their premium brand of "your iPhone works the moment you step off the plane wherever your amazing life takes you".

They wouldn't have their UX tied to cell providers, who are some of the most unpleasant entities to interact with. They would probably be able to lean further into their personal security stance, by fully obfuscating the user from the provider.

They have the brand leverage to do it, I'm hoping this is a stepping stone.

Re: Apple SIM

#32

Post by untog »

Jtsummers wrote: post #22
mrnobody_67 wrote: post #19

too bad this doesn't work in iPhones. I have 15+ international SIM cards. Slightly inconvenient to have to buy one for each country I visit to avoid surprise roaming charges.

Google's Project Fi does work in iPhones (if they're unlocked) when you travel internationally. It's not quite as effective as using a Nexus (now Pixel) device (they switch between carriers more effectively, they're designed to), but it does work. Can get you down to one SIM if you don't mind not having a local-to-the-country phone number. EDIT: To qualify this, it's more useful if your primary country is the US.

> if you don't mind not having a local-to-the-country phone number

This is actually one of my big pain points with SIM-juggling while travelling. iMessage would work great, except for the fact that Apple unregisters your US number and registers your new SIM number in its place. Which makes total sense on a technical level, but is irritating in practise.

Re: Apple SIM

#33

Post by Mononokay »

lainga wrote: post #16
Mononokay wrote: post #11

The fact that there are two T-Mobile logos on that page side-by-side bugs me. Irrationally so.

I think one is just T for Deutsche Telekom, whose corporate relationship to T-Mobile depends on the month and phase of moon.

Huh. Thanks for explaining; I genuinely had no idea Deutsche Telekom existed.

Re: Apple SIM

#34

Post by chatmasta »

mvid wrote: post #31

I'm surprised Apple has created a proper Fi competitor yet. It would fit so well into their premium brand of "your iPhone works the moment you step off the plane wherever your amazing life takes you". They wouldn't have their UX tied to cell providers, who are some of the most unpleasant entities to interact with. They would probably be able to lean further into their personal security stance, by fully obfuscating th…

Probably because they’re making plenty of money from their existing relationships with carriers. There’s no reason for Apple to vertically integrate when they’re already the dominant player in their carrier relationships.

Re: Apple SIM

#35

Post by oarsinsync »

untog wrote: post #32
Jtsummers wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Google's Project Fi does work in iPhones (if they're unlocked) when you travel internationally. It's not quite as effective as using a Nexus (now Pixel) device (they switch between carriers more effectively, they're designed to), but it does work. Can get you down to one SIM if you don't mind not having a local-to-the-country phone number. EDIT: To qualify this, it's more useful if your primary country is the US.

> if you don't mind not having a local-to-the-country phone number This is actually one of my big pain points with SIM-juggling while travelling. iMessage would work great, except for the fact that Apple unregisters your US number and registers your new SIM number in its place. Which makes total sense on a technical level, but is irritating in practise.

My slightly expensive hack-around is to have a second travel iPhone, and tether my primary phone to that when I travel.

I used to swap SIM cards around so that my primary SIM ended up in my travel phone, and my region-specific SIM ended up in my primary phone, but ultimately that became more hassle than it was worth, and tethering was a less painful solution with the prevalence of wifi everywhere in most places I visit.

Re: Apple SIM

#36

Post by oneplane »

Nice to see SoftBank on that page, probably means SoC makers can simply get the IP from them when getting other parts like an ARM core etc. Makes it a whole lot easier to just get a virtual SIM in your device.

Re: Apple SIM

#38

Post by sebastianavina »

cup-of-tea wrote: post #37

For some reason I instantly noticed the map is showing a park in Lyon. Does that have any significance? (Of course, they should have used openstreetmap https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=16/45.7790/4.8529 )

yeah, its steve jobs sending clues from his grave. Go there and dig under the first thing that looks like an apple for the next hint for the steve-treasure

Re: Apple SIM

#39

Post by op00to »

oarsinsync wrote: post #35
untog wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> if you don't mind not having a local-to-the-country phone number This is actually one of my big pain points with SIM-juggling while travelling. iMessage would work great, except for the fact that Apple unregisters your US number and registers your new SIM number in its place. Which makes total sense on a technical level, but is irritating in practise.

My slightly expensive hack-around is to have a second travel iPhone, and tether my primary phone to that when I travel. I used to swap SIM cards around so that my primary SIM ended up in my travel phone, and my region-specific SIM ended up in my primary phone, but ultimately that became more hassle than it was worth, and tethering was a less painful solution with the prevalence of wifi everywhere in most places I vis…

I use an iPad w/ LTE that I tether my phone to.

Re: Apple SIM

#40

Post by davidjade »

electricslpnsld wrote: post #5
asclepi wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

iPhones are generally sold through carriers with the phone locked to that specific carrier. The main point of the Apple SIM - the ability to switch between short-term mobile internet contracts across multiple carriers - would be pretty moot in this scenario. Note that the Apple SIM isn't new, nor tied to the release of the new iPad model today. It's been around since at least 2014. I remember going to an Apple Store…

> iPhones are generally sold through carriers This used to be true but it doesn't save you money now to buy an iPhone attached to a carrier plan. Apple will even sell you a carrier-free iPhone [1]. I would love an Apple SIM for travel to Canada, etc. [1] https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-iphone/iphone-x#00

For the last 3-4 years I’ve found it far cheaper to walk into a Virgin Mobile store in Canada to grab a pre-paid SIM than using the Apple SIM in my iPad. I worry more about Apple removing the SIM slot leaving me with less choices.
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