Twilio Super SIM • Hacker News Board

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#21

Post by emdowling » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:06 PM UTC

Twilit has been on an absolute tear over the last 2 years. I wasn’t sure what they would do next to innovate, but their evolution to customer support products, authentication solutions and now this are inspired.

What sets them apart is that, although they are a US company, they think globally. This product is for a global market, just like their app-based push authentication is (the huge market being Europe which has mandated 2FA requirements for finance companies coming into effect). Too many companies build and think about the US as the only market, then try to bring it to other markets which doesn’t always work well.

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#22

Post by zius » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:13 PM UTC

untog wrote: post #9

This is very cool tech, but it seems like a niche use-case. It's not made for consumers, and the vast majority of IoT devices barely move, let alone between countries. But , if I were working for a haulage company and was interested in tracking, say, truck location, speed etc across the whole of Europe I could see this being a great way to do it.

I am experimenting with GPS luggage tracking hardware with simple live-updates. This is potentially a great use-case.

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#23

Post by wesammikhail » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:14 PM UTC

untog wrote: post #9

This is very cool tech, but it seems like a niche use-case. It's not made for consumers, and the vast majority of IoT devices barely move, let alone between countries. But , if I were working for a haulage company and was interested in tracking, say, truck location, speed etc across the whole of Europe I could see this being a great way to do it.

> it seems like a niche use-case

A niche market in a massive pool could still result in hundreds of millions in sales. Imagine every Tesla that needs to communicate with a server, every RaspPi, heck even iPads or what have you. The potential is pretty huge for a tech like this one so hurray for a more expansive tech!!

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#24

Post by astura » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:16 PM UTC

mtw wrote: post #6

Can this do voice calls? I'm in Canada where every cell plan is more expensive than any other in the world. I have friends who purchase plans from Europe and then use the SIM locally with roaming - turns out it be 10x cheaper, the only drawback being that they have a foreign number

How expensive is a cell phone plan in Canada?

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#25

Post by ignoramous » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:19 PM UTC

This is great (one plan worldwide, but in places with weak currency like India, paying in dollars might turn out to be expensive), but overall isn't the industry moving in the direction of eSIMs (no physical SIM required)?

Moreover, once OneWeb, Starlink and the like launch worldwide internet service, it might pretty much render the telecom industry as it is today irrelevant?

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#26

Post by fermuch » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:22 PM UTC

tw1010 wrote: post #19

diminish wrote: post #14

Yay! We are approaching the SIMless world where you connect to mobile networks without a SIM or a universal SIM.

You make it sound like this is a trend, but this article is the first instance I've ever heart of the concept of a universal SIM?

Hologram is another example, and there are many more but enterprise-focused.

https://hologram.io/

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#27

Post by jon-wood » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:24 PM UTC

untog wrote: post #9

This is very cool tech, but it seems like a niche use-case. It's not made for consumers, and the vast majority of IoT devices barely move, let alone between countries. But , if I were working for a haulage company and was interested in tracking, say, truck location, speed etc across the whole of Europe I could see this being a great way to do it.

Even if your IoT devices don’t move there’s value in putting them on a mobile network. Particularly for security focused devices if you put a SIM and a battery in it then you become resilient to someone cutting the internet line and power before breaking in.

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#28

Post by stingraycharles » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:27 PM UTC

ignoramous wrote: post #25

This is great (one plan worldwide, but in places with weak currency like India, paying in dollars might turn out to be expensive), but overall isn't the industry moving in the direction of eSIMs (no physical SIM required)? Moreover, once OneWeb, Starlink and the like launch worldwide internet service, it might pretty much render the telecom industry as it is today irrelevant?

Maybe, but there is a huge market of people that do not have an eSIM. They could use this, right now: this will allow Twilio to get a head-start in this market, rather than waiting until eSIMs reach critical mass (probably years away).

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#29

Post by fermuch » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:27 PM UTC

How is this different to Hologram[1] or EsEye[2]?

Hologram seems to offer an api with as much access as twilio's (data usage report, switching between "networks" (what package you buy, which includes certain countries and pricing...) and monthly payment of a fleet of chips. I'm failing to see the added value of twilio, but the more competency the better!

[1]: https://hologram.io/ [2]: https://www.eseye.com/

Re: Twilio Super SIM

#30

Post by astatine » Sat, May 11, 2019, 1:30 PM UTC

tw1010 wrote: post #19

diminish wrote: post #14

Yay! We are approaching the SIMless world where you connect to mobile networks without a SIM or a universal SIM.

You make it sound like this is a trend, but this article is the first instance I've ever heart of the concept of a universal SIM?

The technology has been around for several years now. There was reluctance (naturally) by the telcos in letting this happen, but applications are demanding it now bringing it more into the mainstream from the niche it used to occupy earlier.