Think cargo ship containers and other similar internationally transient use cases. Sounds like an exciting product/service. Looking forward to seeing how this is used.
Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
11–20 of 149 posts
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#12Looks like a killer of all other IoT connectivity solutions (eg, Verizon, AT&T, Particle). Those IoT platforms better find a way to support third-party SIMs, if they don't already.
Source: Consulted AT&T on bringing their IoT Connectivity solution to market. Their huge cell network was the main selling point; the platform and services were add-ons.
Edit: Another commenter mentioned Hologram, which already has a global Sim and therefore a lead start. I haven't watched this space for a few years and forgot about them. Good for them!
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#13So, it's a VPN for cellular data, right?
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#14No verizon support, unfortunately ...
https://www.twilio.com/docs/iot/supersim/available-networks#...
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#15Viewing this site took 4.5MB with trackers. That's half a dollar of data. Now I understand that IOT stuff would likely have smaller payloads. But that really looks like a great way to rack up costs with a run away program submitting or retrieving data in a bad loop.
I wonder if this will be like Programmable Wireless where you can get cheaper data rates for different levels of commit. Their pricing page says "starts at" and doesn't really go into how they handle bulk discount.
If this really is the pricing, then it's definitely IOT focused instead of Programmable Wireless's more general focus.
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#16Viewing this site took 4.5MB with trackers. That's half a dollar of data. Now I understand that IOT stuff would likely have smaller payloads. But that really looks like a great way to rack up costs with a run away program submitting or retrieving data in a bad loop.
Pretty sure you could set limits or alerts on bandwidth usage to avoid that.
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#17Could a potential use case be soldering these onto consumer electronics and phoning home telemetry even if the user doesn’t connect to WiFi?
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#18Is this intended for consumers or corporations? Could someone clarify the use-cases? It looks like it's $100+ for 1GB of data
This is not intended for direct use by consumers. This is intended for devices that require internet connectivity, but might not have reliable access to a WiFi or wired network.
Examples include: fleet management vehicle trackers, meteorology sensors, centrally controllable streetlamps
These are commonly referred to as Internet of Things (IoT) applications.
These devices typically use a very small amount of bandwidth (relative to a mobile phone user) but need the reliability of being able to roam across multiple networks. Hence the relatively steep $100/GB.
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#19So, it's a VPN for cellular data, right?
How did you arrive at that?
It's a SIM to enable IoT devices to connect to (almost) any available network. It is not cloaking the origin of the data, or even if it is, that's not why companies will buy this.
Re: Twilio Super Sim – Public Beta
#20Could a potential use case be soldering these onto consumer electronics and phoning home telemetry even if the user doesn’t connect to WiFi?
Yes. So long as you have a subscription service (or are willing to eat the cost). This is how many home security systems handle things these days. No need for a phone line (which can be cut) or wifi (which is lost with a power outage). A control panel and the sensors have batteries that continue operating despite power loss and network outages.