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Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

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491–500 of 531 posts

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#491

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You should try Android. Their best apps are one tenth of worst iPhone apps.

J2ME was so bad that it once made me throw my Sony Ericsson soap bar shaped cell phone down on the floor so hard in furious anger and frustration that I smashed it, and it felt so wonderful, and was well worth it.

I threw my phone to the wall with full force when I was a kid due an argument over the phone. The screen got wrecked as a result. Had to tell my parents I dropped it accidentally because I can't explain what happened.

In one of my pubescent year, the same incident happened again; But this time, threw it to the ground and glass screen protector ate all the damage except the home button. Remember cutting my finger pressing it.

The final one is back in 2018. Threw my phone and it ended up breaking the wall instead.

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#492

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand this sentiment, instead of pleading with a phone manufacturer to implement certain features why not put your money where your mouth is and, you know, buy any of the pleothra of phones out there that do have a headphone jack.

Because it's not possible. I need a ~5.5" Android phone, with SD Card, OLED, 2 SIM, headphone jack and 3 years of software updates. Not sure there is a phone like that, so I don't know what I will be doing when my current phone dies.

Maybe check out last gen phones that are supported by LineageOS? That's what I'll do once my OnePlus 3 (still getting updates with LOS) dies or is too slow.

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#493
post #66

I am very worried about this. While I love (and sometimes use) eSIMs, the physical SIM has a huge advantage in that it gives me freedom. It's the revolution that GSM brought: just take your SIM and move it to a different phone. No permission required. Arguably we've become slaves to ecosystems of either Apple or Google at this point, as pretty much nobody uses a phone as "just a phone", you need to have an account wi…

https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT212780 : Transfer an eSIM from your previous iPhone To transfer an eSIM to your new iPhone, you can scan the QR code your network provider gave you, use your network provider's iPhone app or install an assigned mobile data plan. When your mobile data plan is activated on your new iPhone, the plan on your previous iPhone will deactivate. There’s also https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT…

I just got a new iPhone and transferring a prepaid T-Mobile (US) eSIM from my old iPhone was not supported. T-Mobile say it themselves on their website.

> but AFAIK nothing changes there with eSIMs.

For all the advantages of eSIM, this is absolutely not true.

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#494

I think we'll see a big rise in phishing attacks if this comes to pass. Unlike physical SIMs where you can move them about yourself, you often have to call support to change an eSIM. So, mobile companies are going to have to make it even easier to change eSIMs. And it's not like mobile providers are known for security. T-Mobile gave up my personal details to the world along with 50 million others a few months back.

It really makes no difference one can trick the support to deactivate your physical sim and move the number to theirs

Depending on the country they cannot, in mine there are regulations, where they cant/wont move my number without my fingerprint verification and otp verification from an existing device

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#496
post #395

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Problem? This seems like a huge win, the sooner we get rid of phone numbers the better.

How does one make outgoing calls without a voice-enabled number?

Airalo is data-only plan, so you have to either use another SIM card for making phone calls, or use VoIP/Skype/Viber/etc.

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#497

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm actually more worried about a different problem - I don't care about removing the physical SIM slot but I'm really concerned about halving the amount of numbers someone can have on a single device. Phone numbers are an utterly terrible system. Having to give a single number out to everyone is a stupid beyond belief design that we just tolerate year after year. That SIM-based 2FA exists makes this even worse. Appl…

I haven't thought about this too deeply, but I was thinking if you can have every phone come with "free" global network access - just data. i.e. get rid of the current tech for voice calls, so that all phone calls will be over a VOIP type service. And you can't use the phone without an active account with one of the providers that participate in this global access program. Each provider can bill other providers on th…

This is exactly how I imagine it would work, albeit with a standard provision being made by Apple and Google as a starting point, something like a universal federated VOIP (they'll come up with a decent brand name for it obvs). If you're on Android you can get UFVOIP in your Google One subscription, or with Apple I'd assume it would be an iCloud+ feature. And then obviously slick contacts integration at the O/S level so that it's seamless to add a new contact - something like when you want to add someone you click "Add Contact" and it gives you a QR code for them to scan on their device to add you.

This could even generate a new relay e-mail for them in the same process so that a single QR code gives them the name and both a unique-to-them phone number and e-mail address to contact you, and adds it to their contacts automatically.

Sharing of contact details could be done by a side-channel:

1) Someone I already know and trust asks to share my contact details to a third party.

2) I get a prompt on my device asking to confirm I want to connect with this new person.

3) A diffie/hellman exchange sets up a secure channel between myself and this new third party.

4) We both confirm we want to add each other.

5) A unique e-mail address and phone number is generated on each device and sent across the channel to the other party.

6) Both parties have now established a new contact for the other party with contact details completely unique to them.

This would entirely resolve a whole class of issues around data protection/harassment/privacy.

If anyone at any time wishes to rescind contact permission they can just burn that contact link. Sure, you could be contacted via someone else that also knows both of you but there's a massive disincentive to pass along your details without your consent - you'll know who passed along your details because they'll be the same unique details you issued to someone else, and you can freely burn their contact link too.

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#498
post #310

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't know the story, but I'm wondering if IMEI wasn't introduced because of that. If SIM offered an identity in the network, why would phone need to have an unique number?

SIM stands for "Subscriber Identity Module". IMEI stands for "International Mobile Equipment Identity". One identifies the account/person connecting (your plan, usage, etc.) while the other identifies the phone (and its capabilities on the network).

What I was trying to say, I don't believe IMEI would be needed for the phone to call/receive calls, and perhaps was invented after the incident.

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#499
post #329
post #310

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't know the story, but I'm wondering if IMEI wasn't introduced because of that. If SIM offered an identity in the network, why would phone need to have an unique number?

IMEI identifies the device, SIM identifies the subscriber. IMEI is used to block stolen phones, but it's also how phones are locked into specific carriers (which used to be a much bigger part of the business model, "$0 phones" and all).

What I was saying is that it doesn't look like IMEI is essential part of the protocol and perhaps was added because of that and similar cases? Without any identifiable ID of the phone, you wouldn't need a burner phone, just a burner SIM.

Re: Apple said to be preparing for iPhones without SIM card slot in 2022

#500

Earlier quoted context omitted.

J2ME was so bad that it once made me throw my Sony Ericsson soap bar shaped cell phone down on the floor so hard in furious anger and frustration that I smashed it, and it felt so wonderful, and was well worth it.

I threw my phone to the wall with full force when I was a kid due an argument over the phone. The screen got wrecked as a result. Had to tell my parents I dropped it accidentally because I can't explain what happened. In one of my pubescent year, the same incident happened again; But this time, threw it to the ground and glass screen protector ate all the damage except the home button. Remember cutting my finger pres…

Not sure why I've decided to share this. Now it's going to live on the internet/sit in a database forever.
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