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Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

arstechnica.com

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Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#111

Post by IshKebab »

tezza wrote: post #102

Had a nightmare getting a holiday only e-sim in Australia Couldn’t set up easily because no wifi then I just simply could not cancel the damn thing… It required being in Australia, and like the article needed a SMS code and the support was only contactable Australian working hours… who wanted the SMS code again. So once back in Blighty there was no way… had to cancel the credit card to stop payments So you are at the…

What did you need to cancel though? Most travel eSIMs are pre-paid and time limited, not subscriptions.

(Not that that doesn't suck; I'm just surprised at having a subscription in the first place.)

Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#112

Post by progval »

tzs wrote: post #88
delta_p_delta_x wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "what's wrong with a usb-c to 3.5mm adapter" I want to charge and listen to music at the same time.

You can get adapters that support charging. An example is linked below. Note: I have not tried this. It is simply offered as an example to show they are available. https://www.amazon.com/Headphone-Charger-Charging-Earphones-...

Doesn't any such cable/adapter violate the USB-C spec? https://www.reddit.com/r/UsbCHardware/comments/10xj74r/why_d...

Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#113

Post by whalesalad »

I just abandoned AT&T (finally) and transitioned to US Mobile (on VZW) in about 10 minutes thanks to eSIM. New iPhone's don't even work with a regular sim card any longer.

Seems like most of the complaints in here re: eSIM are around how a specific carrier deals with it and less about the technology itself?

Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#114

Post by gsuth »

The only eSIM issues I’ve had have been in the US. Some carriers use single-use eSIM QR-codes. So you need a new one for every swap. In Europe and Canada I’ve always been able to reuse the eSIM QR I got initially. Have I just been lucky or has anyone had problems outside the US?

Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#115

Post by n8m8 »

I transferred my number from Mint Mobile to Visible 8 months ago or so. I tried to at least. They initiated the number transfer before accepting payment from me. Their iOS app was bugged and their web app had no way to pay. I engaged support and they escalated to engineering. Still had no phone number or cell access for 3 days, with an upcoming trip planned. Ended up getting them to transfer it to US Mobile which has been fine. Probably works a lot of the time but it’s a shitshow.

Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#116

Post by decimalenough »

On the other hand, international roaming has become so much cheaper now that swapping SIMs when you travel is no longer necessary. The legacy carriers still try to fuck you over, but MVNOs and dedicated travel SIMs offer amazing rates: I can get a year of roaming across 120 countries for around US$15.

Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#118

Post by vovavili »

delta_p_delta_x wrote: post #9

> We gave up the headphone jack. We gave up the microSD card. Some people might have given it up. I personally own a Sony Xperia phone, and intend to buy another Xperia next year, which will almost certainly still have both. In fact Sony is the one manufacturer that returned to a headphone jack after having removed it for a while. It might be more expensive than the competition, but this is my voting with my wallet.

>It might be more expensive than the competition

By a _substantial_ margin, because the best bang-for-your-buck strategy with smartphones for a long time has been to buy used or refurbished popular flagships for the last one or two years. As much as I like what Xperias are doing with a headphone jack and an SD card slot, the used market for them is almost non-existent. Even if you somehow manage to get a good deal, it will be even more difficult to find a good case and accessories like a reliable magnetic wallet, the market is just isn't there.

I myself have settled on using a Pixel with a headphone jack DAC dongle and an external hard drive.

Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#119

Post by abigail95 »

Sargos wrote: post #87
abigail95 wrote: post #17

Totally different experience. Especially when traveling for work, being able to just show up in a country, download an app, and have a working local number within minutes is fantastic. I have 6 eSIMs on my iPhone, two are active. No stuffing about with swapping physical hardware just because I've temporarily relocated myself.

>being able to just show up in a country, download an app This seems like a "draw the rest of the owl" situation. If I arrive in a new country with no phone data (which is why I need a sim in the first place) then how do I download an app? Being able to walk up to a guy at the airport and within seconds slide in a SIM solves that data problem.

As the other comment said it's either airport wifi, prep beforehand, roaming data (if absolutely necessary), or (last resort) you go to a physical phone store usually in an airport and they will set it up for you.

I can download T-Mobile eSIM from Australia - Pay them $15, know what my +1 USA number will be, all before leaving the country. You just can't do this with classical sims.

Re: Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM

#120

Post by climb_stealth »

delta_p_delta_x wrote: post #9

> We gave up the headphone jack. We gave up the microSD card. Some people might have given it up. I personally own a Sony Xperia phone, and intend to buy another Xperia next year, which will almost certainly still have both. In fact Sony is the one manufacturer that returned to a headphone jack after having removed it for a while. It might be more expensive than the competition, but this is my voting with my wallet.

Except 4G/5G does not work properly in Australia. :(

It is some carrier configuration bullshit or something like that. There may be a way to make it work, but it did not look guaranteed after reading dozens of pages on forums on the topic. I ended up retuning the Sony I tried whilst I could still get a full refund.

Phones used to be exciting. Now it is just frustrating because all the good features are gone. Headphone jack, sd card, fingerprint sensor on back, unlockable bootloader.

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