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Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

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Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#91

Post by wyager »

vegardx wrote: post #49
soylentcola wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the real issue is that US customers (at least) have been conditioned to think of a smart phone as something that costs between $0 and $300 due to the common use of contracts and subsidies. Even if a carrier offers a non-contract plan, they are often not that much better as far as price (with some exceptions like TMobile and some MVNOs), so they balk at paying $650-850 for a handset. That was one of the things…

The carriers should be required to tell the customer the total price, including the contract. Perhaps then the consumers would know what they are signing up to. And the contract length should be limited, given how volatile and fast moving the market is.

The full details of the contract are available right there on the contract. Not sure what more you think it would be reasonable to expect.

The length of the contract is usually limited to two years. Do you think we should have laws forbidding contracts of this duration? Why? Both parties are free to reject contracts they think are too long (or too short).

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#92

Post by korzun »

Ricapar wrote: post #24
maximumoverload wrote: post #20

I admit, as an European, I see no point to this. If you want a new SIM card, and you don't have a contract, just buy a new SIM card and put it in your phone / tablet. If you have a long-term contract, this won't help you anyway. Where is the catch? (Sorry if I am sounding stupid)

Think about the user experience. If switching, a user no longer has to wait on delivery of a small physical item from the new carrier. The user doesn't have to fiddle with a paperclip to pop out the SIM. (Average user could be scared to do so, or could scratch/bend the rather fragile SIM tray). It could all theoretically be done from a settings menu.

Walk in any providers store and they will do it for you, free of charge. Takes 2 minutes.

People who understand what a SIM like this does, will definitely understand how to replace SIM's. In my opinion anyways.

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#93

Post by untog »

rblatz wrote: post #89
maximumoverload wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hm. Interesting. If you want to buy a new phone and keep your number.... what do you do? Well I guess you can just ask in the store to move it to the new one, that's true. It's just... strange.

You don't ask, they hand you a phone and it just works.

Unless you want to buy an unlocked phone, etc. etc.

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#94

Post by seanmcdirmid »

scholia wrote: post #90
seanmcdirmid wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They are quite common in the developing world on low end phones. It is not a high-end feature, for sure.

People with loads of money just buy two phones? ;-) You're right, but it does feature in some higher-end phones http://www.phonearena.com/phones/Lenovo-Vibe-Z2_id8895

I'm not really privy to the psychy of someone who uses a dual SIM, I doubt most readers on Hackernews use one. To me, I visualize a Chinese business man who wants separate numbers to separate his official (married) life and his gray (mistress) life. But this is just a stereotype I developed to deal with going to the provinces.

Is Lenovo now considered high end?

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#95

Post by deadweight3 »

I've known about this for a while, though I don't remember my source. I seem to recall that it was first envisioned under Jobs, and AT&T started swinging punches when they caught a whiff. Although the source appears solid in hindsight, I chalked it up to a subterfuge project. Can anyone who has since left confirm this was the same initiative?

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#96

Post by tbrock »

Shivetya wrote: post #57
vegardx wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The carriers should be required to tell the customer the total price, including the contract. Perhaps then the consumers would know what they are signing up to. And the contract length should be limited, given how volatile and fast moving the market is.

Verizon told me the full price of my 6 and how that was broken down based on two different plans I could choose. In the end since I had completed and past the end of my contract on the 4s the 6 was free. Pay 200 to get it and get 200 back for returning the 4s. There are some good deals out there but most people don't look for them or worse ignore them. There are people won't do the 4s or such trade in because "its a…

Actually, you aren't aware of the full price of your contract either. The second you get the opportunity to upgrade you should take it and seek to maximize the value of the discount you get.

Phone upgrades are like a call option you get every two years but since you had a 4S you let some time slide in between excercing. If you didn't like the 5s the better move would have been to upgrade anyway and immediately sell the phone, possibly saving the money to buy one later or spend it on something else.

The longer you wait to upgrade, once you have the ability, the less your upgrade is worth to you as the carrier has already made the discount back (and then some) through your payments.

The optimal strategy is to hit it as soon as you get it.

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#97

Post by emkman »

GHFigs wrote: post #73
maximumoverload wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hm. In here, we don't have separate packages for separate carriers. For all 3 major carriers, you just get your phone and in a separate envelope, you get your SIM card.

In the US, major carriers Verizon and Sprint have operated CDMA-based networks whose devices did not use SIM cards. I think it was the iPhone 4 that Apple once shipped 3 different versions of in the US: AT&T (GSM), Verizon (one set of CDMA bands), and Sprint (another set of CDMA bands).

But did you notice that Sprint is supported in this announcement? It is because LTE does in fact use a SIM, even on the carriers that rely on CDMA for voice. Fortunately for the iPad, it has no voice requirement.

In reality, there is the technical means to support this on ANY carrier. You just set the IMSI or ESN in software on the microprocessor and then hit an API at the carrier telling them to pair X device with Y unique ID. The difference now is that no one before Apple has had the weight to get the carriers to go along with this, since it encourages modularity and discourages device and carrier lock in.

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#98

Post by pessimizer »

untog wrote: post #93
rblatz wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don't ask, they hand you a phone and it just works.

Unless you want to buy an unlocked phone, etc. etc.

Why would you want to do that?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brave_New_World

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#99

Post by [deleted] »

deadweight3 wrote: post #95

I've known about this for a while, though I don't remember my source. I seem to recall that it was first envisioned under Jobs, and AT&T started swinging punches when they caught a whiff. Although the source appears solid in hindsight, I chalked it up to a subterfuge project. Can anyone who has since left confirm this was the same initiative?

[deleted]

Re: Apple Built A SIM Card That Lets You Switch Between AT&T, Sprint, And T-Mobile

#100

Post by sanderjd »

tbrock wrote: post #96
Shivetya wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Verizon told me the full price of my 6 and how that was broken down based on two different plans I could choose. In the end since I had completed and past the end of my contract on the 4s the 6 was free. Pay 200 to get it and get 200 back for returning the 4s. There are some good deals out there but most people don't look for them or worse ignore them. There are people won't do the 4s or such trade in because "its a…

Actually, you aren't aware of the full price of your contract either. The second you get the opportunity to upgrade you should take it and seek to maximize the value of the discount you get. Phone upgrades are like a call option you get every two years but since you had a 4S you let some time slide in between excercing. If you didn't like the 5s the better move would have been to upgrade anyway and immediately sell t…

This is why I don't like this model. I don't need or want to spend money on a new phone every two years, but if I don't exercise the option, I'm leaving money on the table.

I think the optimal strategy is to avoid "buying" the option to begin with, get a cheap unsubsidized plan, get an inexpensive phone, and keep it for three to five years.

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