Requesting experiences with MicroSIMs and Adapters
 

BACKGROUND: I have a phone which uses a standard (mini-)SIM. I am thinking about changing to a new phone. The issue is that the new phone requires a micro-SIM. I have never required the use of a micro-SIM before so I never inquired about them when purchasing a local pre-paid SIM on my travels.

My questions are:

• Do carriers [especially in PI, SG, TH, VN] sell micro-SIMs in conjunction with their pre-paid plans?
• What has been your experience using an adapter to fit a micro-SIM into a phone that requires a mini-SIM? [In case I need to switch to my older phone for some reason.]

Hi

at least in Thailand getting a micro-Sim is not a problem , you have to think of all the iPhones that are in use and need them,

Does anyone know if there is an adapter to stick in a micro-sim slot and mount your regular sim outside the phone ?

That might help if you use more than one phone :)

Soarer

The adapters work fine with micro-SIMs that came that way from the store. I've never been able to get an adapter to work well with a full size SIM that I cut down myself (with a punch).

I regularly switch back and forth from my Iphone 4S and my old 3g, using an adapter. No problem at all and I have used both a plastic type adapter and a cheapo cardboard one. And the micro sim I use is one that was cut down from a standard sim. So in my experience, no worries using an adapter.

Can you tell me the brand of adapters that you used? I have read on several sites that some adapters get stuck and can cause irreparable damage to a phone is 'forcibly' removed.

A recent thread on the availability of micro (even though the title says mini) SIMS

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...nexus-7-a.html

And there are quite a few threads specific for country like

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...th-africa.html

As to using the sim outside the phone, it makes more sense to cut down the mini sim to mico size, and use it with an adapter in the phone that needs a mini sim

I got a micro-sim in Italy last month at a Vodafone store. The clerk had mistakenly opened a regular Sim for my Nexus and had started entering the info. I pointed out I needed a micro-sim and he went to open a new micro-sim package. Wanting to save him the effort, I asked if it wouldn't be easier to ciut it down. He said no because that was a 50/50 proposition.

So, you might want to be careful about approaches built around cutting down a regular SIM.

It doesn't seem to have a brand on it. It is just plastic but I change sims every month or so when I travel and it has never gotten stuck. The cardboard ones are a bit of a tighter fit so I don't recommend those but this one is very thin.

I am trying to paste a pic but can't seem to figure out how.

You need to put the picture properly sized someplace online, if you don't have anyplace, you can use imageshack.com. You upload the picture there and it will resize it to the size you want, and it will give you a link.

Click on the mountain icon to insert a picture, and copy the URL into that.

Your picture will be in the thread.

Wow, thanks so much. I am still sometimes a bit shocked at how helpful people are here. I will give it a try so the OP can see what I am using.

OP, here is a pic of the adapter I use. Not a great image but you get the idea.

http://img547.imageshack.us/img547/7311/simy.jpg

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

It worked. Thanks for the tip, Mike.

Yep! Damaged one of my phones just like that. It's a paper weight now. IMO, the design of the sim slot on the phone really matters. These adapters just do not work well with some phones.

When I used a punch to cut my regular sim down to a mini sim I just kept the piece left over to use as an adapter. It was a tight fit to put the two pieces back together, then a small piece of scotch tape on the back and slipped it back into the old phone. It worked fine, and went back and forth several times. I would imagine the same could be done with a micro-sim punch.

Try this:
http://www.amazon.com/CUTTER-ADAPTER...microsim+punch

OP:I just found a stack of these that adapters someone gave me. They aren't the plastic ones I use but the remaining 'frame' from when a sim was cut out to become a mini sim. If you want one or more, I am happy to post them to you if you want to try one. A friend got them from a store that does cut downs - they just give 'em away - so you can always try a store in your area as well. Let me know if you want them. I did use one of these the first time I needed to use my old Iphone 3, before I got my more permanent one and it worked fine for me but note that I do prefer the plastic one I have now.

This one worked well for me:
http://microsim-shop.com/

That looks pretty much the same as the one I use as well.

Any experiences using a nano-sim in an older phone which requires a mini-sim? I believe the nano cards are thinner, and I am concerned they may not make a reliable connection. In one of my older phones the sim slot is underneath the battery, in another it must be inserted into a tray which slides into a slot.

I purchased a set of 3 that allow me to convert from any size to a larger size from here

What I like about these is the thin plastic covering on the non-contacts side of the SIM that prevent the SIM from falling out as I'm inserting it into the phone.

There are two types of micro-to-mini adapters I have seen, and I suspect both types exist for nano-to-micro/mini. I have type B) nano-micro and nano-mini adapters

Either
A) the adapter has a whole cut out, with a tiny bit of lip at corners to hold the smaller sim card, or
B) the adapter has an indention the size of the smaller sim card.

Type A does not increase the thickness of the overall resultant SIM, while type B does. Type A holds the sim a bit more securely, the lips on Type B tend to be quite small..

Type A is better for micro-mini adapters (I have had issues where the extra height causes extra wear on the sim slot pins). Type B is better for nano adapters because you want the extra material in the adapter to make up for the thinner nano sim.

I have destroyed the sim slot on a phone while using an adapter and am now very careful plus somewhat reluctant when using adapters.

Sorry for this extremely long winded reply :D

I second AnalogMan's advice to be careful with the adapters of either type because if the micro-SIM becomes dislodged you can rip out contacts when removing the SIM/adapter.

I once ruined an Option 3G stick in this manner.

Nano to micro-sim adapter are problem-prone when it must be inserted into a tray which then slides into a slot on the device (i.e. Nexus 5) as it's been known to jam the ejection port when attempting to remove the tray to swap again.

Most of the Sim card slots are not designed for frequently swapping and the contacts prone to loosening the connection over time.