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-   -   eSIM thread (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-technology/1954827-esim-thread.html)

LIH Prem Mar 8, 2020 8:31 pm


Originally Posted by draver (Post 32153785)
It seems slightly odd to me that the capability an esim provides cannot be engineered into a hardware, simslot sim. Wouldn't that make sense, and generate revenue for an inventor? It would restrict a device to a single carrier at a time, but for travelers, that's not a big deal. Switching between esims is quick, easy and reliable. It seems to me that Apple is half way there with the Apple Sim already.

you don't need a physical sim slot for an esim, so I'm not sure what you're getting at. I'm sure they could do what you suggest, but I don't see the value.

They want to reduce slots that open and expose the inside of the phone and take up space in the phone, so I would say in the future those hardware sim slots are likely to go away as with the headphone jack. I hope they provide dual esim support when the physical slots eventually go away.

-David

draver Mar 9, 2020 6:13 am


Originally Posted by bukzin (Post 32097545)
Here is a list of esim providers sorted by coverage areas

esimdb.com


Originally Posted by LIH Prem (Post 32158393)
you don't need a physical sim slot for an esim, so I'm not sure what you're getting at. I'm sure they could do what you suggest, but I don't see the value.

They want to reduce slots that open and expose the inside of the phone and take up space in the phone, so I would say in the future those hardware sim slots are likely to go away as with the headphone jack. I hope they provide dual esim support when the physical slots eventually go away.

-David

My desire is that the esim capability could be extended to non esim devices. As evidenced by another user here, there are a lot of fairly current phones and tablets that do not have esim capability. If it were a swappable product, the MVNO's around the world who only market esim services would have a much larger target market. Most Android phones that are more than a year old for example do not have esims, and iPhones before the Xr don't either. My sister in law just bought a Samsung 10s, one of their high end products which just launched a few months back, and it doesn't have one.
I've used the Apple Sim a few times to get roaming data and it's a nice option for travel. As I mentioned, it doesn't seem like a huge leap to carry that into an esim version. So apparently Apple sees the versatility of that function enough to offer that product.

Robbie Wilson Apr 20, 2020 8:52 am

virtual [hone number are good in this
 
about using a virtual phone number instead of eSIM

CatJo Apr 20, 2020 10:52 am

New Google Fi customers can use eSIM on latest iPhones
https://9to5google.com/2020/04/16/go...i-iphone-esim/

BigFlyer Apr 20, 2020 4:51 pm

It does note appear that Android has that functionality. On my Pixel 4 (and 3A), I cannot use the data connection on one SIM to put through calls from the other SIM, even when I have selected wifi calling preferred.

Anyone able to do this on Android?

BTW, here is a thread on Reddit that starts with a screen shot of what it looks like on a Iphone: https://www.reddit.com/r/Visible/com...tm_name=iossmf



Originally Posted by draver (Post 32081780)
My limited experience is that once your primary voice line loses it's service, if you are iOS 13.XX then it will default to using data from the secondary line. This equates to WiFi calling, so whatever rate your carrier charges for WiFi calling is what you will have. I'm on T-Mobile which does not charge for WiFi calls to/from the US while roaming internationally. I've been experimenting with this in the US for the past month or so, and it is quite reliable, with good quality calling also. I've used T-Mobile, Verizon, and 3 UK service for the data service and all perform equally well.

I have no experience with Android, but I understand the function is similar, isn't it?


bukzin May 12, 2020 2:54 pm

Anyone sorted out doing this with Android?

ryandelmundo Jun 8, 2020 9:08 pm

Anyone managed to buy eSIM and get the Amex Wireless credit? I'm abroad now. Would be nice to "bank up" a few GB of eSIM data cards for when I return. I'm guessing Airalo won't trigger. I just bought a 1GB USA plan for $3. Amex App shows as "Airalo, Singapore."

LordHamster Jun 9, 2020 11:34 am


Originally Posted by CatJo (Post 32309468)
New Google Fi customers can use eSIM on latest iPhones
https://9to5google.com/2020/04/16/go...i-iphone-esim/

Existing customers can ALSO now leverage this.

Update: I'm currently experiencing the best of both worlds. I've got FI on my esim and just got a Visible sim as well. I'm currently using a Pixel 4XL, but same would work on iPhone.

I'm using Visible for domestic unlimited data, which rides on the Verizon network, but only costs $25/month! FI is hosting my primary number and messaging. The benefit of this setup is I don't need to worry about data amounts or Fi's hard Throttle, but when I go overseas I can just turn off the visible SIM and use FI as intended and benefit from their great international service.

Best of all, this the total cost is less than Fi's "unlimited" plan. FI would cost me $70+tax / month for 22GB after which it is throttled to 256k. With Visible SIM for data, I may get deprioritized due to congestion, but there is no hard throttle. Plus, Verizon seems to have better reception near me.

MDWCommuter Aug 4, 2022 7:45 pm

Is anyone aware of a mifi that uses an eSim other than the devices that are locked to the manufacturer (like Glocalme)? Would be nice to have.

powerlifter Aug 5, 2022 9:15 am

I use Sky Roam they use day passes in the U.S. , and other countries. In countries that they don't have an agreement with then you have to buy a sim card. I had my mifi before there was such a thing as Esim. They have a new model not sure if it has an Esim.

MDWCommuter Aug 5, 2022 9:39 pm

Looks like Sky Roam is now called Solis and you are locked into using their data. It’s more costly that buying data packs from T-Mobile.

Would love to be able to combine an Airalo eSim with an eSim capable mifi.

aspro Aug 12, 2022 9:21 pm

People seem mostly positive about Airalo here and on an older thread , but negative reviews on Trustpilot are extensive (alongside a wealth of fake positive ones). Of course, there are going to be people who find the eSim thing technically challenging and therefore complain, but it seems like Airalo support is abysmal now. Any comments from people currently using Airalo?

Kgmm77 Aug 13, 2022 8:14 am


Originally Posted by aspro (Post 34510963)
People seem mostly positive about Airalo here and on an older thread , but negative reviews on Trustpilot are extensive (alongside a wealth of fake positive ones). Of course, there are going to be people who find the eSim thing technically challenging and therefore complain, but it seems like Airalo support is abysmal now. Any comments from people currently using Airalo?

I used it recently in Canada and it was fine, easy to set up and worked as described. I’d definitely use again. But I didn’t need to contact them for anything. It’s highly possible that their customer service if things go wrong may not be great, particularly given travel numbers have exploded, so they may not have scaled support up to cope.

atsak Aug 13, 2022 8:19 am

If you have a non-esim Android phone and can get a QR esim code, you can use https://esim.me - I bought one of these a few months ago and put a couple esims on it so far (T-mobile for the US and a temporary one here in Canada from Freedom mobile). You just get the QR code for any android phone (usually I choose pixel) and it seems to work - I had to try twice to load it on T-mobile though. The only one that didn't work was AT&T prepaid in the US but that could have just been bad luck.

der_saeufer Aug 13, 2022 9:32 am


Originally Posted by aspro (Post 34510963)
People seem mostly positive about Airalo here and on an older thread , but negative reviews on Trustpilot are extensive (alongside a wealth of fake positive ones). Of course, there are going to be people who find the eSim thing technically challenging and therefore complain, but it seems like Airalo support is abysmal now. Any comments from people currently using Airalo?

I've used Airalo a LOT over the past few years. I know how to install eSIMs so I've rarely needed their support. The two times I contacted support couldn't have been more different, though. The first time I had accidentally deleted a live eSIM. They couldn't re-issue it so they just gave me a refund and told me to buy another. Easy, and solved in less than an hour even though it was my fault. The second time, my eSIM barely worked and wouldn't connect to LTE. Turns out they'd given me the wrong APN info when I bought it, but by the time support actually got back to me, my 5-day trip was almost over. To be fair, I was in Trinidad within weeks of the country re-opening to non-emergency visits by foreigners so I may have been the first to buy an eSIM in a while.

I don't know if my poor support experience was a one-off or part of a trend, but I'll continue to use Airalo regardless--it's not a product I'm likely to need much support for. That said, Three Hong Kong's "world" roaming package (available on eSIM from anywhere) is such a good deal at about 35 USD for a year that I only use Airalo in places Three doesn't cover.


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