While the need for connection is primal, the means are quickly pacing towards the timeless principle — form follows function. The connectivity enabling SIM has shrunk from the size of a credit card in 1991 to a pinky finger’s thumbnail-like nano-SIM in 2012. However, we still need two SIM cards to use two different numbers on our smartphones. Not for too long.
The new cellular innovation called eSIM is set to change how we experience and use multiple SIMs on our smartphones.
Traditional SIM cards tend to lose their function if your phone dunks into the water and receives severe damage. Also, if you lose the phone along with the SIM, the process of getting a new one is quite tedious. It’s equally cumbersome for the mobile operators too. That’s why smartphone makers and mobile operators are working together to bring a ubiquitous solution in the form of eSIM.
What Is eSIM
The eSIM stands for electronic Subscriber Identity Module and aims to be the virtual equivalent of the physical SIM card. You can activate and subscribe to cellular services from more than one mobile operator without having to insert a new physical SIM in your particular device. A typical eSIM comes embedded on the motherboard or the circuit board of a phone or a smart device and it is a fraction size of a nano SIM.
How Does It Work
An eSIM which is short for an Embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card comes with a Machine to Machine (M2M) installation and Remote Provisioning capabilities. In simpler terms, a manufacturer of smartphones or smart devices will solder it directly to the motherboard of the said device. With the remote provisioning facilities, the process of activating and managing the eSIM compatible devices becomes convenient. So you don’t even have to visit a mobile operator’s store.
eSIM Compatibility with Premium Devices
Thankfully, telecom operators are swiftly adopting and rolling out the eSIM capabilities. Apple’s iPhones such as the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max, were one of the first phones to bring eSIM support.
And today, the support for eSIM has been extended to a large number of smartphones and a broader range of devices such as smart watches, health bands, tablets, laptops, portable health gadgets, and more.
Smart Automobiles powered by eSIM
While smartphones and smart devices are already here, automobile enthusiasts have also started to witness the connected car experience first. eSIM support has already found its way to SUVs and a host of cars across budget segments.
With the connected cars, the eSIM equips a range of in-vehicle services such as navigation, emergency/panic buttons, infotainment, automobile health, breakdown services, telematics, and even diagnostics.
Soon, these would be used to make reservations at a restaurant, paying for the parking, or getting live traffic updates without pulling out your smartphone, plugging your headset and getting distracted in the process.
Smart Devices Need the Best Network
While eSIM sounds fantastic in theory, the real advantage is enjoyable only through well-equipped and future-ready cellular networks. The eSIM requires specific secure applications that the mobile operator pushes over the network to the smartphones.
Of course, the mobile operators will employ complex encryption and other methods that will ensure that the said code runs securely. These apps or services could range from infotainment to capability for making mobile payments.
Beyond Smartphones and Calling
With the eSIM, the mobile operators are destined to going beyond supporting the bare minimum – Smartphones. The next generation of the Internet of Things will drive the growth of connected devices such as smart wearables as well as connected ecosystems like automobiles as well as smart homes and offices.
The basic idea is to enable seamless (no pun intended) connectivity of the smart gadgets with the help of reprogrammable software and without worrying about protecting and inserting a physical SIM card. So you no longer have to tether your phone’s connection to your smartwatch or health band for syncing your data. Those smart devices would be capable of doing that independently.