Apple may ditch the physical SIM card in more countries with the iPhone 17. A report points to the company going eSIM-only with its upcoming iPhones in Europe this year.
Apple dropped the physical SIM slot entirely in the US starting with the iPhone 14 in 2022.
iPhone 17 can go eSIM-only in more countries
Since the 2022 iPhone 14, Apple has stuck to only offering eSIM variants of its newer iPhones in the US. In other markets, the company continues to sell devices with a physical SIM slot, though they also support eSIM.
While the eSIM-only switch caused issues back in 2022, carrier adoption of the new technology has improved since then. It is now also much easier to migrate eSIMs between devices. It seems this has given Apple the confidence to ditch the physical SIM slot in Europe as well.
A MacRumors source reports that Apple Authorized Resellers in the EU must complete a mandatory training course related to eSIM support on iPhones by Friday, September 5. Even if not all the models, Apple will likely skip the physical SIM slot on the iPhone 17 Air due to space constraints.
Google also went eSIM-only with its recently launched Pixel 10 in the US, making it the first major Android manufacturer to take this step.
Despite the wider eSIM adoption, Apple should offer the iPhone 17 with physical SIM slots in most other markets worldwide, owing to regulatory requirements and limited carrier support.
eSIMs beat physical SIMs — but hurdles remain
Unlike physical SIMs, iPhones can store up to eight eSIMs at once, though they can only connect to two networks simultaneously.
eSIMs offer several advantages over physical SIMs, including saving internal space and the flexibility to download and activate them over the internet. Carrier support, however, remains a major hurdle to eSIM adoption. Switching eSIMs between devices is also cumbersome, particularly when moving between Android and iPhone.
