Apple’s iPhone Air, being released today, is not just the company’s thinnest-ever phone. It’s also its first to ditch compatibility with traditional plastic SIM cards in every market around the world. And just like when Apple dropped the 3.5-millimetre headphone jack almost a decade ago, some people will be unbothered as they’ve already adopted the new digital standard, while others may be caught off guard.
The digital alternative to SIM cards – eSIMs, which are loaded wirelessly into an embedded chip – has been around since 2016 and been an option in every iPhone since 2018. In the US and other parts of the world, many phones have long since ditched physical SIMs to rely on eSIMs only. But in Australia, the iPhone Air is breaking new ground. And, according to Apple’s vice president of wireless software technologies, Arun Mathias, the reason behind the push is similar to the elimination of the headphone jack.
Put your safety pins and little ejector tools away. Apple’s new skinny phone doesn’t have any space for old-fashioned physical SIM card trays.Credit: iStock
“The physical SIM does take up valuable real estate. And it’s not just the plastic itself. It has to sit on other components like the SIM card tray, and there’s a SIM connector connected to it. There are structural elements to make it all work, as well as the [waterproofing] seal,” he said.
“That space can essentially be used for other things. Maybe it could be a larger battery. It could be enabling a form factor that we really otherwise wouldn’t be able to do. It really made it possible for us to deliver a product that’s so unbelievably thin and light as the iPhone Air, while still maintaining the battery life.”
Apple has used eSIMs for mobile connections in other thin devices including watches and tablets, and the prospect of better longevity stacks up; in the US, where iPhones have been eSIM only since 2022, this year’s iPhone 17 Pro has a larger battery than the version with a SIM tray. In Australia, the Air is the only 2025 model restricted to eSIM, but Apple appears committed to eliminating the physical cards globally.
“This is the start of the journey. We will be looking for how on any given product, if we don’t have to use the space for a physical SIM, what else we can do to deliver compelling features for our users,” Mathias said.
Arun Mathias said the thin body of the iPhone Air was enabled by the removal of the physical SIM.
So, if you do happen to go for an ultra-thin Air as your next phone, how will the set-up work?
Since eSIMs have been around for a long time, the process – at least for most people – will be fairly easy. Telstra, Optus and Vodafone support Apple features called eSIM Carrier Activation and eSIM Quick Transfer. That means if you buy a new phone from them, they can allocate an eSIM to it in advance, which you’ll activate when you start the device. Or, you can bring your existing plan and number to a new eSIM during the iPhone set-up process, just by logging into your telco account.
