eSIM-Smartphones werden zur neuen Tendenz, die Wege von Huawei und vivo auseinandergehen
With the marketing of Apple's Chinese model of the iPhone Air, eSIM mobile phones are now officially available in China.
As the first eSIM mobile phone sold in China, the Chinese model of the iPhone Air had to overcome many obstacles before its sale in China. It was already presented worldwide in September this year, but could not enter the Chinese market for a long time. The biggest reason for this was that the three major telecommunications providers did not have commercial approval for the operation of eSIM mobile phones.
On October 13, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology authorized China Mobile, China Unicom, and China Telecom to conduct a commercial trial operation of eSIM mobile phones across the country. Thus, Chinese smartphones have now officially entered the “SIM - card - free era”.
After the three major telecommunications providers “opened the sluices”, Chinese mobile phone manufacturers such as Huawei and OPPO quickly reacted and are trying to gain a foothold in the market for new eSIM models.
Just as the removal of the 3.5 - mm headphone jack in the iPhone 7 was a turning point for the switch to wireless audio transmission in smartphones, Apple plays the role of a leader in every change in the world of smartphones. The main consideration behind using eSIM cards in the iPhone Air is to save internal space and make the phone thinner and lighter. How will Chinese mobile phone manufacturers react to this development? What changes can be expected in the Chinese smartphone market in the “SIM - card - free era”?
01 Huawei and OPPO bet on the first eSIM phone
The approval of the three major telecommunications providers for the commercial trial operation of eSIM mobile phones can be regarded as an important turning point for the switch from physical SIM cards to electronic SIM cards in China. In view of this historical opportunity, leading Chinese mobile phone manufacturers have already reacted and are trying to secure a place in the field of eSIM technology.
So far, OPPO has been the first Chinese mobile phone manufacturer to take concrete steps. On the evening of October 16, Liu Zuohu, the chief product manager of OPPO, announced during the presentation of the new OPPO Find X9 series that the OPPO Find X9 Pro satellite communication model supports the use of eSIM cards. This is the first Chinese premium model that supports eSIM cards.
It is important to note that this model does not completely replace the physical SIM card but offers “dual - SIM card compatibility” to meet the requirements of both users interested in eSIM cards and traditional users. This is regarded as a pragmatic strategy to reconcile technological innovation with market acceptance. The OPPO Find X9 Pro has a thickness of 8.25 mm and weighs about 224 grams. It also offers advantages in terms of battery life and camera performance.
On October 21, Huawei registered the new Mate 70 Air in the database of telecommunications terminals. The phone has a 6.9 - inch display with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels, which is slightly larger than the 6.5 - inch model of the iPhone Air. It is speculated that the Huawei Mate 80 will be presented in November. The introduction of the Mate 70 Air at this time is regarded as a reaction to Apple's iPhone Air. According to market analyses, it is very likely that the Mate 70 Air will be Huawei's first eSIM model.
The attempts of OPPO and Huawei with eSIM cards can be regarded as two different approaches of Chinese mobile phone manufacturers, considering the strong association between eSIM and maximum thinness and lightness in the iPhone Air. OPPO focuses on demonstrating eSIM capabilities and the transition to new forms, while Huawei rather follows Apple's path.
Just as Apple also used a mixture of physical card and eSIM in the iPhone XS in 2018 before introducing the only eSIM - capable iPhone Air, OPPO pursues a clever transition strategy with its “dual - SIM card compatibility”: It allows the market to feel secure while at the same time starting to experience the freedom of connection and the ecological synergy that eSIM offers as a basic communication technology.
Huawei seems to strive more to combine eSIM and lightness. It is speculated that the Mate 70 Air is Huawei's first Air model and that it was introduced in reaction to Apple's iPhone Air. According to market analyses, it is very likely that the Mate 70 Air will be Huawei's first eSIM model. However, the model has not been officially presented yet, and it is still unclear whether it will support eSIM, whether it will use only eSIM or a mixture of physical card and eSIM. This depends on future technical specifications.
OPPO has secured the title of the “first Chinese eSIM - capable mobile phone” before Huawei. However, the OPPO Find X9 Pro satellite communication model will only come to the market in November, and the Huawei Mate 70 Air has not been officially presented yet. According to market analyses, it could be presented in November together with the Mate 80 series. Which of the two approaches of the Chinese manufacturers is better tailored to the needs of consumers will only be shown by future market development.
The activities of OPPO and Huawei can be regarded as active explorations of leading mobile phone manufacturers reacting to new technological trends. In the first phase of this new trend, the one who can first establish a mature and stable user experience in the field of eSIM technology will surely have an advantage in the upcoming “SIM - card - free era”. This is not only a competition for product functions but also a comprehensive test of the manufacturers' abilities to combine hardware and software and build ecosystem services.
02 The split among Chinese manufacturers regarding “lightness and thinness”
In market analysis, the prevailing opinion is that Apple pursues the strategy of a physical SIM - card - free design to create the “thinnest iPhone of all time”. In fact, Apple has long started the search for lighter and thinner smartphones, and each of its important updates has triggered an industry change.
In component development, Apple officially removed the 3.5 - mm headphone jack when introducing the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus in 2016. Apart from improving water resistance and promoting its wireless headphones AirPods, an important reason was to create internal space and room for components to improve performance and reduce the thickness of the device.
This decision was initially strongly criticized by market participants and other mobile phone manufacturers. But over time, most mid - and high - end models of leading mobile phone manufacturers have removed the headphone jack.
The continuous reduction in the size of the SIM card is another measure by Apple to make smartphones lighter and thinner, in addition to the removal of the headphone jack.
Apple first introduced the smaller Micro - SIM instead of the Mini - SIM in the iPhone 4. Later, to make the iPhone even thinner and create space for a larger battery and new components, it first used the Nano - SIM card in the iPhone 5, which further reduced the size of the SIM card. With the introduction of eSIM, it is obvious that after reducing the physical SIM card to the minimum, Apple's next goal is the complete elimination of the SIM card slot. When introducing the iPhone Air, it is clear that the short - term goal of introducing eSIM cards is to make the iPhone even thinner and lighter.
The newly introduced iPhone Air weighs only 165 grams and has a thickness of only 5.6 millimeters. It is the thinnest and lightest smartphone that Apple has ever produced.
Just as the removal of the headphone jack and the reduction in the size of the SIM card triggered an industry change, the introduction of the iPhone Air has also triggered discussions about the “elimination of the physical SIM card slot” and “maximum lightness and thinness”. In addition, the use of eSIM in smartphones has expanded the scope for thinner and lighter smartphones. In view of this situation, Chinese mobile phone manufacturers now have to decide whether they also want to introduce models with higher lightness and thinness.
Although Lenovo is not as well - known as Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO, and Vivo, it has taken the lead in the current movement towards maximum lightness and thinness. The company has announced that its moto X70 Air will be presented on October 31. The phone is advertised as the “AI Air” and has a thickness of only 5.3 mm and a weight of 150 grams, which makes it thinner and lighter than the iPhone Air. It is important to note that the Lenovo moto X70 Air does not use an eSIM card but retains a physical SIM card slot and supports dual - SIM function. The company even explicitly said in its advertisement: “Air does not necessarily have to be eSIM.” However, the phone is equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 processor, which makes it a mid - range model.
The introduction of Huawei's new Mate 70 Air shows that it has also decided to follow the trend towards lighter and thinner smartphones.
In contrast to Huawei and Lenovo, Vivo, another leading mobile phone manufacturer, has taken a different direction. In an interview after the presentation of the Vivo X300 series, Huang Tao, the product vice - president of Vivo, revealed that the company had thoroughly discussed the production of an ultra - thin Air model and even created prototypes. But it was unsure whether to assign the model to the X - series or the S - series. Finally, it decided to cancel the project.
The reason for canceling the Air project is that Vivo believes that this ultra - thin form is not able to guarantee a complete user experience, especially the camera function would be severely restricted. This contradicts Vivo's principle of putting the user experience at the center.
There are also manufacturers who are not sure which direction to take. On September 10, shortly after the presentation of the iPhone 17, Lu Weibing of Xiaomi wrote on Weibo: “The iPhone 17 has made a strategic change and replaced the Plus model with the Air model” and asked the public: “Is maximum lightness and thinness the right direction?”
Recently, a technology blogger reported that a manufacturer is thinking about producing an eSIM ultra - thin premium smartphone. According to the blogger, it could be the Xiaomi 17 Air, which is expected to be presented next year. If this news is true, Xiaomi would pursue a similar strategy as Huawei: Lightness + eSIM.
In fact, the question of “whether to focus on maximum lightness and thinness” is a strategic question that all mobile phone manufacturers have to face in today's time when eSIM technology eliminates the limitations of the physical SIM card slot. This is not simply a design decision but is deeply related to the technological basis and product strategy of each company. In the future, manufacturers will still have to deal with the difficulty of how to reconcile lightness and thinness with complete functionality. The ideal result would be to achieve both aspects simultaneously.
03 Before the “SIM - card - free era”: Opportunities and challenges
Although eSIM technology plays an important role in reducing the size and weight of smartphones, it is currently still not possible to combine maximum lightness and thinness with a good user experience. This is shown by the sales figures of the iPhone Air.
On October 22, the Chinese model of the iPhone Air officially came to the market. However, compared to the strong demand for the iPhone 17 series, the reaction to the iPhone Air was rather moderate. The well - known Apple analyst Guo Mingchi wrote in a post: “The demand for the iPhone Air is lower than expected. The supply chain has already started to reduce production and capacity.”
According to Guo Mingchi's analysis, production in the supply chain will be reduced by more than 80% by the first quarter of 2026. Some components with a long lead time will already be taken out of production at the end of 2025. This shows that the existing Pro - series and standard models already meet most of the needs of high - end users.