Even Apple can't save it. eSIM has been flooded with negative reviews right after its launch. Should telecom operators put in more effort?
On October 22, 2025, the Chinese - mainland version of the iPhone Air with a full eSIM solution was officially launched. Along with it came the eSIM services of the three major domestic telecom operators. Nearly nine years after the standard was released, Chinese users finally got to use the "up - to - date" eSIM.
However, from the current situation, the eSIM experience of Chinese - mainland iPhone Air users seems a bit different from what people had imagined.
Image source: Apple
Although the SIM card slot has been removed, it doesn't mean we can bid farewell to the telecom business hall. At present, to activate an eSIM, users must go to the offline outlets in the area where the phone number is registered. Each step, including identity verification, personal information check, and profile distribution, has to be completed under the operation of the staff at the business hall. When the eSIM needs to be transferred to a new device or there is an abnormality with the eSIM service, users have to go to the business hall again to repeat the process. It should be noted that now physical SIM cards can be delivered to the door and activated on the phone. However, eSIM - related services still require users to visit the business hall in person. Such a result is really unacceptable.
The way eSIM is used in China is also more "restrained" than people thought. Take the Chinese - mainland iPhone Air as an example: When changing devices, domestic eSIM users cannot transfer their eSIMs with one click like overseas users. They have to go to the business hall again. Some users on Xiaohongshu even reported that their eSIMs "failed for no reason" and they had to return to the business hall after only two days of use.
Is the poor eSIM experience of the "Chinese - mainland" version all because the operators don't care?
I know some people may think that the cumbersome eSIM activation and transfer processes in China are to respond to the "Anti - telecom fraud campaign", that is, to prevent criminals from trading SIM cards at a low cost. However, even before the release of the iPhone Air, domestic users had already used the "Chinese - mainland" eSIM. Those previous Chinese - mainland eSIMs were not as troublesome as the current ones.
Image source: Apple
As early as 2018, domestic telecom operators provided eSIM services for smartwatches such as the cellular version of the Apple Watch with the "one - number, multiple - terminal" model. Although the "one - number, multiple - terminal" model is different from the eSIM model of the iPhone Air, at that time, the operators had already found an online identity verification process based on the online card - issuing model. Users only need to perform a simple "head - shaking" operation on the device to be connected to the network, and the corresponding device can be connected to the network directly.
In fact, the same process is used for activating domestic physical SIM cards: When applying for a physical SIM card, users need to leave their personal information. After receiving the card, they can use online identity verification to confirm their own activation. Unfortunately, this process has not been applied to eSIMs.
Image source: Apple
In contrast, the process of using eSIM for the Chinese - mainland iPhone Air overseas is much simpler: Open the settings, find the interface to add an eSIM, scan the eSIM QR code provided by the overseas operator, and the card will be automatically distributed to the phone or tablet. Then, just switch the cellular data to the eSIM, and the download and activation process is completed.
Take Xiaolei's experience when participating in overseas reports at the beginning and middle of this year as an example. From connecting to the airport Wi - Fi to activating the eSIM, the whole process took no more than 3 minutes. If using an overseas - version phone, users can even buy a local eSIM before leaving China and use it as soon as they land, without the need to activate roaming data or fumble with inserting and removing SIM cards.
It is precisely because Xiaolei has experienced how a "normal" eSIM works that Xiaolei is so dissatisfied with the current "Chinese - mainland" eSIM. However, although Xiaolei has many complaints about the current situation of domestic eSIMs, Xiaolei still has confidence in the development of domestic eSIMs. Undoubtedly, there are still many problems to be solved with the current "Chinese - mainland" eSIM. But from the perspective of the development of the mobile phone industry, eSIM is still the general trend.
Will the experience of the "Chinese - mainland" eSIM card improve in the future?
In the view of Lei Technology, the reason why the Chinese - mainland eSIM seems troublesome is not that the technology itself is immature, but that the implementation process still follows the management method of the "physical card era".
In the era of physical SIM cards, the binding of phone numbers and identities relied on that thin, "transferable" SIM card. It was both a communication credential and the last physical lock in the risk - control process. In the eSIM era, phone numbers become digital profiles that can be copied, exported, and transferred. Domestic operators need to ensure that eSIMs do not circulate out of control, so they can only handle activation, migration, and restoration offline.
Image source: Xiaohongshu
This is also the reason why users have to go to the business hall in the area where the phone number is registered to activate an eSIM, cannot directly transfer the eSIM to a new phone on the device, and have to go to the business hall again when there is a configuration abnormality. It's not that the technology can't do it, but that the operators' systems dare not fully liberalize it all at once. The "transfer" of physical SIM cards still requires a physical carrier, but for eSIMs, just a picture is enough, and the "transfer risk" is extremely high.
That's why the activation and transfer of eSIMs are re - confirmed offline.
However, not all processes have to be like this. Lei Technology believes that the account opening, activation, and transfer of eSIMs can actually reuse the well - established "online real - name + biometric recognition" system in the life cycle of physical SIM cards. As mentioned above, operators can already deliver physical SIM cards to the door and allow users to activate them on their phones after receiving them by express delivery. This shows that "completing identity verification online" is not a difficult problem, but it has not been fully applied to eSIMs. With the unification of the operators' internal systems, the activation and transfer of eSIMs are likely to be transferred to online operations.
What is really difficult to get rid of offline operations in the short term are the processes related to number freezing, card replacement, number transfer, and risk investigation. These processes determine the ownership of phone numbers and the boundaries of responsibility and must be finally confirmed manually. But in the view of Lei Technology, from the perspective of user experience, the usage threshold of eSIMs will surely be gradually lowered, and it will eventually match the convenience of overseas eSIM services.
eSIM will eventually reconstruct the logic of "phone numbers"
Even though the current eSIM experience is still a bit clumsy, domestic mobile phone brands have shown interest in eSIMs, and many brands have announced that they will launch eSIM - enabled phones in November. It is certain that eSIM will become an irreversible part of future communication forms. The popularity of eSIM technology also means that more and more devices without card - slot conditions will have the opportunity to be online for a long time. This is particularly important in the era of hybrid AI.
Image source: Lei Technology
The change in the way of accessing the network will also reconstruct traditional communication services from an industry perspective. For example, current communication is based on "phone numbers", but still relies on the bound SIM card carrier. In the eSIM era, "packages" can break free from the restrictions of physical SIM cards, allowing phone numbers to "transfer" freely between different hardware devices. In the future, users may even activate the pre - installed eSIM like "logging in to an account" and directly use their own packages.
Undoubtedly, there are still many problems to be solved with the current eSIM. But as a "pioneer", the iPhone Air has exposed all the problems currently faced by eSIMs to consumers and operators. At the same time, it has also pointed out the way for operators to solve these problems. When the activation and transfer processes are truly online, eSIM can completely become a default configuration from a controversial one, just like NFC, VoLTE, and mobile payment did in the past.
After all, for eSIM, trouble is just a temporary transition, and popularization is the future direction.
This article is from "Lei Technology" and is published by 36Kr with permission.