Transferring To Esim? I Expected A Nightmare, But This Carrier Proved Me Wrong

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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• eSIM guidance became an initial, frustrating, time-consuming challenge.
• T-Mobile now offers a amazingly seamless eSIM transportation wrong its app.
• iOS Quick Transfer besides useful good for moving eSIMs betwixt devices.

As a mobile reviewer, I walk a batch of clip connected phones, but I besides walk comparatively small clip connected each individual telephone I review. The changeless rhythm of swapping from handset to handset arsenic they motorboat passim nan twelvemonth has made 1 facet of my life a delight -- nan SIM card. Not to beryllium mistaken pinch eSIM.

Also: eSIM vs. SIM: What's nan difference?

It's nary large woody to popular nan SIM paper retired of 1 telephone and move it complete to different arsenic my assignments (or my flights of fancy) dictate. But each that started to alteration erstwhile Apple moved to an eSIM-only model successful nan United States 2 years ago. The first year, I sewage nan iPhone 14 successful for reappraisal and had to move my main T-Mobile SIM complete to it, and so, arsenic a tech reviewer, I decided I wanted to enactment connected eSIMs for arsenic agelong arsenic I could.

I lasted astir 4 months.

The pursuing January, it conscionable became measurement excessively overmuch of a hassle to telephone T-Mobile, explicate to them why I wanted to move my SIM, say, "No, convey you. I don't want to bargain a marque caller phone; I already person one," and spell done that full process. It was a mess.

The Google Pixel 10 bid loses nan beingness SIM paper slot successful favour of eSIM.

Joseph Maldonado/ZDNET

So, this year, erstwhile Google launched nan Pixel 10 bid of phones, besides withholding nan SIM tray, I was prepared to do conflict erstwhile again. I figured that astatine slightest nan Pixel and iPhones launched truthful adjacent to each different that I could conscionable woody pinch it for a mates of months and spell correct backmost to my reliable SIM card. 

But successful bid to do that, I needed to first move my SIM from nan Google Pixel 10 Pro to nan iPhone…

…and it was…kind of easy?

Why eSIMs?

Swapping SIM cards is simple, arsenic agelong arsenic you person a SIM ejector instrumentality (or a insubstantial clip). You conscionable return nan paper retired of 1 telephone and insert it into nan caller phone. Inside nan phone, pins make interaction pinch nan SIM paper successful bid to publication it. 

The paper carries nan accusation your telephone needs to link to nan network. An eSIM fundamentally has nan physics components needed to link to nan web hard-wired into nan telephone directly, arsenic opposed to requiring a coded chip.

Also: How to clear your Android telephone cache (and hole slow capacity for good)

Carriers and telephone makers for illustration eSIMs for various reasons. Most notably, eSIM chips return up moreover little abstraction wrong a phone, freeing up valuable millimeters of soul abstraction for much components, amended airflow, aliases moreover a larger artillery wrong nan telephone casing. eSIMs besides region nan SIM ejector tray, eliminating different spread successful nan phone, a.k.a. a constituent of ingress for h2o and dust, making nan telephone that overmuch little susceptible to damage.

If we're being wholly honorable here, there's besides nan lock-in effect. Removing nan expertise to quickly jump from telephone to telephone willy-nilly mightiness make group enactment pinch their telephone (and their carrier) for that overmuch longer.

How it's going

Adam Doud/ZDNET

Since I first moved into nan Pixel 10 Pro, I person swapped SIMs for some of my lines galore times, hopping betwixt phones from Google, Samsung, and yes, moreover Apple almost seamlessly. 

T-Mobile, arsenic it turns out, hasn't been resting connected its laurels for nan past 2 years. It has really built nan expertise to move SIMs into its T-Life app. Here's nan process for it: Open nan T-Life app, spell to Manage, pat nan statement you want to move, pat "SIM transportation aliases activation," and travel nan prompts from there. Eventually, you'll beryllium asked to participate nan IMEI and nan EID of nan destination device, and that's it. 

It takes a minute, but you'll get matter messages saying nan transportation was complete. In immoderate cases, you past request to spell into settings connected nan destination instrumentality and activate nan eSIM, but I haven't recovered that to beryllium nan lawsuit for each phone.

Also: How to restart your Android telephone without nan powerfulness button: 2 easy ways

The iPhone besides has a SIM transportation method, which is akin but doesn't impact nan carrier. Yes, it useful from an iPhone to an Android telephone arsenic well. I've done this a twelve aliases truthful times since initially mounting up nan Pixel, and it has been mostly seamless each time. 

One point to improve

The only point that T-Mobile could (and should) do to make nan process easier is to merge an "install eSIM onto this phone" fastener that you tin entree aft you participate your username/password and moreover 2FA info. Mint Mobile (a subsidiary of T-Mobile, actually) has a akin method, and I would emotion to spot T-Mobile adopt it. 

The cardinal use is that you don't person to type successful nan incredibly agelong IMEI and EID numbers to make nan switch.

Adam Doud/ZDNET

As of correct now, nan biggest flaw that T-Mobile has is that nan telephone you're utilizing to switch eSIMs has to beryllium activated connected T-Mobile's web successful bid to commencement nan switch. Depending connected your account's permissions, you must besides beryllium nan superior relationship holder to do it.

I tin (and have) log successful to nan T-Life app connected dozens of phones, truthful successful mentation I should beryllium capable to initiate nan switch from a non-active phone, but T-Mobile presently prevents that, truthful that's a bummer.

Also: The champion Android phones to bargain successful 2025

But beyond that, nan process has been remarkably simple, and I emotion nan truth that carriers are keeping up pinch this technology. Apple (and now Google) has forced its hand, but astatine slightest it's a comparatively elemental and evolving process now. I besides recognize that this acquisition is constricted to conscionable T-Mobile, truthful naturally, your mileage whitethorn vary. 

For now, while nan process isn't astir arsenic easy arsenic moving a spot from 1 telephone to another, I'm reasonably judge I tin put SIM cards into nan rearview mirror, moreover arsenic a tech reviewer who changes phones arsenic often arsenic I alteration my shoes.