Apple’s push for an eSIM-only future has hit a major wall with Chinese regulators, delaying the launch indefinitely.
Apple’s shiny new iPhone Air has hit a major roadblock, with its launch in mainland China getting unexpectedly delayed. The issue boils down to regulatory hurdles surrounding the phone’s eSIM-only design, a technology that China hasn’t fully embraced just yet.
If you were a customer in mainland China hoping to pre-order Apple’s sleek, new, ultra-thin iPhone Air this morning, you were met with disappointment. Instead of an «add to cart» button, Apple’s Chinese website displayed a message saying, «Release information will be updated later. All models will be released after approval.» This is a significant hiccup, as Apple had initially planned to launch the Air in China on the same schedule as the US and other key markets.
According to a report from Mark Gurman at Bloomberg, the entire problem stems from a design choice. To achieve its remarkable thinness, the iPhone Air ditches the physical SIM card tray entirely, relying solely on embedded SIM, or eSIM, technology.
