Cloud Computing Killed the SIM Card Star

It's 2013 and you just landed at Narita International Airport. You're excited to explore what Japan has to offer and can't wait to go sightseeing! But first, you need cell service.

After picking up your luggage from the carousel, you shuffle over to the airport mobile store to purchase a local SIM card. 5GB for $25? Totally overpriced, but you decide to buy it anyways because gigabytes are larger than megabytes, right? Pulling out your phone, you fumble around to try and eject the SIM tray from your phone with the tiny pin tool that the bored store clerk gave you. You manage to pop your old SIM card out, but it falls to the ground. Cursing, you attempt to pick it up with your fingers, but it's too damn small. As your face turns red, you ask the clerk for help. Holding your new SIM you struggle to place it into the tray and drop it again. After what seems like an eternity, you manage to put the SIM card into the tray and finally into the phone itself. Yes, you're connected! But wait, you just wasted an hour getting the accursed thing to work.

This was the norm pre-2016, before eSIMs. The process: acquire a tool (usually a paperclip), replace the physical SIM card in the tray, and keep your old SIM in a safe place. What a hassle! Not only does this delay your travel plans, but you're stuck with the fun responsibility of making sure you don't lose your old SIM card during your visit. Thank goodness technology has evolved since then. With just a click of a button, you can easily purchase an eSIM, activate, and connect right away.

Did you also know of the environmental impact eSIMs can have? According to varying sources (thanks ChatGPT/Google), the number of physical SIM cards that were manufactured in 2016 alone was 5.4 billion. Now, let's do some math with some assumptions:

• SIM cards made/year: 5.4 billion
• # of years since 2016 to now: 8 years
• Weight of one SIM card: 4 grams

Doing the math:

• 5.4 billion SIM cards/year x 8 years = 43.2 billion SIM cards (in 2024)
• 43.2 billion SIM cards x 4 grams per SIM card = 172.8 billion grams of SIM cards
• 172.8 billion grams of SIM cards / 453.6 grams per lb = 380.95 million lbs of plastic

That's how many pounds of plastic we're saving. Not only are eSIMs convenient, they help reduce environmental waste!

However, it seems that not everyone is so keen on this new change. Though Apple released eSIM-compatible iPhones starting with the iPhone X, it got rid of the physical SIM card tray altogether with the release of the iPhone 14. Naturally, there were some dissenters. Just take a look at the top comment of Apple's instructional YouTube video on how to install an eSIM here.

I find it confusing and a bit amusing how others cannot see the convenience and the drastic improvement of using an eSIM over the physical SIM. Perhaps there's an issue with the current UI/UX flow? Maybe it's because I haven't personally faced any issues with this change? Or it could be a phenomena from Geoffrey Moore's "Crossing the Chasm." (More about that in another post)

Perhaps if we fixed that, flying into Tokyo wouldn't be that bad. All you'd have to do is select a plan, purchase, and connect. Just pick up your luggage and you're ready to explore. Change is good and eSIMs provide a faster, cheaper, better way of providing service, especially when you're traveling abroad. It's the future.

Happy New Year everyone!