Apple's iPhone 14 lineup has a bunch of new features, ranging from satellite connectivity to upgraded cameras and on the Pro models, an always-on display, complete with what Apple's calling the Dynamic Island.
But the four new phones also have another feature that's going to change how you transfer your phone number over to the iPhone 14. Instead of a small plastic SIM card, Apple has gone all in on using an eSIM. There isn't even a SIM card tray on the iPhone 14 at all; it just doesn't exist.
If you upgrade to the new iPhone 14, the process for converting your SIM card to an eSIM will vary, but in my early experience, the process is straightforward and simple. Below I'll explain what an eSIM is, and then walk you through how to set it up.
See also
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Also: The worst thing about an eSIM-only iPhone
What is an eSIM?
A SIM card is used by phone makers and wireless carriers as a form of a handshake that lets the carrier know which phone you're using, and in turn, it tells your phone which phone number and carrier to use.
An eSIM is the digital version of the small plastic cards and can be programmed and reprogrammed as many times as required. In fact, the iPhone 14 can store up to 8 different eSIMs, which is handy if you frequently travel or have multiple business lines.
For the curious eSIM stands for "embedded subscriber identity module."
Jason Cipriani/ZDNET
How to set up your iPhone 14's eSIM
The setup process for the iPhone 14 makes transitioning from a physical SIM to an eSIM a simple process. When you order your iPhone, your carrier and phone number are linked to that device. So, in theory, your iPhone 14 should come ready to go through the eSIM Carrier Activation process.
If that's the case for you, you'll see a screen similar to what's in the image above, asking you to confirm that you want to activate your phone number on your iPhone, and Apple will take care of the rest. The process took about a minute to complete for me, but that will vary depending on how busy Apple and your carrier's servers are at the time.
If you skipped past transferring your number over to your phone during the setup process, you can still transfer your number and eSIM to the iPhone 14. To do that, open the Settings app, then tap Cellular > Set Up Cellular then follow the prompts.
Also: Here's how the major carriers are handling the iPhone 14 eSIM
June Wan/ZDNET
What to do if you're switching from an Android phone
The process for switching from an Android phone with a physical or eSIM to an iPhone 14 and eSIM will vary based on your carrier and whether or not your number was assigned an eSIM when you ordered your phone.
If you run into any issues, or aren't prompted to transfer your number to your phone during the initial setup process, you'll need to contact your carrier's customer service department to get a QR code. You'll then scan that QR code using your iPhone to add your eSIM.
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Last Updated on June 16, 2020 by Ian McEwan
Switch to iPhone XS
If you have decided to ditch Android phone for the gorgeous iPhone XS, you may be grappling with the problem of how you will transfer your contacts or other data to your new device.
Android phones run on a different operating system to that of iPhone and thus certain aspects may be incompatible between the two devices.
You need not worry much as this post will take you through the process of switching SIM card from android to iPhone. Follow up to the end to discover how easy this process is.
Can an Android SIM Card Work in an iPhone?
If the size of the Android SIM Card fit the iPhone SIM card slot, then the answer is yes. That means your Android SIM card should be a Nano-SIM card to fit the iPhone XS.
And here is the list of iPhone and iPad with the size of SIM card it uses.
| Nano-SIM card |
|
|
| Micro-SIM card |
|
|
| SIM card |
|
Source: //support.apple.com/en-us/HT202645
SIM Cards are independent of the operating system running on a device. In fact, the SIM card itself has its own microprocessor and a memory (64 kilobytes (KB) of internal memory) to store information such as contacts, text messages, subscriber information and algorithms to encrypt subscriber authentication data when the subscriber tries to make calls.
So you need not worry on compatibility issues of your SIM card. As long as the SIM card has the same size dimensions as the slot provided, then the rest should not be a big issue. The iOS operating system will just detect the SIM card once you switch on the iPhone.
If the Android SIM Card doesn’t fit, you can get one from the carrier.
What to Do before Switching SIM Card from Android to iPhone XS
SIM Contacts
Before switching SIM card from Android to iPhone, you can copy all the contacts in your Android device to the SIM card. However, you can only have a maximum of 250 contacts stored in your SIM card due to the limited storage.
If your contacts are stored online, you will need a network connection to successfully copy all these contacts.
Or, you can take the shortcut here to transfer Contacts from Android to iPhone.
Mobile APP
You need also not worry about how you will get your favorite apps on the iPhone device. Most of the apps in the Google PlayStore can still be found in Apple’s AppStore. You will also get access to free iCloud storage which is similar to the Google Drive storage.
The only drawback is that the iCloud storage provides a storage capacity of only 5GB compared to the Google Drive storage of 15GB. However, you can still benefit from Google Drive storage while still using the Apple devices.
Hardware Check
You should also note that some of the hardware devices which come with Android devices are not compatible with the iPhone. Thus, there are certain accessories which you will not be able to reuse with your iPhone device.
Some of these may include the charger and the phone cover. But before ditching some of these hardware accessories, double check their compatibility.
What to Do after Switching SIM Card from Android to iPhone XS
To complete the process of switching SIM card from Android to iPhone, you need to copy the SIM contacts to your iPhone device.
SIM Card Contacts to iPhone
First, insert the SIM card to its respective slot in the iPhone device and switch the device on. After the normal prompts, go to the Phone app and copy all the SIM contacts to the iPhone storage. You will have successfully transferred your contacts from the Android device to your
iPhone device.
Take the shortcut here to transfer Contacts from Android to iPhone hassle-free.
Transfer All Your Data from Android Phone to iPhone
Now the next step is to import all your files and data from the old Android device to your new iPhone. So how to do that?
One of the methods is copying these files to a PC and transferring them to your iPhone device with iTunes. But such method is not only hectic but also time-consuming. Below is a shorter,
accurate, and more efficient method of doing so.
The best tool to transfer all your data from two different phones is Switch Mobile Transfer. This is a third-party app which helps you transfer all the data from one phone to another efficiently.
Download and install the software on your PC, and run it to start the data transfer process. Then, connect the two phones to the PC and Click the “Phone to Phone” transfer to initiate the data transfer process.
The process will not take much time. Usually, the amount of time taken depends on the size of data being transferred between the two phones.
Conclusion
Switching SIM Card from Android to iPhone XS is easy, So is Switching from Android to iPhone.
Switch Mobile Transfer, which helps you transfer phone to phone without data loss, can save you much time and spare you from the frustrations which come when you try to transfer such data manually.
More Reading
- How to Recover Contacts from Android Sim Card[2018 Update]
- How to Transfer Contacts from Android to iPhone XS Max
- How To Export Contacts from Windows Phone