In 2018, China Unicom spearheaded an eSIM alliance program, partnering with Huawei, Qualcomm, Alibaba, and other leading firms to advance the R&D and commercialization of eSIM technology. However, despite its promising start, eSIM fizzled out quickly.

The surge in fraud cases involving virtual SIM cards precluded smartphones from embracing eSIM technology. Additionally, the three major telecommunication operators halted the expansion of watch eSIM due to heightened user churn rates.

I had presumed that the domestic adoption of eSIM in mobile phones would be a distant reality, but recent developments have brought good news.

According to Sina Tech, industry insiders have disclosed that the three major operators will relaunch eSIM in the second half of this year, marking the resurgence of the "one number dual terminal" functionality. This allows users to share a single number between their watches and mobile phones, enabling independent communication on watches while sharing the mobile phone number's data and call charges.

Source: Weibo @Sina Tech

Customer service inquiries with each operator revealed that China Unicom has taken the lead by relaunching eSIM in 25 cities, including Tianjin and Beijing. China Mobile is gradually expanding eSIM services nationwide, while China Telecom is relatively slower and has yet to complete its upgrade.

As watch eSIM services are relaunched, it seems that eSIM is on the brink of overcoming the final hurdle for mobile phones.

According to blogger @Tech_Chatter, earlier leaks suggested that the iPhone 17 Air would forgo the physical SIM card slot for enhanced thinness and lightness, with the Chinese version potentially adopting eSIM. Recent updates indicate that an operator is indeed testing Apple's eSIM, and domestic next-generation flagship phones are following suit.

Source: Internet

However, Huawei, which has traditionally been a frontrunner in eSIM technology, appears poised to steal the spotlight from Apple this time. According to blogger @ExperienceMore, Huawei's small iterative three-fold phone seems to be preempting the commercial release of eSIM and could hit the market as early as the third quarter.

With both major manufacturers gearing up, it seems that the physical SIM card slot will soon become a relic of the past. Are you excited about the advent of eSIM, dear readers?