When I started working for Toggl with the prospect of traveling all over the world, I realized that my US-focused Verizon plan was not going to cut it. I really did not want to pay international roaming charges for a week a quarter, and I really did not want to be without any kind of communication while traveling.
So I switched to T-Mobile. One of their big bonuses that probably doesn’t apply to most people very often is unlimited text and (albeit slow) data in most countries. I’ve also been thoroughly impressed with their service, enough that I have brought several family members into my plan.
But now I’m faced with a new problem. I am moving to another country for several years. 256 Kbps internet and pay-per minute calling just isn’t going to cut it. But I don’t want to lose my phone number (I’ve gone through enough new-number spam calls for one lifetime) and I still want that international service as I will be traveling all over the world for work.
One option is to carry two phones: one for internet and calling in Japan, and one for internet and calling in the US and other countries. But then I have two phones to carry and maintain. That’s a huge hassle.
I couldn’t figure out another option until I happened upon another option. Enter eSIM. In case you don’t know, SIM cards are how your phone interfaces with the cell network. I don’t know a ton of the technical details, and I’m not confident in the stuff I do know, so lets just leave it at that for now. eSIM takes the capabilities traditionally served by a physical card and makes them a software component of the phone. Many new phones integrate eSIM into the phone, which can allow you to have two phone service accounts using one on the eSIM and one physical SIM card.
This seems like the ideal choice for my situation. I can have one phone with both a Japanese network (and phone number) and T-mobile. When in Japan I can use the Japanese network for data and local calling but still get calls and texts on my T-mobile number. When outside of Japan I would be able to use my T-mobile network to access the internet. (Of course I’m making some capability assumptions here)
The final roadblock is that my phone brand of choice - OnePlus - does not support eSIM. I could switch to another brand, but other phones are much more expensive. Fortunately, I quickly discovered (https://esim.me)[esim.me]. They are a physical SIM card that enables eSIM on normal cell phones. I haven’t tried them yet, but I am planning on doing it soon. If it works, it might be the perfect solution.
I’ll keep you posted!
UPDATE: As cool as eSIM.me is, the card can store multiple eSIM profiles but only use one at a time. So to have dual sim (which is required to access multiple networks simultaneously) I either need multiple SIM cards or an integrated eSIM built into the phone. So looks like it’s back to expensive Samsung phones!