There were plenty of exciting features announced during Apple’s recent Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) for its upcoming iOS 16 update for iPhones, including lock screen customisations and Live Activities. As one user on Twitter pointed out, there also seems to be an interesting feature that flew under the radar and was hidden in the settings.
According to a report by MacRumors, iOS 16 adds the ability to transfer eSIM data between iPhones using a Bluetooth connection. Currently, switching phones when you’re on an eSIM is a bit of a hassle as you need to request a QR code from your carrier, but Apple’s process seems to be able to eliminate that friction.
@MacRumors it looks like in iOS 16, you can transfer eSim Cards from one iPhone to another using Bluetooth. This previously wasn’t the case and you had to just get a new esim card from the carrier in question. pic.twitter.com/emWz6F7ObP
— Carson (@carsonwaldrop) June 8, 2022
As per the screenshots, you can set up an eSIM cellular connection by transferring the data from another nearby iPhone as long as both are running on iOS 16. As of now, it is unclear if both iPhones need to be signed in with the same Apple ID first for this to work.
The report claims that this feature will require support from the respective carriers for the Bluetooth transfer to work, and it is already available in multiple countries including the United States and the United Kingdom. Apple has not furnished a full list of countries and carriers that will support eSIM Bluetooth transfers, but the OS is still in its early days.
An eSIM is a digital SIM that only requires you to scan a code or manually input data on your phone to activate instead of being tied to a physical SIM card. In Malaysia, only Celcom, Digi, Maxis, and U Mobile offer eSIM options for telco customers.
As for iOS 16, its first developer beta was rolled out this week while a public beta is expected next month. The stable version will be launching in the fall, which will hopefully provide more details regarding the Bluetooth eSIM transfer feature.
(Source: MacRumors)
