iPhone 17 Air could be an eSIM only phone outside the US — what we know

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Is this a design decision, or a bigger push to eSIMs?

iPhone 17 Air render
(Image credit: Apple/ Tom's Guide)

The super-thin design of the iPhone 17 Air, with rumours suggesting it'll be just 5.65mm at its thinnest point, means that certain trade-offs will need to be made. Some of those are obvious, like thinner batteries and fewer camera lenses, but buyers from outside the U.S. may face one more — the loss of the physical SIM card.

We have heard rumors about this possibility in the past, but now Macrumors claims retail employees at Apple Authorized Resellers in the EU are being required to complete a "training course related to iPhones with eSIM support" before this Friday, September 5.

Planting the 'SEED'

Now in the U.S. this change won't matter, because all iPhones sold since the iPhone 14 have been eSIM only. Transferring eSIMS from one device to another is well on its way to being second nature for US iPhone users. But other regions, including Europe, have given users the choice between eSIMs and a physical nano SIM card.

The new training resources are reportedly available in the SEED app, which is used for staff at Apple Stores and authorized third party retailers all over the world. So it's possible that Europe won't be the only region affected by this change. Honestly, given what we know about the iPhone 17 Air's design, I'd be surprised if this change wasn't being implemented globally.

There's no telling what this means for the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro or iPhone 17 Pro Max. It's possible that the entire iPhone 17 line-up may be making that transition outside of the U.S. Then again the iPhone 17 Air could be the only device to make this change this year, in anticipation of a wider eSIM push on iPhone 18 and beyond.

eSIM is now the eNorm

Considering Google made a similar change with the Pixel 10 series in the U.S. just a few weeks ago, this could be the start of a wider push towards eSIMs on phones around the world.

If you're unsure about that change be sure to check out our guide to eSIM cars, and how they all work. As for the phone, be sure to check out our official iPhone 17 Air hub for all the latest news and rumors about the phone ahead of the Apple event on September 9.

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Tom Pritchard
Tom Pritchard
UK Phones Editor

Tom is the Tom's Guide's UK Phones Editor, tackling the latest smartphone news and vocally expressing his opinions about upcoming features or changes. It's long way from his days as editor of Gizmodo UK, when pretty much everything was on the table. He’s usually found trying to squeeze another giant Lego set onto the shelf, draining very large cups of coffee, or complaining about how terrible his Smart TV is.

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