IPhone – Is a sim-free iPhone different from a virtual-sim iPhone

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We read that Apple has a patent on a 'virtual sim' iPhone.

Then we saw that Apple was selling a 'sim-free' iPhone.

Both allow you to choose your carrier later. These appear to be different concepts.

My question is: Is a sim-free iphone different to a virtual-sim iphone?

Best Answer

No no, Apple is selling the phone only, without a SIM or a carrier plan. That's what SIM free means. The device ships without a SIM. You need to buy a SIM card separately . But a virtual SIM is a completely different thing. A virtual SIM is a concept in which no SIM card is needed and the protected storage is inside the phone. So you can switch carriers without changing a SIM