Apple to Eliminate the SIM Card?

[Paul Daniel Ash]

There's an unconfirmed report out today claiming that Apple is working with a major SIM card maker to build an integrated chip directly into the device that would eliminate the need for carrier SIMs. This would let Apple do an end-around not only on carriers - enabling customers to buy phones directly from Apple and then activate their phones on the App Store with the carrier of their choice - but also on unlockers as well.

GigaOM's Stacey Higginbotham quotes sources inside European carriers as saying that Apple is working with the Dutch SIM manufacturer Gemalto on a SIM chip with expandable flash and ROM. The ROM would have "data provided by Gemalto with everything related to IT and network security" while the flash storage would "receive the carrier related data via a local connection which could be the PC or a dedicated device." So the chip would work as a sort of soft-SIM, allowing an iPhone user to activate their phone on any network that supports Gemalto technology. The ease of switching, as Higginbotham notes, may turn out to be a "nightmare" for carriers.

The strategy seems not only directed at making iPhones more carrier independent - especially valuable in Europe where no carrier has a monopoly in any country - but also as a way to crack down on unlocking. With Gemalto, and Apple, at the heart of the activation process, iPhones would only be able to operate on carriers that are specifically permitted to carry the device.

Gemalto was also in the news recently after filing a patent infringement lawsuit against Google last week. Gemalto developed Java Card back in the 90s, and patented technology enabling apps to be executed in resource limited devices like smart cards. Gemalto claims that the Dalvik virtual machine used in Android improperly includes Java Card technology, and names mobile-phone makers HTC, Motorola and Samsung as well as Google in its lawsuit.

Source: GigaOM

[NumbaOneI]

Werd. I wonder if it'll be the same concept for CDMA? That's if it ever comes..

[ratbrain]

thats bad news. being a tmo subscriber, i guess im going to an android phone....

[corkey20000]

[umkthxbye]

Yeah I will be switching to droid phones too if this ever happens. The Sim card is a life saver for saving contacts onto, makes the whole contact transferring process so easy. This is just Jobs trying to be Hitler with his dictatorship.

[joliano24]

I don't think that will happen, Apple will loss them world controller position. and with them antena problem all the time the other will be more stroger in the market. I hope they will be smart not to do it this way.

[zoso10]

They just want to do this to save space. I guarantee their chip is smaller than a SIM so they'll have more room for activities (pun intended).

Besides SIMs aren't as important as they used to. Yeah some people still save contacts on it but not much anymore.

[madczech]

Yeah I will be switching to droid phones too if this ever happens. The Sim card is a life saver for saving contacts onto, makes the whole contact transferring process so easy. This is just Jobs trying to be Hitler with his dictatorship.

In my opinion those days are over where you need a sim to copy your contacts... You can pretty much synch every phone with your computer...

btw, kind of a stupid comparison!

[mikerlx]

Rumor rumors and if it ever does happen we talking at least 5 years as they prolly figuring a new iPhone 5 design or go back to the less problematic 3G/3GS design lol

[ThinkTank]

that is the dumbest idea I ever heard. The some post do agree. Let me guess you guys have never traveled out this country. Have a Sim give you the ability to move between phones. It is not a carrier things. No phone or phone company in Europe will fall for that crap.

Apple can not redefine GSM without a SIM. Even if you are with ATT you have the option to switch phones.

[milkycloud]

If this happens... the iPhone is dead

[cookbenj]

bad times..

[Simon]

Ya, not too keen on this idea, it will leave a lot of people without an option of having a new iphone. I hope this rumor stays a rumor.

[Rob2G]

This is never going to happen. Apple will loose too much money from unlockers.

[trigun989]

sooo fcking stupid if apple does this

[ruben00]

Sim cards are still important to me, specially since I travel a lot and need to switch carriers frequently while keeping my iphone

But I think this is actually a very good thing, even for unlockers, just think about it...

Geohotz releases Goldra1n...
With this release, you can Jailbreak your iOS6 device, and if you download Goldsn0w from cydia, it will replace the data provided by Gemalto with carrier data from any carrier in the world

Disclamer: This is a photoshop job, dont hound the Dev team or GeoHotz asking about goldra1n or goldSn0w, it doesn't exist, as far as I know it will never exist, I am making goldra1n and goldsn0w up, i have no insight into the dev team workings or geohotz, im just a regular schmo

[Cowboy]

If this happens it will be bad for people that rely on a unlock but as for it being a step ahead of the technology market this is a great idea

[h4ng0ver]

Hahah
Apple wants more control, why am I not one bit surprised about this!!!

[Cowboy]

Hahah
Apple wants more control, why am I not one bit surprised about this!!!

Because apple as a company is doing it right there not having to out source so much and making products ppl want. We buy them it seems no matter what they come out with because it's top of the line and good quality

[iYeow]

If this happens, I am definitely not going to buy anymore future iphones