Related overseas mobile phone cards
Everyone should be familiar with eSIM cards. For example, the commonly used Apple Watch and Huawei Watch both have versions that support eSIM. However, in China, eSIM cards are mostly used as supplementary cards of physical SIM cards and cannot be directly activated. Mobile phones sold in China do not support the eSIM function either.
Our mobile phone number is essentially a string of telecommunications data. Many years ago, one card with multiple numbers was realized in this way. Therefore, if the mobile phone can support eSIM, you can do some interesting things, such as: you don’t need to change your number when traveling abroad, you can directly purchase voice and data packages; you can hold an overseas mobile phone number at a low cost and no longer need to pay postage, etc.
With an overseas mobile phone number, we can easily register TikTok, Telegram, ChatGPT and various e-wallets, such as Malaysia's TNG, Nigeria's chipper and paga, or Turkey's papara.
The reason why it is so complicated is that when purchasing or subscribing to apps in these low-price areas, you will usually encounter problems with region locks and card locks. Mobile roaming can obtain a relatively purer local IP; through e-wallets, you can apply for a local virtual card or physical card.
Therefore, I spent $25 to buy a 5ber SIM card, which supports storing 15 eSIM profiles at the same time, which should cover the number of commonly used countries. Of course, this is not the only way to get eSIM. You can also consider the US version of the unlocked iPhone SE2, Google pixle4, and Korean Lotte and other pure eSIM phones. Under the premise of not being picky about the color, the price of this kind of mobile phone is about 300 yuan.
At present, I have used 5ber to write a Nigerian MTN eSIM card. Share some of my experience:
More flexibility in replacing equipment
There are many products similar to 5ber on the market. This method of writing eSIM into a physical SIM card can provide more flexible device usage. You can use it by inserting the SIM into any Android or iPhone. This is not available on single eSIM phones.
The role of flexible device replacement is that eSIM in different countries has different requirements for devices and networks, and you may need to change devices to use them. For example, I used 5ber to write MTN's eSIM mobile phone number on Sony xzp, and it kept prompting a network error; but after changing to Huawei Mate 30pro, it can be written normally. And xzp can use the written 5ber card normally.
Therefore, the more types of mobile phones you have, the more they can cope with the eSIM writing requirements of different countries after using 5ber.
Easier way to use
Compared with other technical products, 5ber is more like an Internet celebrity product. Some people say that its technology is "borrowed" from esim.me and estk.me. But on the other hand, 5ber uses a graphical app instead of code writing, and the operation is intuitive and simple, which is more in line with the usage habits of ordinary people.
Personally, I don't plan to delve into the eSIM field. It's just an intermediary for me to use apps. It's fine as long as it works. Just like choosing an iPhone se2, the quality is not important, as long as the camera is normal and can scan the eSIM QR code. On this basis, the cheaper the better.
In addition, 5ber has integrated esim products from many countries into the app, making it more convenient to purchase voice and traffic, with a long-term operating attitude.
Potential risks of use
Nonetheless, there are some risks to consider with eSIM products like 5ber:
1. Long-term holding risk: Since data is written using an app instead of a card reader, once the brand ceases operations, this SIM card will no longer be able to write or delete data. If a card reader is launched in the future, it is recommended to buy one.
2. Risk of writing quantity: Although 5ber claims that it can write 15 eSIM cards, some netizens have experienced data errors after writing 8 cards. This is because the 5ber SIM card capacity is not large. The eSIM card data of some operators will be more than twice that of others. If multiple eSIM cards with large data are written, the total writing quantity may be reduced.
3. Production standard risk: 5ber eSIM cards are made according to the international GSMA standard. Although they are compatible with most eSIMs, it still depends on whether the eSIM provided by the operator supports it. Some netizens tried UltraMobile in the United States and encountered writing failures. Therefore, before purchasing an eSIM, search for successful cases.
4. Risk of certificate revocation: eSIM needs to use encryption certificates to ensure the security and legitimacy of communication. But to be honest, some people use eSIM cards for convenience and anonymity. Convenience and anonymity will inevitably breed malicious activities. This may not be the original intention of the eSIM brand, but it will increase the risk of certificate revocation. Once the certificate is revoked, the eSIM service will be interrupted.
Recently, when I signed up for MTN and Paga, I was shocked by the way Heige acted, and my mind was in a daze. After writing this article, I found that it had some "baner flavor", but I was too lazy to change it. I must insist on speaking human language in the future.
As for the educational email series, I will postpone it for now. GitHub's educational certification requires me to change my original account information, but it can't be approved no matter how many times I change it. I also don't want to use someone else's certification information on my account. I will register a new account when I have time and continue to try certification.
In the next article, I will complain about the weird purchasing experience of MTN. Buying an eSIM card is not a one-shot deal.
Okay, if you find it useful, just follow it.
If you want to try 5ber, you can use my invitation link, which may give you a 10% discount.
Invite link:https://sourl.cn/y4uxNz
Coupon code: playsoul
