Two 2018 iPhone models will combine a SIM card with Apple SIM to offer dual standby capabilities?

A report in China's 21st Century Business Herald says that two of the three new Apple iPhone models to be unveiled this September will feature dual SIM-dual standby capabilities, only units sold in China will be equipped with a tray that accepts two SIM cards. In other countries, two of the 2018 iPhone handsets will come with a single card slot and will add the virtual Apple SIM in order to support dual SIM features.

The Apple SIM launched in 2014, embedded inside the Apple iPad Air 2 (see image at the top of this article). This allows the user to quickly change his or her wireless provider depending on which one is offering the best pricing, connectivity, or features at the time. While more than 180 countries support Apple SIM, China is not one of them. That explains why two of the 2018 iPhone models to be launched there later this year, will have a dual SIM card tray.

According to the report, adding dual SIM-dual standby capabilities to the iPhone could pump up sales in Asian and African markets. Statistics from the China Internet Network Information Center state that 3 million to 4 million smartphone owners in China use multiple SIM cards. A person working in the mobile phone sales channel in China says that many of them have purchased an Android phone due to the iPhone's lack of dual SIM support, and because of batteries that have a capacity lower than 3000mAh. He adds that the iPhone has more influence in China than Android handsets, and as a result this news will be a big blow to Android phone manufacturers there.

Dual SIM dual standby means that the user has to select which of the two cards will make and receive calls. Dual SIM Active allows both cards to receive calls at the same time.

source: 21stCenturyBusinessHerald (translated)