Qualcomm and Vodafone show working smartphone with e-SIM integrated in SOC

Qualcomm, together with Vodafone and Thales, has demonstrated a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G with Snapdragon 888-soc, where the phone has a working mobile connection via the e-SIM integrated in the soc. The Snapdragon 888 no longer requires a separate e-SIM chip.

The chipmaker previously announced that the Snapdragon 888 has an integrated e-SIM, but now Qualcomm, together with Vodafone and Thales, has shown for the first time that the iSIM is used in practice. With iSIM, a separate chip is no longer required for the e-SIM, but it is located in Qualcomm’s Secure Processing Unit in the soc. It works with Thales’ iSIM operating system.

With the proof-of-concept, Qualcomm has shown that iSIM is ready for commercial use and works with existing network equipment. Vodafone and Qualcomm say that because no separate chip or physical SIM card is needed anymore, it is possible to connect more devices to mobile internet with an iSIM. In addition to smartphones, mobile PCs, VR headsets and industrial IoT applications could more easily provide mobile data connections, Qualcomm says.

According to Qualcomm, another advantage of iSIM is that there is more space on the motherboard of a smartphone, because a separate chip is no longer needed. In addition, the integrated SIM would use energy more efficiently and the company is talking about improved security. It is not clear when private individuals can use iSIMs.