eSIM - Now available on O2

[Chris_K]

UPDATE 24 Sep '20: 5G eSIM has now launched on O2. You'll need a 5G and eSIM compatible device.

O2 is excited to announce that customers can use eSIM technology on the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max, as well as the iPhone XS, XS Max, XR and the Google Pixel 3 and 3XL from 19 September 2019.

O2 customers need only pop into their local store or call customer services to request a new eSIM pack. You can then download an eSIM profile and swap your current plastic SIM card over to your new eSIM profile following the normal SIM swap process.

Customers will still have the option to use a traditional plastic SIM card should they wish.

We have a dedicated eSIM help & support page here, with many Q&A's.

[Theboynorm]

can anyone help, I have a New O2 Mobile Contract (Sim Only) iPhone 7, I have a Apple Watch Cellular 3 & a new eSIM Pay Monthly 4G, I've been trying for over a week calling O2, to get the Sim & eSIM into a Companion Connection.

I must say without any success, not for the want of trying by the staff, they have bene very patient and tried to help.

[Chris_K]

Hello everybody,

Just wanted to pop in and let everyone know the great news that 5G eSIM is now available on O2, and can be used by our Pay Monthly and Business customers. To make use of this, you need a device that's compatible with 5G and eSIM.

As always, details and FAQ's on our website.

[Hagadol1]

I have purchased an iPhone 12 Pro Max, arriving soon.

I have  Sim Only monthly contract.  I am out of contract.

I have ordered a 5G eSim.

Can all Sim Only monthly contracts be used for 5G (with a 5G

phone and sim / eSim) ?

In the local O2 store the assistant told me I would have start a new 

contract. He said some historical contracts were Ok some were not.

I called Customer Service twice.  Once was told no, once yes.

I posted a message here and was told all Sim Only monthly 

contracts can work wiht 5G (with 5G phone and sim / eSim).

So I am at 2-2 !

Any thoughts ?

[MI5]

@Hagadol1 

I'm sure you were told that all current o2 tariffs are 5g ready?

If you've had yours for more than 12 months you may well need to upgrade to a current simo tariff but the only way you'll know is to get a 5g sim and try it.

[NFH]

At https://www.o2.co.uk/help/phones-sims-and-devices/esim O2 stated:

• From 2nd February to 24th September 2020 “We’re not currently offering eSIM to our Pay As You Go customers. We’re working on this and it won’t be long before we can offer eSIMs to all our customers with compatible phones”.
• Since 1st October 2020 “We’re not currently offering esim to our Pay As You Go customers, but we’re working on being able to offer esims to anyone with a compatible phone as soon as possible”.

The change in the above text is evident from third party caches of the above web page at https://web.archive.org/web/20200601000000*/https://www.o2.co.uk/help/phones-sims-and-devices/esim

It is notable that O2 recently changed its description of the future timing of support for eSIMs for PAYG customers. What is taking O2 so long to implement this? When Vodafone launched eSIM in September, it did so for all customers simultaneously.

[Cleoriff]

@Chris_K?

[jonsie]

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@Cleoriff wrote:

@Chris_K?

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I believe he's on holiday?

[Cleoriff]

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@jonsie wrote:

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@Cleoriff wrote:

@Chris_K?

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I believe he's on holiday?

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Oh whoops....well he can answer when he comes back Lol

[Chris_K]

Apologies for the delay all.

I can see two recent questions above so will try and clear the air for both:

1) Regarding Pay As You Go eSIM, I'm afraid I don't have a definitive 'why not' answer or timescale I can provide. What I can say though is that not every network works the same, has the same systems, or same implementations of it. I can't say this alone is the reason for it, but more just an explanation that eSIM is a complex technology and implementing it to work seemlessly across many systems and processes can take time, and with many of out Pay As You Go systems being independant from our Pay Monthly ones, this adds an additional layer of complexity.

2) As for SIM Only - provided you have a 5G and eSIM compatible handset, on a compatible tariff, then there's no reason why this won't work. On older pre-5G era tariffs though, this may well not be compatible and you may need to upgrade for 5G to work. If you're on a tariff from before 17 Oct 2019 (when we launched our 5G network and first 5G tariffs) then this will be pre-5G and you'd need to move to a compatible tariff. The good news is all our current SIM Only tariffs are 5G compatible and range from 30-day contracts up to 18 months. You can check out the latest offers here, which depending on the SIM only tariff you're currently on, might provide the same or better data allowances for less.

[Mamborocks]

I am looking at Mobvoi Ticwatch 3 Pro LTE that uses eSIM for LTE calls.... When will eSIM support for Android Wear be available? I see eSIM for handsets is enabled but what about smartwatches! Vodafone seems to be leading the way and O2 is lagging behind!