iPad Pro 9.7" :: Built-in SIM

by Volker Weber

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When you buy an iPad Air with LTE modem and you don't use a SIM, it will tell you "Missing SIM" when you reboot. And it will indicate there is no SIM in the upper left corner. I always put in an old defunct SIM to get around this error message. I just went into Mobile Data and switched if off.

With the new iPad Pro 9.7", you will get your empty SIM slot for your own SIM. But you can also use the Apple SIM that's already included in the device, hidden away in its belly. When you go into Settings/Mobile Data, you have a new button that lets you set up the account you want. The iPad loads a list of available carriers in the country you are currently in. For Germany this is Deutsche Telekom and two other virtual carriers I never heard of.

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Pricing for Deutsche Telekom is reasonable. You can get the same rates by buying a SIM from the store. The iPad makes it easier because you don't have to get a physical SIM first. Think of it as a store front.

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The other two were less reasonable. I wonder what the prices will look like when I switch this on abroad. I was also told this is not an "eSIM" but an "Apple SIM". This photo from Apple.com suggests I can get a good deal while in the US:

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Comments

I think you are already "abroad" in Germany - that is a US "global" tariff.
Just don't go to FInland or Luxembourg ... or Poland. ;-)

https://alwaysonlinewireless.com/images/AOW_RatePlans_v2-1.ec22acc0.pdf

John Keys, 2016-04-20

Yes, that is true for the other two. For Deutsche Telekom I am local. I would hope to get even better deals in the US from T-Mobile for instance.

I have a SIM that I use in my iPhone while in the US. $3/day for 200 MB and unlimited calls/texts. That is no longer available and I might lose the contract. I would just go in the iPad instead, since I never used the calls and texts.

Volker Weber, 2016-04-20

T-Mobile in the UK have a prepay sim (if you can still find them) where ¢20 gets you 6 months data.

My daughter has one in her iPhone at the moment - over the last 2 years (4 top ups) she has "run out" of data once, alas we can not find any way of learning what that magic limit is.

How T-Mobile keep this offer going is beyond me. My daughter lives on snapchat and iMessage and Instagram and WhatsApp. I don't think she's made an actual call in a very very long time.

Highly recommended.

Ian Bradbury, 2016-04-20

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