Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipsets become the first to enable integrated ‘iSIMs’ in smartphones

Qualcomm and Thales have announced the certification of the first Integrated SIM, or “iSIM.” The iSIM technology provides the same card-free digital sign-ups and security as eSIMs, but is built directly into a phone’s main processor. The technology saves space and potentially reduces costs, as phones no longer require a dedicated chip for SIM cards.

While the companies have not yet revealed which phones will use the iSIM technology, it supports the same remote provisioning standard as eSIMs, so service providers will not need to update their systems to support iSIM-based devices. However, it is not guaranteed that phone manufacturers will pass on any savings from this technology to consumers.

This advancement in technology may encourage more manufacturers to adopt digital SIMs, but wider adoption may not occur until more affordable chips with iSIM support become available. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is a high-end platform, and it may take time for this technology to become commonplace in lower-priced phones.

The timing of this announcement is convenient, as many phones now support eSIM, and some iPhone models no longer have physical SIM trays. As the traditional SIM card becomes less prevalent, the iSIM technology could hasten the transition to a virtual counterpart.