The Big Billion Days of Flipkart is just a few ticks away. So is the Amazon's Great Indian Festival. Apple has just released its latest version of the iPhone 14. Android manufacturers have also upped their ante offering 5G enabled latest smartphones. So what are you waiting for? Or if you are just like me and can't wait, read on.
In this era of internet-based connectivity, the dual sim is the norm. Most latest models offer dual sim, but does every phone come with dual sim slots? iPhone doesn't! I bought iPhone 12 after making sure the specifications clearly say dual sim enabled model. When I got the handset and opened the sim slot, I was shocked to see that it could only hold one sim! So where can I insert the other sim?
That's where eSim comes into the picture. I had a secondary Airtel connection as a backup. The process of converting this Airtel sim to eSim is not straightforward. The first step is to register your mobile number with an email address. Here are the three methods by which you can try to get your email address registered with the phone number.
Method 1: Download Airtel App from the Play store or Apple store, and install it. Go to your profile page, and update with your email address first. After email verification, your email should get registered with your mobile number. Ideally, this method works, but mostly it won't.
Method 2: Tweet to Airtel_Presence asking them to give you a callback. You will get a call within a few hours from a customer care representative. Mention your email address and ask them to register it from their side.
Method 3: Call 121. After trying various IVR options, you will be able to reach customer care support. Mention your email address and ask them to register it from their side.
For Methods 2 and 3, after registration with the customer support executive, you will get a text message asking you to confirm your email address within 8 to 12 hours. If you fail to confirm, you have to repeat the process again.
Now that you have an email id registered with your mobile number, you can proceed to the next step: Open text messaging and send a text message "eSIM email-address" to 121 (replace email-address with your registered mail id). If your email registration is successful, this step will directly ask you to confirm the eSIM initiation request via text message first.
After text confirmation, you will still get a call from Airtel to confirm your request to change to eSIM. Once you re-verify, Airtel will send a QR code to your registered mail id.
Now, open your iPhone, go to mobile settings, and click Add data plan. Scan the QR code to complete the eSIM process. This will take a few minutes to complete, and you will be able to use your old sim till then. Once your eSIM gets activated, your old sim will stop working. As a precautionary measure, you will not be able to send or receive any text messages for 24 hours. But you can make calls and use the data during this time.
Note that the QR code works only once. During the activation process, if your handset shows some error, do not worry. Wait for a few hours, restart your handset and see if your phone can get connected through eSIM slot. If not, call 121 and ask for support.
Do not delete your eSIM slot from your handset. This process can be done only once. For more instructions, check your email or contact Airtel customer support.