Can someone answer some basic questions about iPhones and digital IMEI (eSIM)?

Submitted by upside_down_chair t3_yfkjn9 in iphone

I live in Canada and travel to the US a lot. I've decided I should get a pre-paid account in the US instead of paying my carrier's exorbitant roaming rates. I was going to buy a T-Mobile SIM but then I thought about a digital IMEI. I'm not sure I fully understand how they work.

Essentially, I want to shut off my home carrier which uses my physical SIM card while I'm in the US and only use the eSIM? I have an iPhone SE 2020. AFAIK, it works with dual SIM.

Is it possible to put my home number in airplane mode so that it still works when I'm on WiFi but leave the eSIM connected to the US carrier? I don't want my home SIM to ever connect in roaming mode while I'm in the US.

One thing that concerns me is this part in the support doc https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT209044:

"By default, your iPhone will use the same number that you used the last time you called that contact"

This is what I *don't* want to happen. I want to use my contacts but use my eSIM number when I make a call in the US.

Am I better of just buying a physical SIM and replacing the one in my phone while I'm in the US?

TIA.

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Comments

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coffeeisnotlatte t1_iu3x6wu wrote

You’re fine, just turn your physical sim off. I have a physical and esim and usually turn the physical one off (it’s got 5GB of free data, would be helpful if my iPhone ever broke for example)

Everything will go through your esim then as if it’s the only sim

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Pizzastevee t1_iu43tkr wrote

You can use esim only and have an American phone number

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SnooPears4546 t1_iu4ei0n wrote

It won’t connect using the old number if it’s off. It will just say that this number is no longer available and do you want to use another number. I do what you’re describing all the time when traveling.

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