You can now use the eSIM transfer tool on your Pixel & other Android phones

The eSIM format is the future, and although it has many advantages, there are also some drawbacks including the difficulty of transferring the plan from your current physical SIM to a new eSIM-powered device. The main problem is that there is no ‘universal’ method since it varies between carriers, which can be confusing and annoying when you don’t know exactly what to do to complete the migration. With this in mind, Google developed an eSIM transfer tool not only for Pixel phones, but for all eligible Android devices.

Google announced the feature during last year’s Mobile World Congress, but the first traces of its implementation were detected recently. Now, the eSIM transfer tool is being rolled out widely, and although at first it was thought that it could be an exclusive feature of Pixel devices, users of phones from other brands have also received it. For instance, Android Police describes how one of its readers surprisingly received the notification of transferring a physical SIM to an eSIM on their new device (from an LG V60 ThinQ to a Galaxy S24 Ultra), simply requiring scanning a QR code.

It’s noteworthy that carriers must support the new eSIM transfer tool in order to use it. During the feature announcement, Google mentioned that Deutsche Telekom and its spin-off companies (like T-Mobile) would be the first to be compatible with the new system, so it is possible that only T-Mobile supports the tool in the US currently . The source also included images of SIM-to-eSIM transfer tests carried out between a Galaxy S24 Ultra and a Pixel 8 Pro, confirming that it works without problems and in both directions.

In any case, it is probably a matter of time before all large carriers adapt, as it would not only make the process easier for users but would also take a lot of work off their shoulders by not having to deal with potentially hundreds (or thousands ) of individual cases of people having problems when migrating from SIM to eSIM.

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