Nano SIM
If you have gotten yourself an iPhone 5, then you would have had the chance to insert the smallest SIM card in the world - the nano SIM - into your prized possession.
How small is it? Here's a comparison with the standard SIM card.
iPhone 5 owners would probably be nonchalant about the new SIM format, but one thing is for sure: in the event that your iPhone 5 breaks down, you will not be able to use any other mobile device in the market with your nano SIM.
Unless, you purchase a nano SIM adapter, which allows you to hold the nano SIM within a plastic frame the size of a micro SIM or the normal SIM, depends on which one you require.
It's available at some mobile shops, but beware of exorbitant prices. I was at Sim Lim Square a few days back, and the ground floor shop was selling for S$15.90. I went to the fifth floor and found a shop selling the same brand for S$9.90.
If you want even cheaper, some local online shops like Qoo10 is selling for below S$5. Over time, prices will fall. I bought my micro SIM adapter a year go for less than S$2.
Don't save on it. If you own an iPhone 5, BUY IT. This is your insurance in case your iPhone 5 breaks down. Else, there is no other way to use your nano SIM except to get another iPhone 5.
Lightning
Unless you bought spares, the new Lightning connector cable will probably be in your bag, following wherever you are. It is your iPhone 5 lifeline, the cable that allows you to plug to your office laptop, your portable battery pack, to charge your iPhone 5. If you lose it or spoil it, then there is no way to charge your iPhone 5. Buy extra cables from Apple stores at S$28. Some online shops are already taking pre-orders and will be shipping OEM versions in October, but don't count on it, because Apple has incorporated some sort of encryption chip which could render the OEM versions unusable.
I'm sure Apple means well when they redesigned the connector and reduced the SIM card size. Apple has the market influence to implement new formats. Over time, people will embrace the new connector, third party manufacturers will support them, and new mobile products might also deploy nano SIM as their choice of SIM cards, possibly skipping the micro SIM altogether (currently there are less than a dozen mobile devices selling in Singapore that uses micro SIM).Labels: iPhone, Life, Tech
