In a clever move that’ll secure Apple and its chosen international carriers profit, the iPad has opted to use micro SIM cards for its 3G signal. Frustratingly for us consumers, this means that you won’t be able to just take the 3G SIM out of your phone and bung it into the iPad for (essentially) gratis on-the-go browsing.
This is undoubtedly annoying, but it does give us a clue as to who’s going to carry the 3G iPad tariffs in the UK. Gemalto, a micro SIM manufacturer, today claims that O2 and Orange have been buying up the diminutive cards in their masses.
Does this mean that said networks will blag the iPad exclusively? Maybe. The fact that AT&T are the exclusive carrier in the States (as was the case with the iPhone) suggests that O2 will definitely be on board when the device ships in June. Having said that, Steve Jobs did mention that international iPads will be unlocked to any network. If this is the case, then O2 and Orange will be stocking up on micro SIMs merely to be able to fill orders from customers who choose their network over any other.
We’ll let you know as soon as we find out who will be carrying the iPad in the UK for sure, but in the mean time, get the scoop on Apple’s shiny new tablet below:
Apple iPad – all the details:
– T3’s live-blog of Apple’s iPad event
– Apple iPad: the full spec announced
– Apple iPad: 10 things you need to know
– Apple iPad to take on Amazon with iBooks?
Link: Via Electric Pig
