5GSA iPhone 16 Pro Max

[gbotley]

I’ve got a 16 Pro Max, on a plan purchased in September 2024 (after the 5GSA was cited as supported) and can’t enable it on my device. The iPhone says the sim is not supported and to contact EE. EE wants to shift me to a eSIM, but I’m not too confident in them after issues with work devices. Is this the only way to get it? I’m in Bristol, which is in the coverage area. 

[bristolian]

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@shaunjenks215 wrote:

Unfortunately it’s not easy with EE to see if it’s your sim. O2 have sims that specifically say r15 on them and have SA ready written on the packaging.

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Getting into terminology such as R15 with CS - quite possibly unnecessarily - is a complication that in the vast majority of cases will not be needed.

In any situation where you suspect your SIM is the cause of any service issue, there are easy ways to check this. The SIM serial number will be a record of when it was issued, or a 2way SIM-swap in a retail store will also suffice.

The vast majority of physical SIMs in circulation are of a compatible standard - be aware but don't overcomplicate until problems arise.

[shaunjenks215]

Should be able to see the toggle in cellular settings then. Out of interest how old is the SIM card that you are using?  This is my cellular settings page then Voice and data on the iPhone 16 PM. Guessing you don’t see this toggle? 

[gbotley]

 How it appears for me. reckon I’ve had the sim since the 12 Pro came out, which was my last handset. 

[shaunjenks215]

Can’t see the picture sorry. So the sim is a few years old. I would definitely do a sim swap and see if that makes any difference. If you do it in store just say that you’ve been asked by support to do a sim swap to see if that resolves an issue. They may not charge you then. As Bristolian says above there’s no need to get into the specifics of r15 sim and Standalone because the chances are store staff will have limited knowledge of that side of things. 

[gbotley]

Thanks all,

I’ve requested a replacement on the app. I can understand the store staff not knowing, but customer services (“tech support”) should probably know.

[bristolian]

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@gbotley wrote:

I can understand the store staff not knowing, but customer services (“tech support”) should probably know.

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That depends on your understanding of "technical"

[MasterWill]

Hi @gbotley .  The reason tehy recommended the eSIM journey as it would be almost instantaneous for you to receive the sim and available services.  I have been using eSIM for the last 3 years without issue.  Kind regards 

[MasterWill]

Hi all.  You can remove the physical sim and see if states "EE1501" on the SIM card itself.  Kind regards

[MasterWill]

Can you check the SIM card - does it say EE1501 on the card?  if not, it's not R5 release sim card.  Kind regards 

[gbotley]

An eSIM was activated on my account and as service on the regular sim disconnected soon after I had no choice but to use the eSIM as the physical one hadn’t arrived.

That said, 5GSA is working on the eSIM fine now.