• The most convenient thing about using an eSIM
  • You don’t need to wait for the physical card to arrive at your home; you can receive the installation barcode as early as the same day.
  • When you encounter a situation abroad, you can switch networks or buy a new one at any time.
  • You don’t need to insert or remove the card; the SIM card won’t easily pop out.
• Jesse’s phone for testing: Samsung S24. Because Samsung has been slow to release eSIM functionality for Taiwan users, Jesse found a company like Xesim to fulfill his goal of using eSIM on his Samsung. Using eSIM means no need to swap physical cards, which is very convenient for Jesse when testing multiple SIM cards.
• Heads up! For this type of card, you’ll need to install the eSIM through the card’s own app. Jesse thinks app stability is pretty important.

XESIM

XESIM is a new brand founded by the technical team from another similar company, 5BER. They have really solid technical skills, and in over a year of using their app, I haven’t run into any issues.

• According to online media reports, the 5BER team has stopped selling cards due to funding issues. The entire technical team has now established a new company called Xesim.
• The app itself is stable to operate, building on the technical experience from previous products.
  • There are many annotation features, including his annotation function. The new XESIM app also adds a manual annotation function for card expiration dates, which allows cardholders to manage their cards more effectively.
  • Xesim’s special version app offers a paid card writing service for 5BER users, which will be available even after 5BER stops its service. This way, customers who have already purchased will experience less loss. This service on Xesim will be a paid service. The current charge is five US dollars for ten times. If you need many uses (like Jesse), you might consider buying a new card.
  • Existing cards can still be used and managed or switched via Xesim at no extra cost.
• Xesim is giving Uncle Jesse’s travel buddies a 10% discount. Use the code ‘unclejesse’ at checkout via this link: order link.
• It’s recommended to buy at least the XESIM X2 version (unlimited downloads).

Card packaging

Old 5BER card management

Xesim’s special version APP can provide 5BER ESIM writing services (if 5BER stops service). This will reduce the losses for friends who have already purchased. This service will be a paid service on Xesim. The current charge is five US dollars for ten times. If you need many times (like Jesse), you can consider buying a new card.

If you want to use a card that can manage your old 5BER ESIM, you need to install the official website version directly (not the STORE version).

App Management Card

AIC CARD

• This is a Taiwanese brand’s card. The bottom line is that the cards are cheap and available online, but the app is unstable. When I tested it in June, I could tell that many settings were still very engineer-focused, which might be a bit much for the average user.
• If the app is unstable, it might cause the eSIM download to fail. In many cases, eSIMs can only be downloaded once and cannot be downloaded again.
• No download limit
• There was an error when I first downloaded the eSIM.

Card

First download encountered an issue

Add a card normally (first card)

Add a card normally (second card)

The second chapter’s card flow seems more complete right now, and the eSIM download process is relatively more complete.