Apple Strongarms Consumers Again By Removing iPhone 14 SIM Card Slot, But Why?

Apple has removed yet another port from the iPhone and has bid farewell to the SIM card tray. The tech giant made it official at its Far Out event on September 7, when it announced that the entire iPhone 14 lineup of smartphones would only have eSIM available.

Smartphones have evolved significantly in the last decade and ditched a number of features many users had grown accustomed to. One of the first features that disappeared was the headphone jack. Apple led the charge back in 2016, when the company launched its iPhone 7 without a headphone jack. The move at the time infuriated many, but Android phone makers followed suit shortly after. Now, Apple has taken another physical feature from users in the form of a SIM card tray.

During the company's official announcement of its iPhone 14 family of smartphones last week, part of its news was "So long, SIM tray." The tech company sold the idea as a convenience feature, adding that an eSIM can't be removed if your iPhone is ever lost or stolen, and that it's possible to have multiple phone numbers and data plans on a single device.

But not everyone is excited about the news. Joshua Vergara tweeted after the reveal, "I'm sorry I can't get over this. So first it was the headphone jack, Apple just made that a thing and it was a big pain for a bit. Now no SIM card so if you're traveling, you're forced to pay for international roaming on your eSIM from US carriers?!"

One service provider seemed to love the idea of removing the SIM card tray, however. Mike Katz, Chief Marketing Officer for TMobile, tweeted after the Far Out event that is was "Awesome to (see) like-minded areas of focus between @TMobile & #AppleEvent. Specifically... eSIM tech in the iPhone14 that's perfect for out NEW Network Pass & Easy Switch."

While someone who claims to work for Verizon, @Jasmine21190639, responded to one of Vergara's tweets about the missing SIM card tray, stating that "As a Verizon employee we try not to use eSims as much as possible and will always activate with a physical SIM card just because of how many issues it has with activations."

Although many will be unhappy with this move, it's likely that Android phones will follow suit, just as was that case with the headphone jack -- the only question is when. While Apple has not provided a way of adding additional storage via micro SD cards, many Android phones still use the SIM card tray as a method of allowing its users to do so. If the SIM card tray does disappear from all smartphones, it will more than likely also mean the end of consumers being able to expand storage as well.

What are you thoughts on Apple removing the SIM card tray from its iPhone lineup? Do you see it as a positive, or do think it will cause more issues in the long run for customers? Let us know in the comments.