Apple’s upcoming iPhone 17 series is scheduled for release on 19 September in most countries, but the iPhone Air will not be available in China at launch, owing to a delay in regulatory approval for its embedded SIM (eSIM).
According to Apple’s website, all three state-owned mobile network operators in China — China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom — will support eSIM for the iPhone Air. However, the availability of the device remains dependent on official clearance.
The TechCrunch has reported that the pre-orders for the remaining models in the iPhone 17 range are set to begin on Friday.
As reported by the South China Morning Post, Apple said it was working with the relevant authorities to make the iPhone Air available in China “as soon as possible.” The newspaper cited a message by China Mobile on Weibo, in which the network confirmed that eSIM functionality had been enabled for mobile phones. No date for the release was given.
China Telecom also published a post on RedNote indicating plans to launch its own eSIM service on 19 September, the same day as the global release of the iPhone 17 range. The post was later removed, according to the South China Morning Post.
