Update 14/Dec – This company appears to have stopped selling their mobile plans already. Existing customers have been advised that the service is paused and that they will have their plans cancelled in January. Most odd.
The original post…
Most mobile phones support eSims nowadays. A replacement for SIM cards that is electronically stored on your mobile rather than needing the traditional plastic sim.
My main eSIM mobile contract is with EE which on the whole has been excellent. I use this mobile plan with an iPhone.
When out and about, like most I still suffer occasional weak mobile signals in some remote places and I have often discovered that perhaps users of another network have good coverage. This happened to me recently when out and about with my sister.
When buying a mobile phone, it’s pointless having it if you cannot get a signal and those occasions can be frustrating. The answer is a second eSIM to allow better coverage and run two eSims on the same phone. However until now, this has not been a possibility for me due to cost.
For a while I had monitored eSim prices to get a data only/cheap deal – a fallback e-Sim to use when I cannot get a signal on my mainline. The second eSIM supporting data only so I can still iMessage, WhatsApp or use a parking app.
This week I installed a new eSim that starts from £2 a month for 2gb of data. A safety net that I will only switch to as and when needed. At £2, you cannot go wrong to improve coverage when you struggle for signal.
The operator is new and called YMobile. They just offer data plans and the prices appear reasonable. For me. An ideal second connection for emergencies or when I need a data connection.
Installation was simple, I downloaded the app (android and IOS available), set up payment, downloaded the eSim and configured my phone. My main EE eSim is set for all data, voice and calls. The new YMobile eSim is set for data only that I can toggle to use as and when required.
When choosing a second eSIM, you have to make sure you make the right decision though. As I am on EE, hopefully this is the correct choice having YMobile as this network appears to use Three. Hopefully providing fuller coverage for me when required.
If you are not worried about data use, you can set your phone to use the second eSIM automatically when the primary account is struggling on data. I decided not to do that as I often download music and so not want to waste the secondary eSim using up data in downloading music by accident.
On my iPhone screen, my signal bar is now set with two lines of data to report carrier strength. The top being the primary EE signal and the second being my connection for the YMobile data line.
Hopefully this second eSIM will prove useful. Certainly if you want a data only sim, the prices are wet reasonable.
As a new YMobile customer, I am curious as to how often I will use this backup and how successful it will be. I will write a follow up to let you know how I get on. To sign up, download their app from your Android or Apple app stores.
