The Nerd Series

Physical SIM vs eSIM: Is Migrating to Latest Technology Worth it?

Telecomm May, 09, 2025

Aren’t times great now?

Your smartphone lets you operate many functions with a few clicks; you can call people text or even read many more blogs from The NerdSeries. With so much available you can’t deny that phones have come a long way since 1876. Plus it’s not just about the phones sim cards are also evolving!

The world had its first sim card in 1991 and then years later the mini-sim format came then micro-sim nano-sim and now embedded sim. The embedded sim stands out from the other formats but is it worth the hype? If it is what features help it to be so? Plus where exactly can you shop for one?

Don’t worry! The NerdSeries has answers to all these questions as this post will help you have a clear picture of eSIM vs physical sim. We also want to tell you about Lyca Mobile the platform to own your eSIM card in the United Kingdom. With reasonable prices and coverage the platform has already catered to many users and you can be the next.

However it is advisable that you first read this post till the end.

What is an eSIM?

As the name gives a hint an eSIM or embedded sim is a kind of sim card built as an internal part of a device or system. Instead of the integrated sim circuit on a removal card this SIM includes software installed in an eUICC chip connected to a device. With eUICC compatibility you can program it again with new information. If it is not that way the eSIM is programmed with IMSI/ICCID during its manufacturing and stays permanent.

Benefits of eSIM:

Here are some common characteristics of eSIM:

  1. Small in size
  2. No physical damage
  3. Secure from duplicity
  4. Multiple cellular profiles
  5. Easy to trace

Read Next: What Benefits Do Lyca Mobile's SIM-Only Plans Offer in the UK?

eSIM vs Physical SIM: What’s the Difference?

Of course there are a lot of aspects to differentiate embedded sims from traditional formats. Here is a clear picture of the same:

Compatibility: Do We Need eSIM compatible phone?

Starting from physical Sim cards they come in different sizes which can matter for your device compatibility. All mobile phones need a sim card to support them but not all use the same sizes. So you will need the one that’ll suit your device such as a Nano sim. Sim cards are also locked to a particular network.

If you pick an eSIM card you will not have to worry about the size as you need to install the SIM software on a device. The phone has to be eSIM compatible which means it has eSIM hardware. These days most mobile manufacturers have introduced eSIM mobile phones opening plenty of opportunities in the market.

Security: Are They Secure?

Have you heard of sim jacking or sim splitting or sim swap? It is a kind of attack where fraudsters falsely trick network operators to activate a new sim under their possession. This begins with them gathering your information and then reaching your mobile network. While traditional sim owners can be victims of this attack transferring to eSIM won’t make much difference. However this is not the only facet of security with sim cards.

If your device undergoes theft they can format it and take out the existing traditional sim card. In the case of eSIM doing that becomes difficult as the thief would require the owner’s password to delete the prevalent data. So yes you can eSIM more securely for cases of theft.

Switching the Device: How Easy Is That?

Alright! You can’t stay with one smartphone for the rest of your life and would want to switch sometimes. So do eSIMS make it any easy? What’s the procedure for traditional sim cards? The traditional sim cards make it easy for you to switch your device; you need to check the size of the sim cards and transfer. You will need a new sim card if you want a new carrier.

However the case is different for eSIMs. Android users can not switch eSIM profiles from one device to another. You will have to deactivate your old device which you can activate on the new one. If you are an iOS user its inbuilt quick transfer feature will do the trick.

Coverage: Does it Make Any Difference?

Nobody likes it when their call gets disconnected or the internet slows down right? But do you know why does that happen? This all can depend on your phones and carriers so does eSIM have a role to play? Does it make a difference? eSIM is a digital form of sim card and can be the way to a whole world of flexibility for managing service and phone plans. It can allow you to add a new number or even another carrier while having your carrier and phone number.

You can even opt for dual sim and manage two different lines especially when traveling. It can let you switch between plans easily to use networks without making any replacement arrangements.

Plans: Which Ones Are Affordable?

Well well well here’s something that would need your attention the most- plans for the sim card. There are different kinds of plans you can choose from. We are evaluating one of the sim-only plans for Lyca Mobile sim cards. Its Free-as-you-go is a reliable plan that offers high quality at a reasonable price with other added benefits. If we evaluate it with the eSIM plan by the same network operator you will be able to use the same plan. Purchasing it is also easy you can either visit a retail shop or shop online at their website.

Why Lyca Mobile for eSIM?

Well we have mentioned Lyca more than two times by now and it won’t be a surprise if you are thinking about why TheNerdSeries is talking about this mobile operator. Well why wouldn’t we Lyca is an excellent virtual mobile network operator and we don’t want any good deal left from our users. Take a look at what Lyca Mobile sim cards have to offer to you:

  1. Affordable SIM-only deals as they have amazing offers
  2. European roaming saving your bucks
  3. No contracts
  4. No credit check
  5. Amazing network coverage as it offers 4G/5G coverage

Conclusion: Is eSIM Worth Investing In?

If we cut to the chase and tell you directly whether it’s worth investing in eSIM the answer can be a YES! This is because these embedded sim cards are reliable. They are just a different version of the sim cards but can make a difference in safety terms. Switching the device also becomes easy if you are an iOS user. In the case of Android you will have to deactivate and reactivate your account on a new device. However the new device has to have eSIM compatibility. You can have a clearer picture of the benefits of eSIM in this post.

Well now let’s talk about purchasing an embedded sim card. You can either go to a retail shop or buy online. Talking of the network provider the affordable and contract-free plans with reliable coverage make Lyca Mobile eSIMs one of the best ones in the UK. So what are you waiting for? Go and shop!

Stay connected with The NerdSeries for more blogs.