iPhone Air to begin pre-order in China after telecom operators approved for eSIM services

China Telecom

13/10/2025 15:22

BEIJING, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Apple's AAPL.O iPhone Air would be available for pre-order in China later this week, as major Chinese telecom operators obtained regulatory approvals for eSIM services, the company said on Monday.

The iPhone Air, priced from 7,999 yuan ($1,121.56), will be the only model in China to have service providers' support for an eSIM - a digital SIM embedded in the device.

The country's three major telecom companies - China Mobile 600941.SS, China Telecom 601728.SS and China Unicom 600050.SS - have all been cleared by regulators to provide trial eSIM services, a website affiliated with the industry ministry said on Monday.

"Excited to announce iPhone Air will be available next week and pre-orders start this Friday, October 17!,"​ Apple CEO Tim Cook, who is currently in Shanghai, said on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, weeks after the iPhone 17's launch in the country.

($1 = 7.1320 Chinese yuan renminbi)

 (Reporting by Xiuhao Chen and Ryan Woo
Editing by Tomasz Janowski)

 ((Xiuhao.Chen@thomsonreuters.com;))