Device compatibility

Does the iPhone Air support eSIM?

The iPhone Air is what decides whether a travel eSIM installs, not the Apple name on the box. Storage, radio and market variant all change from one model to the next, so every figure below was checked on this model.

Yes. The iPhone Air stores up to 8 eSIM profiles and can keep 2 active at the same time. Installing a travel eSIM takes about 40 seconds and does not touch your normal SIM.

Worth knowing about this modeleSIM only in every market. There is no physical tray at all, so a travel eSIM is the only way to add a second line.

Profiles stored

Active at the same time

2025

Released

Seconds to install, median

What the iPhone Air does with a travel eSIM

The iPhone Air is a phone, so the travel profile is a data line and your existing line stays the voice line. Calls and texts to your usual number keep arriving while Orbislo carries the browsing.

Installing writes the profile. Nothing is spent until it attaches to a network at the destination, so an install three weeks early costs exactly the same as one at the gate. Do it at home, on wifi, while you still have a connection to fix anything.

Storage and active lines

The iPhone Air holds 8 profiles, which is enough that most people never reach the limit. It still fills up if a provider issues a fresh disposable eSIM for every trip.

Active is how many lines run at the same time, and on the iPhone Air that is 2. Storage is how many profiles sit on the device waiting, and that is the number that runs out without warning.

Each destination's line installs in one tap from the Orbislo app, and while it is valid every refill lands on that same line. Most of Europe runs on a single line, so a trip through several neighbouring countries takes one slot rather than one per country.

Home line: calls and texts, so bank codes still arrive on your usual number.
Orbislo line: mobile data, with roaming switched on.
Automatic data switching: off, or the phone borrows the expensive line in a tunnel.

5G on the iPhone Air, and where it will not appear

The iPhone Air has a 5G radio and the travel profile uses it. Where a partner network runs 5G, you get 5G, on the same profile and at no extra cost.

88 of our 197 destinations are 4G only on the networks we buy from. On those the icon reads LTE whatever the handset can do, and no setting changes it.

Speed belongs to the network rather than to the profile.

What goes wrong on the iPhone Air, and the fix

Data roaming has to be switched on for this line. Your profile is issued outside the country you are standing in, so the device treats every attachment as roaming. Leave it off and the iPhone Air finds a network and then refuses to use it.

If the profile will not download at all, the order refunds automatically inside 60 seconds, with no ticket. Install again from the same order, because the profile is reissued to your account rather than lost.

On this device the sequence is Settings, Cellular, tap the Orbislo line, turn on Data Roaming. Then Settings, Cellular, Cellular Data, choose Orbislo, and turn off Allow Cellular Data Switching.

No service on the Orbislo line: roaming is off on that line.
Connected but nothing loads: mobile data still points at the home line.
Works, then stops after an hour: automatic data switching moved you back.
Still searching: airplane mode on for 20 seconds, off, then restart.

Your SIM tray, and tethering

The iPhone Air has no SIM tray at all, so there is nothing to remove. Both lines are eSIM profiles, and the travel profile is added beside whatever is already installed.

Tethering is included on every Orbislo plan at no extra charge. The iPhone Air can share the travel data with a laptop, a tablet or a watch, and nothing behind the hotspot needs a profile of its own.

What an Orbislo plan does once it is installed

Data never expires. A gigabyte you do not use in Lisbon is still there in Bangkok next year, metered plans have no throttle, and every customer gets 100 MB of free rescue data once a month on the line in use when the balance runs out. Unlimited runs full speed to 2 GB a day and then 1 Mbps.

One balance pays in all 197 destinations, and most of Europe runs on a single line, so a rail trip through three neighbouring countries is one install and one balance rather than three of each. Refills arrive on the line you already have, with no new plan or expiry date. Where a destination has more than one partner network, the line can move between them without you touching a setting.

How to install a travel eSIM on the iPhone Air

Open the Orbislo app and tap Install
Confirm in the Add Cellular Plan sheet iOS shows you
Leave the label as Orbislo
Turn on Data Roaming for the Orbislo line

Data roaming sounds like it will cost you money. On the Orbislo line it cannot, because it is how that line reaches partner networks abroad and there is no charge beyond the data you already bought.

The iPhone Air at a glance

Specification	iPhone Air
Takes an eSIM	Yes
Profiles stored	8
Active at the same time	2
5G on partner networks	Yes, where the network runs it
Physical SIM tray	None, both lines are eSIM
Voice on the travel line	Data only
Tethering	Included, no extra charge

Stored is how many profiles the device keeps. Active is how many run at the same time. Checked on this model rather than assumed from the brand.

iPhone Air eSIM questions

Does the iPhone Air support eSIM?

Yes. It stores 8 profiles and runs 2 at the same time. Installing an Orbislo profile takes about 40 seconds and does not touch the SIM you already have.

How many eSIMs can the iPhone Air hold?

8 stored, 2 active at once. Storage is the number that runs out, because a provider that issues a new profile for every trip fills it in a few holidays.

Will I lose my own number?

No. Keep the home line as the voice line and point mobile data at Orbislo. Calls and texts keep arriving on your usual number, as long as your home carrier delivers them abroad.

Do I have to turn roaming on?

Yes, on the Orbislo line only, and it cannot cost you anything. The profile is issued outside the country you are in, so every attachment counts as roaming.

Can I install before I fly?

Yes, and you should. The plan starts counting when the profile first attaches to a network abroad, so an install three weeks early costs the same as one at the gate.

Does tethering work on the iPhone Air?

Yes, on every plan and at no extra charge. Share the travel data from the hotspot with a laptop, a tablet or a watch. Nothing behind it needs a profile of its own.

Pick the destination, then install its line in one tap

Take the metered wallet for maps and messaging, because the balance never expires. Take unlimited if you tether a laptop or stream, and read the 2 GB a day figure before you do.

Get an eSIM for your trip Full install guide See pricing Check coverage

The iPhone Air by market

United States, Canada, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands (A3260): One iPhone Air model, A3260, covers the United States, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the Gulf states, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Every iPhone Air lacks a SIM tray, so any travel data plan has to be installed as an eSIM.
Japan (A3516): Japan has its own iPhone Air, model A3516. It is eSIM only like every other Air, with two eSIMs active at once, so a traveller from Japan keeps the home line on one eSIM and a travel eSIM on the other.
Other countries and regions, including the United Kingdom, Europe and Hong Kong (A3517): The iPhone Air sold in the United Kingdom is model A3517. Like every Air it is not compatible with physical SIM cards, so a travel eSIM is the only way to add a local data plan, running beside the home eSIM with two lines active.
China mainland (A3518): The China mainland iPhone Air, model A3518, is one of the few iPhones that support eSIM in China mainland, and it activates by eSIM only. It stores up to two eSIMs, which matters when adding a travel eSIM for a trip.

Networks on the iPhone Air

Even the United States iPhone Air, model A3260, connects to sub-6 GHz 5G only, with no mmWave bands listed. It does list 5G bands n14, n29 and n71 and LTE bands 14, 29 and 71.
The iPhone Air uses Apple's C1X cellular modem. The international model A3517 lists 5G bands such as n1, n3, n7, n8, n20, n28, n41, n77 and n78, and does not list n14, n29 or n71.
The Japanese iPhone Air, model A3516, supports LTE bands 11 and 21 but does not list 5G bands n14, n29 or n71, or LTE bands 14, 29 or 71. It runs on sub-6 GHz 5G.
The China mainland iPhone Air, model A3518, drops 5G band n53 and LTE band 53 from its list. It stays eSIM only, with two eSIMs active at once, and uses sub-6 GHz 5G.
The iPhone Air runs two eSIMs at the same time and supports Voice over LTE and Wi-Fi calling. With no physical SIM option, a traveller keeps the home number on one eSIM and the travel data plan on the other.
With two eSIMs active on an iPhone Air, both numbers can call and text, and only one of them uses mobile data at a time. Choose the travel eSIM as the data line under Settings, then Cellular, then Cellular Data.
Roadside Assistance via satellite on the iPhone Air works in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, including for international visitors, and needs an active SIM. In Australia it connects to clubs such as NRMA, RACV and RACQ on iOS 18.4 or later.
Satellite features are not offered on iPhones bought in China mainland, so the A3518 model has none. An iPhone Air bought in Hong Kong or Macao does have them, as Apple offers satellite there from iPhone 16e onward.

Worth knowing about the iPhone Air

A China mainland iPhone Air can add a local carrier eSIM while travelling outside China mainland, as long as Location Services is on. eSIMs from carriers outside China mainland cannot be installed while the phone is inside China mainland.
The China mainland iPhone Air holds up to two eSIMs. If both slots are in use, one must be deleted to add a travel eSIM abroad, and getting the deleted home eSIM back means a visit to the carrier's store.
Setting up an eSIM on an iPhone normally needs Wi-Fi or a hotspot, but eSIM-only models such as the iPhone Air can activate without Wi-Fi in some countries or regions. It is simplest to install a travel eSIM while still on Wi-Fi at home.
An iPhone Air must not be carrier locked to use a travel eSIM from another provider. Under Settings, then General, then About, Carrier Lock should read No SIM Restrictions, and only the selling carrier can unlock it.
With iOS 26 or later, the iPhone Air can move a phone number over from an Android phone on Android 16 or later where the carrier supports it, for example AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon in the United States, or Bell and Telus in Canada.
The iPhone Air is among the iPhone models compatible with iOS 27, so it can install the latest major iOS release.

What the iPhone Air holds

eSIM profiles it can store: 8
Active at the same time: 2
Released: 2025
Form factor: Phone
Network generation: 5G capable where the network carries it
Physical SIM tray: No tray, eSIM only

How the iPhone Air compares with other Apple models

iPhone 17 Pro Max: iPhone 17 Pro Max, 2025, stores 8, 2 active
iPhone 17 Pro: iPhone 17 Pro, 2025, stores 8, 2 active
iPhone 17: iPhone 17, 2025, stores 8, 2 active
iPhone 16 Pro Max: iPhone 16 Pro Max, 2024, stores 8, 2 active
iPhone 16 Pro: iPhone 16 Pro, 2024, stores 8, 2 active
iPhone 16: iPhone 16, 2024, stores 8, 2 active