iPhone 5 to Feature a Smaller SIM Card?
Apple is planning to create a smaller SIM card for its future devices including the next iPad and the new iPhone, according to a recent report from the Financial Times.
The company hopes to gain an advantage over other smartphone makers by being the first to shrink down the size of the component.
MacRumors first reported that Apple submitted a proposal for a standardized SIM card design smaller than the micro-SIM that is currently used in the iPhone 4S and iPad back in May of 2011. This new SIM would allow the company to create smaller and thinner devices.
Motorola, Research in Motion and Nokia are also trying to create these "nano-SIM" cards.
"Micro-SIMs are already common in the latest generation of smart devices, such as Apple's iPhone 4S and Nokia's Lumia," read the report. "The nano-SIM is thinner and about a third smaller than the micro-SIM, and would allow more space for other functions."
Apple's plans are currently being supported by "most of the European operators," according to MacRumors. The company has used some controversial tactics in order to gain more votes in the final decision for the proposal.
Apple currently uses a "drawer" in its devices such as the iPhone 4S and iPad to protect the SIM. Nokia objects to the idea of the drawer to protect these new nano-SIM cards.
Apple is expected to launch a new iPhone in the coming months so it could be speeding up the process so the device will feature one of these shrunken down SIM cards.
The new iPhone is rumored to have a larger display and a thinner frame than the iPhone 4/4S that has a much thicker design that most of the current Android powered devices such as the Motorola Droid Razr and Samsung Galaxy S2.
