eSIM smartwatch support is coming to Telstra MVNOs by the end of the year

Alex Choros - Managing Editor + Group Telco Editor

Last updated 12 August 2024

WhistleOut can confirm several Telstra-powered mobile providers have plans to offer eSIM companion plans for smartwatches, including Tangerine, More, numobile, and Everyday Mobile.

So far, Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone have been the only mobile providers that sell eSIM companion plans. This is changing as Telstra recently started offering eSIM companion plans as a wholesale product to MVNO partners.

eSIM companion plans for smartwatches allow users to share their mobile connectivity with an eSIM-enabled smartwatch. That smartwatch can then make phone calls, receive text messages, and access mobile data, independently of the phone it's paired with.

This, for example, lets a user go for a run with just their smartwatch while still having the benefit of mobile connectivity. Smartwatches from Apple, Samsung, and Google are all available in eSIM-enabled variants.

Sibling telcos Tangerine and More will likely be the first Telstra MVNOs to offer the functionality, sometime before the end of 2024.

"Adding smartwatch eSIM plans is on our roadmap for 2024, but we anticipate it will be towards the end of the year," a Tangerine spokesperson told WhistleOut. "We believe it is important that we stay at the forefront of innovation in the eSIM and mobile service space to ensure we are meeting our customers' needs."

Everyday Mobile - previously Woolworths Mobile - will also start selling eSIM companion plans, but not until 2025.

numobile CEO Silke Poortman told WhistleOut the feature is "definitely in the pipeline," but didn't provide a firm timeline and noted it will require work on the telco's end to implement it.

Superloop and its sibling brand Exetel are both looking into offering eSIM companion SIMs, but haven't made a concrete commitment to launching it.

"We don’t have an expected date right now but are working closely with our wholesale supplier to explore possibilities," said a Superloop spokesperson.

A spokesperson for Belong - Telstra's budget brand - said they were unable to comment at this time.

It's unclear what Telstra MVNOs offering companion eSIM plans will charge, given it will be a few months before the first of them launch. For reference, between $5 and $10 per month has been the standard price for a smartwatch eSIM plan from Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone.

At this stage, Optus and Vodafone don't have any plans to offer eSIM companion plans to their respective MVNO partners.

eSIM companion plans are the latest premium feature to trickle down to MVNOs. Over the last two or so years, we've seen inclusions that Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone kept to themselves become more widely available. These have included eSIM support, proper international roaming travel packs, and 5G connectivity.

Update 14/03/25: Tangerine and More's eSIM support is now set to launch in early April.

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Alex Choros

Managing Editor + Group Telco Editor | X | Instagram | Threads | LinkedIn

Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

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