The iPhone Air has just been launched in China after the approval of the use of eSIM. Sold out in just a few hours

The new iPhone Air has had a meteoric launch in China. Just a few hours after pre-orders opened this Friday morning, the device was completely sold out on major online platforms such as the official Apple store and Tmall. According to first reports, demand has even surpassed that registered in Western markets.

As you probably already know, the iPhone Air is the new model in the iPhone 17 range (although it doesn’t even use a number). This year it has been in charge of replacing the Plus variant. Its main attraction is a extremely thin and light designan achievement that has been possible, in part, thanks to the elimination of the physical SIM card tray and the exclusive adoption of eSIM technology.

The arrival of the eSIM in China, the key to success

The launch of the iPhone Air in China had been delayed precisely because of its dependence on eSIM technology, which until now was not approved for commercial use in smartphones in the country. The absence of a physical SIM slot made the phone incompatible with the infrastructure of Chinese operators, leaving Apple waiting for a regulatory change.

That change has arrived this week. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China has finally authorized the first commercial eSIM tests for smartphones, allowing citizens for the first time to activate a mobile line without the need for a physical card. The country’s main operators, such as China Mobile and China Telecom, have already received the green light, clearing the way for the debut of the iPhone Air.

The immediate success of the device, with a starting price of 7,999 yuan (about 1,050 euros at the exchange rate), demonstrates the enormous interest of the Chinese market in an innovative design, even if this means giving up the best battery life of the rest of the models. At least, for the moment, its two colors seem to be holding up well over time, unlike the iPhone 17 Pro in orange, which is becoming rose gold.