Modified version of the upcoming Nano SIM card spotted at CTIA Wireless show

[dgstorm]

The CTIA Wireless show is here and one very interesting item has been spied around the venue – an Apple revised version of the upcoming Nano SIM card. The modification came after Nokia expressed concerns and Apple wanted to eliminate any arguments, because the vote for the European Telecommunication Standards Institute (ETSI) is currently taking place.

Apple has been at war with Nokia, Research in Motion and Motorola Mobility over the Nano-SIM standard for quite a while now. So, it appears that Apple abandoned its plans of using a third-smaller SIM card tray and now has to look for different options. Chriz Ziegler of The Verge doesn’t consider this a simple task as he feels the future devices will have to be re-engineered in order to accommodate the change. The fact that Apple added some small amount of plastic around the edges of the electrical contacts, makes it impossible for the Nano-SIM to be forced into an incompatible socket since it is too long.

At the CTIA Wireless, SIM card maker Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) is showing the new fourth form factor standard. The ETSI has already began voting about the 4FF issue somewhere around mid-April and the debate will be settled somewhere around mid-May.

On March 26, Apple sent a letter to ETSI suggesting that the Nano-SIMs should be royalty-free, but Nokia didn’t give it a second thought:

“We are not aware of any Apple Intellectual Property which considers essential to its nano-SIM proposal. In light of this, Apple’s proposal for royalty-free licensing seems no more than an attempt to devalue the intellectual property of others.”

In the end if Nokia’s plea gets chosen, the Finnish company will probably end up claiming big license fees from its competitors.

By Radu

Source: Nano-SIM update: Apple design modified to fix concerns, standard will be decided this month | The Verge