Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra approved for network access: the first Ultra flagship this year to support eSIM.

Samsung will launch the Galaxy S26 series overseas on February 25. Now, the Galaxy S26 Ultra, the top-of-the-line version of the Galaxy S26 series, has obtained network access permission, with the model number SM-S9480.

According to network access information, this phone will support eSIM, making it the first Ultra flagship phone in mainland China to support eSIM.

To date, several flagship phones in mainland China support eSIM, including the iPhone Air, OPPO Find X9 Pro Satellite Edition, Huawei Mate 80 RS Master, and the upcoming Honor Magic8 Pro Air and Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra.

As we understand it, an eSIM card embeds the chip of a traditional physical SIM card directly onto the motherboard of a terminal device, eliminating the need for a physical card. Once the data is obtained from the operator and activated via over-the-air (OTA) download technology, communication services can be used normally.

With eSIM technology, in theory, mobile phone designs will be thinner and lighter, and the eSIM chip is directly soldered onto the motherboard, making the phone more dustproof, waterproof, and shockproof.

However, since eSIM is not yet widely adopted, most mobile phone models support both eSIM and physical SIM card slots. As eSIM becomes more widespread, the mobile phone industry is expected to completely abandon physical SIM card slots.