10 Differences Between Micro and Nano SIM Cards 2022 Update

Filed in Education by on January 14, 2022

– Major Differences Between Micro and Nano-SIM –

Differences between Micro and Nano-SIM Cards: SIM is a smart card that stores your phone’s information. The abbreviation SIM stands for subscriber identity module or subscriber identification module.

Differences between Micro and Nano-SIM Cards

 

There are different sizes of sim cards but whether or not they affect the performance of the card is what we will find out in this article.

The first mobile phones used to support only ’embedded’ communication standards: the subscription parameters were hard-coded into the mobile terminal’s memory.

SIM CARD

In the earliest versions of SIM cards, there were no means of security –one could copy subscription data from one device to the other, making and receiving calls without the consent of the rightful owner. This was the situation with NMT-450 and most SIM cards produced at that time.

SIM cards have evolved from having zero forms of security to the use of Subscriber Identity Security (SIS) code and gradually the security system evolved.

Present-day SIM cards are ISO 7816 standard smart cards and can have similar capabilities as other contact IC-based cards like credit cards or phone cards. Now the SIM contains permanent records of the subscriber’s identity and authentication algorithms.

The benefits of today’s SIM cards include safety functions, inter-operability within principle any GSM phone and network, and the flexibility of adding and removing services. Present-day, SIM cards come in varied sizes such as Mini, Micro, and Nano-SIM cards.

And more interestingly, most SIM cards come in one size fits all, such that the Nano-SIM can be taken from the Micro-SIM, which may also be removed from the Regular SIM.

10 Differences Between Micro and Nano SIM Cards

Micro SIM

The Micro SIM card is most purchased by smartphone users.  This SIM card is a more efficient version than the Mini-SIM and the plastic around the circuit is trimmed a lot more. It can into the market since 2010 and is still in circulation.

Micro SIM cards are the third form factor (3FF) measuring only about 12mm × 15mm compared to the current SIM cards which measure 15 × 25 mm. Actually, the working part of the regular SIM and that of the Micro SIM card are both the same size.

It is conceivable to cut an ordinary SIM card to a similar shape and size as a Micro-SIM, leaving the working area untouched. You’d at that point have the option to utilize the cut SIM on your phone.

Nano SIM

Nano SIM is widely known as the smallest of all SIM card specifications and it’s used mostly by more recent smartphone users. If Micro SIM cards the trimmed versions of Mini-SIM cards, then Nano SIM is the cut-down version of the Micro SIM card specially designed to cut down on space in the new smartphones.

Nano SIM cards measure 8.8mm in width, 12.3mm in height, and 0.67mm in thickness. Like other SIM cards, Nano-SIM consists of two parts of data storage – one part is used for system information and the other is used for user information which is secured by user PIN code.

Notable Distinctions Between Micro and Nano SIM

1. Nano-SIM cards are the smallest of all the SIM card specifications used in the latest and high-end smartphones.

2. Mini-SIM cards are trimmed into Macro SIMs while Macro SIMs are further trimmed into Nano SIMs.

3. Micro SIM cards are the third form factor (3FF). Nano SIM is the fourth form factor (4FF) in the SIM specifications.

4. Micro SIM is about 0.76mm in thickness. Nano SIM cards are less thick than Macro SIM cards.

5. Dimension:

Micro SIM — 15 mm x 12 mm

Nano-SIM — 12.3mm x 8.8mm

6. Smart Phones manufactured in 2009 and 2015 support Macro SIM cards, more recent devices only support Nano-SIM.

7. A regular SIM can be cut with a special punch to make a Micro or Nano-SIM.

8. Micro cards resulted in the design of Nano-chips.  Nano cards led to the production of embedded chips.

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CSN Team.

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