Orange Problem With US Iphones

[Philtration]

I have an iPhone 14 and got an eSIM one month contract with Orange when I arrived in Spain a month ago. Right away there were problems. It did most basic things, but I couldn’t use most WiFi calling and had problems with WhatsApp functionality. I went into a couple of Orange stores but quickly found out stores only sell contracts and have no technical capabilities. I had several frustrating calls with their tech assistance call center without resolving the issue. When the one month contract expired, I decided to finish the trip using my home carrier from the US. I tried to delete the Orange eSIM but was unable to and could not access data through my US carrier. I got a message on my phone that said I needed to cancel my Orange contract. I went to an Orange store to cancel the contract and lucked out finding someone who knew what they were talking about. It seems that Orange currently has a problem with eSIMs on iPhones from the US. Only US iPhones and only eSIMs. Physical SIM cards from Orange work fine, but the newer iPhones no longer have slots for SIM cards. The person said his Orange store stopped selling eSIMs for US iPhones because they had so many problems, but the problem hasn’t been addressed on a company wide level. I would guess Orange is working furiously to eliminate this problem and it won’t be a problem for long. In the meantime, beware! Once they canceled the contract I regained full use of my phone through my home carrier.

 

[DTCamino]

I have an iPhone 14 and got an eSIM one month contract with Orange when I arrived in Spain a month ago. Right away there were problems. It did most basic things, but I couldn’t use most WiFi calling and had problems with WhatsApp functionality. I went into a couple of Orange stores but quickly found out stores only sell contracts and have no technical capabilities. I had several frustrating calls with their tech assistance call center without resolving the issue. When the one month contract expired, I decided to finish the trip using my home carrier from the US. I tried to delete the Orange eSIM but was unable to and could not access data through my US carrier. I got a message on my phone that said I needed to cancel my Orange contract. I went to an Orange store to cancel the contract and lucked out finding someone who knew what they were talking about. It seems that Orange currently has a problem with eSIMs on iPhones from the US. Only US iPhones and only eSIMs. Physical SIM cards from Orange work fine, but the newer iPhones no longer have slots for SIM cards. The person said his Orange store stopped selling eSIMs for US iPhones because they had so many problems, but the problem hasn’t been addressed on a company wide level. I would guess Orange is working furiously to eliminate this problem and it won’t be a problem for long. In the meantime, beware! Once they canceled the contract I regained full use of my phone through my home carrier.

I’m sorry to hear that happened, I’m glad you got it worked out finally.
For those that use Iphones I just returned from Spain myself and I used the Airalo app and ESIM that I heard about on this forum and it worked great. They contract through Guay Mobile which uses the Moviestar network and it worked for me even in the isolated stretches. Once installed I just turned off my regular SIM and turned on the ESIM and put it on roaming. I highly recommend them as an alternative or supplement for Spain.

 

[Michael-FL]

I’m sorry to hear that happened, I’m glad you got it worked out finally.
For those that use Iphones I just returned from Spain myself and I used the Airalo app and ESIM that I heard about on this forum and it worked great. They contract through Guay Mobile which uses the Moviestar network and it worked for me even in the isolated stretches. Once installed I just turned off my regular SIM and turned on the ESIM and put it on roaming. I highly recommend them as an alternative or supplement for Spain.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I am just 3.5 months from embarking on a 1000 mile trek on the Le Puy/Frances route and I don’t know what to do about phone communications. I have an iPhone 15 Pro Max. All this talk of SIMs, ESIMs and whatnot is a complete mystery to Luddite old me. I need to find a millennial to explain it to me.

 

[Susan Peacock]

I just returned from Spain and my Orange e-sim worked flawlessly for the month of April. I too have an iPhone 14. I have been using the Orange e-sim on Camino for a few years and a physical sim before that with no issues.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

All this talk of SIMs, ESIMs and whatnot is a complete mystery to Luddite old me.

I think this video does a pretty good job introducing you to SIMs and eSIMs.

Click either the linked id or the video title to get YouTube in all its glory or click the red and white arrow logo to see an embedded video.

YouTube video id: O6C4iWsQcgo

 

[Michael-FL]

I just returned from Spain and my Orange e-sim worked flawlessly for the month of April. I too have an iPhone 14. I have been using the Orange e-sim on Camino for a few years and a physical sim before that with no issues.

Thanks, Susan! I feel a whole lot better. Still may need that tech-savvy millennial to show me how.

 

[Michael-FL]

I think this video does a pretty good job introducing you to SIMs and eSIMs.

Click either the linked id or the video title to get YouTube in all its glory or click the red and white arrow logo to see an embedded video.

YouTube video id: O6C4iWsQcgo

Thanks, Rick!

 

[fb1]

Another option is Yoigo e-sim which I am currently using and has worked fine. A bit cheaper than orange.

Funny in the US you sometimes have to pay to get a physical sim while eSIM is free while in Spain I had to pay extra to get an eSIM. They first activate a physical sim and then charge to convert it to eSIM. Alas it’s still cheap overall. 20euro for one month and 12GB data.

 

[Susan Peacock]

Another option is Yoigo e-sim which I am currently using and has worked fine. A bit cheaper than orange.

Funny in the US you sometimes have to pay to get a physical sim while eSIM is free while in Spain I had to pay extra to get an eSIM. They first activate a physical sim and then charge to convert it to eSIM. Alas it’s still cheap overall. 20euro for one month and 12GB data.

I just left Spain and paid the 20+5 for 100GB of data for Orange. So cheap

 

[Rita Flower]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I am just 3.5 months from embarking on a 1000 mile trek on the Le Puy/Frances route and I don’t know what to do about phone communications. I have an iPhone 15 Pro Max. All this talk of SIMs, ESIMs and whatnot is a complete mystery to Luddite old me. I need to find a millennial to explain it to me.

It’s not so hard once you get your head around the idea of not needing a physical sim. I look at it like tapping into some sort of phone internet once you buy a plan.
I use Airola - as do many others. You can buy a plan now, set it up at home and then turn it on once you get to your destination. That way you can get that handy trusted millennial to help you. The plans are data only. If I want to make a phone call I use Skype calls or WhatsApp.
Get some ‘training’ in now and you will be good to go when you get there.