iPhone Air to begin pre-order in China after telecom operators approved for eSIM services

BEIJING (Reuters) -Apple's iPhone Air would be available for pre-order in China later this week, as major Chinese telecom operators obtained regulatory approvals for eSIM services, the company said on Monday. The iPhone Air, priced from 7,999 yuan ($1,121.56), will be the only model in China to have service providers' support for an eSIM – a digital SIM embedded in the device. The country's three major telecom companies – China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom – have all been cleared by regulators to provide trial eSIM services, a website affiliated with the industry ministry said on Monday. "Excited to announce iPhone Air will be available next week and pre-orders start this Friday, October 17!,"​ Apple CEO Tim Cook, who is currently in Shanghai, said on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, weeks after the iPhone 17's launch in the country. ($1 = 7.1320 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Xiuhao Chen and Ryan WooEditing by Tomasz Janowski)

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