Apple Announces Updated iPad 10 With eSIM Support in China - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Announces Updated iPad 10 With eSIM Support in China

by

Apple today announced an updated version of the cellular 10th-generation iPad with eSIM support in mainland China. Apple says the device will be available to pre-order in mainland China starting October 19 and released on October 25.

10th Gen iPad Feature Fanned Gray
China Unicom is currently the only supported eSIM carrier for the iPad in mainland China, according to a new Apple support document. eSIM support in mainland China requires a 10th-generation iPad (Wi-Fi + Cellular) with model number A3162. All other iPad and iPhone models do not have eSIM support in mainland China.

Apple's support document offers more details on how to set up an eSIM on the updated 10th-generation iPad in mainland China, and how to activate eSIM cellular data plans on the device from carriers in other countries while traveling.

An eSIM is a digital SIM that allows users to activate a cellular plan without having to use a physical nano-SIM card.

(Thanks, Apollo!)

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

iphone duo

Apple Announces Foldable 'iPhone Duo'

Wednesday September 9, 2026 10:56 am PDT by
Apple today announced the "iPhone Duo," a new kind of iPhone featuring two screens and a foldable inner display. The two halves of the iPhone Duo connect into a single continuous frame with the same aspect ratio across both displays, and Apple said the transition between open and closed is designed to feel fluid. When fully open, Apple says it is the thinnest iPhone ever made, with an...
Read Full Article • 712 comments
Surprise and Shine Live Coverage Article

Apple Event Live Blog: iPhone Duo, iPhone 18 Pro, and More

Wednesday September 9, 2026 9:10 am PDT by
Apple's "Surprise and Shine" event kicks off today at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time, where we're expecting to see the foldable iPhone Duo, the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 models, new AirPods 5 earphones, and perhaps some other announcements. Apple is providing a live video stream on its website, on YouTube, and in the company's TV app across various platforms. We...
Read Full Article • 1304 comments
iOS 27 Feature Dark

Apple Announces iOS 27 Release Date

Wednesday September 9, 2026 10:46 am PDT by
At its event today unveiling the iPhone 18 Pro, AirPods 5, Apple Watch Series 12, and more, Apple announced that iOS 27 will be released later this month. iOS 27 has already been available as a developer beta since June and as a public beta since July, and Apple today said that the update will be released for all users with a compatible iPhone model on Monday, September 14. iOS 27 is...
Read Full Article • 40 comments

Top Rated Comments

CC77 Avatar
CC77
38 months ago
What a sad, strange time to be an iPad
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Spaceboi Scaphandre Avatar
Spaceboi Scaphandre
38 months ago
You know this begs the question why can't the Macbooks get eSIM support? I know a lot of business customers would love cellular on their Macbooks without needing to use a hotspot.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M
matttarantino
38 months ago
So the other rumors weren't exactly wrong?
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M
macdaddy43
38 months ago
This really shows that we’ve hit a plateau with tech in these products. Apple isn’t even spec bumping these anymore because user experience really is almost the same.

A14 vs A15 in the base iPad isn’t going to change much and just more cost out of switching the internals as such. A15 vs A16 for iPad mini probably isn’t even worth it for Apple either. They’d rather keep the same chips and milk them as long as they can and I don’t really blame them.

I have an iPhone 12 Pro with the A14 and despite it being a 3 year old phone, I have never once even considered that this phone is slow or too slow for anything that I do. I don’t plan on upgrading until software stops getting updated. Seems like chips from A14 and on have been so good there isn’t much difference in overall experience for most people.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
A
Anglagard
38 months ago
Between the Pen-C and this, it all looks terribly underwhelming for Xmas.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
N
NewUsername
38 months ago
At least now we know the 11th gen iPad isn’t coming soon.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments