[BMWbiker]

My 2025 M440i xdrive GC has the eSIM feature, of course.

What advantage in reception is there to activating the eSIM, and, perforce, the roof antenna? Is there better reception using the car as a telephony device than with my iPhone? Better quality sound (which is already very good)?

I assume that my iPhone has no access to the roof antenna.

I have little use for the hotspot. A passenger may use it from time to time. That is not driving (pun not intended) possibly signing up for this service. Reception is.

Any advice?

[Cam330i]

Hello,

Congrads on your new 2025 M440i GC!

I drive a 2025 BMW 330i and the Personal eSIM 5G option is now standard on the G20's for MY25! My previous car was a 2021 BMW 330i and I had and used the Wi-Fi hotspot feature and so I'll chime in down below!

DISCLAIMER
* All the content in this post is based off of the North American Region - BMW of North America

What is the Personal eSIM 5G and what are the benefits of using it?

A. Think of the eSIM as being an extension of your cellular/mobile device, and when activated, you get the following:
1. You can leave your phone at home (you ain't doing that) and still have calls/text come to the car.
2. You do get better cell reception and quality (supposedly), as it uses the vehicle's antenna
3. You also get in-vehicle Wi-Fi hotspot at 5G speeds that can support up to 10 devices

**SPECIAL BENEFITS THAT ARE NOT AVAILABLE FOR THE G20'S
* Activating the Personal eSIM is necessary to use the YouTube App and other entertainment apps via the Control Display. However, video streaming apps like YouTube are not available on the G20's and it seems to only appear on the more expensive models (e.g., 5 series, 7 series, iX, etc.)

Now the not so good about the Personal eSIM 5G
* As of now, the eSIM can only be used and set up with the following carriers:

AT&T - "Numbersync for Connected Car"
T- Mobile - "Magenta Drive for BMW"
Verizon - "Unlimited Plan for Connected Car"

Out of the three, Verizon will give you a hard time and I know this from my own experience. My phone plan is a part of my parent's plan and their account is a VERIZON BUISNESS PLAN, which is NOT compatible with the eSIM. In other words, I cannot use my vehicle's eSIM feature and the only thing I wanted to use the eSIM for is for in-vehicle Wi-Fi hotspot, which as mentioned above, was something that i was able to use in my 2021 BMW 330i, which had iDrive 7. Despite my phone plan being with Verizon, I was able to use the Wi-Fi hotspot via AT&T (The only provider) and it was $20 a month and I only used AT&T for just that one feature - it took me less than 5 minutes to set up and iDrive 7 did not use the eSIM for connectivity.

Now I tried calling AT&T to see if I can do the same thing with my new car, and the answer was NO and this is because setting up the eSIM is ONLY DONE via the myBMW app and it requires you to put in a phone number that is a part of an existing mobile plan + one of the three mobile carriers listed above in order to proceed. As of now, there is no other work around and if I wanted to go through with setting up my eSIM, it would require me to either change my mobile plan or get a whole new one altogether!

From my experience, it seems AT&T and T-mobile are relatively easy to work with, but I have yet to hear anything from Verizon - not saying it is impossible!

As mentioned, the eSIM will be an extension of your phone and it seems the cost is $20 a month and that is what I payed when I had it on my 2021 330i. AT&T and T - Mobile do not charge you an activation fee, but Verizon on the other hand, will charge you an activation free, but I am not sure if this has changed or not.

If your mobile plan is NOT with those three mobile carriers (e.g., you use Sprint, Spectrum, etc.) than you are SOL and setting up and using your eSIM is not possible! Again, setting up the eSIM is only done via the myBMW app and customer support for those mobile carriers won't get you very far... trust me I've tried.

A few other things to keep in mind about the Personal eSIM 5G

* Once you activate the eSIM, both the telephone functions and the Wi-Fi hotspot features will be enabled. You can separate the two and only use the eSIM for the Wi-Fi hotspot and I recommend this for privacy reasons, especially if you share the car with someone else - again, phone calls and text will still come to the car, regardless if you or your phone are in the car
NOTE: I believe the eSIM functions and features are only possible with YOUR BMW ID, and so someone else driving your car with their own BMW ID cannot use the eSIM's features and I believe that includes the phone functions.
* As mentioned, setting up the eSIM is done via the myBMW app, and at some point, it will take you to your phone carrier's login page. Most people don't know or remember what their password is, and if this is also you as well, you can simply reset your password and go from there.
* Your vehicle has its own personal phone number (unusable) and an International Mobile Equipment Identification (IMEI) Number and both are useless in terms of setting up your eSIM and I know this because I've tried with Verizon. Despite providing them my vehicle's IMEI number, the end result was that my phone plan (again Verizon Business) is not compatible with the BMW eSIM....

Anyways, to summarize:
1. You and your vehicle will function just fine without setting up your eSIM (incl. Remote Software Upgrades, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, etc.).
2. The eSIM is required to watch YouTube videos on the Control Display, but since this is not possible on the G20's, this can be ignored.
3. There is an alternative to the eSIM in the form of a physical SIM reader, but there is not much information out there about it, and I don't even know if this can be used in the states.
4. If you scroll through the forums of other models, it seems that people either have a hard time setting up and using the eSIM or people have no problem setting up and using the eSIM.
5. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are done via a Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connection and both can be used without the eSIM.

I want to be clear that I am not a hater of the eSIM (again, I was trying to set this up myself), but trying to set this thing up makes me wish that BMW still used the same method for car connectivity that they did for iDrive 7.

As mentioned, the only reason why I went through with trying to set up my eSIM is for the in-car Wi-Fi hotspot, and the reason why I activated it in my previous car was because I like to think that I can still access the internet in places of poor reception, but I am very rarely in places of poor cell reception.

Down below I'll include some eSIM resources that is provided by BMW of North America!

That said, please let me (us) know if you have any additional questions/comments and please keep me (us) updated with how things go if you do decide to set it up!

Best,
Cameron - (2025 BMW 330i - named: "Hayko")

GSG_Personal_eSIM.pdf

[BMWbiker]

Thank you for that detailed reply to my message. I appreciate it.

I may give this a go later this week.

[BMWbiker]

I got the eSIM up and running.

The most annoying part of the process had nothing to do with the car or BMW. I wanted to make a minor update to my Verizon account before updating the car. First, the app didn’t recognize my password, despite it being in my password app. I had to reset it. Then Verizon sent me in a loop of approving the change then asking me to “authenticate” with the Verizon website. It took me a while to get out of that loop. At least that was sorted before I attempted to activate the eSIM.

The next most annoying part was that after I followed the MyBMW menus, transferred over to Verizon, completed the purchase of the update to my plan ($20/month), and went back to the app and the car, the car just said “connecting” or something like that and just sat there. I finally gave up and went to bed. The next morning, I got an email from Verizon stating that the update was approved, then the car finished updating. I received no acknowledgement the night before from Verizon that I had placed the order, nor did the car tell me that it was waiting for whatever it was waiting for from Verizon.

I used the eSIM several times yesterday to place calls. I made sure it was the eSIM by turning the phone off. It works well, including in rural areas.

I know where there are spots where the signal from the tower is weak. I look forward to trying it there, to see if it makes a difference.

I subscribed to the service primarily to improve reception. I’ll keep it if it makes a significant difference. I’ll cancel it if it doesn’t.

The only other quirk is that I now can’t send or receive texts from the car. I could do so before the update. I have CarPlay turned off, because I want to get the BMW services fully up and running before I reactivate Carplay, which I use only intermittently.

If anyone else has any tips or advice, I’m all ears.

Thanks again for the input.

[Cam330i]

Originally Posted by BMWbiker

I got the eSIM up and running.

The most annoying part of the process had nothing to do with the car or BMW. I wanted to make a minor update to my Verizon account before updating the car. First, the app didn’t recognize my password, despite it being in my password app. I had to reset it. Then Verizon sent me in a loop of approving the change then asking me to “authenticate” with the Verizon website. It took me a while to get out of that loop. At least that was sorted before I attempted to activate the eSIM.

The next most annoying part was that after I followed the MyBMW menus, transferred over to Verizon, completed the purchase of the update to my plan ($20/month), and went back to the app and the car, the car just said “connecting” or something like that and just sat there. I finally gave up and went to bed. The next morning, I got an email from Verizon stating that the update was approved, then the car finished updating. I received no acknowledgement the night before from Verizon that I had placed the order, nor did the car tell me that it was waiting for whatever it was waiting for from Verizon.

I used the eSIM several times yesterday to place calls. I made sure it was the eSIM by turning the phone off. It works well, including in rural areas.

I know where there are spots where the signal from the tower is weak. I look forward to trying it there, to see if it makes a difference.

I subscribed to the service primarily to improve reception. I’ll keep it if it makes a significant difference. I’ll cancel it if it doesn’t.

The only other quirk is that I now can’t send or receive texts from the car. I could do so before the update. I have CarPlay turned off, because I want to get the BMW services fully up and running before I reactivate Carplay, which I use only intermittently.

If anyone else has any tips or advice, I’m all ears.

Thanks again for the input.

Hello,

I am glad to hear that everything worked out with Verizon - You're the first person I know to have been successful with the eSIM and Verizon!

Did you try doing CarPlay with the eSIM activated? I know you can send and receive text via CarPlay (iPhone user - ios 17.7)

Additionally, as mentioned, you can separate the eSIM telephone functions and the Wi-Fi hotspot from each other; if you deactivate the telephone functions with the eSIM and only use the Wi-Fi hotspot, please let me know if you notice any difference with cell quality or any difference in general? Maybe deactivating the telephone functions will still allow good cell reception, while also being allowed to send/receive text messages! I hope that makes sense?

Additionally, did Verizon charge you an activation fee? Do you also get unlimited 5G data with Verizon or is limited (e.g., 40GB of Free data only, etc.)?

Also, I believe the eSIM function is tied to your profile ID only and so if someone else drives your car with their profile ID, they will NOT be able to use/access your eSIM (incl. Wi -Fi hotspot) - at least that is what I have been hearing from other users. Someone driving your car with your key (and assuming your key is linked to your profile ID) then they will be able to access your eSIM (incl. Wi - Fi hotspot)

Lastly, someone in the forum mentioned to keep an eye on your Verizon bill to ensure you're not being charged excessively! Please refer to this forum for more details

https://g05.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=2135893

That said, keep me (us) posted and I hope you enjoy your car and your eSIM! Lol

Best,
Cameron

Please keep me (us) posted

[BMWbiker]

Originally Posted by Cam330i

Hello,

I am glad to hear that everything worked out with Verizon - You're the first person I know to have been successful with the eSIM and Verizon!

Did you try doing CarPlay with the eSIM activated? I know you can send and receive text via CarPlay (iPhone user - ios 17.7)

Additionally, as mentioned, you can separate the eSIM telephone functions and the Wi-Fi hotspot from each other; if you deactivate the telephone functions with the eSIM and only use the Wi-Fi hotspot, please let me know if you notice any difference with cell quality or any difference in general? Maybe deactivating the telephone functions will still allow good cell reception, while also being allowed to send/receive text messages! I hope that makes sense?

Additionally, did Verizon charge you an activation fee? Do you also get unlimited 5G data with Verizon or is limited (e.g., 40GB of Free data only, etc.)?

Also, I believe the eSIM function is tied to your profile ID only and so if someone else drives your car with their profile ID, they will NOT be able to use/access your eSIM (incl. Wi -Fi hotspot) - at least that is what I have been hearing from other users. Someone driving your car with your key (and assuming your key is linked to your profile ID) then they will be able to access your eSIM (incl. Wi - Fi hotspot)

Lastly, someone in the forum mentioned to keep an eye on your Verizon bill to ensure you're not being charged excessively! Please refer to this forum for more details

https://g05.bimmerpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2135893

That said, keep me (us) posted and I hope you enjoy your car and your eSIM! Lol

Best,
Cameron

Please keep me (us) posted

As I wrote earlier, setting it up went fairly smoothly. I wish that both BMW and Verizon had been clear that the activation was not instantaneous. I would have not waited for it to activate, and I would have gone to bed sooner (since I did this before bedtime). The worst part was just getting Verizon set up before actually initiating the activation process.

I was charged the $35 activation fee. The first monthly fee was prorated, since I activated the eSIM in the middle of the billing period.

According to Verizon, it’s an unlimited plan for voice, and unlimited data, although its speed ramps down after a certain amount of usage (which I am highly unlikely to exceed). There are also allowances for use in Canada and Mexico, etc.

It is tied to my ID. If I remember correctly, I could have chosen not to lock it to my ID. Had I made that choice, then anyone driving the car could have had access to the telephony.

It’s also possible to put a PIN on it. I didn’t do that. I don’t remember if it was a PIN specifically for access to the eSIM, or a PIN to use the car itself.

I just checked my bill—there do not appear to be any new charges other than the activation fee and new line charges. I’ll keep an eye on it. Thanks for the tip.

I finally sorted out messaging using the native system. I haven’t reactivated CarPlay yet. I’ll do so probably this evening.

As I wrote earlier, the primary reason I activated the eSIM was to get improved telephone reception. So far so good. If I find that it doesn’t make much difference, I’ll cancel the activation. Any improved data reception would be a bonus, albeit rarely used.