Apple CEO Tim Cook announced a new army of mobile products that could make event professional lives easier during a live Apple Event in Cupertino, California, today.
He introduced a new operating system (iOS 12), Apple Watch Series 4 and iPhone XR.
The iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs MAX were the products that could have the potential to substantially impact meeting planners on the go. Have you ever been late for your flight and forgotten your work phone charger? Have you been at a conference and your loved ones couldn’t reach you because personal phone is dead? This may all be solved with Apple’s introduction of eSIM to their new iPhone brigade.
eSIM will give users the capability of managing two different cellular plans on one iPhone device. Instead of worrying about switching out little sim cards, adding another cell phone plan to your iPhone is as simple as scanning a QR code. Users can set a “primary phone” and “secondary phone” on the same device. This allow users to reply to a work email, then send a text to loved ones from different phone numbers, without juggling devices.
This flexibility could be particularly helpful for sourcing. According to a recent CVENT survey, mobile device sourcing doubled from 6 percent last year to 12 percent in 2018.
iPhone Xs or iPhone Xs Max will both have eSIM capability and will be available later this year through a software update. AT&T, T-Mobile USA, Verizon Wireless support eSIM currently.
In another plus for the industry, Meetings Mean Business pointed out that the excitement and crowd that showed up for the unveiling is proof that despite all the other ways tech companies could make announcements, they still find face-to-face, in person communication to be the most impactful.
