How To Cut A Sim Card To Fit Iphone 7

Even though cutting the SIM card already began with the introduction of iPhone 4 and the MicroSIM, this was not really a problem. There is plenty of plastic around the chip so this operation is quite harmless.

However, when Apple introduced the iPhone 5, it was the first device to ever use NanoSIM. Also, all of Apple's later models like iPhone 5S, 5C, iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, and all generations of iPad Air and iPad Mini use a NanoSIM. Many other manufacturers took on it a bit later: HTC (One M8 or M9 or Mini2), Nokia-Microsoft (Lumia 735, 830, 930, 1520), Sony (Xperia Z3, Z3 Compact and Z3 Tab compact) and most recently Samsung (Galaxy A3, A5, A7, Alpha and the new Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge).

For various reasons people decided it's a good idea to cut down the MicroSIM they had with their older device to a NanoSIM size. It could be that there were no NanoSIMs in the telecom provider shops or they were charged at a high cost, or the corner shop on the street was doing it for close to nothing, or they have seen a "cool video" showing how "easy" it is to do this yourself. Some people still think it's a good idea and I will now explain to you why it's really NOT!

First of all, if you have any of the iPhone or iPad models I listed above and you cause any damage to the SIM tray or the device by using a "modified" (read cut) SIM card, your hardware guarantee will NOT cover that. I am not certain about the other device manufacturers. So, you're risking a device worth close to 700 Eur, while a new NanoSIM costs 5Eur, at least in the T-Mobile webshop.

Moreover, even Apple claims that there can be certain network related problems when using a device with a cut SIM, due to the fact that it may not sit in the SIM tray correctly. We have done a small experiment with colleagues who had their SIM card cut. Here are some consequences of cutting down a SIM card down to a NanoSIM card, which they were experiencing and were gone after the cut SIM was replaced with a new proper NanoSIM:

Frequent coverage loss.
Reduced coverage (signal strength).
No 4G while they were in an area covered with 4G. After the SIM swap, 4G magically appeared:)
Call drops.
Slow internet due to instable connection.
Battery drain due to frequent network searches.

You may be thinking by now, how can just cutting the SIM card be the cause all these bad consequences and how would I damage my device by just cutting the SIM card? Well, first take a look at how small the NanoSIM is:

When you cut down to NanoSIM size there's a risk of damaging the SIM contacts because not only does the plastic need to be taken out, but you also need to cut into the copper surface itself. Unless you're a surgeon, scissors probably won't do. Even if you use one of those "certified" cutters, you can still damage the SIM contacts. On top of this, the NanoSIM is also by 0.08mm thinner than the MicroSIM, so you may have to use sandpaper to make it fit the SIM tray of the device.

The whole problem is that if you slightly damage the SIM contacts or the SIM card does not lay in the SIM tray correctly, the SIM may still appear to be working. This is when you may experience the problems I described earlier like coverage loss, battery drain, slow internet and dropped calls. But, if the SIM card is not properly cut and you try to force it into your phone, you will also have to teach yourself how to replace the SIM card reader of your phone, because Apple (and I suspect the other phone manufacturers) will not cover the damages caused by using a modified SIM.

I understand that cutting a SIM card might not be an event you remember, especially if someone else did it for you. Here's a simple trick on how to recognize whether the SIM card in your phone has been cut: a SIM card cut down to NANOSIM will not have any plastic around the copper (like the smallest SIM on the picture where there are three SIMs in someone's hand), while a proper NanoSIM card has at least some plastic around the copper surface (like the picture with the SIM measurements).

In summary, the risks involved with cutting a MicroSIM down to NanoSIM are quite high: if you damage your device, you may have to buy a new one (say 700 eur) or undergo serious repairs. Even if the SIM cutting appears to be successful, your experience using your beautiful smartphone may be tainted with occasional or frequent glitches, depending on how much the copper contacts of the SIM were damaged while cutting it. In my view, this is just not worth the trouble: you can get a new NanoSIM for 5 eur and get the maximum performance from your device on our great new network. The same applies if you are already using a cut SIM card (or suspect so) and experiencing some of the problems I described. One thing is certain: your experience will not be worse:).

Many thanks to my colleagues Patrick Rutten and Marten Zopfi for working with me on this article. For those who prefer to read in Dutch, here's Patrick's version of the blog https://blog.t-mobile.nl/simkaart-knippen/