In order to get online with our 4G LTE-M/NB-IoT devices, you will require a SIM card that operates on these networks. Network terminology can be confusing - often multiple terms are used for the same network - e.g. Cat-M1 and LTE-M are used interchangeably.
Make sure you have read SIM Providers: LTE-M/Nb-IoT + Roaming, and Setup as an overview of all the key concepts of LTE-M/NB-IoT
Important points
Tracking Specific SIMs
Our LTE-M/NB-IoT devices will need special SIMs for these networks - i.e. often a standard '4G Prepaid SIM' like you would buy for your mobile phone will likely not get you online.
Test!
LTE-M and NB-IoT networks are relatively new, and are still being rolled out in some places. Teething problems may occur. They are usually quickly resolved and once a network has been up and running for a while expect trouble-free operation. However test new SIMs, networks and technologies thoroughly before deploying in volume.
Pricing - you get what you pay for
Keeping ongoing data costs to the absolute minimum is critical and a key factor if many tracking applications are even viable, or will get off the ground. When deploying many devices, even small differences in data costs per device can quickly rack up. However it is important to note that a higher level of service = higher cost. Not all SIM cards work the same - some can even reduce device battery life.
Please see our website for information on the differences between LTE-M and NB-IoT. The general difference in application can be summarised as:
- NB-IoT: Suitable for very limited updates, i.e. location updates 4 times a day, temp readings 2 x per day. Plans and data limits which are now emerging reflect this - i.e. some provide less than 100kB per month. NB-IoT is not suitable for tracking - i.e. turn by turn tracking of a vehicle with many updates and comparatively more data.
- LTE-M: Suitable for tracking applications. Cell tower handover is supported (so the device will stay connected if a vehicle being tracked drives between towers) - and more data usage above the very stringent NB-IoT limits is covered.
Commercial Deployments
It is tempting to go for some very low cost, relatively unknown roaming SIM cards. However certain networks may have agreements with the roaming providers that if a SIM stays attached to their network for too long (i.e. >6mths continuously) - it can be kicked off. This kind of uncertainty is not acceptable for a large deployment. Any savings on SIM data will quickly evaporate if units need to be recovered and SIMs swapped. This is not to discourage cost saving measures - lower priced tracking is great for everyone! But the risks and benefits should be weighed up when choosing untested SIMs and networks. Test thoroughly before rolling out large scale deployments!
So what SIMs should I actually get? What providers are there?
This article serves as a record of what SIMs which Digital Matter have knowledge of working with our products in various countries.
Key Points
- The list of SIM/networks in this article is not an exhaustive list of all available SIMs and providers - plenty others exist and may well work.
- This is not a list of 'approved providers', you're free to use any SIM you choose!
- This list relies purely on the feedback of our partners to help build it. We have better data in the countries where we are more active/have more devices. It's just our experiences/learnings.
- Many of the roaming SIMs will list on their website that they roam to many more countries than are indicated below. We add an entry when we have confirmation the SIM will work in that country.
- Results often change, we have had some providers which initially would not connect, only to find after various updates from 3rd parties (networks, SIM providers, component providers) to have them connect.
- The inverse is not as common but also possible. Partners should conduct their own testing!
LTE-M/NB-IoT Networks are still relatively new, but in many countries coverage is very widespread. Roaming is also relatively new, but in recent months we have seen many new providers come to market with good results.
See GSM Arena - Mobile IoT Commercial Launches for an up to date list of current and announced LTE-M/Nb-IoT networks globally.
So in selecting a SIM card, in making your decision:
- Check the GSM Arena list, to find what networks operate LTE-M or NB-IoT networks in your country/countries of interest
- You will need to source a SIM, either:
- A 'home' SIM directly from the network or one of their resellers (preferred if roaming between countries isn't a requirement)
- A roaming SIM that can roam onto one of these networks
The information below can guide you in making your choice in (2)
Our Results/Findings
See our other article discussing 4G Connectivity - Cat-M1 vs NB-IoT, Coverage, Providers and Roaming
This article summarises our current confidence level in the various technologies and SIMs as follows.
Digital Matter current confidence levels can be summarised as:
- LTE-M1 on SIM's home network
- Highly confident, well proven over many years
- LTE-M, with a roaming SIM
- Confident, well proven over many years.
It is important to apply the relevant APN and bandmasks for best performance - see: SIM Providers & Setup
Some roaming SIMs will cause significant extra battery drain, and should be avoided if using battery powered devices. See Roaming SIM Cards - Battery Life Impact - NB-IoT, Home network SIM
- Confident, well proven.
In general, NB-IoT networks are 'younger' than LTE-M in many regions, so some minor teething issues (which have since been resolved for LTE-M) may remain on certain NB-IoT networks. However issues are fast becoming few and far betweween. - NB-IoT, with a roaming SIM
- Confident - this has improved greatly over the last 12 months.
As above some roaming SIMs should not be used in battery powered devices.
How do I configure any network settings if required?
Our devices make use of clever firmware features to automatically detect which type of SIM card is installed in a unit on startup, and automatically apply the right settings to get online. We call this Autonet.
What this means is that in the majority of cases, devices will get online automatically, with no special setup. However this is not a guarantee in all cases.
Once online, it is recommended that you specifically configure your settings - but this is easy to do Over-The-Air once online.
If you are unsure whether your device will get online automatically, it is best that you order a DMLink Cable with your devices, and then configuration instructions are covered here:
In the tables below, all SIMs should (things can change!) connect automatically unless otherwise specified.
In many cases, we've heard from our partners that our latest generation devices automatically connect; without the manual configuration settings done on our previous generations.
In Australia the current preferred option is Telstra's Cat-M1 network, using a SIM card provided by M2M One.
Other roaming SIM cards are available that will work on Telstra's Cat-M1 network. Yet certain roaming SIMs have the
We have a very high level of confidence of M2M One's Cat-M1 SIMs that work on the Telstra network.
The other listed SIMs appear to be working well but are not as extensively tested.
| Technology | SIM Provider | Results | Network |
| Cat-M1 | M2M One (reccomended) | Recommended SIM for Australia. Excellent results on Telstra's Cat-M1 network. Great service from M2M One | Telstra Cat-M1 Coverage is widespread. Available in essentially every area 3G exists. Coverage Map |
| Cat-M1 | Telstra | Excellent | Telstra Cat-M1 |
| Cat-M1 | Emnify | Can potentially lead to excessive battery drain. See Roaming SIM Cards - Battery Life Impact. | Telstra Cat-M1 (roams on network) |
| Cat-M1 | Soracom | Working well - testing is not widespread but initial results look good | Telstra Cat-M1 (roams on network) |
| Cat-M1 | Spark NZ Roaming SIM | Working well - testing is not widespread. A decent option if devices will travel between AU and NZ. | Telstra Cat-M1 (roams on network - and to Spark's network in NZ) |
| Cat-M1 | 1NCE Roaming SIM | Using this SIM in AU seems to cause issues with the uBlox SARA R410M - avoid for these devices. Works ok in other countries though, so there seems to be a specific issue with these SIMs roaming in AU on devices using uBlox modem. No such issues on newer range of devices with Nordic modem - Connects automatically. Best to configure the APN as provided by 1NCE | Telstra Cat-M1 (roams on network) |
| Cat-M1 | Twilio Super SIM (global roaming SIM) | Limited Testing, shown to be working. Setup: APN = super 4G Network - Global: Cat-M1 Only Feb 23 - Devices initially connect however facing registration issues, recently. Some partners have reported this to Twilio - caution advised. | Telstra Cat-M1 (roams on network) |
| NB-IoT | M2MOne | The DMA office have tested a few Telstra NB-IoT SIMs and got them online. Network only recently launched (Q3 2020). We got "NB-IoT Type 1" SIM Cards online | Telstra NB-IoT |
| NB-IoT | M2MOne | Limited testing of eDCP NB-IoT SIMs (this is Telstra's roaming NB-IoT SIM). Got online automatically. | Telstra NB-IoT |
| NB-IoT | Optus | Tested by DM in DM Perth office - working well. Connects automatically with no input. Extent of coverage is not well known. | Optus NB-IoT |
| NB-IoT | Vodafone | Initially Vodafone NB-IoT Would not work due to DNS issues as ePCO was not enabled. This is now reportedly enabled - but DNS still does not work. As of 2020 we can work around this using our Provisioning Tool. But aiding data downloads fail - so fixes take longer, reducing battery life on battery powered devices. | Vodafone NB-IoT |
| Technology | SIM Provider | Results | Network |
| NB-IoT | A1 | Proven to work well with our devices in Austria using A1 SIMs | A1 |
| Technology | SIM Provider | Results | Network |
| NB-IoT | Orange | Coverage is good, DM devices have had a lot of success using Orange NB-IoT SIMs | Orange |
| LTE-M | 1NCE | Coverage is good, DM devices have had success using 1NCE SIMs *issues in Australia – see AU section APN must be set to "iot.1nce.net" | 1NCE |
| Technology | SIM Provider | Results | Network |
| LTE-M | 1NCE | Coverage is good, DM devices have had success using 1NCE SIMs *issues in Australia – see AU section APN must be set to "iot.1nce.net" | 1NCE |
| Technology | SIM Provider | Results | Network |
| NB-IoT | 1NCE | Coverage is good, DM devices have had success using 1NCE SIMs *issues in Australia – see AU section APN must be set to "iot.1nce.net" | 1NCE |
| Technology | SIM Provider | Results | Network |
| NB-IoT | Orange/3 Mobile | Issues with DNS but can be worked around using a Wired Provisioning Tool. See DNS Troubleshooting on 4G | Three |
| NB-IoT | China Mobile | Issues with DNS but can be worked around using a Wired Provisioning Tool Either use ‘x’ into the network string. Or use Oem server’s IP address s0.oemserver.com See DNS Troubleshooting on 4G | China Mobile |
| Technology | SIM Provider | Results | Network |
| NB-IoT | 1NCE | Coverage is good, DM devices have had success using 1NCE SIMs *issues in Australia – see AU section APN must be set to "iot.1nce.net" | 1NCE - Vodafone |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| LTE-M | 1NCE | Coverage is good, DM devices have had success using 1NCE SIMs *issues in Australia – see AU section APN must be set to "iot.1nce.net" | 1NCE |
| Technology | SIM Provider | Results | Network |
| Cat-M1 | Vodafone NZ | Great results. Many devices in operation in NZ. Coverage Map | Vodafone Cat-M1 |
| Cat-M1 | Spark NZ | Great results, many devices in operation. Widespread coverage. Coverage Map | Spark NZ Cat-M1 |
| NB-IoT | Vodafone | Coverage Map - reportedly performing well - but DM have not yet seen significant evidence to support this | Vodafone NZ NB-IoT |
| Cat-M1 | Hologram |
Limited testing, have seen SIMs online with the above settings. | Spark/Vodafone (roaming SIM) |
| Cat-M1 | M2M One (Aus) Roaming SIM | Reportedly working well on the Spark network | Spark Cat-M1 |
Vodafone:
Note in NZ, Vodafone may supply a 'local' and GDSP (Global Data Service Platform) SIM card. The latest versions of device firmware should join automatically. If older devices do not, firmware can be updated via the DM Link cable, or set the APN via this cable. Check with your provider for this APN.
USA
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| Cat-M1 | Aeris | Good results, across a large number of devices (recommended roaming card for the US) | AT&T |
| Cat-M1 | Pod | Good results, Pod supply 'native' AT&T SIMs Must set APN "data641003" | AT&T |
| Cat-M1 | Emnify | Gets online automatically but be sure to apply the right configuration once online. Some Emnify SIMs have been seen to swap IMSIs regularly, causing excessive battery drain Roaming SIM Cards - Battery Life Impact | Roams on Sprint and AT&T |
| Cat-M1 | AT&T | Only certified devices may be used on these networks (Oyster2 and Dart2 currently) | AT&T |
| Cat-M1 | Verizon | Device IMEI must be added to Verizon database by Digital Matter. Only certified devices may be used on Verizon (Remora2, Oyster2, G62 and Yabby GPS currently). Limitations on how often the device may upload - this is handled by Applying the correct settings for Verizon | Verizon |
| Cat-M1 | Hologram | Must configure APN: "hologram" to get online | AT&T |
| Cat-M1 | Twilio Super SIM (global roaming SIM) | Setup: APN = super 4G Network - Global: Cat-M1 Only | AT&T |
| CAT-M1 & NB-IoT | 1NCE | older generation devices using uBlox modems must have the APN set to "iot.1nce.net" before they can connect. newer generation devices using Nordic modems (Bolt2, Dart3, G70, Hawk, Oyster3, Oyster Edge, Remora3, Yabby3, Yabby Edge) connects automatically. Best to configure the APN as provided by 1NCE | 1NCE |
Canada
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| Cat-M1 | Rogers | Must configure APN to get online. Received from the carrier. | Rogers |
| Cat-M1 | Bell | Must configure APN to get online. Received from the carrier. | Bell |
| Cat-M1 | Telus | Must configure APN to get online. Received from the carrier. | Telus |
| Cat-M1 | Aeris | Good results, recommended roaming sim. | AT&T |
| Cat-M1 | EMnify | Good results, gets online automatically but be sure to apply the right configuration once online | Telus |
| Cat-M1 | 1NCE | APN must be set to "iot.1nce.net" | 1NCE |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| NB-IoT | Telenor | Proven to work well with our devices in Norway using Telenet SIMs | Telenet |
| NB-IoT | COM4 | Proven to work well with our devices in Norway using COM4 SIMs | COM4 |
| LTE-M | 1NCE | Coverage is good, DM devices have had success using 1NCE SIMs *issues in Australia – see AU section APN must be set to "iot.1nce.net" | 1NCE |
| LTE-M | Emnify | Proven to work well with our devices in Norway using Emnify SIMs. No APN configuration is needed. | Emnify |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| LTE-M | Vodafone | Limited tested - have seen a device manage to get online. Further testing required | Vodafone |
| LTE-M | Digicel | Limited tested - have seen a device manage to get online. Further testing required | Digicel |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| LTE-M | Vodafone | Vodafone global roaming SIM able to connect on LTE-M in Portugal | Vodafone |
| NB-IoT | Vodafone | ePCO does not appear to be enabled on Vodafone Portugal's NB-IoT network, causing DNS issues. This may be able to be worked around by setting the OEM Server IP in parameters ahead of time Further testing required.  | Vodafone |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| NB-IoT | Vodacom | Must configure APN to get online. APN must be set to "nbiot.vodacom.za" | Vodacom |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| LTE-M | Emnify | Good results, gets online automatically but be sure to apply the right configuration once online | Orange (roams) |
| NB-IoT | Vodafone | Global Roaming SIM connects in Spain. Limited Testing | Vodafone |
| LTE-M | Vodafone | Untested | Vodafone |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| NB-IoT | Migros | NB-IoT devices reportedly connecting. | |
| NB-IoT | Hologram | NB-IoT not yet supported on Hologram. Awaiting further tests. |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| LTE-M | 1NCE | DM devices have had success using 1NCE SIMs *issues in Australia – see AU section APN must be set to "iot.1nce.net" | 1NCE |
| Technology | Provider | Results | Network |
| LTE-M | AIS | Very limited testing has proven successful. Partners should test further before deploying in volume. APN: internet | AIS |
| NB-IoT | AIS | Very limited testing has proven successful, partners should test further before deploying in volume. APN: devkit.nb 4G Network - Global: NB-IoT Only Custom Network Or Bandmasks - n8+28 | AIS |
Roaming SIM Cards
Modem and network updates has led to their performance improving dramatically in recent months. Many of these cards are referenced in the above tables as they have been tested in the relevant country. Consult the provider's network and country list for full details - but always test!
Roaming SIM Note
Some networks have in their agreements with roaming SIM providers that they roaming SIM shouldn't roam for too long on the home network continuously - or they may be switched off. Check with your providers before deploying large device volumes!
Some also may significantly reduce device battery life - Roaming SIM Cards - Battery Life Impact
*The 1NCE SIM card was successful roaming through Belgium, France and the Netherlands, on band 8 and 20.
These SIMs are mentioned in the above tables per country. However they are listed here for convenience. Check the providers website for a list of countries and networks the SIMs roam on:
- Emnify
- Soracom
- Hologram
- Twilio
- 1NCE
- M2M One
- Vodafone Global Roaming