Email the QR.Line live in 90 seconds.
New starter on Monday. Line live by lunch. No couriers, no SIM-in-post.
Same V&D allowances as a physical SIM. Same four networks. Same dashboard. Just no plastic, no post, no waiting. HR raises the ticket → branded QR email → user scans → line registers. Done in the time it takes to make a cup of tea.
- Four UK networks
- Live in 90 seconds
- No app required
- Re-issue from portal
- Same tariff as plastic
- 30-day rolling
Average ticket-to-network time. HR raises it. User scans it. Done.
Most modern fleets default to eSIM and only fall back to plastic for older devices. We do both — and they sit in the same dashboard.
Which eSIM network works at yours?
Live Ofcom industry data. Drop in the postcode where most of your team will be using their phones — we'll show all four networks' signal on a map and recommend the Giant business eSIM tariff that matches the strongest carrier.
Live Ofcom industry data · indoor + outdoor signal by operator
Six reasons it replaces SIM-in-post forever.
Plastic SIM made sense when activation needed a chip + a courier. Modern phones make both unnecessary. The only thing they actually need is the QR — and even that's optional, the activation code works just as well.
Live in 90 seconds
From HR ticket to a line registered on the network. No couriers, no post-room, no day-one new-hire awkwardness.
Email the QR, done
Branded email with QR + 'how to scan' lands in the user's inbox. They scan with their existing phone camera. No app.
No SIM card in the post
Nothing to lose, nothing to courier, nothing to swap when the device upgrades. Plastic-SIM cost-of-issue: gone.
Re-issue in seconds
User got a new phone? Lost the old one? Re-issue the QR from the estate portal. New device live, same number.
Network-side secure
eSIM profile is bound to a single device at a time. Re-issue invalidates the old profile. No 'two-SIM' fraud risk.
Travel-ready
Same eSIM works on UK + EU roaming. Add a second profile for international trips on travel-eSIM platforms.
Ticket. Email.
Scan. Live.
Four steps, end-to-end. Two of them happen entirely on our side — the user only touches the phone once, for the scan. New starters can be provisioned a week before their start date with a QR that doesn't expire until they scan.
The branded email below is what lands in the new starter's inbox seconds after HR raises the ticket. Steps for what happens each side of that email are listed below.
Your work mobile line is ready. Scan the QR below from your phone's camera app to add the line. You'll be live on the network within minutes — no app, no setup steps after the scan.
LPA:1$<activation server>$AB12-CD34-EF56-7890QR works on iOS 12.1+ and Android 9+. iPhone: Settings → Cellular → Add eSIM → Use QR Code. Android: Settings → Network → Add eSIM. Need help? 0330 043 0056
Indicative · the real email is branded to your company
- Step 01
HR raises the ticket
New starter's email + network preference goes into the SIM Estate portal — or fires automatically from a BambooHR / Personio / HiBob webhook. Takes 30 seconds either way.
Most common automation: HR creates the employee record → webhook → SIM provisions → branded email auto-fires before IT has even started the laptop image.
- Step 02
QR email auto-fires
User receives a Giant-branded email with the eSIM QR + a 30-second 'how to scan' walkthrough specific to their phone model.
Email includes manual activation code as a fallback (some corporate phones disable camera access). Scan-or-paste, either works.
- Step 03
Scan it on the phone
Open Settings → Cellular → Add eSIM → Scan. iOS 12.1+ and Android 9+ both supported. No app, no MDM hook, no developer mode.
If the phone is supplied by IT pre-imaged: the QR can be pre-loaded into the profile during imaging. User opens the phone, signs in, line is already there.
- Step 04
Live + on the network
Line registers within minutes. Calls + texts + 5G data immediately. Pooled allowances flow into the same estate-wide bucket as every other SIM.
First call usually completes within 2 minutes of QR scan. Network registration confirmation lands as a webhook into your estate portal at the same time.
eSIM V&D plans. Same allowances. No plastic.
Voice + Data on eSIM, across all four networks. Pooled allowances flow into the same estate-wide bucket as your physical SIMs.
Ex VAT · 30-day rolling · pooled across the estate
What runs eSIM. Which Apple, which Samsung, which Pixel.
If a device is post-2018-ish, the answer is almost always yes. Below is the honest brand-by-brand. We'll match a physical SIM for anything older — both flows live in the same dashboard.
| Brand | From model | Notes |
|---|---|---|
iPhone | iPhone XS / XR (2018) and newer iPhone 14+ in the US is eSIM-only. UK models are dual (eSIM + nano-SIM). | iPhone 14+ in the US is eSIM-only. UK models are dual (eSIM + nano-SIM). |
Samsung | Galaxy S20 series (2020) and newer · Z Fold/Flip Galaxy A-series support is patchy below A54. Check the device list before bulk-issuing. | Galaxy A-series support is patchy below A54. Check the device list before bulk-issuing. |
Pixel | Pixel 3 (2018) and newer Most consistent eSIM support of any Android line — the 'reference' Android eSIM experience. | Most consistent eSIM support of any Android line — the 'reference' Android eSIM experience. |
iPad | iPad Pro 3rd gen (2018) and newer · iPad Air 3rd+ Cellular iPads are eSIM-only on UK models from 11th gen. Pre-2018: physical SIM only. | Cellular iPads are eSIM-only on UK models from 11th gen. Pre-2018: physical SIM only. |
Surface | Surface Pro X · Pro 9 5G · Go 3 LTE Limited Windows eSIM range, but the ones that support it integrate cleanly with Settings → Cellular. | Limited Windows eSIM range, but the ones that support it integrate cleanly with Settings → Cellular. |
Apple Watch | Series 3 Cellular (2017) and newer Watch eSIMs are typically a secondary line linked to a paired iPhone — same number. | Watch eSIMs are typically a secondary line linked to a paired iPhone — same number. |
Dual-SIM coexistence
Personal physical SIM on slot 1, work eSIM on slot 2. Dial out from either. Standard on every dual-SIM phone.
Travel-eSIM compatible
Your Giant eSIM coexists with travel eSIMs (Airalo / Holafly). Modern phones hold 5–10 profiles.
Pre-imaged for new starters
Have IT load the QR during phone imaging. User signs in on day one, line is already there.
HR ticket fires the line. IT never touches it.
The Estate Management portal listens for new-starter / leaver / department-change webhooks from BambooHR / Personio / HiBob. The eSIM provisions itself. The QR email lands in the new starter's inbox before IT have started the laptop image.
Listen for the new-starter hook
BambooHR / Personio / HiBob fires when an employee record is created. Payload includes email + department + start date.
Auto-provision the eSIM
Portal API resolves department → cost-centre → preferred network → tariff. Provisions the eSIM, fires the branded QR email.
Live before day one
QR sits in the new starter's inbox up to 30 days before their start date. They scan on day one, line is live before the welcome coffee.
Three scenarios where plastic SIM is genuinely better.
eSIM is the default for modern fleets. It isn't always the answer. Here's the honest cut-over — and both flows live in the same dashboard, so it's a per-SIM choice not an estate-wide one.
Pre-2018 phones in the estate
iPhone 8 / Galaxy S9 and older: no eSIM. We'll ship a plastic SIM the same day instead. Both flows sit in the same portal.
Phones that never see the internet
Industrial / locked-down devices that don't have a way to scan a QR or accept an activation code. Stick with physical SIM provisioning.
Bring-your-own-device with high churn
If the user changes phone every 3 months, the re-issue admin starts to outweigh the SIM-in-post hassle. Plastic SIM is genuinely simpler here.
Same tariff as plastic SIM. None of the courier cost.
Issue, re-issue, network-swap — all free from the portal. The plastic-SIM line items (SIM + post + manual swap on device upgrade) disappear from the budget without anyone noticing.
Real questions, honest answers.
New starter on Monday? Line live by lunch.
Free to demo. 90 seconds from ticket to network. We'll provision a test eSIM for you so you can see the QR email and scan flow on your own phone.