iot.cards vs single operator

Side-by-side feature comparison

Same device, same deployment. The only thing that changes is who your connectivity depends on.

Frequently asked questions

But my operator gives me premium support with an account manager.

Understood, and for many companies that is worth it. iot.cards also assigns a technical point of contact from day one — independent of account size. If your current account manager gives you a written SLA, a sealed contract and a tariff that scales reasonably, you may not need to switch. If it gives you predictable invoicing but connectivity tied to a single network, you have a single point of failure.

Doesn't switching between networks add latency or disconnects?

Handover between operators happens when the active network loses signal or drops — the moment when, with a single operator, the device would go offline anyway. Multi-IMSI does not introduce latency in normal operation: the modem attaches to one profile at a time. The switch is the difference between being offline and coming back online in under 30 s.

Isn't multi-IMSI more expensive? I'm paying for networks I don't use.

No. Pricing is per MB consumed, not per available IMSI. Having access to 4 operators in Spain costs the same as having access to one: only the traffic you actually use is billed.

What if I want a private APN with one specific operator only?

Valid case when you already have site-to-site infrastructure against that operator and migrating costs. iot.cards can act as a multi-operator layer on top of your existing APN, or anchor the private APN to a specific network if that is the requirement. We discuss it during onboarding.

I've been with the same operator for 8 years. Is it worth switching?

Depends on the cost of your downtime. If a 4-hour outage costs you less than switching, stay where you are. If an outage costs more than the annual cost of going multi-operator, the calculation is different. For many integrators with SLAs to their end customer, the deciding factor is not price — it is removing the single point of failure.

Do I lose the phone number / IP / APN if I migrate?

The IMSI changes (by definition — it is a new SIM), so we usually recommend gradual migration: pilot fractions of the fleet first and rotate as devices come up for maintenance. Private APN and static IP are replicated in the new infrastructure. There is migration effort; we size it during onboarding.

What about 5G and LTE-M support?

Same technical coverage as with a single operator when that operator supports the technology. The difference is that if operator A doesn't have 5G yet in a zone but operator B does, multi-IMSI gives you access to that network. Per-country detail at /coverage.