[josteink]

> The iPad has a separate SIM slot and I imagine it will have to until the built in SIM is truly universal.

Or you know... In the rest of the world, people actually ask for SIM cards, physical cards, because they are portable, and 100% certifiably decouples your device from your cellular provider.

Why on earth would I have something hidden inside... Which may or may not be interoperable... Which I cannot take and use with other devices if I need to? Which I cannot easily replace with a new one, from any carrier in the world?

[jboles]

Not disagreeing with you. It would suck if Apple ever removed the slot, but it would be par for the course for them.

[akvadrako]

Because SIM cards are stupid and Apple is trying to encourage carriers to stop requiring them. You should be able to switch providers virtually, so for example you could have several active contracts.