nanoSIM

The SIM card in your iPhone is about to get smaller. The nano-SIM standard was just approved by the European Telecommunications Institute (ETSI), shaving 40 percent off the size of current micro-SIM cards. The new standard will increase the amount of space available in mobile devices for other components.

Apple's proposed nano-SIM card is pictured above from The Verge, inside the outline of a standard SIM card. The nano-SIM that was approved has the same dimensions as Apple's proposed card, coming in at just 12.3 x 8.8 x 0.67mm. The function of the SIM card will remain unchanged, and the new design can be packaged for backwards compatibility in older devices.

The idea that SIM cards could disappear is looking less likely, as smartphone manufacturers RIM, Nokia and Apple have submitted competing proposals for a next-generation subscriber identity module. The European Telecommunications Standards Institutes (ETSI) has scheduled a vote to decide between the competing designs.

Apple's proposed nano-SIM card is pictured above from The Verge, inside the outline of a standard SIM card. When it comes down to it, the Apple design is much like current micro-SIM cards, except with less plastic around the edges. In contrast, both competing designs from Nokia and RIM are redesigned more like an SD card.