Teltonika ALTOS 5G Router
It does not support eSIM.
At first glance, that feels like an omission. By 2025, eSIM is no longer a “future” feature. It is already standard practice in industrial IoT routers, multi-network deployments, and managed connectivity services. So why would a premium 5G router, positioned at the top of Teltonika’s range, ship without it?
The answer tells us a lot about how Teltonika see the Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) market – and why ALTOS is not meant to replace their industrial 5G routers.
What the ALTOS Is Really Designed For
ALTOS is not an IoT router in disguise. It is a pure Fixed Wireless Access device.
Its design priorities make that clear:
• Desktop-style enclosure
• Integrated high-performance antennas
• Wi-Fi 7 for dense indoor coverage
• Minimal external I/O
• Simplified cellular setup
This is a router built to sit in:
• Homes without fibre
• Small offices
• Retail units
• Temporary sites
• Managed broadband deployments
Think 5G as fibre replacement, not 5G as infrastructure backbone.
In that world, most deployments still look like this:
• One mobile operator
• One SIM
• One tariff
• Long-term contract
And that single assumption explains the missing eSIM.
Why Teltonika Probably Chose Physical SIM Only
This wasn’t an oversight. It was a product decision.
1. FWA Operators Still Think in “One SIM, One Network”
Most UK and EU FWA offers today are still:
• Single-operator
• Contract-based
• Locked to a provider
• Provisioned once and forgotten
For this market, eSIM adds complexity without obvious commercial benefit.
2. Consumer-Adjacent Products Avoid SIM Abstraction
ALTOS sits closer to ISP-supplied CPE than to industrial equipment.
In that world:
• SIM swaps are rare
• Remote SIM provisioning is not expected
• Users are not engineers
eSIM shines when you expect change. ALTOS assumes stability.
3. Teltonika Protect Their Industrial Portfolio
Teltonika already sell excellent eSIM-capable routers elsewhere in their range.
Adding eSIM to ALTOS would blur the line between:
• Industrial routers (RUTX, RUTM series)
• FWA broadband devices
Keeping ALTOS physical-SIM-only avoids cannibalising their own IoT products.
Why eSIM Would Have Been Better (In the Real World)
Here’s where the theory meets reality.
From a deployment perspective, eSIM would have been a big win.
Faster Rollouts
No SIM shipping delays. No lost envelopes. No incorrect SIM sizes.
Multi-Network Resilience
Switch networks without climbing ladders or booking engineer visits.
Smarter Failover
Move between networks based on performance, not contracts.
Easier Fleet Management
Especially for MSPs, installers, and temporary site operators.
In short: eSIM makes 5G routers adaptable. ALTOS is designed to be static.
That’s the trade-off.
ALTOS vs Industrial 5G Routers: A Critical Distinction
This is where many buyers go wrong.
ALTOS should not be compared to routers like the Teltonika RUTX50.
They solve different problems.
ALTOS is optimised for:
• Indoor coverage
• High Wi-Fi throughput
• Simple WAN replacement
• Minimal configuration
• End-user broadband experience
Industrial 5G routers are built for:
• Harsh environments
• External antennas
• VPN-only access
• Private APNs
• Multi-SIM and eSIM strategies
• Long-term unattended operation
Trying to force ALTOS into an IoT role is missing the point.
Who ALTOS Is Actually Perfect For
Despite the missing eSIM, ALTOS makes a lot of sense in the right hands.
It’s a strong fit if you:
• Want fast 5G broadband without fibre
• Need excellent indoor Wi-Fi performance
• Are deploying on a known, stable network
• Don’t expect SIM changes
• Value Teltonika build quality and RutOS
For offices, retail, pop-ups, showrooms, and rural premises, ALTOS does exactly what it says on the tin.
Who Should Look Elsewhere
ALTOS is not the right choice if:
• You need roaming or multi-network resilience
• You plan to use private APNs or VPN-only access
• You manage large fleets remotely
• You expect network conditions to change
• You want eSIM or advanced SIM control
In those cases, an industrial 5G router with eSIM support is the smarter long-term investment.
The Bigger Picture: FWA vs IoT 5G Is Splitting Fast
ALTOS is a signal of where the market is going.
We’re now seeing two very different 5G router categories emerge:
Fixed Wireless Access Routers
• Wi-Fi-first
• ISP-style
• Broadband replacement
• Simplified cellular
Industrial / IoT 5G Routers
• Connectivity-first
• SIM-agnostic
• Security-driven
• Built for change
ALTOS sits firmly in the first camp. And that’s fine, as long as buyers understand it.
Final Verdict
Would eSIM have made ALTOS better?
Yes – technically.
Does its absence make ALTOS a bad router?
No – it just defines what it is and what it isn’t.
ALTOS is a high-performance 5G broadband router, not a flexible connectivity platform. If you deploy it with that mindset, it delivers exactly what Teltonika intended.
And if you need something more adaptable, the answer isn’t to force ALTOS to do a job it wasn’t built for – it’s to choose the right class of router in the first place.
That distinction is where good 5G deployments are won or lost.