Post by maddiepaddy on Apr 22, 2015 15:56:50 GMT -5
I travel abroad once or twice a year and am getting really tired of dealing with ATT's international data plan. I have no problem using my phone on wifi for calls/texts while I'm traveling, but I really like to use the internet while I'm out (and often out of wifi range) for city info and navigational help. So, I'm not really looking for being able to call/text, but to use the internet easily while exploring wherever I'm traveling.
So, I've read here (and heard from friends abroad) about dual sim phones and how if I have one, it should be easy to grab a sim card at the airport when I land wherever I'm headed. But, I am at a complete loss as to what phone I need to buy here to make that work. Do I get one that's set up on a US network (I will only use when traveling)? Or something random for ebay, etc?
I'm not typically tech-challenged, but this has me stumped. I'd love to hear about how this is supposed to work, exactly what I'm supposed to buy here, tips for finding the right sim card abroad, etc...
I am not the most tech-savvy expert on here at all. However, I have a Samsung phone that I use on a U.S. data plan. Whenever I travel abroad, I buy a sim card from a local cell phone company either at the airport or at a store and pop it in my regular phone. I don't use text or talk, like you I like email access and using maps and vacation research (what restaurants are nearby, what time are they open, etc.)
I am 99% sure you cannot do this on an iPhone. I have a Samsung Galaxy S4. It's turning 2 years old next month so I'll be upgrading but I know there's a bunch of phones available that do the same thing.
Post by alleinesein on Apr 22, 2015 18:19:33 GMT -5
I have the Nokia Lumia 530 dual sim for travel. Its a basic smart phone but it serves its purpose when I travel. I've used it in India, Croatia, Slovenia and the UK with no issues. I paid INR 7700 for mine (USD $125) so you should be able to find one for much cheaper here.
I am not the most tech-savvy expert on here at all. However, I have a Samsung phone that I use on a U.S. data plan. Whenever I travel abroad, I buy a sim card from a local cell phone company either at the airport or at a store and pop it in my regular phone. I don't use text or talk, like you I like email access and using maps and vacation research (what restaurants are nearby, what time are they open, etc.)
I am 99% sure you cannot do this on an iPhone. I have a Samsung Galaxy S4. It's turning 2 years old next month so I'll be upgrading but I know there's a bunch of phones available that do the same thing.
I am not the most tech-savvy expert on here at all. However, I have a Samsung phone that I use on a U.S. data plan. Whenever I travel abroad, I buy a sim card from a local cell phone company either at the airport or at a store and pop it in my regular phone. I don't use text or talk, like you I like email access and using maps and vacation research (what restaurants are nearby, what time are they open, etc.)
I am 99% sure you cannot do this on an iPhone. I have a Samsung Galaxy S4. It's turning 2 years old next month so I'll be upgrading but I know there's a bunch of phones available that do the same thing.
You can do it on iphones if they are unlocked.
Is this hard to do? If not, I may consider an iPhone when my contract renews next month. I know nothing about tech
I have one iPhone that I bought unlocked. I also have a second that I asked ATT to unlock. There is a page on their website to submit an unlock request.
I buy SIMs in airports all the time and just switch them into one of the unlocked phones. It is awesome!
Two years ago when I unlocked my phone ATT had some guidelines around which phones they would unlock, something about how long you had it or how long you were an ATT customer? I would read up on that to see if you are eligible.
Post by maddiepaddy on Apr 23, 2015 13:02:08 GMT -5
Thanks, all. This is helpful. I might have an old iPhone that would work to unlock just for traveling. Otherwise maybe I'll look into the Nokia mentioned above. I'm nervous that whatever I come up with won't end up working once I get there. But I suppose in that case I could just re-up the ATT international data thing and deal with it.
Post by Norticprincess on Apr 23, 2015 14:19:03 GMT -5
I just had Sprint unlock my more recent iPhones for international travel with a phone call and a reboot through iTunes. Prior DH had a windows OS world phone. Before that a quad band little flip phone. On the iPhone only problem I've had is making sure I had a correct sized pin to pop out the sim tray if I wasn't buying in a retail store.
Thanks, all. This is helpful. I might have an old iPhone that would work to unlock just for traveling. Otherwise maybe I'll look into the Nokia mentioned above. I'm nervous that whatever I come up with won't end up working once I get there. But I suppose in that case I could just re-up the ATT international data thing and deal with it.
How much data do you plan on using?? They did revamp the AT&T international plan recently and while its still not cheap it is much better since unlimited text messages are included. If you look at your past bills you can get an idea of how much data you can use up when you are traveling overseas. It might be a wash depending on your usage. A sim card with 1GB of data in the UK will run you GBP 25-30 (USD $40-60 depending on the exchange rate).
If you travel internationally a few times a year its a good idea to get an inexpensive smart phone just for traveling. You also don't need it to be dual SIM if you buy it strictly for travel. I only have a dual sim one because I have a UK and an India SIM card. Just find any unlocked quad band phone that uses a sim card and you are good to go. I stick to Nokia because I've had them for 16+ years and they are impossible to destroy. I love the Here City Lens app for travel; it makes finding anything you need very easy.
Thanks, all. This is helpful. I might have an old iPhone that would work to unlock just for traveling. Otherwise maybe I'll look into the Nokia mentioned above. I'm nervous that whatever I come up with won't end up working once I get there. But I suppose in that case I could just re-up the ATT international data thing and deal with it.
How much data do you plan on using?? They did revamp the AT&T international plan recently and while its still not cheap it is much better since unlimited text messages are included. If you look at your past bills you can get an idea of how much data you can use up when you are traveling overseas. It might be a wash depending on your usage. A sim card with 1GB of data in the UK will run you GBP 25-30 (USD $40-60 depending on the exchange rate).
If you travel internationally a few times a year its a good idea to get an inexpensive smart phone just for traveling. You also don't need it to be dual SIM if you buy it strictly for travel. I only have a dual sim one because I have a UK and an India SIM card. Just find any unlocked quad band phone that uses a sim card and you are good to go. I stick to Nokia because I've had them for 16+ years and they are impossible to destroy. I love the Here City Lens app for travel; it makes finding anything you need very easy.
Thank you! The bolded is particularly helpful!
I just looked at ATT's new international data plans, and I think I will come out ahead with an in-country sim card. I've used .8GB this month so far (14 days left), and I expect with a 2 week trip I'd use about the same (i.e. require the $120 ATT package). Especially considering our next trip will include a 7 day road trip through Sweden, where I expect we'll need to use google maps quite a bit.