[raino]

SIM card is valid forever (until technology changes). You get to keep your number as long as you use it a minimum of once a year. If you have more than a year gap you just get a different number assigned to your SIM. This is all done through the Roam website.

Sorry--how long can you hold the number is what I really meant, and sounds like the answer is one year. Thanks for the reply.

[bintheredundat]

Sorry--how long can you hold the number is what I really meant, and sounds like the answer is one year. Thanks for the reply.

U keep the number forever as long as you top up the account once a year.
Ie even if not going to the US add $1.95 to it and bam.

Another vote for roam. Love it. Used it in Pittsburgh. Nyc. Chicago. Orlando. Never failed me.

Forget Rogers roaming plans. Roam mobility is great.

As a side note the new stuff they just released (lte) requires am upgraded sim for like $1. Works on all devices BUT blackberry. So don't waste time trying to upgrade.



Posted via CB10

[bintheredundat]

As mentioned above I use roam in conjunction with Mireo maps.

Op: if you are planning on calling or texting back to Canada then roam wins.

You can call or text to anywhere in Canada or the us for no extra charge.

From what I remember seeing t-mobiles prepaid plan doesn't allow for calls or texts back to Canada. This may have changed but was the deciding factor in me choosing roam a few mths back.


Posted via CB10

[raino]

As a side note the new stuff they just released (lte) requires am upgraded sim for like $1. Works on all devices BUT blackberry. So don't waste time trying to upgrade

LTE doesn't work on BB10? Odd. I'll have to look at their support pages, because they are quite BB10 friendly.

Edit: this support page makes no mention (affirmative or negative) of BB10 devices being able to use LTE. I wonder if manually entering the Roam LTE APN will work?

From what I remember seeing t-mobiles prepaid plan doesn't allow for calls or texts back to Canada. This may have changed but was the deciding factor in me choosing roam a few mths back.

They don't allow calls for free, but texts to Canada (and pretty much anywhere) on the pay-by-the-day plans may be free.

[Funky Spike]

For the poster travelling from the UK consider getting a 3 PAYG SIM. If all you're doing is staying in touch with home then for �15 for 30 days you get 300mins (to UK) 3000 text (to UK) and unlimited data in the US as well as Australia, Hong Kong, France and many others.

Spike

Posted via CB10

[raino]

Spike, what's the minimum average data speed they promise you, or do they not specify that? Also, got a link to their international roaming partners?

[Funky Spike]

Post count won't let me post links but Google "3 Feel at home"

Spike

Posted via CB10

[robsteve]

I paid for the LTE upgrade and when I was in the Boston, I wasn't getting LTE on my Q10 SQN100-5. I don't think I saw LTE anywhere on the trip from Maine, all the way to Cape Cod area.

[bintheredundat]

I paid for the LTE upgrade and when I was in the Boston, I wasn't getting LTE on my Q10 SQN100-5. I don't think I saw LTE anywhere on the trip from Maine, all the way to Cape Cod area.

Was this for a roam mobility plan?

If so here are the devices that will get lte coverage with the upgraded sim. No love for BlackBerry
http://www.roammobility.com/support/...E-Network.html




Posted via CB10

[Smitty13]

LTE doesn't work on BB10? Odd. I'll have to look at their support pages, because they are quite BB10 friendly.

Edit: this support page makes no mention (affirmative or negative) of BB10 devices being able to use LTE. I wonder if manually entering the Roam LTE APN will work?



They don't allow calls for free, but texts to Canada (and pretty much anywhere) on the pay-by-the-day plans may be free.

I wanted to chime in and let others know that I had contacted Roam Mobility support recently in regards to BlackBerry 10 and LTE compatibility, and they replied that as long as my device was compatible with the 1700/2100 band, I could achieve LTE speeds. A direct quote from the email: "your device must either support UMTS/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA (1700/2100) or LTE Band 4 (AWS 1700/2100)." See my thread on that at: http://forums.crackberry.com/showthread.php?t=943789 In fact, I noticed just now looking back, you were the member who helped me with this very conundrum!

I cannot comment specifically on a Q10 not knowing the device frequencies, but a quick search on the forums here should yield an answer. I know a knowledgeable user on here made nice charts outlining each devices' frequency list.


Posted via CB10

[raino]

I wanted to chime in and let others know that I had contacted Roam Mobility support recently in regards to BlackBerry 10 and LTE compatibility, and they replied that as long as my device was compatible with the 1700/2100 band, I could achieve LTE speeds. A direct quote from the email: "your device must either support UMTS/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA (1700/2100) or LTE Band 4 (AWS 1700/2100)."

So when you traveled to the US, did you see LTE on your phone? There are a couple of people saying here that they didn't, and Roam leaving BB10 phones off of their 'LTE-capable devices' page is odd as well--odd in the face of the information they emailed you, which is correct.

[Smitty13]

So when you traveled to the US, did you see LTE on your phone? There are a couple of people saying here that they didn't, and Roam leaving BB10 phones off of their 'LTE-capable devices' page is odd as well--odd in the face of the information they emailed you, which is correct.

I alas haven't tried my phone on the new LTE available network via Roam as of yet, however, I will be able to report back on the 21st of this month as I will be travelling to the US.

I am unsure if this was asked already, but were these people who reported no LTE connectivity, were they in a refarmed area of TMO's that was upgraded to LTE? Roam uses TMO's towers, thus, people have to be in the major urban areas to take advantage. Luckily, I will be in both Phoenix and Las Vegas which both area listed areas, so I will be able to concretely report back.

Posted via CB10

[bintheredundat]

I alas haven't tried my phone on the new LTE available network via Roam as of yet, however, I will be able to report back on the 21st of this month as I will be travelling to the US.

I am unsure if this was asked already, but were these people who reported no LTE connectivity, were they in a refarmed area of TMO's that was upgraded to LTE? Roam uses TMO's towers, thus, people have to be in the major urban areas to take advantage. Luckily, I will be in both Phoenix and Las Vegas which both area listed areas, so I will be able to concretely report back.

Posted via CB10

Nice! Would appreciate the feedback. Have you already upgraded your sim then with roam then?

Posted via CB10

[Smitty13]

Nice! Would appreciate the feedback. Have you already upgraded your sim then with roam then?

Posted via CB10

I sure have! I had an existing SIM and just paid the $1.95 upgrade fee, so I should be LTE ready.

I have had nothing but success with Roam in the past, so I expect the same given that their support confirmed I should be good to go.

Subscribed to this thread, so expect a reply around the 21st/22nd of this month.

Posted via CB10

[raino]

I am unsure if this was asked already, but were these people who reported no LTE connectivity, were they in a refarmed area of TMO's that was upgraded to LTE? Roam uses TMO's towers, thus, people have to be in the major urban areas to take advantage. Luckily, I will be in both Phoenix and Las Vegas which both area listed areas, so I will be able to concretely report back.

Interesting point. There were/are two refarms: one converting GSM 1900 to UMTS 1900 (which, I believe, has stopped,) and one refarming GSM 1900 spectrum to LTE with a self-set goal of completing it by the end of 2015. Roam self-admittedly does not have access to the LTE band 2 (1900) network.

I don't know about Phoenix, but TMO definitely has an LTE band 4 network (AWS--the current network, that Roam apparently does have access to) in Las Vegas. That should tell us what's going on with BB10 phones on Roam having access to the LTE b4 network.

Looking forward to your posts later this month.

[Smitty13]

Interesting point. There were/are two refarms: one converting GSM 1900 to UMTS 1900 (which, I believe, has stopped,) and one refarming GSM 1900 spectrum to LTE with a self-set goal of completing it by the end of 2015. Roam self-admittedly does not have access to the LTE band 2 (1900) network.

I don't know about Phoenix, but TMO definitely has an LTE band 4 network (AWS--the current network, that Roam apparently does have access to) in Las Vegas. That should tell us what's going on with BB10 phones on Roam having access to the LTE b4 network.

Looking forward to your posts later this month.

Thank you for that reply, raino. I had indeed seen that Roam listed on LTE Band 4 as a compatible network (along with UMTS 1900), but was sorely unaware that Phoenix potentially could not be utilizing the same band as Las Vegas. I have only seen anecdotal evidence that TMO's towers in Phoenix will also be LTE Band 4.

Do you happen to have a link outlining all of the TMO refarms along with specifics such as bands etc.? I am having troubles myself finding concrete information on this.

For further clarification sake, I will also be touching down in San Francisco in the USA first for a layover so I can also report on that location.

Here's to praying LTE works correctly in Phoenix!

[willowbeast]

I second Roam Mobility. They offer a fantastic service for Canadians. Alternatively if Wind is your carrier you can add unlimited US roaming for one month for $15...just shows how much Telus/Roger/Bell take advantage on roaming rates.

Posted via CB10

Roam gets my vote. Used them and will continue

Posted via CB10

[raino]

Do you happen to have a link outlining all of the TMO refarms along with specifics such as bands etc.? I am having troubles myself finding concrete information on this.

I don't know of any tracking resource that's following LTE band 2 refarms. Which could mean a number of things: the network hasn't gone live yet, the deployments are too far and between at the moment, or people simply aren't checking. I would say you are much more likely to run into TMO band 4 LTE right now than band 2. Roam seems to be doing a great job (not just for an MVNO, but carriers in general) of tracking where its customers will see LTE, and refarmed UMTS 1900 (scroll down.) Notably, SF, Phoenix and Vegas are on both lists.

[Smitty13]

I don't know of any tracking resource that's following LTE band 2 refarms. Which could mean a number of things: the network hasn't gone live yet, the deployments are too far and between at the moment, or people simply aren't checking. I would say you are much more likely to run into TMO band 4 LTE right now than band 2. Roam seems to be doing a great job (not just for an MVNO, but carriers in general) of tracking where its customers will see LTE, and refarmed UMTS 1900 (scroll down.) Notably, SF, Phoenix and Vegas are on both lists.

Couldn't agree more with everything you said; I have to hand it to RM for their detailed listings of where LTE will be made available.

Suffice to say, my next post on this thread will be once I have tested these various areas out. Catch you all then!

[Jsolts]

I ended up going with roam Mobility after I looked at all the Info.

Bought the Sim at 7-11 for $22
Did the late upgrade for $2
Bought 3 days for $13

All in total for $37 I have 900mb of lte
And unlimited calling and texting

And just a FYI my Z30STA100-5/10.2.1.3247
Gets 4glte in Nyc



Posted via CB10

[raino]

And just a FYI my Z30STA100-5/10.2.1.3247
Gets 4glte in Nyc

That's great to hear! So that's one person who gets LTE on Roam using a BB10 phone.

[Smitty13]

Greetings all. I'll use this post to update my findings on LTE available areas on RM while on my trip in the USA (using the STL100-3/RFF91LW model purchased from Telus/Koodo).

Update 1: I am currently at the San Francisco airport and can confirm that I am receiving an LTE signal on Roam Mobility. More updates to follow as my trip progresses.

Update 2: I also wanted to confirm that I am receiving an LTE signal in Phoenix as well.

Update 3: Apologies for the late update. Just one last confirmation for the Palm Springs, CA area. I received an LTE signal there as well. Hope this helps fellow users!