[AEM#IM]

Hi all,
I'm a long-time Verizon user, but the Tour would me my first VZW phone with worldwide capabilities. I'll be in France beginning in January 2010 for a few months, so I'm trying to figure out the best cell phone option for my situation. If I were using the Tour in France, would Verizon be charging me any additional fees? I'm asking because I'm fairly sure that AT&T (and possibly others?) have no such fees--worldwide service is standard. Would it be smarter just to switch?

[Mystic205]

whatever you do, do not smoke the "worldwide network" commercials of ATT.

Any trip abroad is subject to roaming charges, plus high per min charges and not necessarily inclusive of data usage..

Generally speaking, if you want simply voice and text, then purchase a local sim card on a pay as you go plan.. this is far cheaper than any roaming charges from any of the US based carriers.. Just ensure that your address book is stored on the Tour and not the SIM card.. pop in the new sim and the tour is then a dumb phone, but with cheaper rates than roaming.

If you have a laptop and will have email then you will need to decide whether paying VZ for their BB data international roaming is worthwhile..

good source for sim cards is International Cell Phones, World Phones, SIM Cards, Satellite Phones .. I have used them several times..

If you know there will be wifi, and are not committed to the tour or vz then checkout Tmobile and UMA... that technology is perfect for travellers who pay their own phone bill

Hi all,
I'm a long-time Verizon user, but the Tour would me my first VZW phone with worldwide capabilities. I'll be in France beginning in January 2010 for a few months, so I'm trying to figure out the best cell phone option for my situation. If I were using the Tour in France, would Verizon be charging me any additional fees? I'm asking because I'm fairly sure that AT&T (and possibly others?) have no such fees--worldwide service is standard. Would it be smarter just to switch?

[mjbesen310]

Hi all,
I'm fairly sure that AT&T (and possibly others?) have no such fees--worldwide service is standard. Would it be smarter just to switch?

that is compleatly false. At&t will charge you an arm and a leg to use there phones over seas. a freind of mine has an Iphone and went to Austrialia for 2 months. Long story short, he couldnt even use his Iphone over there since at&t would charge him so much to use it over there. He ended up just buying a prepaid phone with minutes on it already. Who ever told you that that they don't charge you for going over seas should be hit upside the head

[Teksu]

yeah, get a prepaid sim card. just be sure to call up verizon a couple weeks before you go and tell them what you plan on doing. they will assist you with unlocking your 9630

[EvJ296]

I'm travelling to Italy next month, and I am planning on using the Tour there for basic voice and text. If i use the SIM card that comes with the phone will I be charged fees for roaming? or will the phone automatically use the local network, such as vodafone?

[Dusteater]

If you use the SIM card that comes with the phone, you will be charges international roaming fees.

[md12]

there are so many wifi hotstops abroad its not even funny, just use the wifi on the phone... oh wait...

[earny]

I'm not sure about all the wifi hotspots in Europe being free. Sure there are a lot of hotspots but they do cost a lot especially at major hotels. I'm talking about 8-10 Euros an hour or 20+ Euros per 24 hours. When I went to Europe last month with the Storm, I added the Blackberry International plan for 69.99 and used the phone to browse the web as much as possible and used bb messenger to communicate to people back in the states. I didn't get a sim card since I knew I would not be making many calls in Europe except back home for a few minutes to let family know where I am. Oh and Verizon does not charge per kb on the Blackberry International plan. I did not try tethering though just to be on the safe side it took too much data.

[French]

I'm trying to understand the prepaid SIM card and I'm a little confused. So I pay a fee for a card that has x minutes on it already, but from what I'm reading it sounds like there are a bunch of other fees that I could be charged, such as connection fees, etc.

So are there a lot of "hidden" fees when using a SIM card abroad? In my case I will be going to Mexico and was thinking about getting a prepaid SIM card for emergencies and to touch base with the teenager back home. If I call him, or he calls me, will there be fees? What if we exchange text messages?

I find this whole SIM card/use in other countries to be a bit unclear.

[radioguinea]

If you are going to get the Tour, and stick with VZ, its MUCH cheaper then ATT data wise.

About a week before you leave, call VZ and tell them you are going overseas. Tell them you would like the phone unlocked so you can use another sim for voice, and you would also like the INTL BB plan added on so you can use data with the included vodaphone sim card.

With VZ's INTL BB data plan, its an extra 20 dollars a month, but they only charge you the days you use it. So, for example. If your overseas for only say 7 days, or 10 days, the day you return call them up, and take off the INTL BB data plan, and go back to your regular one. On your next bill, you will only be charged for those 7 or 10 days or whatever amount of days you had int on the accout, so say 8 dollars or so for example.

The VZ INTL BB plan gives you UNLIMITED data usage (email/bb messenger/web/IM/ect..) while you have the vodaphone sim in the phone as long as you have coverage. Also, you could be in a 3G area, so its just as fast as EVDO here in the states. If theres you 3G coverage, more then likely you will have EDGE which is fine for typical data usage.

Again, no roaming fees. Unlimited data. Just make sure to call back when your back, and take it off your account so your not charged for the full month.

[beto89]

If you are going to get the Tour, and stick with VZ, its MUCH cheaper then ATT data wise.

About a week before you leave, call VZ and tell them you are going overseas. Tell them you would like the phone unlocked so you can use another sim for voice, and you would also like the INTL BB plan added on so you can use data with the included vodaphone sim card.

With VZ's INTL BB data plan, its an extra 20 dollars a month, but they only charge you the days you use it. So, for example. If your overseas for only say 7 days, or 10 days, the day you return call them up, and take off the INTL BB data plan, and go back to your regular one. On your next bill, you will only be charged for those 7 or 10 days or whatever amount of days you had int on the accout, so say 8 dollars or so for example.

The VZ INTL BB plan gives you UNLIMITED data usage (email/bb messenger/web/IM/ect..) while you have the vodaphone sim in the phone as long as you have coverage. Also, you could be in a 3G area, so its just as fast as EVDO here in the states. If theres you 3G coverage, more then likely you will have EDGE which is fine for typical data usage.

Again, no roaming fees. Unlimited data. Just make sure to call back when your back, and take it off your account so your not charged for the full month.

yes vzw is great for international data. When I still had my iphone I checked to see what international data plans where availabe and it was crazy, like 65 or so bucks for limited data, I think 100 mb. This was the main reason I swapped over to vzw and got a blackberry, only 69 a month with unlimited data usage.

[French]

If you are going to get the Tour, and stick with VZ, its MUCH cheaper then ATT data wise.

About a week before you leave, call VZ and tell them you are going overseas. Tell them you would like the phone unlocked so you can use another sim for voice, and you would also like the INTL BB plan added on so you can use data with the included vodaphone sim card.

With VZ's INTL BB data plan, its an extra 20 dollars a month, but they only charge you the days you use it. So, for example. If your overseas for only say 7 days, or 10 days, the day you return call them up, and take off the INTL BB data plan, and go back to your regular one. On your next bill, you will only be charged for those 7 or 10 days or whatever amount of days you had int on the accout, so say 8 dollars or so for example.

The VZ INTL BB plan gives you UNLIMITED data usage (email/bb messenger/web/IM/ect..) while you have the vodaphone sim in the phone as long as you have coverage. Also, you could be in a 3G area, so its just as fast as EVDO here in the states. If theres you 3G coverage, more then likely you will have EDGE which is fine for typical data usage.

Again, no roaming fees. Unlimited data. Just make sure to call back when your back, and take it off your account so your not charged for the full month.

Thank you for this post. Just to get a little more clarification, if I decided I didn't need to make calls at all, technically I wouldn't even have to get the phone unlocked, right? Because this solution has me using the existing SIM card that comes with the Tour for data.

So for data add the BB international data plan and use the SIM card that comes with the phone...which in my case would work well because my son has a blackberry and we BBM more than anything else.

If I also want to make calls I would need to buy a SIM card for Mexico, get the phone unlocked and then swap out the SIM cards, using the Mexican SIM card for making/receiving calls, and the original SIM card for checking e-mail, BBMs, etc.

Am I reading correctly that to use the original SIM card for phone, too, it is .99/minute? Because if that's true, I'm not sure buying a local SIM card is cost effective for me. It looks like I'd be spending about $50 on the SIM card, and honestly I don't think I'll talk $50 worth at .99/minute using the phone. It's truly for emergencies only, especially if I add the data to stay in touch with my step son.

Thanks again Radio...you are a great asset to these forums and I appreciate your posts.

[Buckshot1]

I'm trying to understand the prepaid SIM card and I'm a little confused. So I pay a fee for a card that has x minutes on it already, but from what I'm reading it sounds like there are a bunch of other fees that I could be charged, such as connection fees, etc.

So are there a lot of "hidden" fees when using a SIM card abroad? In my case I will be going to Mexico and was thinking about getting a prepaid SIM card for emergencies and to touch base with the teenager back home. If I call him, or he calls me, will there be fees? What if we exchange text messages?

I find this whole SIM card/use in other countries to be a bit unclear.

It depends on the carrier and the country. I just went to Australia, purchased a SIM with a local number. In Australia all incoming calls are free, but depending on the carrier the "Flagship charge", which is a charge to make a call on top of the minute charge varies. The average flaghsip charge for originating a call is around 78 cents, plus a per minute charge. The upside was my carrier only charged 27 cents a minute to call anywhere in the US, which beats the roaming fees. Text messages you have to be careful of, to send one to the states it was 20 cents, but the person in the states was charged an international text fee that is not included in most plans. AT&T charged 40 cents, Sprint and VZW 20 cents for an international text.
When you purchase a prepaid SIM, always ask about flagship charges, rates to where you are going to call, and per text charges in country and out of country. If you are traveling with someone, ask if calling someone on the same provider is a charge or free, some offer it for free as long as it is the same provider.

[noaim]

I didn't read through every post here but yes verizon will charge extra..

keep in mind that you can enable the global plan while you are away though and turn it off when you get back.

You may want to call verizon and ask about coverage in France as I am not sure.

[hcave]

This is the only thing about world capable phones that confuse me.

my 2 questions are:

1) if the person calling me is from the US are they charged any international fees for calling me? I know most international sim cards are free incoming calls, but is this free to the caller calling you.

2) Rumor has it, even if i'm on a cruise ship, which i will be, the cruise ship charges you an arm and a leg (12.00) to make phone calls, regardless if you have a SIM card or not, anyone had any experience with this?

[noaim]

This is the only thing about world capable phones that confuse me.

my 2 questions are:

1) if the person calling me is from the US are they charged any international fees for calling me? I know most international sim cards are free incoming calls, but is this free to the caller calling you.

2) Rumor has it, even if i'm on a cruise ship, which i will be, the cruise ship charges you an arm and a leg (12.00) to make phone calls, regardless if you have a SIM card or not, anyone had any experience with this?

the number they are dialing to call you doesn't change... so I would assume that them calling you would be no extra charge... (someone may know more about this but considering that you don't get a second number for when your global I would assume this to be true) However if you get a local sim card with a number from another country this would change I believe.

as far as the cruise ship question...

I have never heard of that.. it sounds strange to be honest.. but your best bet would be to look up your cruise information and if that is the case it should be listed somewhere in the documentation.

[Grifter3000]

re: 1) - no, w/ Vzw, whoever's calling you will be charged as they would normally be for calling you should you be at home, no matter where you are in the world.

to chime in on some of the other posts on this topic: whenever i travel overseas I get the Vzw global data plan pro-rated for the number of days i'm abroad, as it's a solid deal (especially when compared to what AT&T offers their customers). However, the phone roaming costs (as opposed to data roaming costs) are thru the roof, so I buy a phone card and use people's landlines or payphones.

the problem i find with unlocking the phone to get a local SIM card and avoid roaming charges is that then you don't get data on your device. so you can send SMS text messages but you can't email, surf the web, or BBM. I have yet to find a pay as you go SIM card in europe that enables data as well as voice - has anyone found such a SIM card?

This is the only thing about world capable phones that confuse me.

my 2 questions are:

1) if the person calling me is from the US are they charged any international fees for calling me? I know most international sim cards are free incoming calls, but is this free to the caller calling you.

2) Rumor has it, even if i'm on a cruise ship, which i will be, the cruise ship charges you an arm and a leg (12.00) to make phone calls, regardless if you have a SIM card or not, anyone had any experience with this?

[maczealot]

So for data add the BB international data plan and use the SIM card that comes with the phone...which in my case would work well because my son has a blackberry and we BBM more than anything else.

If I also want to make calls I would need to buy a SIM card for Mexico, get the phone unlocked and then swap out the SIM cards, using the Mexican SIM card for making/receiving calls, and the original SIM card for checking e-mail, BBMs, etc.

Am I reading correctly that to use the original SIM card for phone, too, it is .99/minute? Because if that's true, I'm not sure buying a local SIM card is cost effective for me. It looks like I'd be spending about $50 on the SIM card, and honestly I don't think I'll talk $50 worth at .99/minute using the phone. It's truly for emergencies only, especially if I add the data to stay in touch with my step son.

Thanks again Radio...you are a great asset to these forums and I appreciate your posts.

You won't be using the SIM card to roam in Mexico. You will be getting data service roaming on Iusacell's CDMA network. I know Sprint has an EVDO data agreement with Iusacell. Not sure if Verizon is limited to 1X. You can clear that up for us when you come back. What is awesome about the Tour is that you can use data and BBM with your CDMA radio and switch to the GSM radio and Mexican prepaid SIM card to make phone calls (No SIM cards to swap out). I would recommend Telcel because they are more ubiquitous. Ask for an Amigo SIM card. The SIM card does not cost more than $15 dollars and also has some airtime. By default you pay by the minute at the equivalent of 40 cents. You can also call *264 to change your plan and pay by phone call. I think it costs about $1 for a 15 minute phone call to the US. If you stay in the same state where you bought the SIM card, incoming calls are free to you.

[GregCbb]

The last few times I was in London, UK I got a tmobile sim card to use with my trusty treo 750w. It was free to get the sim card. When you text WEB to 441 to tmobile, for 2.50 GBP you got unlimited data for 5 days.

When you text INT120 to tmobile, for 7.50GBP you get 120 international minutes to use. The countries I could call were limited, but the only one that really concerned me was the US of A. So for the first time, I was calling my wife back in the states when I was taking a night time picture of the London Eye with Big Ben over my right shoulder! These 120 minutes were on top of my pre paid minutes/texts.

I think they still offer these bonuses or boosters. check Pay As You Go - Mobile Phone Tariffs - T-Mobile under their pre paid plans.

I hope this clarifies London, UK (europe) sim cards and data.

GregC

[douglaswilson]

I was recently told that ATT makes you wait 3 months to be eligible for international service and then makes you keep it for a year before you can get rid of it. Verizon prorates it and lets you get rid of it when you come back.

[French]

You won't be using the SIM card to roam in Mexico. You will be getting data service roaming on Iusacell's CDMA network. I know Sprint has an EVDO data agreement with Iusacell. Not sure if Verizon is limited to 1X. You can clear that up for us when you come back. What is awesome about the Tour is that you can use data and BBM with your CDMA radio and switch to the GSM radio and Mexican prepaid SIM card to make phone calls (No SIM cards to swap out). I would recommend Telcel because they are more ubiquitous. Ask for an Amigo SIM card. The SIM card does not cost more than $15 dollars and also has some airtime. By default you pay by the minute at the equivalent of 40 cents. You can also call *264 to change your plan and pay by phone call. I think it costs about $1 for a 15 minute phone call to the US. If you stay in the same state where you bought the SIM card, incoming calls are free to you.

Thank you for this...very helpful. So I buy a local SIM card...this means that for the kid to reach me I have to give him an International number to call and he ends up with an International connection charge if he does call me?

Since I would be using CDMA for data I can't turn off my "regular" number. So the only way to keep my friends from making me incur outrageous International rates while there is to tell them not to call me on my regular number?

[Snipps]

I was recently told that ATT makes you wait 3 months to be eligible for international service and then makes you keep it for a year before you can get rid of it. Verizon prorates it and lets you get rid of it when you come back.

False. My sister was in spain from August-December, she added it 2 days before she left and took it off the day after she got back.

[CrackberryBold]

Here is my experience with international phone usage.
I brought my Sprint curve to Vietnam last week just so that i could have it available when i get back in the states to call my brother to pick me up. I was bored one night in vietnam so i turned my phone on. After i turned it on, i received a text which i thought was kinda strange since im in Asia. So I opened the text and it basically said "calls made from Vietnam are $4.99 per minute." It didnt say anything about text charges. So thatll give you an idea about international phone usage.

What my pops does everything he goes to Vietnam is he brings he att gsm phone and buys a local sim card there with a local #. Its way way cheaper. When he calls home to US, he dials 1 +area code+phone number (i think). When someone from USA calls him, they have to dial a series of #s as well and theyuse a calling card b/c its way cheaper.

I imagine this would be the same anywhere else in the world.
Im not sure how international texting works, has anyone tried it? texting from away country to home or vise versa...

[LooNTooNs]

We have a family gsm phone that we use when we travel overseas. (soon to change with the tour)

When I was in aruba, they sold SIM cards right there in the airport. Dont recall the ammount, but it was card with some airtime. poped it in and called the US and told the family we we had landed safely and give them the international # to call us at.

When in Italy, could not find a card in the airport when we landed in Rome. and were told we had to buy it in a tobaco shop. They were all closed on Sunday and then Monday was a Holiday. We did find a cellphone store in the evening on Monday.

My wife was in France last month and again could not find the card in the airport and called me from the Hotel ($$$$$!!!!!! ) It wound up being a "chore" for her to find the SIM card, so I called her from my cell most of the time in the hotel room.


It is always nice to have a local number to use in the country your in. For us dinner reservations and hotel and other matters.

[French]

We have a family gsm phone that we use when we travel overseas. (soon to change with the tour)

When I was in aruba, they sold SIM cards right there in the airport. Dont recall the ammount, but it was card with some airtime. poped it in and called the US and told the family we we had landed safely and give them the international # to call us at.

When in Italy, could not find a card in the airport when we landed in Rome. and were told we had to buy it in a tobaco shop. They were all closed on Sunday and then Monday was a Holiday. We did find a cellphone store in the evening on Monday.

My wife was in France last month and again could not find the card in the airport and called me from the Hotel ($$$$$!!!!!! ) It wound up being a "chore" for her to find the SIM card, so I called her from my cell most of the time in the hotel room.


It is always nice to have a local number to use in the country your in. For us dinner reservations and hotel and other matters.

This is a good point (about having a local number to do local stuff).

But you calling from your cell phone to an international number...didn't you incur charges for that? I'm trying to figure out if it's possible for me to travel out of the country, yet still receive phone calls from my kid without him jumping through hoops OR having to pay extra for the international calling to me. What happens if I forward my USA number to the "local foreign country" number? My kid would call my regular number like usual, which would forward to the international number. So MY USA number should incur any international fees, right? Would it be exactly the same fees as what he would have incurred if he had just dialed the country number to begin with?