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Going on holidays to US with my EU HD2, any prepaid sims that will work?

Hi Guys,
Going to the US for a few weeks, just wondering if I can get a prepaid simcard to work with my HD2 and if so what company would support it. I'm guessing mobile internet is out of the question, but as long as I could make voice calls i'd be happy.
Zhuk86

There are probably several prepaid solutions over there too. Who has the best coverage (and price) where you are going I don't know, but you will most likely be able to use EDGE for data.

that sounds great, i'll be in LA and NY mostly, so i'll definitely search around for EDGE providers there

You choices are basically T-Mobile or AT&T (there are some MVNO's running on those networks but I wouldn't bother with them).
T-Mobile don't' do Data on Prepaid, except for the Sidekick. AT&T do data either $0.01 per KB or there are bundles: 100MB for $19.99 or 1MB for $4.99. You will only get EDGE with the HD2 in the USA.
You need to check coverage for wherever you're planning on going for both networks.

There are loads of free WiFi hotspots. I would use them for data connections.

fred_up said:
There are loads of free WiFi hotspots. I would use them for data connections.
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i am also going to the USA for a few weeks , i have this question as well . i'll be in the west coast of the USA
free wifi shouldnt be a problem , i would guess , but who knows !?=
but i would also like to know who has the best coverage and data . email , calls and the rest .
i have heard thru cnet and many many people thathave AT&T in the USA say they are just trash , is this true ?
thanks

Well maybe i'll just get a prepaid sim for calls and then use wifi hotspots for data, i've heard that wifi hotspots are pretty prolific in US cities so definitely worth checking out I guess

I would go with an AT&T pre paid SIM card. Look on ebay, here's an example: http://cgi.ebay.com/New-3G-AT-T-64k-Orange-Sim-Card-Chip-Prepaid-or-Regular_W0QQitemZ300397838597QQcmdZViewItemQQptZSIM_Cards?hash=item45f11b4105
Once you get that card go to: https://www.wireless.att.com/activations/ and choose the option for Pay-As-You-Go Under "Go Phone" and follow the instructions.

TMO + N1 = Crappy International Phone

I am going to be headed over to Taiwan and China for the next couple of weeks so I called TMO to get an international plan to receive data. Well turns it out THERE IS NO SUCH PLAN and that each 1mb of data equals $15. Yeah I could put in a local SIM card but that won't give email and internet. And why should I, the N1 is touted as an international phone. This news was thoroughly disappointing because I will now have to rely on my crappy Blackberry for email (which is the reason I switched to Android in the first place). If there any international travelers here please let me know if there are any tricks that I should be aware of. Otherwise this is disappointing that a GSM phone can be used outside the US only if you willing to be bent over the table without any... you get the point.

i went to australia earlier this year and encountered the same problem.their international plans suck major ass.only thing i could do was pull sim card and run off wifi using any hotspots that i could find.

yea blame T-Mobile...I'm curious what other carrier in the US has a international roaming plan?

ram130 said:
yea blame T-Mobile...I'm curious what other carrier in the US has a international roaming plan?
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One of the reasons I have TMO is because of their fantastic international roaming coverage. That is why I was surprised to see that they have none for the Nexus.
As far as international roaming plans, every carrier does, just not for the Android. So yeah I'm putting that blame on TMO and Google.

I'm pretty sure every carrier has insane pricing for international roaming.
The benefit of gsm phones is that you pop a sim card for wherever you're going, not that you're carrier will support you in east bumblefuck.

All carriers are like that. That is why when the iphone first came out people were returning home with $3K phone bills. http://boingboing.net/2007/07/31/att-iphone-intl-roam.html
http://gizmodo.com/297999/idiots-keep-incurring-iphones-roaming-data-charges
The phone is an international phone but the plans aren't. Get a SIM with a data plan. When I go overseas that is what I do. Typically $100 will give you unlimited data and enough minutes and texts to last your whole trip. At the end of a trip overseas I usually have minutes left over.

Yeah, I don't see why you think you won't get internet over there from a local phone company, since they would be the one providing internet to you anyways with your T-Mobile card (They just charge T-Mobile a small amount, and T-Mobile jacks up the price to make money off you).
Just get a pre-paid sim card with internet access.

JCopernicus said:
bumblefuck.
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LoL gotta save this one to my "cursing without getting banned " stack

I'd recommend you to buy a new prepaid sim card with a data plan.
Here in India, we get a new sim card for Rs.20 (every street has ~5 shops) and 2GB data for Rs.90 and there are no stupid contracts (even if there were, we'd buy it on fake identities)... Thats the benefit of living in a developing nation
1 American Dollar = 45 Indian Rupees...

superg81 said:
i went to australia earlier this year and encountered the same problem.their international plans suck major ass.only thing i could do was pull sim card and run off wifi using any hotspots that i could find.
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faraz1992 said:
I'd recommend you to buy a new prepaid sim card with a data plan.
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+1 Same thing here if you were visiting Australia. You can buy a Telstra prepaid sim for $2 which when charged with some credit gives you exceptional coverage and good data speed. Works best on the 900mhz AT&T phone although will still work well on the 850mhz T-Mobile model.

Thanks everyone for your feedback, much appreciated.

logger said:
+1 Same thing here if you were visiting Australia. You can buy a Telstra prepaid sim for $2 which when charged with some credit gives you exceptional coverage and good data speed. Works best on the 900mhz AT&T phone although will still work well on the 850mhz T-Mobile model.
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T-Mobile = 900/AWS(which is 1700)/2100
AT&T = 850/1900/2100

Ah yes sorry. Had that rrrrrs about. Should have said "Works best on the 850mhz AT&T phone although will still work well on the 900mhz T-Mobile model."

The phone is a fine international phone. The carrier sucks. How is the phone to blame if TMO doesn't offer an international plan?
I travel from Romania to Netherlands and every time i'm in Netherlands i insert my prepaid Vodafone NL card and i activate the internet for 10 euros. 500mb - 1GB of data per month.
If i'm using more than that i buy again for another 10 euros. Is that simple. That's what you should do. A local prepaid sim with an internet service is ALWAYS going to be cheaper than an international plan from TMO.

too bad you guys in US have very bad telcos, here in malaysia we can roam data for less than USD10 unlimited data per day.
but of course not in all countries in the world.

faizalmzain said:
too bad you guys in US have very bad telcos, here in malaysia we can roam data for less than USD10 unlimited data per day.
but of course not in all countries in the world.
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$10 x 365 days = $3,650 per year. Geez you must have deep pockets. You can buy a car for that in Australia.
Do you perhaps mean $10 per month or $1 per day?

logger said:
$10 x 365 days = $3,650 per year. Geez you must have deep pockets. You can buy a car for that in Australia.
Do you perhaps mean $10 per month or $1 per day?
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He's talking about roaming... If you do that without a dataplan a couple of hundred megs would probably set you back several thousand $.

Yeah, ditto re: getting a prepaid SIM card on arrival. I haven't tried it in Asia, but in the UK, £5 will buy you 1GB of data to be used in 30 days, on Vodafone. I didn't even have to pay for the SIM card itself. Very pleased.

If you speak the language in China, just go to a China Mobile store, pick up a SIM card and put some yuan in it and you'll be good to go. I go to China every summer and have taken my G1 and my N1. You'll be stuck on edge but its enough to get you places. China Mobile stores are everywhere too, some have employees that speak english for just this purpose.

I pick up pre-paid SIM cards when I land at the airport in the airport store... Or if it's an area I'm familiar with, i.e. Australia, I just head to a local carrier's B&M once I'm in the city...
Then anyone who is half-way important... I send them an e-mail with my pre-paid SIM card's number. If it's important to text or call me, the caller can pay the Int'l charges.
Cheers,
Kermee

Spanish people: Do you have prepaid flatfee internet?

I'm going to spain on holiday for a couple weeks. (I know luxery )
But I do want internet when I'm there.
I want to buy a Huawei E160 USB-UMTS dongle.
And then I need a (UMTS) SIM card and an internet subscription.
Do you know company's who have prepaid cards?
I've searched, but only found old threads.
One thread of 2 years ago speeks about Movistar.es
That costed 21 euro for 4 weeks unlimited internet.
I'm also looking for that.
Is that still possible, or are there better alternatives?
Hope you can help me.
Thanx in advance!

hey! I'm from Barcelona (Spain) and have done some searching. It looks like the best option is buying a yoigo prepaid card. costs 3 euros every day you connect to the internet and you're allowed to download 100mb, then your speed is reduced to 64 kbps.
I was just looking for the same thing in the US, I'm going to cali in vacation and will be taking a nexus one to use it as gps, find hotels etc. do you know what options I have?
Just out of curiosity, where in spain are you going?
PS: here's a link http://www.yoigo.com/tarifas/internet_para_llevar.php

At&t used to for $20.00 a month.. untill the iphone came along and screwed everything up.
But i see that in europe you have to make a contract no matter if you want a phone from them or not.
In america, a plan and a contract are different things,
If you go to a cell phone company provider with your own phone, you do not need to sign a contract for 2 years to use thier service plans.
I am also going to spain (galicia) this summer, and i was going to call about that.
(And im sure you know, that At&t and T-mobile are the only GSM provider in the US)

TurboX2 said:
At&t used to for $20.00 a month.. untill the iphone came along and screwed everything up.
But i see that in europe you have to make a contract no matter if you want a phone from them or not.
In america, a plan and a contract are different things,
If you go to a cell phone company provider with your own phone, you do not need to sign a contract for 2 years to use thier service plans.
I am also going to spain (galicia) this summer, and i was going to call about that.
(And im sure you know, that At&t and T-mobile are the only GSM provider in the US)
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You don't need to make a contract in spain to get a prepaid card. Only thing you need to do is give them your ID for security purposes

josealb said:
You don't need to make a contract in spain to get a prepaid card. Only thing you need to do is give them your ID for security purposes
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that is right, it is not worth paying an 18 month contract if you are only staying here a couple of weeks, Personally I would recommend Vodafone cause they have better internet quelaity connection (at least in southern spain), and they offer prepaid sim cards and usb modems without a contract (although movistar, yoigo and orange offer them as well). The question would be, what part of spain are you traveling to and wich company has the better internet reception on that area... if you are traveling to rural areas, I would stick to the 2 major companies (Vodafone and Movistar). Hope it helps.

I'm going to Salou, about 150km south of Barcelona.
Thanx for your answers.
I hope yoigo has coverage over there.
And are there any other alternatives?

Hi,
I'm from Reus, a city near Salou (about 8km). The UMTS coverage in salou is good for all the service providers in spain.
My mobile ISP is Simyo with good prices, the only inconvenience is that don't have physical shops to buy prepaid modems/sim. My voice provider is Yoigo and they have good prices too.
My advice is that you go to a ThePhoneHouse shop, there are Vodafone, Orange and Yoigo, and they will tell you which solution was better.
You can find thephonehouse in tarragona (10km from salou) and Reus in
http://www.phonehouse.es/app/searchStore.do

Ok, I hope so that the coverage will be good.
And how are Vodafone and Orange? Are they more expensive and/or better?

ronh said:
Ok, I hope so that the coverage will be good.
And how are Vodafone and Orange? Are they more expensive and/or better?
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Vodafone will almost always give you the best coverage, at a higher price. Orange is cheaper and with a little les coverage, Simyo borrows the network from Orange so its coverage will be the same at best.
I didn't know Vodafone offered prepaid cards, if they do I'd recommend you vodafone
PS: Offtopic, Salou is cool, I've been there in vacation often but it's full of tourists, I would recommend you to move a little bit if you wanna see more of Spain than beaches, maybe driving up to Barcelona

[Q] Samsung Galaxy S i9000 user coming to US. What are the options to get data plan

I know this is not a tmobile forum, but then you Vibrant guys are like my real brothers since I use a i9000 Galaxy S with 3g in my part of the world.
I know that 3g for me is out of question due to different bands. I did my homework on that, but then what about Edge data connection atleast. As i studied the tmobile site, it looks like getting Edge connection (unlimited) is also difficult just because I dont have a credit history in US so cant get those EM or EM+ plans i guess.
I have come in and out of US many many times but was always on prepaid tmobile sims and never really wanted data as such. But with an android phone and using 3g for many months, I just dont think i can live without data connection. I know about flexpay and thats what I used last time. But now on tmobile prepaid section i dont see flexpay at all. I see Even More (not for me due to contract) and Even More + which is without contract - but I guess it still needs a credit check?? Also they will force me to buy a vibrant i guess for EM+ plan which I cant since I have my shinny i9000 with me .
So please brothers, any suggestions that you can give. I have lots of experience with tmobile reps and they just dont know much, many a times (my opinion). Hence wanted to ask here.
So summarizing:
I come with work visa with valid SS, pay taxes and all that, and no credit history. (<- is that bad??). How can I get an unlimited data plan with my talk plan. EM+ ? Flexpay ? (not sure if its still there).
The plan that I have in mind was : 500 Minutes Talk + Unlimited Text + Unlimited Web: 59.99$ EM+ but without creditcheck so I guess thats FlexPay.
Googling around, I saw EM+ flexpay pages of tmobile website but they are not selectable or show up in normal plan selection at all.
Looking forward for help.
I promise that if you ever come to my part of world, I will work with you to keep your data connection ON on your Vibrant. I will not be able to give you "H" but surely an "E"
Thanks guys in advance.

Actually, 3G worked for me on [email protected] with the international Galaxy S. The speeds were comparable with what I was getting on my old iPhone in HSDPA mode. The download speeds were better than what I am getting on T-Mobile in my area.
Not sure if AT&T let's you buy monthly plans though.

When I was in the UK a year ago with my G1, I believe I was able to get onto T-Mobile's 3G with no issue using a pre-paid UK T-Mobile sim. You may want to try to use T-Mo and AT&T pre-pay sims first and see what you can get and who is faster in your area before you get a plan. AT&T has better nationwide coverage and generally faster 3G speeds, but if you live in an area where T-Mobile has updated their towers to HSPA+, then they'll be the faster carrier for GSM phones.

Go with MySimpleMobile (http://mysimplemobile.com). They are a prepaid service with no contracts: $60 unlimited talk/text/web per month. They use T-Mobile's network so you will get 3G.
Oh and they allow for unlimited international texts at no extra charge; this may be useful for you since you are coming from overseas and will probably have friends and family you want to text.

DarkAgent said:
Go with MySimpleMobile (http://mysimplemobile.com). They are a prepaid service with no contracts: $60 unlimited talk/text/web per month. They use T-Mobile's network so you will get 3G.
Oh and they allow for unlimited international texts at no extra charge; this may be useful for you since you are coming from overseas and will probably have friends and family you want to text.
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Thanks a lot DarkAgent. Looks like this was custom made for me international texting is good but mostly wont be using it if I have unlimited web since I can hop on to gtalk and take it from there. But nice service though. Thanks for the information.
Not sure about 3G since they have mentioned that your phone shoudl support 1700mhz band to be able to use 3g. So there goes my 3g I guess since I have 900/1900/2100 bands UMTS. But edge is still okay, though I will have to find another way to do VOIP.

DarkAgent said:
Go with MySimpleMobile (http://mysimplemobile.com). They are a prepaid service with no contracts: $60 unlimited talk/text/web per month. They use T-Mobile's network so you will get 3G.
...
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Nope, with the international Galaxy you will not get 3G on T-Mobile's network, only on AT&T's.
You will get edge, although it is pretty painful, IMO.
But there is WiFi in a lot of places -- check your mail in most coffee shops for free

Oh. I wasnt aware the int version didnt support tmo 3G

Oh well, I am here now. Just wanted to share.
Mysimplemobile isn't that good. They don't do unlimited so much as they advertise.
Just went to Tmobile and did their even more plus plan with flexipay. They don't show flexpay on website but they very much have it.
You can avoid the control charge if you give the card on file.
I am one happy camper.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

Moving from Europe to USA

Hi guys,
I will be moving to the US (Chicago) next month and I have a few questions for my good Defy friends:
- Will I be able to use my unlocked Defy in the US with 3G speeds and/or HSDPA speeds?
- Is there a carrier that will let me use my phone and give me cheaper prices?
- For new voice+data plans, can I get unlimited for cheap somewhere with good coverage?
- What baseband and GPS settings should I use there?
I'm from Serbia/Europe, and I'm using my Defy with standard Central Europe baseband now and europe gps fix.
I looked around some carriers in US and I think maybe Sprint has some unlimited data plans? Could I use my Defy on their network?
Any help will be appreciated!
Cheers.

I dont see any reason why it would not work, just use correct baseband
E: also im not from usa, so i dont know about us carrier plans but as long as it is unlocked, it should work fine on Sprint network
Sent from my MB525 using xda app-developers app

hsrars-d said:
I dont see any reason why it would not work, just use correct baseband
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Oh really? But which baseband to use in Baseband selection settings in CM7.2 if I want to use Sprint or Verizon or AT&T network?
There is only baseband for TMobile, but 2 or 3 of them though.

from what i know, you will need to use a GSM based operator, some operators in the USA use a system called CDMA, also your speeds may be slow to very slow on T-mobiles USA system as they use a wierd system for data, one frequency for uploads and another for downloads thats not used anywhere else.
Anotheir thing thats worth taking note of is that some US networks charge for incoming calls and texts ( or take incoming calls and texts form your alowance of minutes and texts/sms)
So you need to find an operator that uses a GSM system
you need to have your phone unlocked to work with any sim card
and you should try and find a service that deosnt charge for incoming calls and texts ( or that doesnt take these from your inclusive minutes/texts)

Proda said:
I'm from Serbia/Europe, and I'm using my Defy with standard Central Europe baseband now and europe gps fix.
I looked around some carriers in US and I think maybe Sprint has some unlimited data plans? Could I use my Defy on their network?
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Click to collapse
If your phone is rooted (and since you're on xda I'm sure it is) install baseband switcher and download the baseband you need.
Sprint and Verizon use CDMA, so your Defy won't work with them.
T-Mobile and AT&T use GSM.
Your european Defy uses 900 and 2100 MHz for 3G. AT&T uses 850 and 1900 MHz, so you'll be stuck with their slow EDGE network.
T-Mobile uses 1700 and 2100 MHz for 3G. Their 2100 MHz band is compatible with your Defy.
If you want to use 3G on your european Defy then T-Mob is your only option.
An american contract without phone costs almost as much as a contract with a subsidized phone, so you may as well get a phone with american 3G/4G frequencies. Contractless options are ridiculously expensive with all sorts of stupidity such as "daily access fees." Prepaid texts and minutes usually have draconian expiration policies. Some carriers make you register your phones with them, and they only accept phones from a list of "approved phones." From a european point of view, american cell phone service and pricing is a mess.

Yes, my phone is rooted (the 1st day I bought it I rooted it and installed custom ROM ), and it's sim free (unlocked).
And I'm using CM7 so I have preinstalled baseband switcher.
In baseband switcher, when I go to America I have only T-mobile bands: T-mobile 3.4.2-107-9, 3.4.2-107-4 and 6.xx.0.
Which one is the best to use?
Yes I saw that it is a quite a mess with cell phone services in US. It's pretty expensive too (for plans that I have in Serbia). And one have to read all the tinny little words at the end of page (you have to pay for INCOMING SMS/MMS, or for INCOMING calls, and some stupid stuff like that)
So you suggest that I just take full pack - plan+mobile device? I saw that Verizon has the best 4G network in US. Maybe take that? Or you suggest something else? (I would like to have around 1gb of Data per month - that is UNLIMITED Data for me, and possibly free SMS and at least 300min of calls. And of course not to pay that too much - I saw some UNLIMITED Data plan in Sprint, but it is around 80$/month or more).
Now I pay 10$/month for plan that has 600mb/300minCalls/600sms.
Thanks for info one more time.
Cheers.

They will rip you off for 4G data plans. As i saw (out of curiostiy), expensive as hell.
The best way is to relax a bit and once you arrive there figure out the best solution for you and your family. It's simplier to go the brick and mortar store and discuss then to speculate here. They have some family packages that may be good.
And yes it will be better to buy a new phone with contract there. You might as well sell this Defy in Serbia. "leave old things in the past"

When you buy an american phone, Google your unlock options first. When you're back in Serbia for holidays you'll probably want to use your shiny new phone with a serbian SIM card.
Where I live carriers only lock phones on prepaid plans, but american carriers have the annoying habit of locking all their phones, even if you buy them on a two year contract.

rogier666 said:
When you buy an american phone, Google your unlock options first. When you're back in Serbia for holidays you'll probably want to use your shiny new phone with a serbian SIM card.
Where I live carriers only lock phones on prepaid plans, but american carriers have the annoying habit of locking all their phones, even if you buy them on a two year contract.
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And Verizon is Simless as i know.

I assume you're in the US by now. Have you chosen what to do? I have a US Tmobile defy, and use tmobile prepaid service. 2gb at 4g (3g for defy) speeds then unlimited data at Edge speed is $60/month. that includes unlimited talk and txt.
I don't know which baseband is better either. I'm on 3.4.2-107-4 and haven't had any problems. I've also wondered which is better. I've thought maybe 107-4 is 2g and 107-9 is 3g? and when you switch on 2g/3g it switches itself? I really don't know though.

I wish I'm in the US now. But it seems that employers forgot about all the paperwork required to obtain working visa for US :silly:, so imo I'll be in the US around 1st of January 2013.
Then I can try to answer your questions
But I think I will buy Nexus 4 as soon as I get my 1st paycheck. :fingers-crossed:
I would prefer GSM phone so I could be able to use it when I come to Serbia on vacations. (I heard that iPhone 5 on Verizon is SIM card FREE so it is possible to use it with any GSM carrier But that is IPHONE. Who needs that! )
I still don't know which carrier I will chose. I saw one that looks nice and it is prepaid, maybe it has postpaid too (RedPocket)
I will be mostly in Chicago and Boston, so I think this carrier would be OK.
Or maybe T-mobile...
But before I buy new phone I'll have to choose SIM card to use it on my good old Defy. If you say T-mobile works for you, then I'll get that one (or this RedPocket if I find it somewhere).

HI!
I have a similar problem. I moved to the US (Chicago) for a few months. I have a defy with cm10 installed. Up to date at this point.
I bought a t-mobile prepaid simcard. I get only edge speed. According to what I read, T-mobile uses 1700MHz and 2100 MHz for the 3G. Actually both are required!
When I select baseband there are the three options for t-mob, but none of them work (at the details of the options, both 1700 and 2100 are mentioned). I also tried defy baseband switcher.
Is it even possible to use 3G on T-mobile with this phone? If yes, how?
Thanks!