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Hi I am looking for PAYG data sims for my android smart phone for Spain, France and Portugal. There are a number of different ones on the net and ebay. Any recommendations re coverage?
I also want to use the phone for wireless tethering. I've used it successfully with O2.ie but know that Orange UK will not allow it. If you know of networks that allow/disallow it I would also be grateful for the info.
Regards Dick
______________________________________________________________ Powys, Paradwys Cymru
"Rules are for the guidance of wise men and the obedience of fools." Douglas Bader CBE
For more use local sims although poor in France. I don't know what is currently good in Portugal.
If, as your title suggests your main concern is with Spain then MasMovil is excellent, by far the best current deal and has good coverage.
I pay 3 cents a mb with automatic top when the balance goes below 10€. I pay 1€ for months I don't use it which is fine by me as we spent several months each year in Spain. The deal is a monthly one and can be cancelled at any time. You will need a Spanish address but any will do, camp site etc., Alan.
Just spent some time trying to find a link to the deal I am on and can't find it. It may have been withdrawn from sale. Mine is still working, I am using it now because it's too windy to have the dishes up today.
I'm posting this now from a UK Vodafone SIM in Spain using Vodafone Data Traveller.
Install a free application to monitor your data usage and also Opera Mini browser to compress the webpages you visit by upto 90% and you'll be amazed at just how much 25MB/day will get you, only once exceeded it in 9 months of daily heavy use in 17 European countries.
£10/mth on top of a regular contract, which can be as little as £6.50/mth if you purchase a 12-month SIM-only contract from Vodafone via Quidco.com which gives upto £120 cashback. Alternatively £2/day on PAYG which is only any good for occasional use.
The 'pay as you go' option is £2/day on the days on which you consume data.
I think you should weigh up:
1.) How many days you spend abroad in any 12 month period. Remember that the Data Traveller bolt on is £10 for 30 days foreign usage on top of whatever your monthly bill is. You only need to use it 5 days in a month to have broken even on what the PAYG option charges.
2.) How much you spend on calls, data and texts during a 12 month period in the UK. When back in the UK your monthly bill would be as low as £8 (less if the Qudico offer goes back up in Jan) which will include a calls and text allowance - think of this as your 'credit'.
3.) Somewhere in all of this there has to be factored in the ease of being able to arrive in any country in Europe and instantly have internet access without any messing about with local sim cards, dongles, contracts, addresses or topping up. Your phone number will still be the same and people can call and text you as usual.
One other feature from Vodafone which I find excellent is 'Passport' which allows you to make or receive a 60 minute phone call anywhere in Europe for a 75p 'connection charge'.
I would recommend you start browsing with Opera Mini rather than your default browser - if you find it displays things strange choose 'wrap text' in the settings Menu. I'll be amazed if you exceed 25Mb/day!
I laughed when I read Dick's reply, because I cheerfully live without a mobile phone.
The PAYG generally sits at home with a flat battery and I leave communication to Mrs HS.
However, we intend to travel further in 2012 and I want Yvonne to have the ability to talk to family and friends without incurring the huge unintended bills that one reads about.
This is a brilliant thread, and together with Dick's advice about tethering should get us up and running.
Thank you.
______________________________________________________________ John
I laughed when I read Dick's reply, because I cheerfully live without a mobile phone.
The PAYG generally sits at home with a flat battery and I leave communication to Mrs HS.
However, we intend to travel further in 2012 and I want Yvonne to have the ability to talk to family and friends without incurring the huge unintended bills that one reads about.
This is a brilliant thread, and together with Dick's advice about tethering should get us up and running.
Thank you.
Tethering is possible with Vodafone Data Traveller but I would consider it a last resort. Even with everything 'turned off' on the Laptop and Opera's PC browser installed using the Turbo function to compress web pages it will only give minutes of browsing vs hours on the phone itself.
The only reason I can think that you would need to tether would be if you find the size of the phone screen restrictive. In which case I would consider the Samsung Galaxy Tab which has a large screen but is still essentially a 'phone' or even the standard Galaxy S II has the same screen as the iPhone.
I would save PC based activities for when you obtain a free or open Wifi connection.
As I say I dislike the idea of a contract Addie. If I had one already and were crossing borders on a regular basis then Data traveller would be a very convenient solution. But a month or so in one country and then another I think I can do cheaper and have no contract hanging over me. Admittedly I have the chore of swapping sims (I have a brick with my normal number so no need to worry about number continuity).
Ireland. When I visited Nov. I was able to buy an O2 3g data card (with 10 euro credit) for 10 euro this gave me 750MB to be used in a month with an email alert when I was getting low. Subsequent time was the same i.e 10 euro for 750MB. 750MB lasted for 3weeks with one, sometimes 2 laptops tethered (we don’t stream).
Spain. I am thinking of buying one of these. Purchase £8.90 with 5 euros credit. FREE net access for first MG per day subsequently 0.15 per MB – If I used 2MB day as per data traveller it would cost 4.50 euro per month with no horrendous shock if I went over limit.
France seems a slightly more expensive than data traveller but again no prohibitive costs should I go over. Portugal would seem the same as Spain but I would have to buy directly from network shop on arrival apparently.
All these have the advantage that you “average” out your usage and don’t have to be obsessive about how much you use each day. i.e you could spend all day on the net one day that can be balanced by the days that you just check your emails.
As far as tethering goes, we do it wirelessly through a Galaxy S2 which allows both of us on at the same time. It says it will do up to 5 apparently.
John (Hurricansmith) as far as calls back home are concerned the S2 with the Skype app will allow you to take it into town and the wife can chat to her heart’s content for nothing after you have found the café/hotel/TIC/bar with free wifi.
Dick
______________________________________________________________ Powys, Paradwys Cymru
"Rules are for the guidance of wise men and the obedience of fools." Douglas Bader CBE
oops calculations on that Spanish one show it as horrendously expensive 90 euro/month if you used 20meg every day. I won’t be getting that one obviously aimed at heavy text and call users, the research goes on.
Dick
______________________________________________________________ Powys, Paradwys Cymru
"Rules are for the guidance of wise men and the obedience of fools." Douglas Bader CBE
I will look again during the next few days and see if I can find you the deal I have with MasMovil Dick.
I may still have the contact details of the shop mine came from. If not maybe Brimo on here has. He put me onto it. 3c a mb and 1€ a month when not in use is a good deal, Alan.
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