[NA] e-SIM card, travel

Let'sgoflying!

Let'sgoflying!

Touchdown! Greaser!
Joined
Feb 23, 2005
Messages
20,731
Location
west Texas
Display Name
Display name:
Dave Taylor
iphoneSE
Straighttalk (using Verizon network)
Traveling to Canada

Would like voice/text/web access (normally I have nothing once crossing the border, Straighttalk has no Cdn plans)

Anyone up on these?
 
airdale said:
Google Fi
Click to expand...
How does that work, Airdale?
Will Google Fi allow me to connect to a cell tower as I am driving down the highway in Canada, even though I have no access with my SIM and have no plan with the local service providers?
For the voice/text/web access I mentioned?
Thanks
 
I'm in Europe now and using an Esim. I got a data only one but you can get ones that provide everything. Pretty painless. They give you a QR code to scan and it set's up the sim. I'm using Nomad, but there are a bunch of others.
 
Google Fi will provide you with a SIM card and you can port your current number to them. Each time you enter a new country (200+ countries IIRC) you get a text welcoming you to the country and asking for a few minutes to set up your connection (it happens fast). From that point you have internet access for $10/gig, pro-rated. (Use 200k and you'll be billed for $2.) Calls IIRC are 20cents/minute, probably demanded by the local carrier(s). Very seamless.

They will also sell you a new phone (mine is a Pixel 6x) every two years for $10/month, and you get to keep the old one. Sell it an you're well under $200 for a new phone every two years. Or just keep the old phone and payments will stop.

I understand T-Mobile has something similar but they have lied to me twice about domestic coverage and refused to refund my money. So they are on my never-again list.
 
I use T-mobile. Great for international. Free data and texts in over 210 countries. Calls at 25 cent per minute for cellular, supports wifi calling.

Data may be slow, but it works for email and Google maps. But now, your first 5GB per month international is high speed. And you buy more if you need it.
 
Google Fi;

Be advised, it has to be activated in the US, for 24 hours BEFORE you travel.

I arrived in Canada and called them up 844-Talk-2-Fi and was informed it's not going to work now!
Seems crazy, in our advanced technological age.
 
nwaflyer said:
I guess straighttalk doesn't have anything like that?
Click to expand...

I called ST and was told, "well Canada is part of the US so it will work there, no special plan or method, just start dialing/surfing."
That information could not have been more wrong.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Google Fi;

Be advised, it has to be activated in the US, for 24 hours BEFORE you travel.

I arrived in Canada and called them up 844-Talk-2-Fi and was informed it's not going to work now!
Seems crazy, in our advanced technological age.
Click to expand...

LIke wifi calling, you have to set it up while connected to your home cellular network.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
I called ST and was told, "well Canada is part of the US so it will work there, no special plan or method, just start dialing/surfing."
That information could not have been more wrong.
Click to expand...

I don't think anyone has told the Canadians that. :D
 
Dropped into a Freedom cell/phone store, they fixed me up easy……. & tested it, yay
 
Do you need local call access or just phone/text to home? I rely on Apple Facetime and FB Messenger for those without Apple phones over wifi. Having no connectivity on the road has not proven to be a significant restriction.
 
ATT charges $10 per day for international roaming and only for those days cell service is used. They add an additional line for $5 per day if both lines use cell on the same day. 10 days max billable, so for wife and me the maximum total roaming fee is $150 per trip. If you limit your use to wifi on any day there’s no bill for that day. When going traveling we use this service and the phones work like they always do. We mostly use one for navigating but want access for both to call if we get separated or have unexpected delays.
 
Stewartb said:
ATT charges $10 per day for international roaming ...
Click to expand...
If you're doing more than a one-off trip I just don't see that any kind of screwing around would be worth it. Google Fi, which we have been using for years, and others like T-Mobile give you totally seamless international coverage. One time we were in Vienna, trapped in the baggage claim area, with our tour guide on the other side of the doors. It was no problem to call him but of course would have been impossible if we had to buy a local SIM card before we could call.
 
airdale said:
It was no problem to call him but of course would have been impossible if we had to buy a local SIM card before we could call.
Click to expand...
eSim can be done before leaving the US. I'm using one now, but for data only. Works flawlessly once I figured out the settings. $25 for 30g data over 4 weeks.
 
Hang 4 said:
eSim can be done before leaving the US. I'm using one now, but for data only. Works flawlessly once I figured out the settings. $25 for 30g data over 4 weeks.
Click to expand...
You have to have an eSim for each country, right? Once I called home from the transit lounge in Seoul Korea on the way to Singapore. Would a single eSim have supported both countries?
 
Mine works across Europe. I got it through a company called Nomad. They had a way to select countries/regions. Have used it so far in Norway, Netherlands and UK with no issues. There are several companies that do this. You can use facetime or whatsapp for voice. Only problem I've had so far is getting text messages from US number. Need to put phone in airplane mode when connected to wifi then turn on US sim. Reverse that when out of wifi range.
 
Thanks. I dunno; I think I'll stick to my Google Fi, which involves zero screwing around. Voice, data, texts, all the same as the US except there are per-minute call charges in some countries. For the little bit of calling we do, the per-minute charges don't even show in the round-off of the trip expenses.
 
Stewartb said:
ATT charges $10 per day for international roaming and only for those days cell service is used. They add an additional line for $5 per day if both lines use cell on the same day. 10 days max billable, so for wife and me the maximum total roaming fee is $150 per trip. If you limit your use to wifi on any day there’s no bill for that day. When going traveling we use this service and the phones work like they always do. We mostly use one for navigating but want access for both to call if we get separated or have unexpected delays.
Click to expand...

Switch to T-Mobile and only pay 25 cents per minute for call calls. Data and texts are unlimited for no extra charge.

I was long time ATT customer, but switched for the MUCH better international program
 
I need ATT for where my TX house is, the Alaska house, and the Alaska cabin. Other services barely/rarely/don’t work in any of them. The int’l roaming fee is a minor inconvenience. We’ll spend more than that for most meals!

ATT works well enough in Europe that I don’t take my sat phone anymore.
 
When was the last time you checked on service?

When I switched away from ATT, I had both my ATT and T-Mobile phone for 3 months. I compared service a LOT. At the time, there were a few more holes with T-Mobile, but not a huge difference.

A few years later, T-Mobile had filled on all the gaps for the normal places I go.

And it works well in South America, Europe, Africa, Middle East, Asia, etc.
 
Sorry for reviving this one. Who here has used temporary numbers for travel? Are they any good?
 
Stewartb said:
ATT charges $10 per day for international roaming and only for those days cell service is used.
Click to expand...
I use AT&T (pre-pay plan, unlocked phone) and I'm currently in the UK. Canada and Mexico are part of the basic plan. Temporary international (Europe, etc.) roaming with data access costs $35/week, and has been that way for as many years as I can remember. The only time I've ever had an issue was about a year ago for a single trip to a very rural locatio in Austria. I lost service for about a half-day, but it returned the instant I crossed back into Germany. I've had other trip in Austria where it worked fine....still don't know what was different. Aside from that, it works great all over Canada, Mexico, France, Spain, England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, etc. It even works in Texas.

A couple of years ago we tried to use a temporary SIM that we bought for my wife's phone. It was supposed to be good for 30 days and something like 15G of data; it last about 36 hours before shutting down.
 
Last edited:
My wife and I are also T-Mobile users. Free data and text pretty much anywhere. We just don't make voice calls... we use Facetime or WhatsApp for voice calls when we need to, which are data, not voice. Spent two weeks in the UK and Ireland and didn't pay an extra penny.
 
Just last week, I used the eSIM from Buddysim. Pretty impressed, really. Travelled to Costa Rica - paid €50 for 5 GB, but the quality was always steady. Recommend.
 
Last edited:
I have used TMobiles service in 6 or 7 countries and it’s ok. It wasn’t great in Cameroon, so I got a local Sim and it was SIGNIFICANTLY better. I just came across this (after my 3 international trips this year…) and I plan to try it when I go to the Philippines in February. It’s called saily and they claim that you can set up your eSIM before you go so that as soon as you land in your destination country, you’re all ready to go.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top