Traveling with iPhone/AT&T in China

[MorningZ]

Hey everyone...

I am just about off to China for a few weeks of vacation, and have an unmodified iPhone on an AT&T corporate plan

Someone here at worked called our AT&T rep and got some info like "$30 for 5 megs, $50 for 20 megs, and $2 a min for voice" (those aren't the exact numbers, but it's along those lines)

Anyways, i remember when the phone first came out that people traveling internationally were getting hammered with huge roaming bills, and since the launch one of the updates has added the feature to turn off Data Roaming

For those with experience roaming abroad with this phone, does that feature work as advertised?

I was thinking that once a day I'd flip on Data Roaming, pull down some emails, reply to what needs my attention and turn data back off i should be able to keep under that higher data limit

Thanks in advance
- Steve

 

[Youngbinks]

I've used the international voice roaming on numerous occasions but I've never had the need for the data roaming. What I would suggest doing is to reset your usage, and then open up Mail and download a typical e-mail. Then go back and look at your usage settings to see what kind of data you added up. If it's a modest amount then the data roaming might be in your best interest. I've just been able to wait until I find a WiFi capable spot and it's worked for me so far.

 

[ravman]

Why don't you just unlock your phone and stick a Chinese sim into the phone while you are out there? Why do you want to be hit by roaming charges?

Just re-lock the phone when you get back (if you need to).

Hey everyone...

I am just about off to China for a few weeks of vacation, and have an unmodified iPhone on an AT&T corporate plan

Someone here at worked called our AT&T rep and got some info like "$30 for 5 megs, $50 for 20 megs, and $2 a min for voice" (those aren't the exact numbers, but it's along those lines)

Anyways, i remember when the phone first came out that people traveling internationally were getting hammered with huge roaming bills, and since the launch one of the updates has added the feature to turn off Data Roaming

For those with experience roaming abroad with this phone, does that feature work as advertised?

I was thinking that once a day I'd flip on Data Roaming, pull down some emails, reply to what needs my attention and turn data back off i should be able to keep under that higher data limit

Thanks in advance
- Steve

 

[chrismmm]

Why don't you just unlock your phone and stick a Chinese sim into the phone while you are out there? Why do you want to be hit by roaming charges?

Just re-lock the phone when you get back (if you need to).

thats sounds like good advice!

or buy a disposable phone over there

 

[Youngbinks]

I have experience both with using the International Roaming as well as using a foreign SIM and IR is certainly the better bargain.

You have to purchase the SIM, you then have to add money to the SIM, you then have to dial internationally which depletes the SIM minutes at a VERY rapid pace, the person you're calling must pay international fees for talking to someone in China (or elsewhere) often costing them much more than $2 a minute and you must reload the SIM constantly (or put a ton on it to begin with, and it's non-refundable).

On the other side. If you're calling someone in the States, they're receiving the call from your home area code, thus, they don't have to pay international fees to talk to you, it's no additional charge. If you call another AT&T phone, it's guaranteed free for them to talk to you. You don't have to pay up to $100 for an international SIM and you don't have to worry about purchasing additional, non-refundable minutes that you may never use.

Using a SIM from Europe, the total bill on my end was about $400 and on my family's end (that's who I called most of the time) it was another $400 for international calling for about $800 total. Using my AT&T SIM with their international voice roaming it was $200 total and I talked about 4 times as much.

 

[MorningZ]

To be honest, i am not really looking to use my phone at all while out there.... but i could see that something will happen here at the office that needs my attention, so turning on the phone and checking email once or twice in a day is all that's needed..... so i can't see unlocking my phone and picking up a SIM so i could use the phone (again, only looking to check/answer a few emails)

I'll see what kind of hit my average email is per day....

 

[ravman]

I can see your point.

But if you're in say Europe (UK as an example), then why would you even consider using a cell phone to call the US? You use a calling card which charges like 1p a minute. You buy a 5 pound card and that will give you like 8 hours of talk time. Using today's exchange rate, 5 pounds is just under $10. No roaming plan on the planet will match that.

I'm sure it's very similar in China.

Better still, use Skype. You can use your US number all over the world and still pay something like 1c a minute.

I have experience both with using the International Roaming as well as using a foreign SIM and IR is certainly the better bargain.

You have to purchase the SIM, you then have to add money to the SIM, you then have to dial internationally which depletes the SIM minutes at a VERY rapid pace, the person you're calling must pay international fees for talking to someone in China (or elsewhere) often costing them much more than $2 a minute and you must reload the SIM constantly (or put a ton on it to begin with, and it's non-refundable).

On the other side. If you're calling someone in the States, they're receiving the call from your home area code, thus, they don't have to pay international fees to talk to you, it's no additional charge. If you call another AT&T phone, it's guaranteed free for them to talk to you. You don't have to pay up to $100 for an international SIM and you don't have to worry about purchasing additional, non-refundable minutes that you may never use.

Using a SIM from Europe, the total bill on my end was about $400 and on my family's end (that's who I called most of the time) it was another $400 for international calling for about $800 total. Using my AT&T SIM with their international voice roaming it was $200 total and I talked about 4 times as much.

 

[Youngbinks]

I can see your point.

But if you're in say Europe (UK as an example), then why would you even consider using a cell phone to call the US? You use a calling card which charges like 1p a minute. You buy a 5 pound card and that will give you like 8 hours of talk time. Using today's exchange rate, 5 pounds is just under $10. No roaming plan on the planet will match that.

I'm sure it's very similar in China.

Better still, use Skype. You can use your US number all over the world and still pay something like 1c a minute.

The Pay Phone is a dying breed in the U.S. as I'm sure it is in other areas of the world. I don't want to be limited to finding a phone in some random location when I can simply pick up my phone and dial away. Also, if you're traveling in some places the ability to find a Pay Phone is just not there. I've done the calling card thing in the past as well and it is great if you have regular access to Pay Phones but otherwise it was just a pain.