Trip to US - Mobile phone use, roaming charges, etc...

[Morning Wood]

Hey Guys,

The gf and I are going to LA/Vegas for 6 days this February, and was just wondering what would be the best way to stay connected while we're there.

My cellular provider is Telus, and they have US Roaming packages, but I don't find many of them appealing. I hate the fact that none of them give you peace of mind by paying a flat fee and you're covered. They make you pay 'x' amount of money to qualify for a reduced rate, and it's not cheap either. It doesn't help me achieve peace of mind.

I don't need text messaging, just need to call my folks back in Calgary about once a day to check on the dogs, and maybe call random restaurants/shops/attractions in LA/Vegas. Using my iPhone as a GPS would've been nice, but may have to just buy a map due to the exorbitant roaming costs.

As of now, I'm leaning towards just buying a long distance phone card to use for my trip, but would like to hear any suggestions you wise folk may have. Much thanks!!

[Canada 02]

on vacation and you need to call your mommy?

[me_dennis]

since you've got an iphone, download an app called talkatone. it uses google voice to dial landlines for free, as long as you have wifi connection.

also, another tip for using gps. if you know where you're going to be going for the day, look up that spot while you're still connected to wifi. your iphone caches the map, so you can still use the location function on your iphone (uses no data, so no data charges) to browse around.

I used both of these tricks when I was in NYC and it worked like a charm.

edit: the wifi connection needs to be relatively good in order to make voice calls, otherwise the person on the other line won't hear you clearly.

another tip: almost all mcdonald's and starbucks will have free wifi. if you forgot to search for a map while u were back at the hotel, pop into a starbucks or mcd's and search there!

[calgaryred]

Its not worth using a cell phone in the states data and talk roaming charges are very expensive.

1# use a LD card

2# if GPS is that important, buy a GPS I got a great one for $150.00.

3# if you need to email, do what I did when I was in europe go to a internet cafe, it was quite cheap.

[afc wimbledon]

email

[Notorious Honey Badger]

take your sim card out of your iphone. u can still have GPS use since if u turn on airplane mode you lose gps

-use skype to call skype people
-use an app called "magicjack" to make free phones. free to register and people can use a toll free to call u
-Vtok lets u use google talk free
-if you have a laptop use gmail for phone

WIFI is your best friend in the states and will save you ridiculous roaming charges

[opendoor]

For only 6 days it's probably overkill, but you could just buy a prepaid phone when you're down there. $20-$30 will get you a bare bones phone with 200-300 minutes on it. Anything on top of that is usualy 10¢ a minute.

I've done it before when I've worked in the US for short periods and it was by far the cheapest option. The phone was crap, but it worked well enough and given the number of minutes I went through it saved me a fortune over a roaming plan with a Canadian provider. Like I said though, it might be overkill for your needs.

[SebC]

http://windmobile.ca/en/Pages/Roamin...ll-Phones.aspx

[Morning Wood]

[QUOTE=Canada 02;3484010]on vacation and you need to call your mommy? [/

I dont trust how they take care of my dogs... They treat them like grandchildren... AKA spoiling them constantly! Gotta remind them to layoff on treats and instead give the furry critters some exercise

[Morning Wood]

Thx a lot to all of you guys. Great suggestions as always.

[Ryan Coke]

Why would you remove your sim card? You just need to turn on airplane mode then turn wifi back on.

[CMPunk]

Ya...don't text in the states....yeesh

[Jimmy Stang]

When I have travelled, I have relied on:

- Wifi
- Skype
- Shaw has a prepaid long distance thing (if you are a Shaw phone subscriber). Essentially pay $10 or so, get a list of local and toll-free numbers to call while you're away, and get rates of about 0.04 a minute. Then you just use your landline in the hotel.

[Ace]

For anyone with Bell:

They have an option called US Data Saver (sometimes it's hard to convince the reps that it exists). It costs $10 to add to your account, and is good for 30 days. The reps will ask you how long you will be in the US, ignore this question and just tell them you want it to expire in 30 days. I'm pretty sure you pay at least $10 anyway. After you add this feature your data usage is $1/mb in the US.

Basically even if you just surf a web page one day this will pretty much pay for itself. Without the data saver they charge you something like $10/mb

[VladtheImpaler]

Might as well bump this rather than start a new thread...
I have a BB from Rogers. I am going to NYC/Chicago for 2 weeks. I need to be able to email and make/receive phone calls, as my BB is basically my mobile office.
What is the best option to keep costs reasonable?

[six pack]

Vlad the answer for me in the past was to buy a pay as you go phone at Walmart even a cheap blackberry. I ship staff to the USA routinely and they all did this to communicate home worked out to like 100 bucks the first time, but much cheaper every tine after. I actually carry a telus phone and forward it to my verizon account when I cross the boarder.

Its the data usage that kills me. I use at least 50 mbs a week that is about 150 bucks for just roaming for data only.

So my advice is research the pay as you go options like tracphone and virgin.

Have a safe trip.

Sent from my A500 using Tapatalk 2

[Jimmy Stang]

^ I'm not a Blackberry guy, but what are the options for unlocking your BB (legitimately or illegitimately)?

I unlocked by old iPhone 3G prior to a trip to the UK a few months ago. As soon as I got there, I went to a phone shop that sold sims for various providers and got myself a modest voice and data plan for a month with Vodafone as they were the most bang for my buck.

Admittedly, my jaunts to the US have always been very short and personal in nature, so I have managed by finding free wifi hotspots for the essentials (McDonalds, Strarbucks, etc.) and not using my phone for anything at all. In the evenings I'd use Skype over wifi for phone calls (or to dial into my voice messages).

I would definitely explore the possibility of buying something down there, or unlocking your device before going. It sounds like hotspot hopping won't be practical or sufficient for you.

[VladtheImpaler]

Originally Posted by Jimmy Stang

^ I'm not a Blackberry guy, but what are the options for unlocking your BB (legitimately or illegitimately)?

I unlocked by old iPhone 3G prior to a trip to the UK a few months ago. As soon as I got there, I went to a phone shop that sold sims for various providers and got myself a modest voice and data plan for a month with Vodafone as they were the most bang for my buck.

OK, let me see if I understand this... I am old so bear with me... I pay someone $8-10 for a BB "unlock code". I arrive in NY and get an AT&T sim card, which I replace my Rogers card with, and activate it using the "unlock" code. This will make it as though I have a local phone? Will my phone # remain the same? And this will prevent roaming charges?
Is it that simple or is there more to it?

[Notorious Honey Badger]

Hey vlad if you're on rogers, consider using rogersonenumber. It's free. Connect your laptop to any wifi and you call with your own cell phone number for free anywhere in north america., you can also text. its pretty awesome

[VladtheImpaler]

Originally Posted by Notorious Honey Badger

Hey vlad if you're on rogers, consider using rogersonenumber. It's free. Connect your laptop to any wifi and you call with your own cell phone number for free anywhere in north america., you can also text. its pretty awesome

I wasn't going to take the laptop. Was hoping to get away with the BB only... not to mention the laptop would be very awkward given the number of calls I have to take/make...