PAYG mobile broadband dongles - using local SIM cards in Spain

james_joyce

Hi

I have a Vodafone PAYG mobile broadband dongle. I want to buy a SIM card for it in Spain when I go on holiday there as I think this may be the cheapest option.

Is there any technical restriction preventing this? Are such dongles 'locked' to their original network (Vodafone in this case) and/or to their 'home' country (the UK in this case)?

Presumably it would be far too straightforward for my just to be able to buy a Vodafone Spain SIM card?

Thanks

gavinp

Lots of info here:

http://www.spainsim.com/voda3gSIM.htm

james_joyce

Excellent, thanks!

Donnie

Not excellent at all...as it doesn't come close to answering your question. Indeed the dongle is locked to the network. Whether it will be locked against the Vodafone(Spain) network is another question. You can call Vodafone if you want to find it.
You might also note that the Vodafone package is anything but inexpensive. 69 euros for 1 GB is remarkable only for it's high cost. If it is locked, it should be possible to unlocked it at no cost, dependent on the model.

james_joyce

Hi

I got my dongle unlocked with a code for £1 from eBay so that was straightforward.

Having researched this further I plan to get a Yoigo SIM card in Spain from either Carrefour or a mobile phone shop. This is about 3 euros a day for about 100MB of internet access.

http://prepaid-wireless-internet-access.wetpaint.com/page/Spain+-+Yoigo

gavinp

Donnie wrote: »

Not excellent at all...as it doesn't come close to answering your question.

nice attitude! :T

..and people wonder why they don't get replies with this sort of rubbish posted!

Donnie

gavinp wrote: »

nice attitude! :T

..and people wonder why they don't get replies with this sort of rubbish posted!

You must be referring to your two posts. Absolute rubbish.

Just posting adverts and gobblegook. Posting a link to a Vodafone Data SIM for 60 euros and not even mentioning to the OP that he may need to unlock his modem. Either you must be an idiot or you must think we are. This is a website for people who wish to save money, not to spend twice as much as necessary. In fact the Yoigo card is free. Get lost.

gavinp

Just as I suspected - thinks they have some right to criticise the OP and someone you shares some info they found but they becomes abusive and claiming they have some link to the website specified despite being a member for YEARS! (and no, I have absolutely no link to the site)

As I said before,attitudes like this are the reason that some good people no longer contribute on this site.

Donnie

gavinp wrote: »

Just as I suspected - thinks they have some right to criticise the OP and someone you shares some info they found but they becomes abusive and claiming they have some link to the website specified despite being a member for YEARS! (and no, I have absolutely no link to the site)

As I said before,attitudes like this are the reason that some good people no longer contribute on this site.

No one is criticising the OP, I am criticizing you for your post which certainly isn't money saving.
Don't know why you are attempting to bring the OP into it.

I would advise everyone to stay away from your link. Seems to have some dodgy scripts.

So please, if you are going to continue to post that kind of nonsense you won't be missed.

Good people will always contribute. The contribute because they are good, not because they get a pat on the back for it. You certainly cannot claim to speak for them.
Are you still here?

gavinp

Sorry - you seem to not even read your own posts - "not excellent" was a response to the OP, not to anything I said..

Congratulations on your contribution to this thread - "unlock your dongle" was a lifesaver and detailed information about tariffs etc clearly far too technical in your opinion (which clearly is always right) for the OP...

Taking the contributions of others for granted is exactly why you can't see why your first post was offensive. :eek:

It also proves that the number of posts made by someone doesn't necessarily prove the worth of their contribution!

Yes, I am still here despite the muppets, thanks for asking. :A

james_joyce

Right chaps, can we all please get back to the actual substance of this discussion?

Firstly yes I did ask in my original post about Vodafone Spain and yes it's true there is at least one website which makes their SIM cards available in the UK, and thanks for pointing that out to me.

However it's also true that there are cheaper networks in Spain than Vodafone, for PAYG mobile internet access.

I've seen elsewhere on the internet (including at the link I posted earlier), that it's actually prohibited for Spanish network providers to sell their SIM cards abroad, so it's interesting that there seems to be a way round this.

You would probably expect someone in the UK selling a service to be used in Spain, to want to make a profit from it. In theory that's fine, but I don't think it's necessary to pay that premium. I speak Spanish and I'm happy to buy the SIM card in Spain...

Incidentally, here we are, debating the cheapest way to get a SIM only deal for mobile broadband - but that's in the context of Spain, and I've never heard of the equivalent discussion in the UK. For example with my dongle (formerly Vodafone, now unlocked), I'm not aware of any UK mobile network that would offer me a SIM card for PAYG broadband without also insisting I take one of their dongles (at vast expense) as well. Am I wrong about that?

Thanks