Best way to use data abroad

shmee150

Hi all,

I come with a fairly simple question; what is the best and cheapest way to use data abroad? I'm happy to buy any appropriate equipment, change network, or anything so that I have access to decent mobile internet abroad.

In days gone by I have been on O2 with a Blackberry and before the new rules on 1st July last year I would use it on their unlimited roaming tariff for about £23 a month and happily use data both in the EU and outside. However my requirements have now changed and I wish to be able to use my laptop abroad too.

I'm away at least every month, the nature of my trips being journalism which means sending a lot of data back to the web which I'd ideally do from my laptop as opposed to their being a requirement to find a hotspot. So in separate issues, the amount of money my Blackberry is now costing more than double what it used to every month because of not having the deal and then I'm wondering if there's something that can be done to share a tariff between phone and laptop (laptop has a 3G card built in). On a peak day I may wish to upload 100MB, 200MB etc back to the web, is there any way this can be done with insanely high prices?

I guess in a dream world there would be an equivalent "5GB a month" sim that worked worldwide! What's the best product out there?

Many thanks.

JamesU

shmee150 wrote: »

I guess in a dream world there would be an equivalent "5GB a month" sim that worked worldwide! What's the best product out there?
Many thanks.

I am not an expert on these sorts of things technically. But from a practical standpoint in the UK I found connecting a 8mB T-mobile dongle to netbook/laptop an easy way to get internet access in the UK when I am away from home. No seperate mobile account is required, and unlimited access at £2/day on an ah-hoc basis (500Mb fair usage), a bit cheaper for longer periods when required, customer services have been excellent, and just leave £X on the mobile account and top it up as required according to usage:

http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/shop/mobile-broadband/daily-mobilebroadband-plus/usb-stick-610-payg/

More interestingly recently I noticed you can now also get a "Euro booster package add on package" which seems to allow ad-hoc internet access as required in Europe and Worldwide also. Cost and download options as in the breakdown here:

http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/shop/mobile-broadband/euro-broadband-booster/

One possibility I guess. But more suited cost-wise in a 20-50Mb range of data and not 5Gb unfortunately!


JamesU

shmee150

Fortunately my laptop has the 3g card built in; no modem or anything needed; but I hadn't yet come across that package; 200MB for £40 certainly isn't too bad!

At the moment it has a PAYG sim card in it that costs just £1 a day (I've had it for 5 years) for unlimited* data on any day that you use it, but that's only in the UK so I've never touched it abroad through fear of wiping out any balance in moments!

Thanks

ford_prefect_3

Orange do a roaming data bundle for people with a contract dongle which gives you 200MB for £90 as opposed to the £600 it would cost at the normal £3 per MB! when roaming.

Its still expensive and in most cases a hotel 24hour wifi at a typical 15 Euro is going to be cheaper if your doing 200MB in a day

coupleuk

Might help to give you most visited countries as i doubt one product will suit all.

In Egypt you can get a usb dongle for 99LE (£11) and then a 6GB add-on for 150LE (£17) which last a month - thats with vodafone.

Ive just been told that Etisalat [sp] do an even better deal and the data pack lasts for 2 months.

Paul

c-m

Shouldn't your employer pay for your usage if its work related? Or are you Freelance.

I know i'm not helping. Sorry

shmee150

c-m wrote: »

Shouldn't your employer pay for your usage if its work related? Or are you Freelance.

I know i'm not helping. Sorry

Freelance work unfortunately, and most will be uploaded out and about, in the car pulled over somewhere. A bit obscure I know!

Of course when near a hotel, that is the option, but even then these days hotels are capping daily usage limits!

Most visited countries are France and the rest of Western Europe; Italy, Switzerland, Germany.

T-Mobile's deal seems quite good really; very cheap for when at home, and then only £40 for the 200MB a month to use abroad. Does anybody have experience of this, and when you hit the 200MB limit does it let you add another 200MB?

Many thanks

smcaul

have you thought of joining Fon https://www.fon.com and using wifi hotspots instead of mobile internet? I use it in this country and it works fine, not sure about how widespread it is in Europeland!

If your with BT broadband you can join for free, otherwise you can buy passes or do as I did, buy one of their wireless devices and share your home connection to get free connection to other fon hotspots!

Might not suit you at all, but equally, it may be worth having a look at!!!

bengalknights

You could always purchase a data sim locally as that should work out cheaper than roaming charges and you would be able to select which network is best for data etc in the country your in.

pull62

Last year whilst on holiday in Thailand I bought a data sim card from the local provider and for about £8 I got 5 days internet data access. It was a superb deal and was able to upload photos and listen to streaming radio from the UK. The 3G network was better and faster than here in the UK in my opinion.

JamesU

shmee150 wrote: »

T-Mobile's deal seems quite good really; very cheap for when at home, and then only £40 for the 200MB a month to use abroad. Does anybody have experience of this, and when you hit the 200MB limit does it let you add another 200MB?
Many thanks

Using the T-mobile dongle in the UK is really easy. Just top up by phoning T-mobile with credit card or by logging into your T-mobile account online and paying it there directly (note: a t-mobile number is given with the dongle purchase, and a T-mobile phone contract or account is not needed).

From what I have read, provided there is enough balance on account, just connect to the internet abroad with the dongle as in the UK and then you will be prompted to choose preferred option in the 3-200 Mb range:

https://www.t-mobile.co.uk/shop/mobile-broadband/euro-broadband-booster/

"How to get your Euro Internet Booster
Just try to access data in the normal way via your phone or log in to your mobile broadband account when you're in Europe and you'll be offered the relevant options above - just choose the one you need and get surfing."

When accessing abroad I guess the charge would be taken from exisiting account in sterling, but if the account is topped up online with a credit card abroad that might well lead to additional transaction costs I guess. These points worth checking for sure.

I plan to trial 3-20 Mb next time I am abroad. Useful to have as a backup when there are no wifi hotspots available.

The options mentioned by OPs in Egypt and Thailand sound great if you can get these when on holiday or travelling. But not sure if they would be as cheap as this in European countries though. Definitely an option worth checking out if practical.

JamesU