Help understanding esim please

Ballard

It’s probably worth mentioning that some countries require anyone who wants to buy a SIM card to register with the government before it’s activated. It’s probably not that many, but I went through a painful process in Chile a few years ago which took two days. It didn’t help that I didn’t speak Spanish. 

I was with Three mobile at the time and, annoyingly, they added Chile to the free roaming list whilst I was there so had I waited a few days I wouldn’t have had the hassle or expense. 

BFBW

silvercar said:

Let's face it, in a real emergency you use your UK SIM and accept the costs!

I just load an eSIM from Airalo before travel and activate it on landing, by switching my data on to the eSIM only.

In normal situations, people who want to actually speak to me will call over WhatsApp.

This isn't the cheapest option, which would probably be to go to a side of the road stall and get an eSIM with local number once abroad. 

I suppose the third option is to buy an eSIM with a small amount of data for initial use and then buy a local SIM once you are abroad.

Can you explain why, "in a real emergency" you would use your U.K. SIM on a ROAMING basis, rather than using a dedicated local eSIM?

...and why you would go to a "local road stall" to buy an eSIM? The point of an eSIM is that you can buy it online

So you are suggesting, that in a real emergency in say, Thailand, that instead of using a properly registered, fully working eSIM to call the emergency services, that you would use your U.K. SIM instead?

The ONLY reason for getting an Airalo eSIM is if it's too difficult to organise a local eSIM. In this case, it is just as easy to get a properly registered eSIM. So why obtain a crippled product? Please explain if you can, because I see inertia, rather than intelligence.

BFBW

Doshwaster said:

silvercar said:

Let's face it, in a real emergency you use your UK SIM and accept the costs!

I just load an eSIM from Airalo before travel and activate it on landing, by switching my data on to the eSIM only.

In normal situations, people who want to actually speak to me will call over WhatsApp.

This isn't the cheapest option, which would probably be to go to a side of the road stall and get an eSIM with local number once abroad. 

I suppose the third option is to buy an eSIM with a small amount of data for initial use and then buy a local SIM once you are abroad.

That's what I do. On a short trip of a couple of weeks I will take convenience over cost.  The last time I landed in Bangkok I was able to setup the Airalo eSIM over the free airport wifi while waiting for my luggage to come around the belt.

One of the advantages of an eSIM is that your UK SIM still there for emergencies (and avoids the chance of losing it if you switch to a local SIM)

Why are you comparing to local SIM? We are referring to local eSIM, which can be purchased before you leave in exactly the same way as an Airalo eSIM.


In some cases, Airalo is an official distributor, so you'll perhaps get a fully registered Tourist eSIM, such as here: https://www.airalo.com/thailand-esim
Direct from the network, here: https://www.dtac.co.th/en/prepaid/products/tourist-sim.html

In this case, Airalo offers a 7% discount, so it makes sense if you want that particular option. But there is no difference in convenience and buying direct allows you to choose a number.

But there are also options simply not available via Airalo.

https://www.dtac.co.th/en/new-number/esim for the 90 day pack at 650 baht(£15).
What you get:

Kongkrapan SIM 15 Mbps 3 months

650 Baht

Data (capped at 15 Mbps speed) 100 GB per month and unlimited data at 128Kbps(if you use up the 100GB before the end of the month)

• 15 Mbps 100 GB and then unlimited data at 128Kbps per month
• Free calls to dtac numbers (15 min/call)
• Free calls to any network 60 mins/month
• 3 months validity

Since the OP's daughter is travelling for more than 30 days and the longest validity that Airalo offers(without having to pay extra to extend) is 30 days, it makes sense to have an eSIM with a longer duration in the first place.

Airalo has it's place. I'm not suggesting that no one should use them. But if you know there is a better option. Whatever the OP chooses, SAFETY should be paramount, not CONVENIENCE.

silvercar

BFBW said:

silvercar said:

Let's face it, in a real emergency you use your UK SIM and accept the costs!

I just load an eSIM from Airalo before travel and activate it on landing, by switching my data on to the eSIM only.

In normal situations, people who want to actually speak to me will call over WhatsApp.

This isn't the cheapest option, which would probably be to go to a side of the road stall and get an eSIM with local number once abroad. 

I suppose the third option is to buy an eSIM with a small amount of data for initial use and then buy a local SIM once you are abroad.

Can you explain why, "in a real emergency" you would use your U.K. SIM on a ROAMING basis, rather than using a dedicated local eSIM?

...and why you would go to a "local road stall" to buy an eSIM? The point of an eSIM is that you can buy it online

So you are suggesting, that in a real emergency in say, Thailand, that instead of using a properly registered, fully working eSIM to call the emergency services, that you would use your U.K. SIM instead?

The ONLY reason for getting an Airalo eSIM is if it's too difficult to organise a local eSIM. In this case, it is just as easy to get a properly registered eSIM. So why obtain a crippled product? Please explain if you can, because I see inertia, rather than intelligence.

If you have an eSIM that is data only and you have an emergency that requires you to make a call, you use your UK SIM. 

Travelling around Vietnam, there were stalls selling eSIMs at cheaper prices than online, so that is why you would use them. I also don't know why they were cheaper than online, maybe a bulk purchasing deal. 

The reason to use Airalo is that it is a trusted brand rather than from a random website, where you have no confidence in the credentials. Call it inertia if you will.

BFBW

silvercar said:

BFBW said:

silvercar said:

Let's face it, in a real emergency you use your UK SIM and accept the costs!

I just load an eSIM from Airalo before travel and activate it on landing, by switching my data on to the eSIM only.

In normal situations, people who want to actually speak to me will call over WhatsApp.

This isn't the cheapest option, which would probably be to go to a side of the road stall and get an eSIM with local number once abroad. 

I suppose the third option is to buy an eSIM with a small amount of data for initial use and then buy a local SIM once you are abroad.

Can you explain why, "in a real emergency" you would use your U.K. SIM on a ROAMING basis, rather than using a dedicated local eSIM?

...and why you would go to a "local road stall" to buy an eSIM? The point of an eSIM is that you can buy it online

So you are suggesting, that in a real emergency in say, Thailand, that instead of using a properly registered, fully working eSIM to call the emergency services, that you would use your U.K. SIM instead?

The ONLY reason for getting an Airalo eSIM is if it's too difficult to organise a local eSIM. In this case, it is just as easy to get a properly registered eSIM. So why obtain a crippled product? Please explain if you can, because I see inertia, rather than intelligence.

If you have an eSIM that is data only and you have an emergency that requires you to make a call, you use your UK SIM. 

Travelling around Vietnam, there were stalls selling eSIMs at cheaper prices than online, so that is why you would use them. I also don't know why they were cheaper than online, maybe a bulk purchasing deal. 

The reason to use Airalo is that it is a trusted brand rather than from a random website, where you have no confidence in the credentials. Call it inertia if you will.

They are often cheaper than online because the likes of Airalo want to make a profit over the actual cost  
Buying direct from the network or official distributors will be cheaper.

This is exactly why I am suggesting getting the properly registered eSIM directly from the network(in this case it is DTAC), rather than an unregistered Data Only SIM from Airalo, who is just an unofficial reseller in some cases. Which is why some Airalo eSIMs are Data Only. 
Better, in this case, to buy the eSIM online directly from the network. Then you have Data, Calls, SMS and VoWiFi.
No need to use the U.K SIM in any emergency.