• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

Questin about using US phone in London

D

deerslayer5

Lurker
I bought the US version S3 phone. I am going on a business trip to London and I know that I can't make phone calls from my phone.

I have a couple of questions.
1. Can I still use my phone's data plan?
2. Can I still use my phone on the wifi in London? I use the app trip it for my trip itinerary and want to know if I will be able to view it.

Thanks for your help.
 
deerslayer5 said:
I bought the US version S3 phone. I am going on a business trip to London and I know that I can't make phone calls from my phone.

I have a couple of questions.
1. Can I still use my phone's data plan?
2. Can I still use my phone on the wifi in London? I use the app trip it for my trip itinerary and want to know if I will be able to view it.

Thanks for your help.
Click to expand...
You should be able to use the data plan, most US networks have ties with UK networks, and we have 3G/HSPDA over here so it shouldn't be a problem - although it will cost you a bombshell!

You should be able to use any free wifi hotspots here without a problem! Wifi is wifi, there's no country specific settings...

Welcome (soon) to London, happy to have you here :D
 
I'm not sure if it varies by carrier, but for Verizon:
You can sign up for a global data plan
Text messages are 50 cents send / 5 cents receive
Wifi works anywhere

If you don't have a global data plan make sure you turn off mobile data, or your bill will literally be thousands of dollars.

Verizon doesn't yet let you stick in a local sim card, but other carriers might.
 
Be careful with the data. Unless you have an international data plan, you'll be roaming and you will get charged exorbitant rates.

I checked my e-mail and a couple of Yelp reviews while in Canada. AT&T sent me a message that I was data roaming. It would have been $200 for the data I used, but thankfully they were able to retroactively add an international data plan, and pro-rate it for the time I was abroad. (That cost about $2--obviously much better than $200.)
 
If wifi is very accessible, you can likely get by using your S3 w/free voice (Viber, Skype, etc) and text (Google Voice, WhatsApp, textFree, etc) apps.

Definitely contact your carrier about international options, or just get a cheap, unlocked pay-as-you-go-phone (can find one for ~$20). While traveling, you'll definitely want to able to place a call/text or even an email in an emergency, but not get raped by int'l roaming fees.

fyi - I got "lost" in Rome a few weeks ago. I would have been screwed w/o my phone and int'l mobile service.
 
pseudoware said:
If wifi is very accessible, you can likely get by using your S3 w/free voice (Viber, Skype, etc) and text (Google Voice, WhatsApp, textFree, etc) apps.

Definitely contact your carrier about international options, or just get a cheap, unlocked pay-as-you-go-phone (can find one for ~$20). While traveling, you'll definitely want to able to place a call/text or even an email in an emergency, but not get raped by int'l roaming fees.

fyi - I got "lost" in Rome a few weeks ago. I would have been screwed w/o my phone and int'l mobile service.
Click to expand...

No parle Italiano? Hard to get lost in Rome though, unless you were far from the metro lines on the outskirts of the city.

Rome is an awesome city. One of my favorites in the world.
 
deerslayer5 said:
I bought the US version S3 phone. I am going on a business trip to London and I know that I can't make phone calls from my phone.

I have a couple of questions.
1. Can I still use my phone's data plan?
2. Can I still use my phone on the wifi in London? I use the app trip it for my trip itinerary and want to know if I will be able to view it.

Thanks for your help.
Click to expand...

If you have AT&T, it will auto switch to O2. But go to Verizon or ATT or whomever you have and tell them you are going out of country and would like to get your phone unlocked. Worth a shot. If you can get your phone unlocked, just get a pay and go sim from (I recommend O2) or Virgin, Orange, Three, whatever and pop it in. You can top up your sim card at literally any petrol station, metro station, W.H. Smith bookstores, or any cell store. You won't have any trouble finding one in London. I think they have one in Terminal 5 at Heathrow if you are landing at that airport. (you should be entering and leaving via Terminal 5)

If you can't get your phone unlocked, then either get an international bolt on via verizon, att, sprint, etc or just get a pay and go phone when you get to London. Whatever you do, better make sure you have your phone in airplane mode when you land. Push notification charges are killer when data roaming!
 
cp1 said:
I'm not sure if it varies by carrier, but for Verizon:
You can sign up for a global data plan
Text messages are 50 cents send / 5 cents receive
Wifi works anywhere

If you don't have a global data plan make sure you turn off mobile data, or your bill will literally be thousands of dollars.

Verizon doesn't yet let you stick in a local sim card, but other carriers might.
Click to expand...

A friend was overseas with his son and the kid streamed a movie over his phone without dad's knowledge. End result was a $5k phone bill. The carrier (don't remember which) was kind enough to reduce it to just over $1k but it was an expensive lesson.

Dave
 
sparksd said:
A friend was overseas with his son and the kid streamed a movie over his phone without dad's knowledge. End result was a $5k phone bill. The carrier (don't remember which) was kind enough to reduce it to just over $1k but it was an expensive lesson.

Dave
Click to expand...
Some would say it's the parents fault for neglecting to turn off data services while abroad - whereas some would say it's the handsets/networks fault for failing to educate everyone TO turn off their data while abroad.

But either way, it's a very expensive lesson and the only person that wins in the long run is the network.

We in the UK have had a EU bill pass that heavily reduces our mobile data costs while in other EU countries, so luckily no more MASSIVE phonebills... (but substantial ones are still possible...)
 
If you're going to be using Wi-Fi hotspots, make sure you check out this thread that I just started recently. It tells you how to create a personal VPN server on your home Windows 7 computer (hopefully you are using Windows 7) and also how to set up a VPN connection using the VPN client on your S3. This will allow you to secure your Wi-Fi traffic. If you're only using sites that have HTTPS in the URL, then you don't need to be as concerned with this type of security.

http://androidforums.com/android-lo...ome-vpn-server-over-public-wi-fi-network.html
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom