Advice on tech stuff...aka tech for dummies

Your daughter's phone needs to probably be "unlocked", which is done through customer service of your wireless carrier. You have to talk to them about an international plan anyway. That will be expensive, because data is expensive in Europe. I can't recommend an amount of data without knowing how long you will be there and how much you will use it "on the go". If you use the phone mostly with WiFi, then you won't need much data at all. GPS doesn't suck a lot of data. Movies/photos do. No matter what happens, you're daughter needs to understand that she can't send movies and upload any photos like she would in the States. It will be a financial nightmare.

Another option is to buy a "SIM" card for her phone while you're over there. Her phone will still have to be "unlocked" to do this. That is probably the cheapest option. The way that it works is that you get a SIM card at a kiosk there that will essentially give you a UK phone number. Then you can "top up" the money on her phone whenever you need to. But once again: GPS and Internet on the network? Ok. Pictures and videos? No, no, no.

For you, the only way to access the network over there with your own phone is to get a smart phone. At least, I don't think you can buy SIM cards for cheapo phones like you and I currently have. Unless you've been wanting to take the plunge (I will be), expect your monthly bill to rise tremendously. If you did them individually, it would more than double the bill for each phone. So, look closely into recent family plans that offer multiple smart phones for one price. AT&T has a commercial for a deal right now, but they have a crappy rep with people I hang out with.

Another option for you is to buy a cheapo phone while over there that works on their network. It will take time, probably about 40-60 bucks per phone, plus money to "top up" the number. Perhaps it isn't that expensive. I'll ask others to fill in the blanks.

The iPad will work perfectly fine on WiFi.

Big Picture: Whenever a device or smartphone switches to WiFi, it doesn't cost you anything, unless you paid for the WiFi access. Being on the cell phone network is what costs money. And lots of it for data.

Finally, a smartphone with GSM capability built in can likely "roam" internationally, meaning that you'll pay 5 to 6 bucks a minute or 2 to 3 bucks per text message. But, if you make one or two emergency only phone calls, that may actually be the cheapest option. You have to know you and understand how much you think you would call.

Thank you for your info! Your answer has certainly helped. I suppose my biggest confusion is understanding if I purchase a sims card upon arrival, does it come with data? Most of the articles I have read discuss calling and texting, which I understand, but few seem to address the issue of data.

Forgot to mention that we will be there for 12 days...I forsee using maps the most with apps for sites being the biggest unknown.

Although have recently discovered an app called "street museum" that lets you access archived photos of popular spots such that you can superimpose the old photo onto the current site and take a picture. You can contrast modern with historical or take your picture such that it appears as if you are in the historical photo. Now that I think about it, I wonder if this would eat up a ton of data or if you would "technically" be downloading a photo by doing that?

@ ruth,

chances are your daughter will be better off with the e stuff than the parents.

Your Daughter:

• the question isnt how much data is used, but how much are you willing to pay?
• if your kid is like any other with an e device attached to their face or hands, you will spend alot of $$$$ ovevthere using data. If you can, i would just do a max amount youre willing to spend for that month and call it good. worst case, you call in to add more $$$. You can also turn off the data too. But make sure its off when not needed.

For you 2:

If you care to

• go to the providers of your PAYG phone and ask if you can use them overseas.
• if they dont know, then look up the specs for them online. for international use it should say something like "quad band", ect. also, make sure they are unlocked.
• if not then you can buy some unlocked/quad band at home or over there.
• you can buy some inexpensive used unlocked cell phones off craigs list/ebay/garage sales/used e shops in your area. the only problem is that if they arent 100%, you wont know it until you try.
• you can buy some inexpensive PAYG phones over there. If you do, make sure you can add minutes WHERE EVER you go after that place and i would verify it by doing so.

your IPAD.

If its strictly wi-fi, then you can bring it along with you. Chances are there will be wi-fi where ever you go, but be prepared not to have access too. If it has cellular, then that will be expensive. If your provider has an international plan, you may want to check the prices/fees/taxes and such for the use.

happy trails.

Thanks for the tips. Her phone will essentially become the "family phone/vacation phone". She will be under strict instructions not to use it while we are out and about. She is a good girl and knows the expense associated with using phones overseas. So, phone usage will be as described...maps or researching/enhancing venues...she can wait to get back to our flat to message friends on the free wifi via facebook or whatever they are using now. :)

You can buy Data only SIMS for the ipad.

For mobiles you can get either call only packages or call+data packages.
The 3 network seems to be doing good deals recently

I can't help you with technology, as is sounds like you and I would be placed in the same remedial class. But I do have some advice:

**If he doesn't chime in here, search this forum for Ken and phones, and you'll find excellent advice.

**Don't rely solely on what sales and customer service people from various phone companies tell you. They are not always well informed or, well, honest.

**Paper maps work well. Sometimes better, as you can see both the detail and the big picture at the same time.

**Just like at home, phones do not always get signals. You may be in a stone castle or underground. What does work is having a plan in place if one of you misses a train or bus. And "we'll meet by the big blue pole" also still works. Everyone should have the address of the apartment, and enough money to take a cab.

Excellent tips Karen! You and I should travel together and we would do fine. Normally not so paranoid or fretful, but when traveling with a child, it changes everything...worry more about the little details. Thanks!

Maps over the cellular network will eat your lunch in data, especially Google maps that you haven't previously saved. Every time you pinch to zoom, every time you move the map on the screen a whole new whumph of data is downloaded to build the new picture. Google has tightened up some on the mega giant data gobbling monster but it still whumphs down tons.

There are apps which can give you gps with no use of data at all because all the maps are installed when the app is installed. And they have great maps and points of interest. And free. But because she has a blah blah I can't tell you if it is compatible. When speaking of android phones so many apps are picky about which phones and levels they will work with. Download while you are at home and check compatibility.

The app is called NavFree UK. Google Play will have it, and for the iPad the App Store will also have it.

Be sure to check the charging "bricks" for all the electronics to be sure it is compatible here.
I hope you all have a wonderful trip.

She may be " under strict instructions not to use it while we are out and about" but unless you turn data OFF the phone will continue to acquire things from the cellular network ( even if she follows those instructions) and you will be charged. A lot.

I wish Ken were still posting! His comments on cell phones are detailed and very helpful.

And definitely take your iPad to use on the free wifi in the apartment. They are also useful for photos but cumbersome to carry around.

Who is your provider? You need to first find out if your phones are quadband and unlocked.
T-Mobile has unlimited international texting and some other low cost international options on their new plan.
You can get a cheap phone and/or plan from Carphone Warehouse. They are all over London.

I only use my ipad when I am connected to wifi.

I personally prefer a paper map in London. I really like "The London Mapguide" by Michael Middleditch. It has good detail and is about $10 from amazon.

Ruth,

If you mainly want the data for maps, try the app Nigel suggested or A-Z London Tourist Map app, which my husband has loaded on his iPod touch. We found the iPod to be enough for us to use free WiFi, and he saved screen shots to refer to later. Now with the app (which he loaded after our trip when it was suggested by someone on this site--he loves to play with maps), we wouldn't even be dependent on the free WiFi, though it seems to be readily available. Though you have to deal with the smaller screen, it's a lot easier to carry around an iPod than an iPad.

We bought a cheap pay as you go phone from Carphone Warehouse (unless it's moved, there's one on Kensington High Street near where it meet Kensington Church Street) and it cost us 10 GBP and we added 10 GBP for calls and used hardly any of it during the 3 weeks we had the phone. Mainly it was for us to be able to keep in touch with our son (who was minding the house and the cats), and we made occasional local calls.

Your daughter might want to take her phone with her if she normally uses it as her camera. My son and daughter-in-law did that with her iPhone, but they made sure the data was off. I think they may have actually had their carrier drop data from their plan while they were there so there were no expensive surprises when they returned.

Have a great trip.

$25 worth of data was enough to get me through almost one month in Italy... I think that was 100 MB. I didn't often have access to Wi-Fi. I use the data to check email routinely, email a few individual photos, and look up touring information for sites I had not planned to visit. My carrier is Verizon, and I think it would be worth checking the details of your daughter's carrier. Also, if your daughter has Verizon, they have a very good loaner program that could possibly provide the additional phones you need.

And for emergency use, I would anticipate that your carrier's plan would be quite affordable. I think I paid $.99 per minute with the Verizon intl plan.

Regarding purchasING SIM cards… I don't remember what countries you are visiting. However, when I've purchased a SIM card in a non-English-speaking country the instructions--not surprisingly--are not in English. I found that to be more trouble than it was worth, although I know others have a different opinion.

You could use the iPad for Skyping, but I don't see how it would work for emergency communication, since you would need Wi-Fi.

Update:

This may not be the solution for you, but my wife and I decided to just both get smartphones. We had been putting it off for a while and when we went into Verizon yesterday we found that it is only slightly more expensive than the plans for our cheapo phones on US Cellular. I think smart phone plans have really turned a value corner, finally. We are getting GSM capable Galaxy S4s on Verizon's current buy one get one free promotion.

International calling plans on each line are 5 bucks a month and I could do it just for the month of June when we'll be in the UK. Its five dollars per line per month. While using it, calls are 99 cents a minute in the UK. Texts are 50 cents to send and 5 cents to receive, so effectively 55 cents per text if we text each other. (Note that the text cost is per recipient, so one should not send out mass texts.)

I think that this will be our most cost effective option because we won't have to fiddle with a SIM and all we were really looking for is to be able to text each other our locations if we get separated or if one of us wants to nap while the other explores. We will be skipping data, which is 25 bucks per 100 MB.

Ruth,
I went through Verizon recently for a 3 month trip to Spain. It is as posted above, $5 per month for the international plan and about a $1 per minute (give or take a bit.) However, the kicker is that the calls do add up. I didn't think I was using my phone much but the first month the "roaming" charges were $75. You are charged by the minute even if you only are on the line for 20 seconds. I'd had many situations where it took several calls to hook up with an apartment owner, make reservations for a show, meet up with friends, etc. The second month I was far more judicious with my phone use and the charges were more reasonable. I may try the SIM card for my upcoming trip. As for data. I bought the 100MB for $30 a month and had it put on my phone rather than my ipad because the phone is so much easier to carry. Keep in mind that the data does not roll over if you are gone more than a month. The first month I used only a small fraction of the data. 100 MB was plenty. The second month our GPS was stolen out of our car and I started using the phone data for maps. That did eat up quite a bit of data but I didn't go over. Be sure to reset you data usage at the beginning of your trip so that you can easily keep track of how much you've used and turn the data off when you are not using it. Technology is definitely a double edged sword! I sort of miss the days of paper maps and definite rendezvous points....