i phone use in europe

Is that ALL AT&T told you? I take mine to Europe. I don't buy the intenrational roaming plan at $5.99. I have activated international service. I pay around $2.50 per minute. However, I also don't make many calls. (I thnk my average bill is $10 for "international") You need to turn off data roaming because that will KILL you pricewise. I believe you can buy an international package, but you can also just use WiFi wherever you are. Leaving the data roaming on without any international package can easily hit hundreds, if not, thousands, of dollars so be sure that's off. Honestly, IMHO it's better to tell your friends and family you will call if there is a crisis and cut things off for the time you are gone.

I plan to take my iPhone to Italy next month, I will be there 3 weeks. I will likely buy an international SIM from iphonetrip.com that will cost $285. I want it mostly for data and with that I can get unlimited data. My other option would be to buy an international data plan from AT&T for $199 for 200 MB and $.005 per KB if I were to go over. I am leaning more towards the iphone trip as it is a finite amount. If you don't turn off data roaming on your phone you could end up paying hundreds or even thousands for overseas roaming.

I've taken my Iphone to Italy several times, to Switzerland, France and England. I've used text messages to communicate with my kids back home, and have only answered the phone once. (I limit the number of text messages- only important issues) I turn off DATA roaming (actually, it's off all the time on my phone, even here) When I traveled the first time, I called AT&T and the CS person told me that if I used less than 20 minutes of phone calls, the cost would be about the same as if I signed up for the international plan. (I've never used the international plan) There is internet for free in most all countries, but hard to find in Italy. France hotels, B &B's and the same in England all had free wi-fi (you just had to ask for a code to access) So, your last statement --- turn DATA roaming off and use the iphone when you can find free wi-fi. communicate via email, or on facebook! I like the idea that if someone really needs to call me, they can. Also, keep in mind, if you don't answer the phone, and it goes to voice mail, you will be charged if you pick up that message. I leave messages until I get home as well. This is what worked for me.

Another approach: Unconditionally forward all your incoming calls to voicemail. There is a setting for this on most phones, or customer service can do it for you. This way your phone will never ring but you can still use it to call out. Although there has been conflicting advice about this in this forum, the cell companies state that if your phone rings overseas and then rolls over to voicemail back in the U.S., you will be charged something for that call. So just not answering calls isn't a cost-free solution. Communicate with folks back home by text message. It is cheaper than a call. Be sure data roaming is off so you don't incur unexpected data charges. Get a telephone calling card. Use it to check voicemail messages as needed or to call home from a payphone. Or, sign up for skype and use that to call home over wifi when a wifi connection is available.

call AT&T and ask them again about text messaging - my recollection is that is a separate fee and there is a per message charge for international texts. The data plans are intended for people who want to use their phone just like at home (to surf web, get email). I believe if voice mail is downloaded to your iPhone (phone is on, connected to phone service, voice mails show up on your phone) is considered data, not phone usage. Double check with AT&T on this too. I signed up for the international calling plan a few days before departure and canceled it the moment I got home (easy to do online, it's considered a "feature"). I forwarded my phone to my sister's phone number in the states, so no voice mail to contend with. I kept my phone in airplane mode and turned on the wi-fi. Had moderate success with this method connecting to internet (in Spain) - usually needed some kind of code to log in. To be safe, make sure everything that is set up to check for s automatically (email checking, Facebook, etc) is turned off. Here's a good article from Budget Travel - a little dated but most is still relevant. http://current.newsweek.com/budgettravel/2008/06/iphone_tips_and_tricks_for_bud.html

All of these unknowns and differences of opinion and experience are why I never use my regular phone overseas. That's what my unlocked GSM phone is for.

I have my own business and need to keep the lines of communication open during my 3 weeks in Italy, hence my willingness to pay up to $300 for a working phone system while in Europe. I will do what I can to minimize the use but for some like me it is something I need. I plan on doing things to minimize time and use. I will probably forward my calls to Google voice so they don't actually come to my phone. I will set aside a little time each day to check in as I don't intend to be one of those with their eyes glued to a screen when I have thousands of years of history surrounding me.

Thanks Tex, yes I have seen that thread. I actually have an unlocked android phone as well and plan to get a SIM card from TIM or Wind for that. Problem with the iPhone is that it is locked to AT&T so I can't just stick a TIM or Wind SIM card in and expect it to work unless I unlock it. I'm not quite sure how the iPhonetrip works but it supposed does (maybe they subcontract from AT&T, I don't really know).

Lisa, a TA Rome forum thread from early this year might be of interest. See reply #8. Here's the link Sim card in italy

use skype over wifi, it's much easier to manage than roaming charges/prepaid sims.

I also want to use the GPS on my phone while traveling for mapping an geo tagging photos so with my other needs I do need data. But if I didn't I would definitely turn data roaming off and forward calls. To minimize the data I use I will turn of auto email retrieval and load it a couple times a day when I am in a wifi zone.

I finally found the AT&T FAQ about international roaming that explains how voice mail = data when you retrieve it, but not necessarily when you get it link here. Also, here's the link to their iPhone international call FAQ link here. This page explains the global text messaging plan (note, it's expensive!!) http://www.wireless.att.com/learn/international/roaming/affordable-world-packages.jsp?wtSlotClick=1-0044LQ-0-1&WT.svl=calltoaction Good luck!

A data feed isn't needed for GPS functionality on the iPhone. We have the Michelin Restaurant app (great app) which doesn't require a data feed to locate you, display restaurants in the area and give directions to whichever one you choose.

I do have some offline maps but I want my normal iPhone data experience and since it's a business expense I don't mind paying for it. I want the data more than voice.

We'll be in Italy in 17 days. My understanding (from a rep at AT&T) is that if you keep your phone in Airplane mode AND keep WiFi on, you will not have any of the call/voicemail/email/roaming/texting charges.

I just got back from France on Wednesday, and my iPhone was my only mode of communication. I turned it to Airplane mode and just used it for wi-fi, and I found that to be completely sufficent. Even though we stayed in mostly 'budget' hotels, all but one had wi-fi (and the one that didn't was on Mont St. Michel, so I wasn't shocked). If all you want the internet for is staying in touch via email, you should be fine.

LISA - you said:
I will likely buy an international SIM from iphonetrip.com that will cost $285. I want it mostly for data and with that I can get unlimited data. then you said: To minimize the data I use I will turn of auto email retrieval and load it a couple times a day when I am in a wifi zone. So I am truly confused...if you have unliimted data, why would you need to turn anything off and use wifi? I'm not a smartphone user, yet, but when I read all these posts about all the gyrations you have to go thru, I'm wondering if it's worth the hassle.

@Elaine Sorry, I was talking about 2 different things I haven't decided which one I'll choose yet, I am awaiting a report from another iphonetrip user in another forum. option 1 $199 month AT&T 200MB international data plan I would turn off auto email retrieval until I get to wifi to save data If I go over it will cost more so it is an unknown but I get my regular number though I will forward my calls to google voice and access them once or twice a day with from my google voice account. option 2 $285 3 weeks (the duration of my trip) iPhonetrip new number (I think it is US or UK) I have to remove my iphone micro SIM and replace it with this and change some settings, for data, not for voice calls except when using Skype, not my phone number Would not cost any more than $285 here is their info: Access internet anywhere with unlimited 3G data roaming plan Make free international calls using VoIP apps over 3G data network Visit different countries without replacing the SIM card (One chip for all destinations) Use rented SIM in your iPhone, iPad or cellular modem to browse the web Receive and send emails abroad for free No contract, no charges for receiving or sending data, no minimum call spend
Works with any AT&T Locked iPhone (3G, 3GS or 4G models). No hacking, jailbreaking or unlocking required! Also compatible with iPad

@ Lisa, Could you clarify a few points regarding iPhone Trip..... Based on the information I currently have, their least expensive iPhone plan is currently $15.99 per day (or ~$560 for a 5-week trip, plus voice and text charges). This appears to include unlimited data, but voice and text seem a bit on the "pricey" side (and more than that charged by the AT&T travel pack). In addition, some of the data settings in the iPhone need to be re-formated, which could be a problem for less technically astute users. It seems like this would be a good option for those that absolutely require the data capability (ie: for business purposes), but may not be as cost effective for the average traveller. I don't have an iPhone yet, but eagerly anticipating the release of the iPhone 5 (hopefully this summer?), so I'll take a closer look at the options for travel then. Given the costs of data roaming (either using iPhone Trip or a plan with my home carrier), I'll probably continue to limit my Cell phone use to voice and text, and use the Netbook for internet access. Cheers!

@Ken
I'm not 100% sure but from what I understand it is for data only calls would be through Skype or google voice, it would be a new number so I wouldn't expect texts but I know sometimes texts just come in so I need to ask them about that. I would be using it for data as my voicemails would be forwarded to google voice and I pick those up on gmail. If I were going for 30 days I would probably go the AT&T international plan and just try to keep data use to a minimum. The $199 is for 30 days and additional data is .005 KB but since you are in Canada I don't know what the Canadian provider deals are. What I like about the iPhone trip idea is that it is a finite amount and I wouldn't have to worry about turning settings off and on (not that it's difficult just that I may forget to turn it off at times). I'm sure the iPhone trip set up is fairly easy and that they give good instructions.

@ Lisa, Thanks for the info. I assume you mean that iPhone Trip will provide an infinite amount of data? I believe my provider (Rogers) has similar rate structures to those of AT&T. I'll look at this in more detail if I finally decide to buy an iPhone. Cheers!