IPAD 2 with wireless and 3G for Italy

Kerri, I've listed below some links to recent discussions about iPad use in Italy and Europe. Some refer to iPhones, but the principles are the same. Here are my responses to your questions in a nutshell, though: For light usage, just stick with wifi. Lots of places to find it (McDonalds and Starbucks, for example). If you plan to talk to your family over your iPad, do you mean using Skype or some other VOIP service? If so, wifi is definitely the way to go because such calls can burn up lots of megabytes fast. Yes, AT&T is probably too expensive for your expected usage. AT&T may have recently come out with lower-cost plans. I don't know for sure, but even its lower-cost plans still cost a bit. If you're talking about the old (or existing?) AT&T data plans, it is super expensive. Getting a local microSIM in Italy will give you the cheapest rates (other than wifi, of course), but it can be a bit of a hassle. Unless your trip is for more than 2 or 3 weeks, I'm not sure it is worth the trouble, given your description of your lack of computer savvy and the uses you listed. Here are the links. Hope they give you more information you can use: iPad in Italy? Cell Phone Data Plan iPhone 4 for call and data in Italy iPhone (AT&T) Using in Italy -- iPad, too

Paul, Thank you so very much! It sounds like Wi-fi is the best option. I should have been more specific, but when i said talk to my family, i meant jsut email them every other day or email a misc. picture etc. We will only be there about 11 days, so it sounds like Wi-fi is the best route. Thanks again very much and you have a good day!
Kerri

If you use 3G in Europe, you will be roaming. At least that's what I have been told in regards to my Droid phone. You won't want to see the charges. Verizon has cautioned me that they 3G roaming will be quite expensive. I suggest you use WiFi.

We were there a few months ago and took an iPad2 with us. We went to a TIM store and bought a Micro-SIM with 1Gigabyte data plan. Ask for the tablet plan and make sure they give you the 1G of data (there's also a 10Gig plan too). They even installed the TIM micro-SIM card for us in the store -- they're very familiar with the iPad2. It cost us about 30 euros (don't remember the exact amount). We were there for 2 weeks and didn't come close to using 1 Gig of data. Make sure you don't lose the AT&T SIM card that's pre-installed in your ipad2, in case you ever want to turn that on in the US. Mathew

Thanks everyone so much, much appreciated!

Larry.....Your Verizon Droid works as a phone in Europe?

Were doing the same thing you are as we did it last year with a lap top not Ipad. We loaded Skype on it. When we get there we will get a local SIM card. With that in we will be able to search on line and make phone calls using Skype. We also got the Apple camera kit so we can load our pictures on the Ipad each day. Hope that helps.

I assume you have a local ATT phone center. They can explain your options face to face and will pretty well be honest with you on your options. My wife has done it with her iPhone and purchased a text message data package only not so expensive. I too will be taking my IPAD to Italy this month but have no intentions to use any 3G networks. Will communicate wifi areas only. We want family to know were safe thats about it. Going to Italy to escape and unwind ... backing off my day to day IPAD stuff.

We used our iPad 2 on our recent trip with only wifi. We used email, notes, movies, Skype, games, kept a blog, downloaded photos, looked up locations, maps (you can take a picture of a map you have up, then access it off wifi through your photos). We did not have wifi service at all our B&B's, but sometimes we would find an Internet cafe, or just wait until we got to our next place. I let my family know that I may be off-line a few days and they just waited patiently for me to be back on. I love my iPad!