My experience using T-Mobile's Simple Choice Plan in 6 European countries

Thanks for the info. What is the price of the simple choice plan? How does it compare to the regular plan that you had before upgrading?

It is $50 a month for service plus phone costs (and taxes of course). Their business model is different from other carriers. You don't have to commit to a certain term. You pay for equipment separately (either upfront or in installments). My charge for an Iphone 5 was $27/month for 24 months. I'm free to leave TMobile at anytime without penalty, but I'd owe the balance for the equipment.

Before, I had a very old grandfathered plan with no data and no texts and I used the basic flip phone. I was probably one of their last holdouts. I had used my phone internationally for voice in the past at higher charges. Part of my decision to switch was that I finally decided that I wanted to have a smart phone for domestic use, so I went with an I-phone and changed to this plan in order to get data. The free data and texting internationally was just a fringe benefit of that change. This is included in their "normal" plan.

I think they compare very favorably with the big carriers like Verizon and AT&T in terms of pricing, but their domestic coverage is not as good. It has been fine for me, but I've heard that it doesn't work for some of my colleagues who live way out in the country.

I had a similar experience to Laura's in Germany (and briefly France and Switzerland) in April. I did find data to be 2G and sloooowwww most of the time, but it was still usable. I even used my Android phone's hotspot to tether my laptop so I could do without paying for internet a few nights at hotels where WiFI wasn't free.

In addition, my Android phone has WiFi calling built in (I don't think the iPhone can do that yet), and WiFi calls are FREE not even 20 cents/minute to/from the states. More than once in Germany, I would stop late in the day at a Starbucks (free WiFi) and make a few calls home to the states, where they were now awake.

FYI, if you don't have a "smart" phone yet, they aren't necessarily that expensive. I got a cheap (but slow) T-Mobile Prism II last year on sale for only $30. I am certainly not a power user and don't use my phone's "smart" features much when not traveling, but this phone mostly works fine for me, and for that price, I can't complain.

@Andrew -
I have a TMobile phone and am taking it to Turkey in a few weeks. In the past, I have used an elaborate system of a TextFree app, Skype etc. to limit communication charges. This time, I am just going to use my phone. I called TMobile two days ago to finalize my understanding of the charges I will incur. Text and data are clearly free, but when I asked her about WiFi calling, she said I will still pay 20 cents per minute. My question came about because I wanted to know how I could leave my texting on, my data on, but turn my calling off, because I wanted to answer incoming calls on WiFi, not on my TMobile cellular. Is she wrong? I didn't really understand what she said, but I just took her at her word.

Valerie, WiFI calls are free to/from the US while you are in Turkey. But WiFI calls from Turkey to/from other Simple Choice European countries are still 20 cents/minute (or much higher to a non-covered European country):

http://www.t-mobile.com/optional-services/roaming.html?icid=WMM_TM_SMPLCHCPLN_QRISOVWTXIL261

At that page, go to the bottom and expand "View 16 More Questions" and then you see the question "What about WiFi?" and you get this:

If you are on a Simple Choice plan that includes international roaming,
calls and texts back to the U.S. while using our Wi-Fi calling feature
are free and calls from any Simple Global country to any other country
are $0.20/min (same as cellular). Wi-Fi calls made from non-Simple
Global countries to other countries are charged at World Class rates.

I used WiFi calling from Germany to the US in April, and it was indeed free.

However, you can't turn off calling and still use the WiFi calling feature, at least on my Android phone. You have to leave it on. But on my phone, it is extremely clear when I am making/receiving calls via WiFi. The call button changes to include a WiFi symbol, and as soon as WiFI calling is enabled because it has detected a good WiFI signal, the message "calls will be made on WiFI" pops on to the screen. You can try out WiFi calling on your phone now before you leave to get a feel for how it works - I did.

Thanks for the clarification. I was very confused when I got off the phone with the rep because I thought it should be free too. From what you're describing, when I turn on my WiFi calling, I don't change any other settings, but when my phone rings it defaults to WiFi calling, not the 20 cents per minute plan.

Am I right in thinking that the only charges I will therefore incur will be the per minute charges I incur because I choose to answer an incoming call or make a call (to/from US only) when I am not on WiFi? My hope was to freely use my phone to text family, use data to look stuff up as I need to, and then make calls at night from hotel WiFi. That would net me no additional charges, wouldn't it?

Yes, that's how it works. I admit, while I was in Germany I wondered what my real phone bill would be when I got home, but it was exactly as expected. No extra charges.

But as I said, you need to understand how the WiFI calling feature works on your phone ahead of time. It's not as simple as, "I have turned on WiFI, now all calls are free." Get used to using it before you get to Turkey. Wait until your phone tells you WiFI calling is now enabled. Sometimes it takes a minute or two (at least on my Android) for the phone to start WiFI calling even after I have connected to WiFi. Sometimes it tells me the signal is weak and my WiFi call may drop, though usually the call still continues or works fine. Some hotels may not have great WiFi signals and WiFi calling may not work well or at all. (I think the WiFI call would simple drop not switch to "regular" calling - i.e. not free; if you initiate a WiFi call, it stays a WiFi call until it ends or drops.) You may find you need to make calls in the lobby of the hotel or something if the signal isn't good enough in your room. Get ready for a bit of trial and error.

One thing I had to learn to do with WiFi calling: NOT pace around! I'm using to walking/pacing while I talk on the phone, even when I'm home. If you're connected to WiFI, your signal changes as you move and you could drop a call if you walk out of range and lose the call.

I took my TM Iphone 5 to italy last month and ran into an issue when trying to get network signal for data on the first day

It took at least 20 minutes (@.20/min) to get it resolved with TM customer service.

We tried switching local carriers (voda, wind, tim, and another), in addition to other settings. It started working the next day, but it was frustrating none the less.

They ended up saying it was something with a "root" issue on the italian carrier's side, and that they'd submit a ticket.

It started working and then I forgot about it. When we returned from our two week trip and turned on the phone after landing there was a VM from customer service "Just calling to make sure that all has been resolved".

Would've been nice to get that call earlier than two weeks later, but really can't complain overall.

I second the slow speeds, but it works generally.

Call T-Mobile customer service now and ask them to refund you the $4.00 for the 20 minute call to customer service. I'll bet you they will.

I was going to rent a mobile hotspot for my trip to France and Switzerland, but I'd rather make my phone a hotspot. Did it work OK for you for getting onto the intergoogles from a tablet/computer?

I used my T-Mobile Android phone as a Hotspot extensively while in Germany in April. I don't even use my phone much for internet stuff - I prefer to type on a real keyboard, so I was using it as a Hotspot for my netbook all over Germany, on trains etc. or at hotels without free WiFi. It worked mostly pretty well, but at 2G speeds it was often painfully slow: fine for checking email or some basic web browsing but usually too slow to say upload a bunch of photos to Facebook at once. I would try to do things that required more speed when I was on real WiFi.

If your phone is unlocked, you would still have the option to buy another SIM when you get overseas and use the phone as a hotspot that way.

I too made a recent trip to Scandinavia (with an overnight in London and an 8-hour layover in Frankfurt).

I had both a T-Mo phone and an iPad with Cellular. Both were perfect for maps on the drive to visit family's (dad's dad's and mom's mom's) hometowns from Copenhagen and Stockholm respectively.

I did have a Prepaid Swedish SIM for high-speed data/voice in Stockholm. The T-Mobile phone saved my bacon trying to change my parent's flights back to the US calling United's 800 number - calling the US from the Swedish SIM killed it in about 7 minutes - at over $1/minute (I only had 50 kroner on it to begin). Used T-Mo and only 20 cents per minute with no worries about getting cut off (Forgot I was on the Swedish SIM when I made the initial call...).

Definitely a great plan for travelers. For my upcoming trip to Italy and Germany - it'll probably be all I use (not having to deal with the whole registration & waiting process in Italy)...

Jim

Laura,

Im glad you T plan is working since mine isnt.

But thats okay since so far ive been able to buy local SIMS to get me by.

Just some comnents off topic.

Wi-FI. Yes its around everywhere, but you need access/password for its use. Also, just because a place has it doesnt mean it works EVERYWHERE in that place. I had 2 hotels where the receiption in the rooms sucked and would drop out - alot.

Happy trails

All:

I am new to Tmobile and I did a BYOD (bring your own device...Android device, btw) so my phone doesn't have the native Tmobile WiFi calling.

Nonetheless, there are VoIP apps that make it easy to do from anywhere in the world.

Google Hangouts now makes VoIP calls. You need to have a Google account (free), set up a phone number in Google Voice (free), get the Hangouts app (free), and get the the Hangouts dialer app (free, separate app) on your phone. Test while in Wifi when still at home--works pretty well! :)

I believe that Hangouts calling came first to iOS, so it must be an option for international use as well.

If you are running into an issue where you are receiving messages that you cannot make the call because you are not in the US, then use a VPN to trick the network into thinking you are elsewhere. I have just discovered TunnelBear (Android and iOS version are both available), which is incredibly easy to use, has a "no logging/no sharing" policy, and has a free versions with upgradeable plans (like unlimited data pass-through for 30 days for $4 or $5 for your phone!).

Hope this helps!

Source links for more info:
Hangouts calling - how to from Mashable.com
Hangouts app
Hangouts dialer app
TunnelBear - website

You mentioned that T-Mobile gave you the option to purchase extra high speed data. Do you remember what that cost by chance? If it is a reasonable price, then I would be all over that instead of getting a local SIM.

The rates are posted on their website. go to this link and Check under the question, "Will I get the same high speed experience ..."
http://www.t-mobile.com/optional-services/roaming.html

They list the various high speed data passes that they sell.

i confess I have some issues w t-mobile in USA, but the travel benefits had kept me with them. Sometimes I suspect the darn thing works better overseas...LOL Just last month I was in Captiva Florida and couldn't get signal for anything ....on the same token, i go to the middle of Argentina and I get 3G...go figure!

I've been looking at T-Mobile as an alternative to buying a SIM card in various European countries on my next trip. I don't see a big downside to it other than a somewhat higher cost, but not much higher. And the convenience of not having to use my precious time (most stays are only 2-3 days per country on this trip) to find a store, get a sim, install it, etc. is worth it to me.

I looked at buying an 'All EU" sim card from an outfit here in the USA, but the price would significantly exceed the T-Mobile deal as far as I can see.

pdbphoto, which countries will you visit on your next trip to Europe? T-Mobile doesn't support roaming in every country. I'm planning to visit Slovenia and Croatia in a few months for example, and neither country is part of their roaming deal. So I've got to buy local SIMs anyway.

My T-Mobile phone worked great in Germany last year, but I got only 2G speeds (as advertised). That's another downside. If you buy your own SIM, data is most likely going to be at least 3G if not 4G. Some people report getting 3G data with their T-Mobile phones in Europe, but I wouldn't count on it.