Going to change phone plans

[Cobra9777]

...Buying local SIMs may save a few bucks but they cost time as well. I figure our time is worth $50-100/hour when we are traveling. Also, you're not on the air in a new country until you have that SIM...

That's why I mentioned e-SIMs earlier. There's no physical SIM card. You can buy it online in the US and it works as soon as your plane lands.

 

[tulak]

I tried US Mobile e-sim for data only in Germany and it mostly worked. I had some connection issues one day., but when it worked, it was great. Much quicker than T-Mobile at that time. It was easy to setup too. Took about 15 min at the hotel.

T-Mobile has since upgraded their international service with higher speeds, which solves my data issue. I also have a local European number. At the time, I didn’t realize that I could use this line for inexpensive data throughout the EU, so that’s my backup if I have issues with T-Mobile.

 

[GTFan]

Does the Mint Mobile $15/mo per phone include tax? Or is that in addition to the $15? Google Fi adds tax to the total, so I'm probably looking at $50/mo for two phones, all-in.

We have the 4GB plan on Mint and it's about $17/mo. with tax per line, paid yearly. We never hit the data limit per month with all the WiFi out there, really only need it while traveling between places. The T-Mo network is a lot better than it used to be just a few years ago, but it's still not as good as AT&T or Verizon from what I've seen. Still plenty of dead zones on T-Mo in rural areas where at least one of the other two worked fine.

 

[lakehawk]

Red Pocket Mobile

If you have an unlocked phone, you can go with Red Pocket Mobile. It works great and you can pick your provider based on coverage in your area. I use the AT&T sim provided by Red Pocket and get 5G data service (when I am not using WIFI).

https://www.redpocket.com/plans/annual

 

[Time2]

If you have an unlocked phone, you can go with Red Pocket Mobile. It works great and you can pick your provider based on coverage in your area. I use the AT&T sim provided by Red Pocket and get 5G data service (when I am not using WIFI).

https://www.redpocket.com/plans/annual

OP here,
I just received the Sim card from AT&T and got my phone authorized.
I'm on the $300 a year prepaid plan with 16GB of data.My 2 minute impression is that video come right on and my TV app starts the channel quicker than with Verizon. I'll see how it works at the gym, I sometimes have restarts on my TV app.

 

[barak]

CC

Always great current advice at Clark Howard.

Also, we've used Consumer Cellular for years and are very happy with them

 

[a60dan]

We switched to T-Mobile Unlimited 55+ and eventually home internet.

We’re on the original $60/month for 2 lines all tax included.

Mexico & Canada is like home country with 5GB high speed data. 200+ countries include slower data and charge a reasonable rate for voice. We used data and WiFi for voice calls to family in 2015 (Italy, Germany, Greece.

We also ditched the landline.

 

[nwsteve]

Like most tech, best cell phone plans depend on what you need to do. We also use TMobile Maga plan as we travel intl and it offers the hands down best rates from Non usa locations without having to mess with sim cards etc.
We did notice on a recent American Cruise Line (ACL) trip on the East Coast, ACL had dropped wifi on board with the response they expected you to use your phone's hotspot. Many of the passengers who had Consumer Cellar did not have this feature (or least they did not subscribe) or their phones were not smart phones. I don't recall if Consumer Cellular offers an intl option--at least they did not when we last years which was eons ago.

 

[MuirWannabe]

Just got back from a 6 week trip to New Zealand, Tasmania, and mainland Australia. This was my first trip since switching to Google Fi coverage.
Happy to report the coverage was excellent and immediate in all locations. The few calls made added a total of $16 to my normal bill. Most calls made on Wi-Fi cost nothing.

Google Fi is certainly more expensive than the cricket plan I switched from. But the international coverage is what I was looking for. Thanks to those who made the recommendation.

 

[Golden Mean]

Just got back from a 6 week trip to New Zealand, Tasmania, and mainland Australia. This was my first trip since switching to Google Fi coverage.
Happy to report the coverage was excellent and immediate in all locations. The few calls made added a total of $16 to my normal bill. Most calls made on Wi-Fi cost nothing.

Google Fi is certainly more expensive than the cricket plan I switched from. But the international coverage is what I was looking for. Thanks to those who made the recommendation.

New Google-Fi user here that will be traveling internationally.

Just to be clear, did some of the international wi-fi calls cost something? If so, do you know what the criteria is for charge vs no-charge wifi calls?

Thanks

 

[cathy63]

New Google-Fi user here that will be traveling internationally.

Just to be clear, did some of the international wi-fi calls cost something? If so, do you know what the criteria is for charge vs no-charge wifi calls?

Thanks

Calls made while connected to a WiFi network are free. Calls made using cellular data outside North America are 20 cents per minute.

 

[MuirWannabe]

Calls made while connected to a WiFi network are free. Calls made using cellular data outside North America are 20 cents per minute.

Correct