Page 1 of 1

Smartphones roaming and cheap plans

Posted: Thu 28 Aug 2014 11:38
by Maximus
Howdy - I'm looking to get into this whole smartphone thing, can anyone recommend a plan with cheap data roaming? as I live near the border with spain I am concerned that taking it to spain or even using it near spain will trigger expensive roaming charges
I'm not that bothered about the price of calls or texts but i would like a low monthly cost of ownership and I'm happy to use a droid phone
Not had much luck searching yet but this is my favourite at the moment, www.prixtel.com but I think if I take it to spain it will trigger the highest monthly tariff each time

any ideas ?

Max

Posted: Thu 28 Aug 2014 12:17
by Pearsonb
I ended up getting a European plan from SFR because I was getting so many calls attributed to Spain, even though Saint Marsal is a good way from the border. It costs me about 45 euros a month. Must be a better solution than that.

Pearson

Posted: Thu 28 Aug 2014 12:48
by Pighunter
I am no expert but I don't think such a thing exists. It seems any operator will make the best of fleecing customers who use phones frequently abroad although charges have dropped recently.

Best thing to do is switch data roaming off and avoid any nasty surprises.

I have a Wiko (French) smartphone which takes 2 SIMs and is relatively inexpensive. I use it with UK & French SIMs but you could always get a Spanish one and French one and that way you are covered as you can choose whether to use the local or roaming SIM, as if you want it asks you every time.

Posted: Thu 28 Aug 2014 14:10
by Maximus
Crickey 45E a month ! - I may be going back to my bean cans and string - do you get a free phone with that ?

I just read that the EU are planning to ban roaming charges from Dec '15 so maybe Ill just have to put up with it till then

can you give me an idea of how many MB's I should expect to use in a normal month if I avoid youtube and music streaming

Tx Max

Re: Smartphones roaming and cheap plans

Posted: Thu 28 Aug 2014 16:21
by martyn94
Maximus wrote:Howdy - I'm looking to get into this whole smartphone thing, can anyone recommend a plan with cheap data roaming? as I live near the border with spain I am concerned that taking it to spain or even using it near spain will trigger expensive roaming charges
Et
Not had much luck searching yet but this is my favourite at the moment, www.prixtel.com but I think if I take it to spain it will trigger the highest monthly tariff each time

any ideas ?

Max
I found the prixtel site both difficult and disingenuous when it comes to roaming charges: pretty standard but still tiresome. I manage ok with the basic package from Free: 0€ a month for 2 hours calls and 50 Mo of data (in France) and calls and data at the low end (but still silly) when in Spain. It's 2€ a month if you do not get your internet from Free. I quite often use more data than the allowance, but it's still cheaper over the year than the next package up. As has been said, keep your roaming switched off most of the time, and wait for the Commission to regulate the charges in due course.

As for a phone, you might as well buy one upfront, unlocked, for cash. I am very happy with my Motorola Moto G: not only because it is regarded (rightly) as very good value for money, but mostly because it carries the latest version of Android with no super-added junk from the phone manufacturer. This stuff is meant to add value and differentiate the product, but in practice is just a pain in the backside.

Posted: Thu 28 Aug 2014 17:46
by montgolfiere
My Daughter uses the more expensive package from Free....under 20 € a month. still tricky for 'Roaming' tho ??? i use the 2€ offer and only 'smartphone' at home with the wifi!!!
But then i am a Yorkshireman!!!.

Posted: Thu 28 Aug 2014 19:48
by Maximus
Mmm - thanks for all the suggestions everyone ! I hadn't realised what a minefield I was getting into
Just looked again at what my internet and telephone provider (orange) is offering and it seems that for an extra 20E a month (total 55E/month) I can add a tariff for a mobile that is almost reasonable "open play 4g"
here is the url http://open.orange.fr/forfaits/forfaits ... obile.aspx

Is anyone using this and can I do better ?

Posted: Fri 29 Aug 2014 09:03
by Webdoc
Three have just started a new deal where calls/texts/data in France can be used just as if you were in the UK. It's called "Feel at home".

There are conditions which you need to read carefully.

I have just bought a data-only sim for my Android Tablet for £70 which gives 12GB of prepaid data that lasts 12 months and will be trialling it in France in a couple of weeks.

www.three.co.uk

Posted: Fri 29 Aug 2014 10:33
by Maximus
I did see the Three deal but it doesn't include Spain in it's list of EU countries.
so at 20p per mb a quick youtube video would cost me £50 !!!
mind you that kind of ripoff would certainly make me feel at "home"

Re: Smartphones roaming and cheap plans

Posted: Fri 29 Aug 2014 10:43
by russell
Maximus wrote:Howdy - I'm looking to get into this whole smartphone thing
I've just bought one of these http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Original-Leno ... 1495502234 for Pat and I'm staggered at the performance having compared it with a grandson's iPhone. Particularly outstanding are the battery life and the display quality.

Russell.

Posted: Fri 29 Aug 2014 11:06
by Maximus
That looks great Russell , I can feel my credit card twitching !

The main problem seems to be stopping the thing raiding my bank account if I so much as wave it in the direction of Spain

I want to use the smartphone as a replacement for my GPS so the ability to receive data in both France and Spain is important to me but the expense and unnecessary restrictions are incredibly frustrating

Posted: Fri 29 Aug 2014 15:51
by russell
Roaming charges have already been capped by the EU: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-28096678
and are set to reduce to zero at the end of next year.

In the meantime you can download maps for areas you want to visit using wifi and then use gps with the data connection switched off. I did that when visiting Australia as by standalone gps doesn't work outside Europe.

Russell.

Posted: Fri 29 Aug 2014 16:09
by martyn94
If you restrict yourself to the mapping app when in Spain and turn on roaming only when you need it, resisting the urge to watch YouTube , you should not bankrupt yourself on any carrier between now and the end of next year.

I would not buy any package on Orange without checking what's available on their much cheaper online-only sub-brand, "sosh".