Prepaids for Foreign Travel

 

After a few months of roaming outside the US we want to share our experiences with wireless roaming with prepaid phones. We ended up using Consumer Cellular more than any other and from our first trip with them last fall to a few weeks ago this year, their roaming rates have actually fallen!

Consumer Cellular is actually one of our more expensive Prepaids, mainly due to their extra fees tacked on to look like they're government-mandated. They have the reputation as being focused on seniors, but all of us Gen X, Y, & Z's can benefit from it too. We're not real happy with being slipped automatically into a higher-priced tier if we go over our Data allotment, but that also allows us to sit at a lower-priced plan and be pushed into the higher-priced plan we should have been on, anyway.

Personally, Consumer Cellular terminated their discount relationship with us but we still include them in our Prepaid universe, mostly due to this foreign roaming advantage. So this is not an "influencer" article, this is just our experience over the last 6 months of international travel. There are a few prepaids that are a bit more reasonable, but their roaming charges are at a fixed rate, so Consumer Cellular's charges for roaming per Call/Text/Mb can be a real bargain. Our last roaming trip to Mexico resulted in only $2 of additional charges! However, we overlooked the fact that if you use foreign data, you can easily go over your normal monthly allotment. Weeee, up we went to the next price tier, but it's still OK.

The Joys of Wi-Fi Calling

 

If your cellular coverage is weak or unavailable, your device can still make and receive Calls and Texts via Wi-Fi with "Wi-Fi Calling". This means you may be able to make and receive Calls and Texts while outside the US without extra roaming charges. You'll need a Wi-Fi Calling-capable device and an active Wi-Fi network. This helps when you're in a poor coverage area, in a foreign country, or when your device is in Airplane Mode with Wi-Fi enabled.

Benefits of Wi-Fi Calling:
▷ Increased network coverage, you can make calls & texts where there is poor or no coverage including outside the US.
▷ No app or special number is needed to use. You can use your assigned phone number.
▷ Wi-Fi Calling usually gives you a much clearer and high fidelity sound than normal phone circuits, even better than a wired home phone.
▷ Wi-Fi Calling is available on many, but not all, wireless devices. To set up Wi-Fi Calling, follow the instructions in your phone's Settings.
▷ Your connection is automatic after initial setup. Wi-Fi Calling can be disabled at any time by toggling it off in your device settings. This is convenient when your phone tries to connect to a weak and unusable Wi-Fi signal.
▷ Note: If you call 911 while using Wi-Fi Calling and they are unable to find you using your device location, the address provided during Wi-Fi Calling Setup will be used. The call will be routed to the nearest emergency response center that can send police, medical assistance or fire responders to that location. To ensure proper routing of emergency calls, please keep the address of your Wi-Fi Calling location up-to-date. Otherwise, you'll be connected to the nearest emergency center based on the cell site's location.

For Wi-Fi Calling to Work:
▷ Wi-Fi must be turned on and connected.
▷ Wi-Fi calls always act like they originate in the US, even when you're outside of the US. You'll need a country code to complete calls even if it is a local call.
▷ Calls to US numbers are billed the same as your Talk & Text plan, normally it is "Unlimited" (except for 411 or premium calls).
▷ Calls to international numbers are billed according to your international long distance plan even if you're in the country you're calling.
▷ "Wi-Fi Calling" must be activated on your phone. If it is not available on your phone's menu, your carrier may not permit Wi-Fi Calling.
▷ In order to activate Wi-Fi Calling, you normally must provide an address for 911 calls. Keep this in mind if you are not calling from that address. Your address info gets transmitted to the emergency dispatcher for all 911 Wi-Fi calls. If address validation fails, you'll be required to re-enter a valid address.
▷ To select your calling preference while traveling outside your wireless coverage area or internationally, ensure "Wi-Fi Calling" is turned on and select 'Prefer Wi-Fi' or 'Prefer other cellular networks', then restart the device.

▷ How to Set up Wi-Fi Calling on Android or iPhone

▷ Prepaid Phones That Support Wi-Fi Calling

T-Mobile Price Headaches? Head for an Alternative!

T-Mobile introduced the "Un-Carrier" moniker as an alternative to the 'mainstream' wireless carriers several years ago. Like so many technical innovations, the scappy contender now appears to be as mainstream as the other carriers and, as a result, they are flexing their newly-developed muscles and trying to increase their prices. This even applies to customers who thought they had a "Price For Life."

There are numerous legal challenges being made to these aggressive T-Mobile moves, but you can do something about it right now. We have composed a list dedicated just for wireless users who want to use the T-Mobile network, and their existing T-Mobile phone, but without dealing with T-Mobile directly. These are Prepaid carriers, and they may be easier to deal with than T-Mobile themselves. From the OZ Wireless T-Mobile alternative page, we have several great choices that use the T-Mobile network:

• RED POCKET MOBILE: A real bargain carrier that actually lets you choose more than just the T-Mobile network.
  
  
• US MOBILE: This highly-recommended low-priced carrier includes Calling and Texting to other countries and Roaming in over 100 foreign countries.

In addition, there are carriers that are owned by T-Mobile that still offer good deals and features, minus the funny business, and should be easily accessed with your existing T-Mobile phone:

• METRO BY T-MOBILE: Yes, it's owned by T-Mobile but they have lower prices and no added fees, and your existing T-Mobile phone is instantly compatible. They even have local stores.
  
  
• MINT MOBILE: Recently acquired by T-Mobile, they save you money by offering longer refill periods.
  
  
• ULTRA MOBILE: This newly-acquired Prepaid has seen some improved features that make it an attractive alternative to your old T-Mobile service.

One of the nice attributes of these alternaives is that they'll automatically deduct your payment from your credit card or checking account, eliminating that monthly bill you received from T-Mobile. Read more about all the alternatives with price comparisons at Mountain Prepaid.

Home Phone Alternatives Shuffle

 

I recenlty noticed that my home phone couldn't make outgoing calls through its associated VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) service: it's "no longer being supported". So I went shopping to find another inexpensive way to keep the old home phone number active and discovered that VOIP providers have become quite pricey, most at $15 per month or higher, plus taxes!

Like it is for most other families, our home phone has become almost redundant, but how many of us hesitate letting go of the home phone number and completely eliminating the security of a communications device in nearly every room in the house? Yes, I realize there are many households who never had it to begin with. 

Now that VOIP is no longer the lowest-cost alternative to the landline, we have returned to the home phone savior of last decade, the Wireless Home Phone. Now that US Mobile is offering their wireless home phone for only $10 a month, all these old but still cool cordless phones around the house are back in touch, if for no other use than as a cell phone finder.

Prepaid Prices Keep Dropping!

 

As we predicted last week, prepaids are dropping prices to snare more customers. Tello has made a significant offer of $25 for what they call "Unlimited" which slows your Data down to 2G after using 35 Gb, which is effectively Unlimited for most of us. They also made a deep cut in the price of their 5Gb plan, which we call "Average" usage. That competitive plan has dropped to $14 per month. These plans both appear on our Mountain Prepaid Price Chart, and are at the top of the bottom prices. And they don't appear to be promotional prices. Tello also has a handy price selector which helps you save even more by selecting just the amount of features you want.

This is in stark contrast to the postpaid plans the major carriers are selling, which, if they are not increasing the plan prices themselves, they are adding mysterious charges and fees. Many of the differences relate to the phone you get with your plan and what you pay for it, which can be helpful, but there's still no free lunch. Expect more Prepaid prices drops before the end of the year. The best way to find them is to look for Prepaids that catch your attention and visit their site.

We also understand that few wireless customers want to bother changing plans, carrier or phones. If there is a small price difference, it's not a big deal. But have you considered that you could be paying half of what you're paying today? I bet you don't roll up to the highest-priced gas pump.  Do you?

Holiday Prepaid Discounts

 

There have been some outstanding Black Friday wireless deals, and now we're expecting some equally generous holiday deals. One of the most notable deals just appeared with Visible Wireless. Their cheapest "Unlimited" plan is now available through the the end of the year for only $20/month, with the code HOLIDAY. This amount is good for 3 months, then increases to the regular rate of $25/month.

The reason this deal is of special interest is that Visible was recently featured on Mountain Prepaid as the BEST Prepaid for Unlimited Data. On top of that, Visible is one of the few prepaids that includes all taxes and fees. That could amount to as much 20% for those of us who live in high tax areas. While the discount is only for 3 months, it's a great way to get your feet wet with a good Unlimited prepaid plan, and be able to escape if it's not to your liking. Visible is now officially known as "Visible by Verizon" which reflects their relationship with Verizon which has good coverage and features.

There will be other great Holiday Prepaid deals and we might not catch them all. So if you're thinking of switching (to) prepaid, choose one from our Prepaid Reviews and see what they're offering in December. We both might be surprised.

It's a Sign

 

Wouldn't it be nice to have more signs like this?

Wi-Fi for International Travel

 

I recently returned from a trip to Europe. Since my phone does not automatically roam outside North America, my usual way to communicate is by buying a foreign SIM. SIM's can be easily found in or near large airports, but this time we found the rules were different. The only way to find a SIM in this smaller city in Greece was to show up at a cellular store with your passport in hand and preferably cash as well. It also needs to be a weekday, or maybe early in the day. Greeks are known for taking off a couple hours each day for a leisurely afternoon dinner.

This combination of factors kept me offline, or so I thought. Of course we could log in to the hotel's Wi-Fi and the occasional restaurant, but I really wanted my SIM. We hopped on the local bus to see if we could find a SIM shop open on the weekend and found that every city bus also has Free Wi-Fi which worked quite well. My wife's phone plan includes Wi-Fi Calling so she was not only online almost everywhere, she could make calls and texts as well as she does at home. Without Wi-Fi Calling, I normally use my Google Voice app to make calls and texts. I found a shop on a Saturday with a lady with limited English skills, but, oops, forgot my passport.

This experience with so much widespread foreign Wi-Fi, took the pressure off finding a SIM, although I finally scored one Monday morning. The experience reminded me that many of the rules in Europe have changed and it's no small deal that almost any cellular service in Europe roams freely anywhere else in Europe. Had I remembered this I would have spent more time finding a SIM during my layover in Germany knowing that a German SIM would work equally well in Greece, or Spain, or most of Europe. 

This one of the reasons why we give extra credit for US carriers that offer Wi-Fi Calling that works universally, both on our Prepaid Reviews and our Roaming Zone pages.  There are also now several Prepaid carriers that readily roaming in most of the developed world with few or no roaming charges.