Leave laptop behind and only use iPhone?
Mar 30th, 2012 | 08:48 PM
#1
Original Poster
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 1,559
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Leave laptop behind and only use iPhone?
Has anybody relied only on an iPhone to browse web, send & receive email, and text message while in Europe?
I have always taken my laptop but now that I have the iphone it seems almost irresistible to jettison the laptop. For $30 I can get 200 int'l text messages. For $25 I can get an int'l data plan that should be enough for email and internet for a week. Do not plan to make or receive any phone calls. Does this sound reasonable? Do not want any surprise sky high bill upon return home.
After endlessly scrutinizing the AT&T website I still can't figure out these two things:
If the iphone's roaming is set to OFF can I still use internet if I am in a free wi fi hot spot?
Do text messages pop up when roaming is turned to OFF?
Any insights appreciated.
I have always taken my laptop but now that I have the iphone it seems almost irresistible to jettison the laptop. For $30 I can get 200 int'l text messages. For $25 I can get an int'l data plan that should be enough for email and internet for a week. Do not plan to make or receive any phone calls. Does this sound reasonable? Do not want any surprise sky high bill upon return home.
After endlessly scrutinizing the AT&T website I still can't figure out these two things:
If the iphone's roaming is set to OFF can I still use internet if I am in a free wi fi hot spot?
Do text messages pop up when roaming is turned to OFF?
Any insights appreciated.
Mar 30th, 2012 | 10:05 PM
#2
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 1,064
Likes: 0
Hi vivi
Yes, you still send & receive text with roaming turned off.
That's using your phone connection rather than internet.
We have travelled for the past few years only using the iPhone - the only time we have had a problem is when doing on-line banking. That was because some banks didn't have iPhone access to their websites, but this may have changed in recent times. Worth checking out with your bank. We just went to internet cafes on the odd occasion that banking facilities were needed.
We use international roaming when o/s - you need to set this up with your service provider before travelling. Di
Yes, you still send & receive text with roaming turned off.
That's using your phone connection rather than internet.
We have travelled for the past few years only using the iPhone - the only time we have had a problem is when doing on-line banking. That was because some banks didn't have iPhone access to their websites, but this may have changed in recent times. Worth checking out with your bank. We just went to internet cafes on the odd occasion that banking facilities were needed.
We use international roaming when o/s - you need to set this up with your service provider before travelling. Di
it does photos, web browsing, Skype, but can't actually call or text. But if everyone you want to talk to is on Skype....you don't really have an issue
Mar 30th, 2012 | 10:54 PM
#4
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 21,270
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Mar 31st, 2012 | 12:39 AM
#5
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 44
Likes: 0
Last time I traveled I took my iPod touch with me - not even an iPhone! It was great as most hotels have free WiFi. The AT&T plan for international calling is a bargain. Go have fun and load up with some nice apps. Get Flashlight if you do not already have it - came in handy a number of times.
Mar 31st, 2012 | 02:34 AM
#6
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,969
Likes: 0
It depends on your usage model.
I just came back from Spain. I had both an Android with a larger screen than iPhone or touch, iPod touch, and a PC.
iPod touch. It excelled in connecting to new WiFi providers. It was fastest and easiest to get connected to Wifi requiring redirection to account authorization page. I also use L2TP VPN to secure traffic to non SSL sites. Setting up and activating VPN was the simplest of the three.
Android. It also did well in connecting to new WiFi providers. However, it requires typing authorization password everytime I wanted to activate the VPN. For typing tasks, I like Android long push capability. For me the iPhone/iPod touch screens are too small. I also bought a local voice/text/mobile internet SIM with 500MB data for 20€. I was using about 20MB/day with email, checking weather, checking flights, checking train schedule, checking restaurant recommendations, etc. I turned on internet only when I needed. Used internet monitor Apps. If you don't know you mobile data usage pattern at home, install internet MB usage monitor Apps at home on you iPhone to see if US provider's data roaming plan makes sense for you. I would have needed at least 300MB, and if I had used US carriers' data roaming plan, it would have been very expensive. I researched as much as possible at home or from the hotel to minimize mobile data usage. In some hotels, the WiFi signal was so weak I ended up using mobile internet in my room. This is even at hotels where they charge for the WiFi. I check WiFi signal strength in my room before bothering to buy WiFi access if they charge for this service.
PC. It had the most difficult time being redirected to new WiFi providers. I realized I had to bookmark the authorization site URL instead of waiting for my PC to figure out it needed to be redirected. Because it was a PC, I could use much better VPN. I also organized journal and albums as I go along, so I type about 1 hrs each day. This is not practical with touch pad based typing. Also my return flight got cancelled and had to open a dozen browser tabs to airline sites (3 code share partners) to manage my return flight. I also needed to cut and paste between screens and make documents of screen shots so I would have the info available when I was not on WiFi. I typed about 3 hrs. I had to create freq flyer accounts on new carriers to be able to manage my new itinerary. In my case, the canceled segment dropped out of my itinerary on the ticket selling carrier's itinerary. I have to follow the code share's internet site to look at what happened to that segment. I also made calls to 3 code share carriers using Gmail phone, Skype, and local SIMed phone.
I just came back from Spain. I had both an Android with a larger screen than iPhone or touch, iPod touch, and a PC.
iPod touch. It excelled in connecting to new WiFi providers. It was fastest and easiest to get connected to Wifi requiring redirection to account authorization page. I also use L2TP VPN to secure traffic to non SSL sites. Setting up and activating VPN was the simplest of the three.
Android. It also did well in connecting to new WiFi providers. However, it requires typing authorization password everytime I wanted to activate the VPN. For typing tasks, I like Android long push capability. For me the iPhone/iPod touch screens are too small. I also bought a local voice/text/mobile internet SIM with 500MB data for 20€. I was using about 20MB/day with email, checking weather, checking flights, checking train schedule, checking restaurant recommendations, etc. I turned on internet only when I needed. Used internet monitor Apps. If you don't know you mobile data usage pattern at home, install internet MB usage monitor Apps at home on you iPhone to see if US provider's data roaming plan makes sense for you. I would have needed at least 300MB, and if I had used US carriers' data roaming plan, it would have been very expensive. I researched as much as possible at home or from the hotel to minimize mobile data usage. In some hotels, the WiFi signal was so weak I ended up using mobile internet in my room. This is even at hotels where they charge for the WiFi. I check WiFi signal strength in my room before bothering to buy WiFi access if they charge for this service.
PC. It had the most difficult time being redirected to new WiFi providers. I realized I had to bookmark the authorization site URL instead of waiting for my PC to figure out it needed to be redirected. Because it was a PC, I could use much better VPN. I also organized journal and albums as I go along, so I type about 1 hrs each day. This is not practical with touch pad based typing. Also my return flight got cancelled and had to open a dozen browser tabs to airline sites (3 code share partners) to manage my return flight. I also needed to cut and paste between screens and make documents of screen shots so I would have the info available when I was not on WiFi. I typed about 3 hrs. I had to create freq flyer accounts on new carriers to be able to manage my new itinerary. In my case, the canceled segment dropped out of my itinerary on the ticket selling carrier's itinerary. I have to follow the code share's internet site to look at what happened to that segment. I also made calls to 3 code share carriers using Gmail phone, Skype, and local SIMed phone.
