iPhone Overseas?
 

I am about to go to London and Paris for a few nights and I've read horror stories about astronomical bills from ATT for using your iPhone abroad. I would normally not even think to bring a cell but while away last weekend my 3 year-old fell and landed in the ER with my mother-in-law so I think everyone would feel better knowing mommy and daddy were always a call away. If no to bring the iPhone, what else do you suggest? Thanks!

My experience with iPhones is limited, but if you type <i>cell phone</i> into the search box above, it will bring up several threads on this topic.

Also search <i>iphone</i> with and without a space between the <i>i</i> and <i>p</i> and you will get even more threads.

Keep it on air-plane mode until you get to a wifi zone. Gazillions of these in London and I assume Paris is the same. I downloaded a city guide ap that listed them out for me when I went to Amsterdam.

Don't known your home country but assume it is Europe?

I regularly skype iphone to iphone from UK to Germany on wifi. Its free and the quality is brilliant.

It depends on the country, but still expensive. Use Skype, although the call quality varies.

Unless you have set up your phone to push email and texts, then you are really in control of your usage. My suggestion would be to use text messaging more than voice since it's cheaper. And if you really feel you need to call home to check up, then call AT&T and change your plan temporarily to a world plan, which will bring down the costs for a small monthly fee. Turn this off immediately upon your return.

Where you really run up costs is in data roaming, and that's very expensive. Don't put your phone in Airplane mode because that turns off all the cell features (and prevents you from getting calls). But keep data roaming turned off and only access the internet from a Wi-Fi hotspot (preferably a free one).

You don't hear nearly as many horror stories from international use as you did at one time because data roaming is turned off now initially, as is the push-email function. Keep them that way and you should have no problems.

And tell everyone to call you only in a true emergency.