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Mobile phone abroad Advice please

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Pavarotti

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I intend going to Italy in June. What are the options regarding mobile phones.?

I have a smart phone but I am kind of reluctant to take it with me because it is such a vital feature in my life now that if I lose it it will be a disaster. My wife left one behind in a hire car once and although we got it back after some weeks she was without vital phone contacts and lots of other information for ages. Do not want to go through that again.

I have a nice old Blackberry that still works. My aim is just to use it to keep in touch with home, family and my wife when she is off doing her shopping when we are abroad.

Can anyone advise me as to things like SIM cards. How to set my phone up. Should I get a SIM in Italy?. Pay as you go options? Basically what to do?

Advice will be much appreciated

Pav
 
Check with your current provider of phone service if you are only going to one country Italy e.g. by plane.
If driving there etc then it might get more complicated.

Lebara SIMs are good for overseas rates - at least they used to be.

You can use Apps like "WhatsApp " from of charge via the WiFi in your Hotel etc.

Take a few minutes to transcribe your important numbers onto a paper list.
Keep copies in different places.
Your suitcase and wallet your wife's handbag etc - you are unlikely to lose all of these at once.

Take actual plastic debit and credit cards rather than having all your payment options on your phone: scatter these as above.

I have not travelled abroad for a few years, things might have changed.
 
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In the news recently, someone used their mobile abroad without checking, ended up with a bill for thousands 🤔👍
 
You could get a pay-as-you-go SIM I use GiffGaff and they have EU roaming on their plans (with a limit of 5GB data in EU anyway). So for £10 you could have a 1 month 15GB UK plan which works up to 5GB in Italy.
Like all there will be exceptions for certain things like picture messages, certain service numbers like 084...

Calls and Tariffs to UK mobiles and Landlines | giffgaff

Check out all our prices, plans and how we compare with other networks.
www.giffgaff.com

Roaming charges with giffgaff

We’ve made it super easy to use your phone abroad while travelling around Europe. International roaming is now included within your plan.
www.giffgaff.com www.giffgaff.com

If it's an old phone you just need to check it's not locked to a carrier - it does not happen so much nowadays but in the past if you had a phone on a contract it was usually locked to that one provider like O2 or Vodafone. If that's the case you need to get it unlocked or get a SIM that works. GiffGaff runs on O2.
 
Might be cheaper in the long run, depending on where you travel to pick up a cheap phone, programme in your important numbers and then use Whats App. That way as long as there is WiFi its free calls and video calls (assuming you want to see your wife) forever. You could pick up a compatible phone for not much money.
 
Paynut said:
In the news recently, someone used their mobile abroad without checking, ended up with a bill for thousands 🤔👍
Click to expand...
One of our MSPs did it with an ipad and it cost him his position after he tried to claim it on expenses.

He run up a bill of £11k or his kids did as he tried to claim :cautious:
 
Blackberry servers were all shut down down years ago. Although it powers on, I doubt you'd get it to work as a phone now? Also fairly sure they were all 2/3g?

Back you phone up to you Google account or I thing account. If you lose I'm the device, just log on from another device to retrieve info. Or track said lost device.

Ive taken and used phones abroad for decades, never managed to lose one or 'run up charges of millions of pounds' so I'd not overthink it.

Make sure your device is covered on your personal belongings away from home section of your home contents insurance, and/or your travel insurance. Then check your networks roaming charges or packages, pick one, and take your phone 🙌🏽
 
Depends who your provider is. I'm with O2. Phone works just the same as at home, just make sure you have right package. In Rhodes as we speak. Went on a boat trip the other day that went too near to Turkey for my liking so I just put it on airplane mode. Turkey is not in my package. The world's not as complicated as it used to be regarding phone and Internet. Again speak to your provider.
 
I haven't been abroad in years. But my daughter travels the world regularly and buys a SIM for her iPhone in the country she's visiting.

I advised her to write down important numbers etc, on a piece of card wrapped in sellotape, just in case.
 
Depending on suitability/compatibility of phone, how frequently you travel abroad and how much you'll use it abroad, it may be cheaper to get an esim & then buy data for whichever country you visit.

Connecting to WiFi everywhere (hotels, restaurants, cafes etc) can leave you open to hacking / viruses as they are often unsecured networks.
 
Paul R said:
Depending on suitability/compatibility of phone, how frequently you travel abroad and how much you'll use it abroad, it may be cheaper to get an esim & then buy data a for whichever country you visit.

Connecting to WiFi everywhere (hotels, restaurants, cafes etc) can leave you open to hacking / viruses as they are often unsecured networks.
Click to expand...

Out of interest i would be really interested to hear if anyone has picked up viruses while abroad, maybe I have just been lucky?, had a mate that picked up a nasty virus in Thailand but that was nothing to do with his using his mobile.
 
Pavarotti said:
I intend going to Italy in June. What are the options regarding mobile phones.?

I have a smart phone but I am kind of reluctant to take it with me because it is such a vital feature in my life now that if I lose it it will be a disaster. My wife left one behind in a hire car once and although we got it back after some weeks she was without vital phone contacts and lots of other information for ages. Do not want to go through that again.

I have a nice old Blackberry that still works. My aim is just to use it to keep in touch with home, family and my wife when she is off doing her shopping when we are abroad.

Can anyone advise me as to things like SIM cards. How to set my phone up. Should I get a SIM in Italy?. Pay as you go options? Basically what to do?

Advice will be much appreciated

Pav
Click to expand...
Some providers give you a top up option like roaming.
Go on the website or ring them.
 
Take your own phone and don't loose it :oops: - you don't lose it now, so why do you think you would lose it in Italy? If your concerned just make sure it' backed up to the cloud for contacts.

Check your own SIM plan, I'm with Lebara and I can use my allowance abroad with no issues, the phone resets to the new location when switching it on and off from landing in the location, they also send you a txt with setting if it does not automatically do it it 'self. You also get to use all your own numbers/WhatsApp's etc, which you don't get with swapping to a new number on a different SIM or phone - I only d this if I'm in a non supported country and then I use a travel SIM (y)
 
You're not going to a war zone. You're more likely to get it TWOC'd in London. Check with your provider. I get 12gb a day in Europe. E sims are good for cheap data. Most networks now have limit on how much they charge you, they just turn your data off when you hit it. You get some crappy texts telling you your limit and cost. Get a free VPN and connect to free, trusted WIFi.
 
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