GPRS costs, again...

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freitasm

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#1614 27-May-2004 20:52

Time to go to the US again. And to resist using GPRS roaming. Once more I'll have to find a hotspot in a cafe or somewhere close to where I'm staying.

I still can't believe that users can get all GPRS you want for US$29.95 (T-Mobile), while roaming GPRS costs us NZ$30/MB (US$18.50/MB).

And more... GPRS roaming costs the same as 3G roaming. What about different service levels?

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#6104 27-May-2004 23:12

why not picking up a prepaid with GPRS access while in US?

I do hope to see the light of flat rate reasonably priced GPRS data access.

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freitasm

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#6105 27-May-2004 23:15

They don't have prepaid GPRS flat rate. But I'll ask about GPRS cost there...

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ajones

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#6118 28-May-2004 09:24

Wouldn't it be easiler to get a wireless card and sign up to one of the providers there?
I don't have enough knowledge of this, I'm just going on things I've (briefly) read on other geek sites. I guess you'd have to outlay for some hardware then though which probably isn't what you're after.

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#6121 28-May-2004 09:31

Oh, yes... That's what I've done before. The problem is that this time I'm participating on a summit, and it'll be on a resort. I can go to town (San Diego) and have a coffee in any wi-fi enabled hotspot. I'll check the GPRS prepay anyway, because then I can connect from anywhere.

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#6136 28-May-2004 18:38

At&t has its Go Phone package with Mmode option, you prepay good for 30 days and data is either $0.01/kb w/ the Mmode package for $4.00 more or $0.03/kb w/o the Mmode package, www.attws.com/gophone

check that out

freitasm

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#6140 28-May-2004 23:12

Yep, the AT&T Wireless plan sounds good. I'll have a look at it when I arrive there. Thanks!

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#6172 30-May-2004 16:30

I've just come back from 5 months working in the states. First two months I was global roaming on vodafone which worked out OK. Then I bought a T-Mobile Easyspeak (prepay) sim card on ebay ($30 w/ $50 minutes) and guess what!

unlimited free GPRS!! Absolutely no limits!
I couldn't believe it, I had my T68i connected via bluetooth to my 12" powerbook surfing free anywhere I went! I was the ultimate roadwarrior.

I still used wifi when it was available cheaply for the speed, but the gprs was great for surfing/checking email, connection was flawless and held for hours.

Plus 12 month credit expiry, local number and reasonable nationwide whenever minutes. I checked with a CSR and no data limits, usage limits or anything like that and it seems to be an ongoing Easyspeak benefit and not a one off promo.

If you are in LA go to Venice Beach and find Boardwalk Communications on the boardwalk near the muscle beach, evidently he is the guy I bought the sim from on ebay and coincidentally the place I bought a recharge card before I left so my number would still be active when I return in a few months :)

Vague details are here (they call GPRS "T-Zones")
http://www.t-mobile.com/prepaid/overview.asp

So my advice, find someone who will sell you a tmobile easyspeak sim card and you're set with free unlimited GPRS. Happy travels.

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#6174 30-May-2004 17:11

There is a small piece in the latest Wired mag with a snippit of a guys GPRS roaming bill (can't find the mag nearby so can't tell you the page), it was something like US$3000 for a few weeks roaming around Europe.

You begin to wonder if any of the networks actually want you to use GPRS roaming or whether they simply want to brag such a service exists but make it so expensive nobody can afford to use it!

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#6177 30-May-2004 17:46

No, they don't expect anyone to use it... If say 1 person is stupid enough to use it per week they make enough money :P

freitasm

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#6680 18-Jun-2004 17:29

Good news! Arranged with AT&T Wireless to have one of their Sony GC82 EDGE card for a trial while there. I'll write something about it when back!

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#6681 18-Jun-2004 18:50

care to 'arrange' for vf to bring out a decently priced flat rate plan for all us stuck back here? :P

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freitasm

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#6682 18-Jun-2004 18:52

You don't know how many times I've asked them for this.

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#6683 18-Jun-2004 20:21

On the topic of EDGE, does anybody know why the entire Vodafone Group have stayed away from any EDGE or HSCD upgrades to any of their networks? EDGE seems to be catching on quite fast now and it's obvious WCDMA coverage is never going to be as good as GSM in many countries.

timbo

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#6684 18-Jun-2004 22:42

Mauricio, is your AT&T contact also giving you a SIM for use with the Edge card?

The issue with GPRS roaming is annoying but visited/roamed networks set the charge and the home network (VFNZ) simply has to put on a modest markup and pass it on - same for voice but the ratio isn't so ridiculous. It really should be an issue for the GSM Association.

EDGE is popular in the US for two reasons: Firstly, they don't have WCDMA spectrum available, or not as easily. Second, they have to compete with CDMA (NZ, Aus, Japan and China being the only other places where this competition occurs) so need something up their sleeve.

It is quite possible that WCDMA may get rolled out by network operators to a certain amount and then EDGE used to fill out the rest.

I'd like to suggest that any Geekzone readers who travel take a note of which operators in the countries they visit offer prepaid GPRS SIM connections at what cost, and we compile a list and keep it up to date.

tim

freitasm

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#6685 18-Jun-2004 22:48

Yes, the AT&T EDGE card comes with the SIM card, software and instructions. And a private number to someone on AT&T in case I need some help. It's a review unit.

It is quite possible that WCDMA may get rolled out by network operators to a certain amount and then EDGE used to fill out the rest.

That would be ideal! WCDMA in most densely populated urban centres, and EDGE on sparsely populated towns. This would give better performance than GPRS without the WCDMA cost.

I'd like to suggest that any Geekzone readers who travel take a note of which operators in the countries they visit offer prepaid GPRS SIM connections at what cost, and we compile a list and keep it up to date.

Good idea. We know about T-Mobile, referenced a few posts up, and AT&T Go Phone. The first is a prepay with unlimited GPRS, the second has a data charge, but not as much as the roaming.

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