Getting a SIM (that gives you voice and data)
Walk into any Vodafone store and purchase a prepaid CallYa SIM. You should bring your passport along as registration is required.
The CallYa program is a prepaid voice program, but once you have the SIM you can use it for voice and data. There are several CallYa plan:
http://shop.vodafone.de/Shop/tarife/prepaid/callya/
Get the CallYa OpenEnd or CallYa OpenEnd Internet; the latter gives a better texting package if you text a lot to your pals on the Vodafone net, but for most visitors, CallYa OpenEnd is a better deal. The "Internet" part in "OpenEnd Internet" does not give you 3G surfing, I don't think. For either option, the initial cost is about 20€, with 10€ usage credit. You may want to add some credit to the account at the store then, depending on your anticipated data usage (see pricing further down).
Remember that you can actually use this card to make calls on a GSM unlocked phone. With these two plans, all domestic calls are 0.29€ per call (although their monthly maintenance fees are different (0.99€ vs 2.99€)). To save money on long distance calls, I signed up for Rebtel (
www.rebtel.com), and get several domestic German phone numbers that I can call home, office...etc directly. The per-minute cost for Rebtel is better or on a par with Skype, but Rebtel has better connection (as you call a domestic number on your cell for 0.29€, then they patch it to their fast network, instead of you using your own internet connection on a laptop or smartphone through Wifi).
Prices
OK...now you have the SIM card, you can plug it into your unlocked smartphone or 3G USB dongle. Connect as usual on your system with the APN given below.
The data fees are listed in:
http://www.vodafone.de/privat/tarife...bsessions.html
15 min: 0.49€ (1 GB max)
24 hours: 3.95€ (1 GB max)
1 week: 12.95€ (1 GB max)
1 month: 39.95€ (3 GB max)
Open your web browser, and a portal page will show up and ask you to choose one of the options. The window looks like those in this document:
http://www.vodafone.de/infofaxe/379.pdf
At that point, you can choose to pay with the credit you have on your CallYa SIM card (look for the bullet with the words "CallYa-Guthaben") or a credit card ("Kreditkarte") or a "websession voucher" (if you have bought one).
In a recent trip, I got a 1-week plan on my 3G phone, and then used it to tether my laptop connection. This way, I no longer need to bring the USB dongle while having 3G access out and about.
Top-up
If you don't use your credit card to pay for data, or if the balance on your CallYa voice account is low, you can top up:
- at a Vodafone store and the agent there will add the money to your CallYa account
- by buying CallYa vouchers at supermarkets or general stores such as DM. They are usually close to the cashiers and they are of business card size. You choose the amount you want to buy, bring it to the cashier, and you will get a receipt with a top-up code. A lot of cigarette machines on the sidewalk also sell "CallYa" top-up vouchers. Once you have a voucher, you can top up on the internet (you need to set up on the vodafone website) or call 017222922 on your cell (instructions are in German, unless you have already set it to English when you first got the SIM at the store)
APN
The APN is event.vodafone.de. No username or password is required.