Originally Posted by
31570324
Will unused data just rollover to the next month and then expire by end of that month, or can I keep it for the future, too? Need one eSIM and one regular SIM in december. Is it worth to buy and activate the eSIM this month? Will I have 12 GB in december on this SIM card, if I choose the 4GB plan, or just the data for november and december, so 8 GB?
If I need a regular SIM, should I buy it at amazon.co.jp and let them ship it to our first hotel to avoid the shipping charge if they send it abroad? I guess it's this card:
https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B014GZEPZA/ Which data package can be activated with this card, the same as with the eSIM?
Data will roll over for one month only, so yes, it expires at the end of the following month. If you sign up in October, and arrive in December, you will have the data from November and December, but the data from October will be lost. However, if you want a physical SIM, there's something extra to take into account.
If you need a regular card, buy the code from Amazon as a download, then when you sign up on the IIJMio website, ask for a physical SIM and provide your hotel's address. Delivery within Japan is fairly quick so I wouldn't do this more than one or two weeks in advance (the Amazon sign-up package price is permanent; the discount on the Amazon site that says it's expiring on 31-Oct is for voice SIMs only). In this case for the regular SIM you will only have that month's data allowance unless you're ordering close to the end of a calendar month (billing is prorated since bills are charged by calendar month).
Example- check-in to hotel on the 7th, so you order the 25th of the month before. You'll have data from the month before rolled over into the current month.
However, if your check-in is on the 14th and you order on the 5th, you'll only have data from that month and you'll need to wait until the end of the next month to cancel.
One other consideration- if you and the other user are comfortable, you can enable "Data Share" in your account settings so that both of you can combine your data allowances and draw from it together.
Example: 4GB physical SIM+4 GB eSIM = 8 GB total per month. Add a month's rollover and you'll have 16 GB to share on arrival.
Alternatively: 4GB eSIM ordered in October will have 8 GB saved up in December. Add a physical SIM ordered in December and you'll have 12GB to use on arrival together.