SeAAttle

I am in Paris with an iPhone that I want to use for wifi only. While I am looking for a wifi spot (signed up for boingo), I often get email downloaded, probably via Orange. Any way I can block that? Since I don't have an Orange account, I suspect I am incurring substantial charges.

Also, even when I have a wifi connection, I am not certain which service I am using.

Any suggestions will be appreciated.

PS. Can I sign up for an Orange account for 2 months? iPhone is locked.

FlyMeToTheLooneyBin

You can put your iPhone into airplane mode and then manually enable wifi.

SeAAttle

Excellent. Just what I wanted. Thanks!

potfish

Settings / General / Network / Data Roaming = off

Then you can still make and receive calls if you want, but data via wifi only.

SeAAttle

Also very helpful. Thanks. Will need to check costs for calls (local and to US) with Orange but I will use it only infrequently

star_world

Keep in mind that it's not just Orange there, you will "see" several networks and one of them may have better US rates when roaming from AT&T. It's been a few years since I investigated this but manually selecting one network was always part of my travelling routine for this reason.

Landing Gear

This is a little bit complicated and will require some work on your end.

First of all, although you cannot get a two month account on Orange, you can get a prepaid number on their Mobicarte service. Orange does sell the iPhone (in fact, I was thinking of changing my Orange phone to iPhone the next time I am there). They even sell the iphone unlocked pursuant to French law.

Here's where it gets tricky. I do not know if an Orange store ("boutique") is equipped or willing to unlock your (I assume foreign) iPhone to use their service.

But, Paris is filled with businesses that specialize in unlocking cell phones. Look for signs that read "Portables Débloqué" or "Portables Déverrouillé." Or perhaps someone at Orange can point you to the right place. If not, the geeks in the cell phone section of FNAC on the Champs Elysées might help if they can get to practice English with you.

Bon courage! (Roughly "good luck!")

SeAAttle

Nothing is ever simple....

Almost all of my use will be via Skype and only on very rare occasions will I use the ATT US number for outgoing and incoming calls. I think I will just risk it, since I am not that concerned about the cost of minimal usage. As I understand, the main problem is data (which can produce very large charges) and that is set to work only with Boingo and free wifi. With one or two exceptions, the free wifi in Paris has yielded only a very weak signal.

Thanks very much for the info.

jackal

For all international roaming, voice rates are the same regardless of the carrier. In France, it's $1.29 per minute with AT&T Standard International Roaming (free--activate it via 611 or the website) or $0.99 per minute with the AT&T World Traveler package ($5.99/month; activate by 611 or online). AT&T has roaming agreements with Orange, SFR, and Bouygues Telecom.

If you have an international data package, it does matter which carrier you connect to. Often, only some of the carriers with which AT&T has a roaming agreement will participate with the discounted data roaming plans. Transferring data when connected to another carrier can result in you having to pay the standard data roaming rate ($0.0195/KB), even if you are subscribed to an international data package.

However, good news for France: all three of the carriers AT&T has a roaming agreement with also participate in the discounted roaming packages. Therefore, if you have an international data package, it will not matter which carrier in France you are connected to.

If you are not subscribed to an international data package and are just paying per KB, then, like voice, it does not matter worldwide which carrier you are connected to. You will pay the (exorbitant) data roaming rate for that country. If you plan on using even the tiniest bit of data, I recommend getting at least the base 20MB plan for $24.99 (which works out to $0.0012/KB--less than 10% of the normal metered rate).

For full details about roaming in France, see http://www.wireless.att.com/travelgu...40.99&x=35&y=7.