kynd

Hi, I searched the archive and someone in an old thread recommended T-Mobile.

For my week-long stay in NYC, I'm looking for a prepaid SIM card that I can use to
1) check emails and maps on my IPhone (hopefully using 3G)
2) receive incoming call (hopefully free) and
3) make a few international calls home.

I'll be arriving at EWR.

What SIM card would you recommend?

Should I buy this at the airport, in the city or say on EBay ?

Thanks.

dtsm

You can get inexpensive pre-paid sim card for local domestic calls but here are the caveats:

1. TMO 3G network not compatible for iPhone; only option is AT&T network
2. There are a couple of threads on "US sim cards for data" - my sense is there are quite limited and not cheap http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/searc...archid=6594537
3. Incoming calls stateside are not free (unfortunately)
4. International calls out on pre-paid are going to be fairly expensive

You might be better off

1. using your home country account to access emails; google maps might be costly with your home network (?).
2. use wifi hotspot with skype for international calls
3. get second mobile phone with pre-paid sim card for local calls. they are cheap. Best Buy, Walmart, Radio Shack, AT&T n TMO websites are just a few places that sell them.

pdxer

however, t-mobile's 2g network will work fine.

the iphone will need to be unlocked for any sim other than his home system, which may not be possible in some cases (unless it's a factory unlocked phone).

at&t offers a $3/day & unlimited calls option on their gophone plans. they also offer $1/day & 10c/min or 25c/min with no daily fee. domestic long distance included, international is not.

either of those are probably the best bet.

digga

If it's unlocked, then I'd go the Gophone naked SIM $1/day (if you make a call) plan. Cheap for making a few calls, isn't outrageously expensive for a (fex, quick) foreign calls, can do Skype, and you can add data in chunks as you need it. SIM card will cost $25 (but you get a $25 iTunes card in exchange, so it costs nothing really), then get $25 credit and channel most of that into data. You'll get 3G, decent coverage, and a known quantity (just search for the IPN downloading site in NZ before you go, and bookmark it).

Just don't tell then it's for an iPhone!

sonofzeus

My local ATT owned store gives them out for nada.

kynd

Thanks all for the great responses. My IPhone is unlocked. I now have an idea as to what to do. Thanks, once again.

digga

Welcome. Good to be able to share a recent experience ...

garyschmitt

Will any ATT shop give sims away? This would solve my problem, I think. I need to be able to travel to the US once every year or so. I want to activate and top-up a sim before leaving, so I have a working phone in the US as soon as I land. The chips seem to expire in 60 days, which is enough time to complete the trip. Then the process can be repeated for each trip, correct?

Can the top-ups be as little as $5-10?

dtsm

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/15465703-post1.html

Keyser

sorry if this question has been answered before here or on another thread....i have a factory unlocked iphone 4 from hong kong....i have used this all over the world in many different countries....

will be back in the US for a couple of weeks in june....over the last 8 years i've had an at&t contract but as my visits to the US reduced i finally canceled that last year....now i need a prepaid sim to use for the duration of my stay....i won't be making too many calls but will be using a lot of data....

i understand both at&t & t-mobile offer prepaid sims....i guess my question are:

1. would these sims work on an unlocked phone or only on at&t/t-mobile phones????
2. if they will work on unlocked phones then which sim should i go for????which one would be more value for the buck????
3. would the sims be available at ewr or will i only be able to get one once i get into the city????

thanks in advance for the replies....

wiredboy10003

1. If the iPhone is unlocked, then both AT&T and T-Mobile SIMs will work.

3. I don't know about running around EWR looking for SIM cards, but you can be in Manhattan in 30 minutes where there's a cell phone shop on practically every corner. Why don't you check into your hotel and ask someone where the closest store is?

Keyser

thanks for your reply....i just wanted to buy the sim at the airport because the shops would probably close by the time i get into the city....so i would have to wait till the next evening since i'll be working the full day....i know there is an at&t shop right next to my client's office as well as one 2 blocks from my hotel so i guess i'll just pick it up from there....

wiredboy10003

I don't know if this info is current, but it looks like Airport Wireless might have a SIM card:

http://www.ifly.com/newark-liberty-i...l/shops-stores

Keyser

nope....airport wireless does not carry sims....

blackjack-21

It may have changed since I bought a SIM from Airport Wireless in 2009, but I was able to buy one from them at that time. It was an o2wireless SIM and it worked just fine for me on a trip down south. 14 cents a minute for voice roaming anywhere in the U.S. and overseas calls at the same rate if you dialed an 800 number first. O2wireless has now changed to H2o Wireless (same owner of both, Locus Communications), but I was still able to find the older 02wireless SIMs and topup cards at a BestBuy Mobility store in Florida and one in Buffalo. No problems with clarity or connections with o2. Can't address their data rates, as I just use my cellphone for calls.

Also, I'm not sure that Airport Wireless still has the terminal C store at EWR, just their store in terminal A. You may want to send them an email about the store location at EWR and inquire if they still have SIM cards.

Link for H2o Wireless if you're interested: www.h2owirelessnow.com

Hope this is of some help.

bj-21.