Heres what we learned about using our iPhones in Europe. First, AT&T, our carrier, provides phone and data service in Europe, but it is ridiculously expensive. It cost $120 for 800MB of data. By way of comparison, a local SIM card costs €10 (about $13), and you can get 4GB of data access for another €10. So, in other words, you can get five times the data for one-fifth the cost. Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Only problem is that your phone must be UNLOCKED. This requires you to call AT&T and request they unlock the phone. (Thankfully, I was able to do this at the hotel using Skype.) However, as we discovered, AT&T will only do this if (a) your iPhone is no longer under contract and (b) your iPhone has been activated for more than 60 days. My phone was still under contract, so my only option was to pay a $250 “early termination fee.” Thankfully, Gails phone was not under contract. However, Apple had replaced the phone just before we left due to a faulty GPS chip. This meant the phone was had not been activated for more than 60 days. This policy didnt make sense, since it wasnt Gails fault, so I asked to speak to a supervisor. The supervisor granted us “an exception” and unlocked the phone. So, long story short, Gails phone is now unlocked but mine is not. This will make me think long and hard about buying a locked phone in the future. I suppose it is just a question of the difference in cost. Regardless, I think AT&T should re-think its policy. I understand why they are unwilling to unlock your phone while it is under contract. They dont want you jumping to another carrier until they have recouped their subsidy of the phone. However, they should offer a LIMITED UNLOCK, so their customers can use SIM cards internationally though not domestically. This way, their interests are protected, but their customers are not held hostage when they are traveling internationally. Note: Some people suggested we should just unplug and forget about our phones. Yes, we could do that. We are completely unplugged from email and all social media except Facebook. It is glorious! But we want access to maps and Wikipedia, so we can explore and learn as we go.
Posted on: Thu, 07 Aug 2014 07:45:17 +0000
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