Has anyone used the iphone for GPS in Italy. Did you use the G3 network. I heard the roaming charges were killer. I am thinking of just getting a GPS from the car company. Any thoughts?

As a rule, connecting to the internet on a roaming GSM phone involves killer rates almost everywhere, so do not do it unless you have studied the small print in your contract inside out. (Once I tried to test an Italian SIM in Switzerland by downloading the home page of the SIM provider. 22 euros, that is about US$ 30.)

Random, If you look at the "GPS for Walking" thread, you will find some discussion there on the iphone. My husband spends around $70 - $80 for 100 kb and we use it a lot for driving.

Sharon J

In the past, I would go to Ital;y with my unlocked AT&T Tilt and an Italian SIM card with Wind, and I had no problems. In 10 days I will be going with my iPhone for the first time. I researched it, and I'll show you what I am doing to get it to work (and without crazy data or roaming charges). Remember, I have prepared this, but have not confirmed parts of it yet, but I will update in a couple weeks.

1) Get Past AT&T Lock on iPhone
I bought a little chip from http://www.unlockediphone.info/ that unlocks the iphone, allowing it to be used on non-AT&T networks. This is the only part of this that I have not tested. Crossing fingers!

2) When in Italy, get a SIM card from WIND. They have a very inexpensive flat rate data plan. Info here: http://prepaid-wireless-intern...om/page/Italy+-+Wind
This I have done... great service and coverage.

3) Change your APN settings in the iPhone setup. You won't see this option until you have changed top the WIND SIM card because AT&T blocks this in your iPhone settings. Change it to:
APN: internet.wind
Username: blank
Password: blank

4) You should be good to go, and all features of your iphone should work except Visual Voicemail since WInd does not support it.

** Whatever you do, do not upgrade your iPhone software while you are doing this. It may no longer work after an upgrade.

Please report back Michael and tell us how it goes. I've heard of different techniques for unlocking the iphone (Jailbreak, etc) but I haven't heard the results for someone directly.

Good luck.

I have an iphone and am planning on using it in Italy, based on Dmae's son's experience...

Its a snap, AT&T will turn on your international calling for about $6, for the month in which you are gone. If you want to use GPS or other data you can purchase an international data package-20MB for $30. According to Dmae, her son used this for a week in Rome, using the maps regularly. In the settings section of your phone you can track your usage so you know if you go over.

I would turn off your email so that it doesn't use up your data, also done in your settings.

The calls are inexpensive per minute, I can't remember how much, but for the couple of calls we need to make I'm more than willing to pay the $6.

I did the same that kim1406 did and got the AT&T International calling for the time we were in Europe minus the data package. Now that I think about it, I should have done it as there were times when I could have used the maps and had no data signal unless we were in the apartment with wifi.

Michael Soriano, I'm very interested to see your report on this SIM unlock and the data along with it. I've bought SIM unlockers in the past but after (stupidly) updating my firmware, the unlock stopped working. Hopefully your solution works so I can follow suit.

We have 2 iPhones with us that we use. One is our USA number and we have the AT&T data plan for Europe, along with the Italy long distance feature on it. It works very well and the data plan can be used throughout Europe.

Our second iPhone has been unlocked by our computer tech here - it has been 2 years with no problem. We use an Italian SIM card in it - Vodafone. We also pay for a 20 euro per month data plan through Vodafone - which we can drop when we are in the USA for any extended time. Do not use a plan like this if you will traveling to more than one country, as the roaming charges on Italian SIM cards are the highest we have seen.

Again, should you modify your iPhone to use an Italian SIM card, do not update your iPhone - it will detect the problem and you will then need to modify your iPhone all over again.

We have two I phones we plan on taking mine the 3g and taking an older phone to use to call home. We are going to turn off the data roaming and visual voice mail.

I just added the $6 fee to get calls at 99 cents per minute, and the data plan at 50k for $60. Also bought the city-wide wifi for Venice online. Figure that'll work!

quote:

http://prepaid-wireless-intern...om/page/Italy+-+Wind

quote:

just added the $6 fee to get calls at 99 cents per minute, and the data plan at 50k for $60.

Are people meaning to say '50megs' instead of 50k here? 50k will load 2 webpages IF you are lucky... That seems to be an incredibly high charge if you are referring to k and not megs.

I used my iPhone in Italy in May, for 2 1/2 wks. I added the Int'l calling plan ($6) and the 20 MB Int'l Data Roaming Package before I left ($24.99). Note that you really need to call AT&T Customer Service to get these services added onto your iPhone account.

I was told by someone that if you don't have the Int'l Data Roaming package on your iPhone, AT&T charges around $5 per megabyte of data you download! Not sure if that's entirely true though...

While I was in Italy in May, I used my phone to make calls within Italy multiple times for various reasons, and I used the 3G on my phone to check email,check the weather, update currency conversion info, etc. AT&T actually recommends that you clear the data download settings in your iPhone when you get to your foreign destination so as you use your phone there to download data, it will show you exactly how many MB's of data you've downloaded so far. I did this on my iPhone and it made it easy for me to keep track of data downloads and to know when I was getting close to my limit. Here's a link to AT&T's "iPhone Tips for International Roamers" page for more info about this subject in general: iPhone Tips for International Roamers
There's also info on that page about how to turn data roaming off if you don't have one of the Int'l Data Roaming packages so that you can keep from getting hit by the outrageous data roaming fees.

I actually ended up using 20.3 MB of data roaming in 2 1/2 weeks in Italy, but AT&T did not charge me any more than the $24.99 I originally paid. My phone bill for all the calls I made over 2 1/2 wks was around $50, which wasn't too bad I thought.

Also, you can call AT&T when you return home and have them terminate the Int'l calling and Data Roaming packages on your cell plan and the termination is now immediate. They used to make you keep the plans active til the end of the month you were terminating, but this changed this year. I deactivated both plans on my phone the day after I got home and it was no problem.

I am going back to Italy in September so I will again be activating the Int'l Calling and 20 MB Data Roaming packages before I leave. Also, I'll have free wi-fi access at both the places I'll be staying at so I am looking forward to trying the Skype iPhone app to call my husband back home. There's minimal call charges to call the US via Skype, if it works.

Has anyone else tried Skype on the iPhone yet, and if so, how did it work?

Tery

Gaia - I just want to thank you for the detailed information on using your iPhone. Lots of helpful tips for other travelers.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Marta,

quote:

Has anyone else tried Skype on the iPhone yet, and if so, how did it work?

I have not done it myself, but while we were staying in Provence recently, a friend from the States came by our rental house to visit. We had wi-fi there, and he did not at the apartment where he was staying. So he spent a lot of time at our place on his iPhone Skype-ing his kids back home in the US. It seemed to work great for him.

And yes, as Marta said, thanks for all the travel tips!

- Roz

quote:

Originally posted by Gaia:
...and I used the 3G on my phone to check email,check the weather, update currency conversion info, etc.
Tery

Thanks for this report. Very informative!

Was that about all you did on the Internet during your trip? I know, from checking my hughes.net usage reports, that Loie and I can use 20 megabytes worth of surfing in a few hours. There have been other reports here of a 20, 60 or 80 mb plan being suffiecient for a few weeks. I wonder though, if one was using google maps on a regular basis, or the GPS functions often, if usage might not be more than these reports indicate?

quote:

There have been other reports here of a 20, 60 or 80 mb plan being suffiecient for a few weeks. I wonder though, if one was using google maps on a regular basis, or the GPS functions often, if usage might not be more than these reports indicate?

I just reset my usage stats on my iphone and turned off wifi so that I HAD to connect via the cell provider--the result, of my wife and I checking out local restaurant reviews, and doing google map searches for routes between montalcino, perugia, montepulciano, san quirico, firenze.... anyway...for a concentrated burst of usage that realistically would be more than anything we would do in one day on holiday...900k...not even a meg. To do more than that, you must be hitting some pretty damn heavy sites in my opinion (which is tough to do considering that flash is disabled on an iphone).

quote:

Originally posted by diesta:
I just reset my usage stats on my iphone and turned off wifi so that I HAD to connect via the cell provider--... anyway...for a concentrated burst of usage that realistically would be more than anything we would do in one day on holiday...900k...not even a meg. To do more than that, you must be hitting some pretty damn heavy sites in my opinion (which is tough to do considering that flash is disabled on an iphone).

I forgot to add that I also turned the wi-fi off on my phone when I got to Italy. I only turned it on where I knew I'd have free wi-fi access.

Also, I found that my greatest usage of megabytes came from checking emails on either my Yahoo and home email accounts, so I stopped doing that unless we were in a place where we did not have wi-fi or Internet access (i.e., our rental villa in Sinalunga the first week we were there). Another woman in our group of friends renting the villa also had an iPhone with her. We both ended up going down to an Internet cafe in Sinalunga a couple of times with some of the non-iPhone owners to check emails, etc. because both of us realized that checking emails on our iPhone was eating up a lot of our megabytes

My husband and I also had a netbook with us, so when we where staying at places that did have free wi-fi access, I just used that to check emails.

I know that I used a minimal amount of MB usage for things like checking the weather, currency conversion updates, or mapping routes, finding directions, etc.

But, I also tried to be really conservative with my iPhone usage towards the end of my trip because I knew I was getting way down to my megabyte limit. If I was going again for 2 1/2 to 3 weeks, I'd probably spring for the 50 MB plan, just to be safe and not have to worry about going over my limit.

Tery

quote:

I found that my greatest usage of megabytes came from checking emails on either my Yahoo and home email accounts

You might find less data usage if you set your email not to accept images unless you click on the option in a specific email to show them. I know you can do that in Yahoo and Gmail, and probably in other services as well.

I set mine that way a long time ago because I have heard that sometimes viruses or spammer info can be conveyed via embedded images, so I only accept images after the fact if the email is from someone I know and trust.

- Roz

Tanks to all of you who are posting the nitty gritty usage information. This is exactly the kind of thing we need to make reasonable decisions.

If I could afford an iPhone I'd really be tempted. Maybe an Apple Tablet will appear and save me! Better yet, I'll see if my pal will let me experiment with his iPod Touch.

Sorry for not having posted my update earlier. We've had a VERY full tour season over here this year, and Slowtrav has been a luxury I have had to more or less give up in favor of that extra hour of sleep.

Here is my update on the iPhone issue:

I brought over two iphone 3Gs, and 2 of the little SIM riders that was supposed to work. No matter what I did, they did not work reliably. One phone had the latest baseband, and after a bunch of research I had learned that no matter what, it would not work. The other had the older baseband that should have worked. It would accept the SIM, but would regularly get a NO SIM error and stop working. In the end, it wasn't worth it.

My iPhone is extremely important to me for our tour business, so I could not accept not having one. I ended up buying another iPhone here in Italy. Vodafone has some good offers that are relatively inexpensive. I ended up going with a contract plan that gave me the iPhone for 200 Euro, with 50 Euro per month for near unlimited calling and unlimited data. (Remember, I am here VERY frequently and make mostly Italy to Italy calls, so it made sense).

You can also get an iPhone here for 400 Euro on a pre-pay plan, but unless you are here for a lond period of time, it is likely worth it to pay the AT&T $0.99 a minute and stay with your phone.

Oh well, it wasn't the update I had hoped to give everyone :-(

quote:

Originally posted by Michael - Soriano:
Oh well, it wasn't the update I had hoped to give everyone :-(

No, sadly. But it was an excellent report on the current state of affairs. Once again, some very useful information from those with real experience. Thanks for taking the time to update us.

I also thank you for the update.

The simcard unlocker that you bought didn't work...(obviously), but were you ever thinking of hacking the phone to be able to get past that, or you didn't want to do that at all?

I considered hacking it (jailbreaking it), but as I researched, everything pointed to possible disaster for people with the newer version of the baseband. I decided I was better off just getting 1 new iphone than bricking mine and needing to get 2.

I am not technologically ept, so there is a fair amount of what you guys have been discussing that I am not really comprehending. But have found that while I am in Italy I can use my US-based Blackberry and AT&T's international data plan (short-term) for basic email service and occasional GPS assistance with a fair degree of success. (We do have a simple, low-end cell phone for use while there, so we don't use our Blackberry for talking.) But I was wondering if the simple act of switching from a Blackberry to an iPhone would make a difference, since we would still be with AT&T and using the same plans. Does the iPhone require more data units (or whatever) to get the same info as a Blackberry?

Hi Chris,

You will have no problem using an international plan with an iPhone. The major issue in this topic is avoiding the $0.99 a minute and the high data charges associated with using the AT&T roaming in Italy. For short visits, just do what you are doing. But some of us are here for 4 or 5 months at a time, so it is not realistic to pay the roaming rates.

I'll think long and hard before I sign up for "Data Roaming" again. I've used my iPhone during 2 trips to IT in the last year and found it too expensive to be of real help. While I heavily research my trips before leaving, I still find the need to do more while I'm there. ATT's charges are prohibitive for this. I found that WiFi and Internet Cafes a much handier and cheaper (and more relaxed) way of satisfying my needs.

Before going, I'd recommend estimating usage for functions you'll be performing while abroad: Go to "Setting" "General" "Usage""Sent" & "Received," record the readings, perform the function, then check the readings again. You'll probably be surprised - even if you exercise all the above tips. I burned through 50 MB in 3 sessions.

GPS. I don't find the iPhone's GPS an adequate substitute for a 'real' GPS unit. And if you plan to use it frequently, I think you'll burn through a lot of "Data."

"International Calling Plan." I found paying for the right to pay only $1.00 / minute pretty much a necessity and should have gotten it for my wife's phone, too. Cheap insurance for when someone gets lost.

Make sure you call ATT when you get back to remove the services you added or they'll keep charging you.

Thanks for the information on using your AT&T iPhone in Italy. It is useful to know how realistic it is to use it with the charges.

Hmm, I guess I either don't use my iPhone as much as Jim does in Italy or I've just been lucky .

I was in Italy this past May and again just a couple of weeks ago. In May, I was there nearly 3 weeks and this month was there for 10 days. Both times, I signed up for the International Calling Plan and the 20 MB Data Roaming Plan before I left. Both times, I never really went over the 20 MB of data downloads.

But I must say I used my iPhone very judiously, especially when we were at our rental house in Sinalunga in May because there is no Internet access there at all. For that portion of our trip, we'd usually head down to the local Internet cafe every day or two to check emails, print out info, etc. My total usage when I returned home from that trip was 20.3 MB and AT&T did not charge me for the .3 that I went over on my plan.

This month, I stayed at Villa Sampaguita in Asti which has free WiFi access throughout the house. So, I used the 3G data roaming very infrequently (really only when I was out and about). I think my total usage for this last trip was maybe 10 MB in 10 days.

That said, I agree that you shouldn't rely on your iPhone as your primary source for all your emails, Internet surfing, etc. when you are in Europe. I only use the data roaming feature when I don't have any other Internet or email access for a few days. I think of my iPhone as an emergency backup rather than my primary connection to the Internet.

And, if you're staying in a place that has free WiFi but still requires a password or code to access the Internet, it's very easy to do from your iPhone once you get the code.

By the way, if you manage your account online with AT&T, you do not need to call them any longer to sign up for the Int'l Calling and/or Data Roaming plans or to discontinue the plans when you return. You can do it all online now. My husband has actually done this for me these last 2 times when I needed to sign up and then discontinue these plans.

What I did use a lot on my iPhone this past trip (w/WiFi access)was the Skype App. I usually called my husband a couple of times a day to check in and the Skype App worked great, except the last day I was there (think there was something funky with the Internet connection that day). I had around $12.90 in my Skype account when I got to Italy and after multiple calls home either on my iPhone or via my netbook, my balance was only about $1.00 less when I returned home last week. It's a great, inexpensive way to keep in touch with others at home.

Tery

Hi Tery
Can you give me a little info on Skype for the iphone. I'm having a hard time getting good info.
Did you just use the free app?
Do you then get an account with which you can add money?
Can you call cell phones,land lines etc.? Or is it just for use on the internet?
How about calling from iphone to iphone?
I know it's a ton of questions, but I don't think I totally understand how skype works.
I appreciate any help you can give me.
Thanks
Debbie

You can only use Skype for iPhone with a Wifi connection. You can call other Skype accounts running on any computer anywhere in the world for free.

But when you call landlines or cell phones, you have to pay and you do that by opening a Skype Out account and put some money in it.

I have a work-provided iPhone. They have international calling enabled but tell you not to use international data roaming.

I've used it to send some texts and on occasion make calls. When you book hotels or other lodging, they ask for a mobile number but you wouldn't expect them to call a US mobile number unless it was really urgent.

I take a MacBook Pro and usually book places which have Internet, so email and browsing from the iPhone isn't something that's necessary.

What I miss by not having mobile data though are these location-aware apps. which use the GPS but also require a data connection. For instance, Google Maps would be very useful but the maps have to be streamed over the network, so it can't be used.

Other apps. would be things like travel apps. which show you the subway maps of several cities, or maybe a European equivalent of things like Yelp or Urban Spoon.

But it's academic as these types of apps. don't seem to be in the US Apps. Store. For instance, on BBC I saw commercials for a BBC World iPhone app. and so I tried searching for it and it doesn't show up in the US Store.

Supposedly, there's an unlimited international data plan if you can get a corporate discount that AT&T offers to employees of big companies. Something like $99 but that seems too good to be true because the local operators prefer to bill hundreds or thousands of dollars in data charges to unsuspecting customers.

Thanks wco811. Debbie - This thread has a link to an article in the NYTimes that gives a bit more details on using Skype. I wish I had an iPhone so I could help you more but I just have not been able to justify it yet.

quote:

Originally posted by deb t:
Did you just use the free app?
Do you then get an account with which you can add money?
Can you call cell phones,land lines etc.? Or is it just for use on the internet?
How about calling from iphone to iphone?

Yes, I just used the free app on my iPhone. But I also had my netbook with me that also has Skype on it so I could make calls from it too. As wco811 stated, you need to have WiFi access to use Skype, either on the iPhone or on a computer. Skype does not work on the 3G network. You can call another Skype user on their computer or on their iPhone as long as they have a Skype account (and the Skype app on their iPhone) and it will not cost you anything. So, in a nutshell, calls made computer to computer, iPhone to computer/computer to iPhone or iPhone to iPhone are free.

If you call a land line number or a another cell phone that does not have a Skype account, then you need to have a Skype Credit account. You can set that up with Skype before you go to Europe. Here's the link for more information on setting up a Skype Credit account: Skype Credit

I opened my Skype Credit account 2 years ago when I went to Italy solo. I believe I had to deposit 10 Euros to set it up and at that time that was worth about $13.50 US. It only costs about 5 or 6 cents per minute to call land lines or cell phones using your Skype account (either on iPhone or computer). Even making multiple calls with Skype on my iPhone to my home land line on my last trip to Italy, I used only about $1.50 of my Skype Credit account balance.

Note that if you have not used your Skype Credit account for around six months, you will need to make at least one Skype call using your account to keep from it being closed out. But you can make a 1 second call and it will count. Skype sends you an email to remind you about this and gives you like a month to make a call using your account. When I get this email from Skype, I just call my home land line from my laptop, say hello to my husband and then hang up. This has always worked to keep my account active.

Hope this helps answer your questions Deb

Tery

Thanks everyone for the input for Skype and the iPhone. I think I understand it now.
Gaia you have answered my questions. Basically what I'll do is set up Skype with an account for my phone and have my girls download the app to theirs so we can have free conversations. We have free wifi in our hotels/B&B's so I can use it then. We plan on recharging our Tim card too, but I'm sure we'll use a lot less minutes this time around. I'm probably going to buy a 20 MB plan from ATT also, I'm so addicted to having info at my fingertips these days.
So, thank you again for helping me clear this up.

At&T just cleared Skype for use on 3G. I've downloaded Skype to my iphone and have money in my account to call cell phones and landlines. I tested this on 3G and it works. The cost per minute is really inexpensive since I'm calling US account to US number. So, this is perfect when traveling abroad. I'm also considering purchasing a phone number, they are offered at $15 for 3 months. With this my family can call me when I'm in Italy via a local number, and my number will show up when I call them ( I need to read the fine print a little further before I actually do this, since I'm way too tired right now to absorb everything)But what I basically understand is that incoming calls are free. I can still phone my kids via skype on their iphones or computer, but I think that there may be times that I need to actually call a phone number or vice versa.
So, the question of the day is.. how much data does a phone call use?
I need to purchase data from AT&T but I'd like to know if 20MB is enough. I do have free wifi in all but one of my accommodations. I'm sure that I can wait to check email and make most phone calls when I'm at the hotel, and I'll disable any apps not needed that search the web to keep down my usage. But I would like the option of walking directions etc when I'm out and about, as well as the use of a phone if need be.
After speaking with an AT&T rep I've decided not to purchase international roaming for calls. And I'm considering that I won't add money to my Tim account if this skype plan works( I think the sim card expired last week and I may have to buy a new number) Of course I need to have this all resolved by tomorrow, as I leave on Tuesday.

Deb - it looks like we did not have any further advice for you on AT&T. Have a wonderful trip and please tell us how it goes.

I was going to say, international data roaming is even more expensive than international voice roaming.

Plus there's no guarantee that Euro networks will allow VOIP apps. as AT&T just announced they will.

But if you find Wifi, then Skype and other VOIP will be great for making calls. Not necessarily for receiving calls, since callers won't know when you'll be available to receive VOIP calls or even have something like Skype running.