03-28-2008, 04:59 PM
[quote abevilac]I just got back from a week in Paris and before I went I loaded up my iPhone w/ music & videos for the trip. I had heard that you probably don't want to check emails or use the phone while abroad due to high roaming charges, but I thought that if I put the phone in airplane mode and shut off the email account, I'd be ok. I also assumed that I'd be able to tap into free WiFi at bistros, etc w/out charge, but I thought I'd check w/ ATT before I left.
The tech guy said that the only way not to be charged fees while in Europe was to keep the entire phone off. He said that I couldn't even use the iPhone as an "iPod." I thought that was crazy but I did shut down the whole thing and kept it off most of the time there. I did, however turn it on once to listen to some music, but the rest of the functions were still in "off" mode.
I'll have to wait until my next billing cycle to see if my listening to a little music made a difference. What do you all think?
The tech guy was incorrect. If you kept the data roaming option off, you would not incur any data charges since you would not be able to connect to the EDGE network. If you had activated the international calling option, you would be on the hook for per minute charges if you used the phone to call someone or check your messages.
In any case, you could freely use the iPhone in Airplane mode to make sure no charges could possibly be incurred. Also, if you were in a spot with free wi-fi, you could have gone crazy on the internets with no charges to worry about.
I opted for the $25 20 mb data roaming plan while in Europe earlier this month. Thuis gave me the option of using data roaming or free wi-fi. I just needed to be sure to only switch on the data roaming when I needed to connect in an area that did not have wi-fi.
The tech guy said that the only way not to be charged fees while in Europe was to keep the entire phone off. He said that I couldn't even use the iPhone as an "iPod." I thought that was crazy but I did shut down the whole thing and kept it off most of the time there. I did, however turn it on once to listen to some music, but the rest of the functions were still in "off" mode.
I'll have to wait until my next billing cycle to see if my listening to a little music made a difference. What do you all think?
The tech guy was incorrect. If you kept the data roaming option off, you would not incur any data charges since you would not be able to connect to the EDGE network. If you had activated the international calling option, you would be on the hook for per minute charges if you used the phone to call someone or check your messages.
In any case, you could freely use the iPhone in Airplane mode to make sure no charges could possibly be incurred. Also, if you were in a spot with free wi-fi, you could have gone crazy on the internets with no charges to worry about.
I opted for the $25 20 mb data roaming plan while in Europe earlier this month. Thuis gave me the option of using data roaming or free wi-fi. I just needed to be sure to only switch on the data roaming when I needed to connect in an area that did not have wi-fi.