James (Jamie) started The Forward Cabin blog to educate readers about points, miles, and loyalty programs. He’s spoken at Princeton University and The New York Times Travel Show and has been quoted in...
Edited by: Keri Stooksbury
With years of experience in corporate marketing and as the Executive Director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Qatar, Keri is now Editor-in-Chief at UP, overseeing daily content operations and r...
11 comments
DaninMCI
July 22, 2019
Good write up. I don’t think it’s so automatic that buying an “unlocked” phone means it’s CDMA or GSM, you really need to check the phone type and carriers it will work on in my experience. I just ported over my number from Verizon to Google Fi and found it to be very easy but I know some have had issues.
Stephen Au
July 22, 2019
Hey Danin,
Thanks for your feedback. We appreciate telling us about your experiences.
Miles
July 24, 2019
Thank you for this excellent summary of the rules about international phone service.
Several months ago I switched to Google Fi and haven’t looked back. When you’re flying internationally, just turn off Airplane Mode after landing and the phone will work (including high-speed data). No adjustments or fiddling required, no worries about roaming charges.
I do take issue with the idea of using wifi on a cruise ship…that can be very expensive. If you are within a few miles of a coast, the cellular signal usually works if you go to an upper deck and sit on the land side of the boat.
Google Fi lets you use your phone as a hotspot, so all our devices (laptop, tablet, wife’s phone) get signal through my connection.
Google Fi often has super deals on Moto G-series phones…e.g., $99. I like them because you can increase the available storage simply by inserting an inexpensive microSD memory card.
Stephen Au
July 24, 2019
Hi Miles,
Thanks for your feedback. We appreciate it, and it will help travelers decide which option to use.
MICHAEL H
December 19, 2019
Two catches with Google FI ( Aren’t there always. )
1. you can only use international data for 6 months abroad then it’s shut off until you return to the USA once you travel abroad again your 6-month count down resets.
2. Google Fi has no dual SIM Phones.
Though I heard rumors the Pixel 5 will have a dual SIM option.
Roger
February 16, 2021
That’s not true! My Google Pixel 4 XL has a dual sim that I’m using right now here in Panama. I’ve been in Panama for almost a year with no problem. There may be some exceptions for “data hogs” they may get shut down but for average to fairly heavy users that’s not the case.
Jim Worrall
April 24, 2021
Roger, how have you found the coverage, data speed and call quality in Panama?
Jerry Moore
February 12, 2021
This is not correct. I live in Mexico 10 months out of the year and have never had Google FI shutoff my data, that includes my other 3 family members.
Jim Worrall
April 24, 2021
Mr. Moore, how have you found the coverage, data speed and call quality in Mexico?
Jim Worrall
April 24, 2021
International roaming is a very important, and tragically neglected, subject. This article contains information that was outdated when it was published. For example, there is no mention that Tmobile has a rate plan that doubles international data speed to a still pathetic 256mb/s.
The article did not include prepaid plans and MVNOs, some of which offer lower-cost international roaming options.
Sprint offered an excellent roaming plan in Japan when they were owned by Softbank. Now that Tmobile owns Sprint I am unsure if the Japanese roaming option remains for current Sprint customers. Tmobile is directing new Sprint customers to sign up directly on a Tmobile plan.
The article should encourage travelers to explore local prepaid sims when traveling. The article should have addressed Wifi calling in more detail including evaluating various calling apps. The article failed to discuss dual SIM phones.
Vernon LeCount
October 11, 2021
With new anti-terrorism laws in place, France, Germany and some other European countries won’t sell you a Euro-wide SIM card or burner phone that connects locally on your unlocked US cell without a local address or sometimes a local bank account. If you have an international data plan on your US cell or are near wifi you can use FaceTime, What’s App, Talkatone or Google Voice for calling. I like Talkatone best since they send an email for voice messages when you don’t pick up. The per-minutes rates US cell plans charge for voice calls can be brutal. This article and others make it seem the t-Mobile plan is best in Europe (they were (are) a German company) with call rates around $.25/minute if not using a data-based app.
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