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snowmobiler487

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Posts posted by snowmobiler487

  1. 1 hour ago, jthawks said:

    So does your phone need to be unlocked to get a local sim? I have the note 8 so I'm wondering if i should get the local sim or pay the 25 bucks.  I understand that wifi is everywhere there but i mainly want the calling or texting to the USA.

    Thanks

    In order to use a local sim, your phone will at least need to be unlocked internationally.  While I was there, all of my calls back to the US were through FaceTime audio (VoIP on iPhones).  If you’re looking to make calls using your number and don’t want to hassle with a VoIP solution, you may be better off just paying sprint for the roaming.  Just remember, calls are $0.20/min on top of the $25 you mentioned.

  2. I spent 3 weeks in the London area last summer for work.  EE was far superior to the others in my experience.  I was able to get a prepaid SIM for 30 Pounds which had unlimited calls, texts, and 18 GB of data which allowed mobile hotspots.  It was perfect for connecting my work computer to since our jobsite had little/no internet.  You also get automatic connections to wifi in the subways provided by mobile carriers.

    If you do end up getting a sim while you are there, keep in mind that over there, different stores have very different promotions, even in the same city.  I ended up being lucky and stumbling into this store which had the deal mentioned above: https://goo.gl/maps/TGCw1tkXpPF2

    After seeing how great my EE service was, my coworker (who was paying $10/day for Verizon international roaming) decided to stop into a different store on the east side of the city looking for the same deal.  We ended up going all the way across town to the same store I visited so he could get the same deal.  

     

    In summary, depending on how long you're visiting and what the purpose is (work/vacation), Sprint roaming could suffice.  If you look for a local SIM, don't be afraid to stop into a couple different stores if you don't find a deal you like because your options WILL vary.

     

    • Like 1
  3. 7 hours ago, greenbastard said:

    Just a heads up, there is no data roaming in major metro areas and the counties that form it's MSA. CDMA data roaming on Verizon is just about dead and it's only used for voice now. AT&T LTE works, but once you cross certain county lines, you're SOL. Also, certain services/sites are blocked by Sprint (mostly videos).

    Sprint should update it's data maps to better reflect the new LTE roaming agreement with At&t.

    Did I miss something about Sprint having a roaming deal with ATT?  This is the first I have heard of it.  Is this nation wide or just in specific markets?

  4. On 9/18/2017 at 6:13 PM, swintec said:

    but do you have a bill from before you had an airave to compare taxes and fees?  Because, guess what...i do.  Actually, i returned my airave earlier this year after three years of not using it.  the bills after returning the device are about $2.50 LOWER.  The difference came from lower admin fees and other surcharges that are charged per line.

    I noticed the same thing when I sent my  airave back about 4 years ago.  My bill decreased by approx $3/month.

    • Haha 1
  5. The wife and I are travelling to China.

    She uses a Pixel XL, and I use a Nexus 6P.

    Would really appreciate some opinions on how to go about using our phones in China.

    I'm assuming Google services are still blocked.

     

    Should we each get local SIMs or just pay some $ for high (full?) speed data?

    We'll be there around 10 days.

     

    Not sure if you have already traveled to China or not but be careful using google maps in China.  

     

    Since google services are blocked for the majority of people there, maps is not as up to date or as accurate as we are used to in the US.  I saw this when I visited last spring.

     

    On my iphone I found that Apple maps even has a special version that is only available in China.  Using the Chinese version,China is very detailed but the rest of the world lacked a lot of detail (As I zoomed in to Wisconsin, satellite view disappeared before the state even filled the screen).  As soon as I connected to a VPN, I was back on the version I was used to in the US and the China map lacked detail.

     

    I'm not sure what the best maps solution is for Android in China but I would recommend searching Google a bit before you go. (oh, the irony :) )

    • Like 1
  6. Are you using apple maps or google maps?  I know there was a change on the Google Maps/Android side in the past year where the app downloads the entire route when you start and only grabs changes to the route as needed and adjusts it then.

     

    I have no experience with the Apple Maps...

     

    I was using google maps.  I was also using satellite view.  I believe the route is loaded immediately but using satellite view constantly loads the view for your current location.

    • Like 2
  7. My 7 showed up today. I had it running google maps for about a 2 hour drive and it seemed to stay connected to LTE much better throughout the trip than my 6 did previously. My 6 would often get stuck on 1x and 3G whenever it was actively trying to load data (constantly loading the map as I am driving). Not sure if this is due to the new phone, new carrier update with iOS 10 or both.

    • Like 2
  8. Anyone get a tracking number for their phones yet?

     

     

    Sent from my iPhone 6S Plus using Tapatalk

    I got a tracking number on Sunday night for 2 of the 4 phones that I ordered even though I expected all 4 to ship together (all 4 were supposed to ship prior to 9/16)

     

    Currently UPS doesn't show any info on the tracking number Sprint listed.

    • Like 1
  9. A little follow up now that I am back home:

     

    After first landing in Mexico, my phone would not register on any network automatically so I had to manually go in to iOS settings>carrier, unslect "automatically select carrier", and select Movistar.   After doing this the first time for my phone and my wife's, the phones automarically connected with Movistar on their own for the rest of the trip.

    iOS seems to have a feature built in called "Dail assist" which popped up each time I made a phone call (none of my contacts have a +1 in front of the saved number - I think Dial assist helped with this) 

     

    iMessages and incoming SMS worked flawlessly(including short codes) but outgoing SMS/MMS needed a 1 added in front of the number you were sending the message to (which was a bit of a pain because the incoming message did not show a 1 prior to the number so a simple reply did not work).

     

    Upon returning to the states, no changes were required to the iPhones, both found Sprint right away and we haven't had issues like others have mentioned.

     

    One thing Sprint should improve is how they show your current usage on MySprint.  I have also seen others mention this so I am not concerned but it shows that I have used 49/0 International Roaming minutes.  The data & text categories both recognize that I am on Sprint OpenWorld so I would think the voice category would also be able to be programmed to do that.

     

    Overall it was a very good experience (and you can't beat free!)  Thanks Sprint!

     

     

    Edit: Spelling...

    • Like 1
  10. "LTE" may override the "R" on the data icon.

     

    I know this is all new and speculation at this point, but if this is the case I could see this being a big issue for sprint. The general user won't know the difference between native coverage and LTE roaming, will use the entire roaming allotment and then wonder why their Sprint LTE connection is no longer working...

    • Like 3
  11. f2c1e354ff18c8639d3cd13df15c0394.jpg

    I guess Roaming+ doesn't = at least 3G. Ew. On cellcom in NE WI. I know signal was -93 but it was that slow the whole day.

    I have noticed in the past that it seems like cellcom has capacity issues on busy travel weekend where many people from Milwaukee, Green Bay and the Fox Valley all head into the northwoods. I would be willing to bet if you are still in the area on Monday, your experience would be much better than what is shown in your post.

  12. Anyone else see the US cellular updated coverage map? Lots of LTE roaming added to it, and it looks suspiciously like Sprints map from what I can tell/what I'm seeing. Are Marcelo and the team giving us US Cellular roaming/peusedo native coverage for Christmas :o .

     

     

    It looks exactly like Sprint's map.  I know the rural Virginia cell towers very well and if it was T-Mobile, there would be LTE coverage in eastern Fluvanna County near Kents Store (which shows as no coverage).  If it was Verizon or AT&T, there would be coverage between Orange and Culpeper.  And it's missing LTE coverage in Culpeper itself, which is also missing from the official Sprint map even though B25 and B26 are both present there.

     

    - Trip

     

     

    Also being discussed here:

     

    http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/7341-us-cellular-sprint-lte-roaming/

  13. Did anyone else notice that AppleCare for non-6S phones is still $99? I was looking into the possibility of getting a 5s for my mom (who I am trying to talk into upgrading from a flip phone) and AppleCare for the 5s still shows up as $99. I'm not sure why but I guess I just assumed when they announced $129 for the 6s that all AppleCare plans would be priced the same.

    image.jpg

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