Buying cell and data SIMS in Italy

Hi there,

We plan to use our new iphones in Italy in a few weeks and plan to buy a local SIMS card and plan for the time we are there. Does anyone have direct experience of doing this and if so, are you able to offer advice on what to look for and what to avoid? We will use the smart phone functions (internet, email) most with very minimal voice time. We don't tend to send texts.

Any thought on when/whereto buy a SIM and how to do this the most efficiently. We have iPhone 5S if that is helpful.

The first question is whether or not you have the unlocked model (A1532 (GSM)).

Is so, I just go to the first retailer I find (TIM, Wind, etc.).

What is your first stop in Italy and where will you be staying? We can probably point you to the closest retailer.

The first question is whether or not you have the unlocked model (A1532 (GSM)).

 

Is so, I just go to the first retailer I find (TIM, Wind, etc.).

 

What is your first stop in Italy and where will you be staying? We can probably point you to the closest retailer.

It's a new, unlocked iPhone 5s. We land at FCO and are staying in front of the pantheon. Thanks for your help.

Great - there's a TIM store just a few blocks from the Pantheon on Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, #95. I had to replace my Italian phone there a couple of years ago when I lost it, the folks there spoke nearly flawless English and got me all straightened out in a matter of minutes.

Great - there's a TIM store just a few blocks from the Pantheon on Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, #95. I had to replace my Italian phone there a couple of years ago when I lost it, the folks there spoke nearly flawless English and got me all straightened out in a matter of minutes.

Thanks

I went to that same TIM store in May to buy a data SIM for my iPad Mini. Very helpful staff (my Mini was brand new and I was unfamiliar with changing SIMs). It was so much fun to be able to use my Mini to send photos to friends on the fly, use Google Translate, GPS, anywhere, anytime with the data service!

May I ask - where did you buy your unlocked 5S????? I'm surprised that you got one so soon after it's release...

I went to that same TIM store in May to buy a data SIM for my iPad Mini. Very helpful staff (my Mini was brand new and I was unfamiliar with changing SIMs). It was so much fun to be able to use my Mini to send photos to friends on the fly, use Google Translate, GPS, anywhere, anytime with the data service!

 

May I ask - where did you buy your unlocked 5S????? I'm surprised that you got one so soon after it's release...

Too late to edit. I didn't do that store - I was at Via del Tritone 39/41. Easy for me to access when I walked down from Piazza Barbieri to the Pantheon. Not that far from the Via del Corso intersection.

Anyway, whichever TIM store you use, they will help you out. I was able to get service everywhere I went in Italy (Rome, driving between Rome and Florence, Chianti, Florence, train between Florence and Rome). So, you should be good to use it at any Italian port you visit!

Every time I buy a top-up, I get asked for ID, so buying a SIM or a phone is a good occasion to have your passport with you.

I went to that same TIM store in May to buy a data SIM for my iPad Mini. Very helpful staff (my Mini was brand new and I was unfamiliar with changing SIMs). It was so much fun to be able to use my Mini to send photos to friends on the fly, use Google Translate, GPS, anywhere, anytime with the data service!

 

May I ask - where did you buy your unlocked 5S????? I'm surprised that you got one so soon after it's release...

I believe the US is the only country with mobile phones that are locked. But the cost of the phone is supplemented so we don't generally pay as much for the phone when we purchase it but we are locked into a 2 year agreement with that company.

Phones in Canada are locked as well, unless you buy them outright. The same is true in the U.S., since you can also buy an unlocked iphone at the apple store.

Every time I buy a top-up, I get asked for ID, so buying a SIM or a phone is a good occasion to have your passport with you.

True. I did get asked for my passport when I bought my SIM card.

Hello, could someone please tell me the price one would expect to pay for a SIM card in Rome.

Thanks Malcolm

Rick Steves says about 10E, which is a quarter of what buying one before you go would cost

We are staying near the Termini Station. Does anyone know of where to purchase one near there?

We are staying near the Termini Station. Does anyone know of where to purchase one near there?

There is a TIM store right in the station: http://www.romatermini.com/en/store/detail/tim/

Hello, could someone please tell me the price one would expect to pay for a SIM card in Rome.

Thanks Malcolm

When I bought mine from the TIM shop, it was €15, but that included €5 credit.

Rick Steves says about 10E, which is a quarter of what buying one before you go would cost

At TIM this past May, I paid 10EU for the SIM card. Then, you have to buy your data. Being a newbie at mobile computing and not knowing how much I'd burn through in a week, including using my Mini as my GPS for driving, I got the "Internet 42.2" which had something like 20GB. I paid 25EU for that. WAAAAY too much data. I could have gotten by with the 10EU 4GB. In any case, my 35EU was not wasted, in my opinion. I got excellent service from the store staff, and the speed and availability of my connections were always good.

ok so I am a little confused. I have an Iphone4S and am under the impression that it is global. What do I have to do other than call Verizon to reconfirm the calling procedures and costs when I am in Rome and want to call home? I am not planning on using it for data and will disable data or if I choose to, I will buy a data plan from Verizon. I usually just use my Itouch or tablet in free wifi for data/facetime/email and have always used my Mobal for the one or two calls I make home to the neighbors while abroad just to check up on things at home and maybe a call to the inlaws telling them we arrived etc.

Taking an Iphone 4S to Europe is new to me as I have always used Mobal and don't really worry about cost as I do not call anyone local in Rome and if I did it would be to a private driver just to reconfirm or change a plan and I am more than comfortable with paying $50 or so to Mobal each trip either as a family or when I give the kids the Mobal for their school trips. They too just use Itouch in free wifi for internet.

so why would I need a SIM card and why wouldn't I be able to use my Iphone 4S?

remember I will still have Mobal as backup and will use Itouch in wifi. Cost are not an issue as we use so few international calling minutes as stated above.

Thanks

ok so I am a little confused. I have an Iphone4S and am under the impression that it is global. What do I have to do other than call Verizon to reconfirm the calling procedures and costs when I am in Rome and want to call home? I am not planning on using it for data and will disable data or if I choose to, I will buy a data plan from Verizon. I usually just use my Itouch or tablet in free wifi for data/facetime/email and have always used my Mobal for the one or two calls I make home to the neighbors while abroad just to check up on things at home and maybe a call to the inlaws telling them we arrived etc.

 

Taking an Iphone 4S to Europe is new to me as I have always used Mobal and don't really worry about cost as I do not call anyone local in Rome and if I did it would be to a private driver just to reconfirm or change a plan and I am more than comfortable with paying $50 or so to Mobal each trip either as a family or when I give the kids the Mobal for their school trips. They too just use Itouch in free wifi for internet.

 

so why would I need a SIM card and why wouldn't I be able to use my Iphone 4S?

 

remember I will still have Mobal as backup and will use Itouch in wifi. Cost are not an issue as we use so few international calling minutes as stated above.

 

Thanks

if you are willing to pay the Verizon roaming costs for voice and/or data, then you don't have to do anything - except, if you want, prepay for one of their international plans. what others do is use a local carrier for their calling/data which is considerably cheaper (usually) than the Verizon roaming charges/international plan. to use a local carrier, you purchase the carrier sim and replace the Verizon sim in your phone. if you want to do that then call Verizon first and make sure that your 4S is unlocked, otherwise the local carrier sim won't work.

sounds like you're not going to use the iphone 4s for many calls or data, so then it is probably more hassle to use a local carrier for not much value.

if you are willing to pay the Verizon roaming costs for voice and/or data, then you don't have to do anything - except, if you want, prepay for one of their international plans. what others do is use a local carrier for their calling/data which is considerably cheaper (usually) than the Verizon roaming charges/international plan. to use a local carrier, you purchase the carrier sim and replace the Verizon sim in your phone. if you want to do that then call Verizon first and make sure that your 4S is unlocked, otherwise the local carrier sim won't work.

 

sounds like you're not going to use the iphone 4s for many calls or data, so then it is probably more hassle to use a local carrier for not much value.

This. If you are only going to use your iPhone 4S for very few calls to your vendors, then just sign up for the Verizon international plan. Those of us who do the SIM route are probably mostly doing it for the 3G/4G data usage. You will just have to be very vigilant about the mode you have your iPhone in to be sure you don't accidentally get those nasty high charges. It wouldn't hurt to also get your phone unlocked, too. You only have to do it once, and then you are free to buy SIMs anywhere when you need to.

I did a quick play with Verizon's rates: If you do just the international calling plan - 5 5 minute calls at $1.69/minute would be $43.something. The "going to the TIM store" would be cheaper in that instance. But, Verizon has something called the "value plan" that costs $3.99/month that gives $.36/min for calls. I don't know if you have to sign up for that and always pay that every month, even if you don't use it. That could be expensive, too. But, if you can turn it on and off, it may be worth looking into. NOTE: I am a T-Mo girl, so my take on this is purely from looking at the Verizon site and searching the 'net for various articles/forums on using a Verizon 4S in Europe. So, don't take what I've written as gospel;)

If you have a tablet, I'd consider trying out the SIM card and low data purchase. It really opened up my eyes on this trip to be able to immediately send things, look up routes, translate, etc., on the fly without having to find a wifi site!!! If I buy a caffe or soda or bottle of Pelligrino everywhere I went in Europe to make use of their wifi (I'm a firm believer in buying something at a store when I want to use their wifi), I'd be spending more than what I would pay for that SIM and data!!!!

This. If you are only going to use your iPhone 4S for very few calls to your vendors, then just sign up for the Verizon international plan. Those of us who do the SIM route are probably mostly doing it for the 3G/4G data usage. You will just have to be very vigilant about the mode you have your iPhone in to be sure you don't accidentally get those nasty high charges. It wouldn't hurt to also get your phone unlocked, too. You only have to do it once, and then you are free to buy SIMs anywhere when you need to.

 

I did a quick play with Verizon's rates: If you do just the international calling plan - 5 5 minute calls at $1.69/minute would be $43.something. The "going to the TIM store" would be cheaper in that instance. But, Verizon has something called the "value plan" that costs $3.99/month that gives $.36/min for calls. I don't know if you have to sign up for that and always pay that every month, even if you don't use it. That could be expensive, too. But, if you can turn it on and off, it may be worth looking into. NOTE: I am a T-Mo girl, so my take on this is purely from looking at the Verizon site and searching the 'net for various articles/forums on using a Verizon 4S in Europe. So, don't take what I've written as gospel;)

 

If you have a tablet, I'd consider trying out the SIM card and low data purchase. It really opened up my eyes on this trip to be able to immediately send things, look up routes, translate, etc., on the fly without having to find a wifi site!!! If I buy a caffe or soda or bottle of Pelligrino everywhere I went in Europe to make use of their wifi (I'm a firm believer in buying something at a store when I want to use their wifi), I'd be spending more than what I would pay for that SIM and data!!!!

I believe that international plan at $3.99 is for your cell phone when you are using it in your home area to call Europe. Not the other way around. Whenever my college or high school kids are in Europe I just call Verizon and have them add cheap international calling to my phone for the dates I know that I will be calling to Europe. $3,99 prorated for the dates I need the service. I can then call their cells. ( we have a Mobal as well that I give them ) .36 to call the Mobal from my Verizon cell. $1.50 to receive the call on the Mobal which is costly but only used for quick calls anyway

What has been our method on the past is that I set up the plan on my cell only not the entire family plan of cells we have then I just call their hotel room landline phones at 6 pm my time and 11 or 12 pm their time. A call to a European landline is .07 cents a minute. We talk about 10 minutes daily at a total cost of less than a dollar a call.

As stated by a pp we too use I touch or tablet in free wifi.

It is easy and cheap to call Europe from home. It is the other way around that is costly.

May I suggest to any poster who is debating what to do about phone service that they call their carrier and say in simple words. Something like I want TO CALL TO or CALL FROM wherever and have them explain the rates

Too many people misunderstand the term international calling and the real issue is where the cell phone is located and are in your home area calling there or are you abroad with the phone and wanting to make calls

Clear simple questions to a human cust service are what is needed in this case.

Our roaming charges are ridiculous so that's why we are looking to buy a SIM.

This. If you are only going to use your iPhone 4S for very few calls to your vendors, then just sign up for the Verizon international plan. Those of us who do the SIM route are probably mostly doing it for the 3G/4G data usage. You will just have to be very vigilant about the mode you have your iPhone in to be sure you don't accidentally get those nasty high charges. It wouldn't hurt to also get your phone unlocked, too. You only have to do it once, and then you are free to buy SIMs anywhere when you need to.

 

I did a quick play with Verizon's rates: If you do just the international calling plan - 5 5 minute calls at $1.69/minute would be $43.something. The "going to the TIM store" would be cheaper in that instance. But, Verizon has something called the "value plan" that costs $3.99/month that gives $.36/min for calls. I don't know if you have to sign up for that and always pay that every month, even if you don't use it. That could be expensive, too. But, if you can turn it on and off, it may be worth looking into. NOTE: I am a T-Mo girl, so my take on this is purely from looking at the Verizon site and searching the 'net for various articles/forums on using a Verizon 4S in Europe. So, don't take what I've written as gospel;)

 

If you have a tablet, I'd consider trying out the SIM card and low data purchase. It really opened up my eyes on this trip to be able to immediately send things, look up routes, translate, etc., on the fly without having to find a wifi site!!! If I buy a caffe or soda or bottle of Pelligrino everywhere I went in Europe to make use of their wifi (I'm a firm believer in buying something at a store when I want to use their wifi), I'd be spending more than what I would pay for that SIM and data!!!!

that $3.99 and .36 per minute is when the cell is located here in the USA and you are calling to Europe .36 to call a cell in Europe and .07 to call a landline in Europe per minute. That does not apply when the USA based cell is in Europe and you want to call home.

that $3.99 and .36 per minute is when the cell is located here in the USA and you are calling to Europe .36 to call a cell in Europe and .07 to call a landline in Europe per minute. That does not apply when the USA based cell is in Europe and you want to call home.

Like I said, I'm a T-Mo girl and tried to interpret the Verizon website ;) At least it got us looking at it... so, ignore what I had about the $3.99 stuff.

I have international roaming always enabled on my trust old RAZR. So, it's always ready for an emergency call. But, it's also unlocked, so I have the option of buying a SIM card if I think I'll need more than the occasional SHORT phone call. It's all about choices :)

Like I said, I'm a T-Mo girl and tried to interpret the Verizon website ;) At least it got us looking at it... so, ignore what I had about the $3.99 stuff.

 

I have international roaming always enabled on my trust old RAZR. So, it's always ready for an emergency call. But, it's also unlocked, so I have the option of buying a SIM card if I think I'll need more than the occasional SHORT phone call. It's all about choices :)

those old basic phones are great to have. no worries about data etc

I took my sweet time moving to the Iphone but trust me my Mobal will still come with me abroad for a quick call back home. Itouch for free wifi!!