iPad data in Canada

[Jim]

I'm going to be spending 2-3 days in New Brunswick and a bit of Nova Scotia later this week.  We plan to make our way quickly as far as Amherst, NS, then will work our way more slowly back along the coast through NB and Maine for the rest of the trip.  I don't care about cellular calls or texts for a few days but I would like to have Internet through my iPad 2, which uses AT&T here in the US.  In searching the Internet for information about this, there seems to be a lot of conflicting information out there about what works and what's most cost effective.  The main options seem to be to activate a month's worth of international roaming on the iPad before I go, or try to buy a prepaid SIM on arrival (we'll be crossing at the top of I-95, so Woodstock, NB).  Just curious if anyone here has any advice, ideally based on personal experience.

[SteveG1988]

Get a prepaid Canadian SIM, AT&T has expensive data for Canadian roaming.

[Pete from Boston]

Verizon's Canada data rates are usurious. I found this out the hard way, and they insisted that it is impossible for them to operate any other way because of the dictates of international law. I'm sure it's similar with AT&T.

If NAFTA can't get us Canada roaming, what the hell good is it?

[froggie]

I've found in my occasional Canadian travels that skipping data and using texts is the better way to go.  Sure, you can't surf the net, but at least with the domestic Verizon plan I have, cell texts are free.

[AsphaltPlanet]

It's expensive going the other way around to from Canada to the US as well.  I know some Canadian carriers will offer prepaid data to the US at a rate that isn't too unreasonable.

For me, when I travel to the US, I just forgo the data and just use free wifi connections offered at fast food restaurants.  In Canada, both McDonalds, and Tim Horton's restaurants offer free wifi at pretty well all of their locations, and in Canada there is pretty much a Tim Horton's on every street corner, so it works fairly well.

Just a thought.

[Jim]

It looks like the rate for the "One-Time International Plan" through my regular account is $30 for 120 MB of data, good for 30 days.  That's well below my typical 2-3 day usage, which seems to be a little over 1GB in a month. So I guess I'm trying to figure if it's worth the extra effort to get a SIM.

Some good points about foregoing the data, but the main motivation would be to bring up a map, check web sites for places we're about to visit, and to remain available by email (most of which will be ignored until we return anyway).

[Pete from Boston]

It looks like the rate for the "One-Time International Plan" through my regular account is $30 for 120 MB of data, good for 30 days.  That's well below my typical 2-3 day usage, which seems to be a little over 1GB in a month. So I guess I'm trying to figure if it's worth the extra effort to get a SIM.

Some good points about foregoing the data, but the main motivation would be to bring up a map, check web sites for places we're about to visit, and to remain available by email (most of which will be ignored until we return anyway).

When you've grown accustomed to it, traveling data-free sucks.  Like a lot of folks, I'm here in large part because of curiosity about places I travel through and to.

However, traveling without the internet is something we all did until recently, and it forces you to rely on the people around you, trial and error, and instinct, all of which can be greatly rewarding.

[6a]

True, the last time I went to Canada I got a text from AT&T right about at the duty free shop in Detroit warning me about international roaming.  Took the opportunity to do the whole trip via atlas only and it all worked out.

[Scott5114]

You can probably substitute for the iPad by using paper maps and/or Google Maps printouts, then connect the iPad to hotel wifi in the evenings to catch up on email/research the next day's routing/whatever.

[briantroutman]

Verizon's Canada data rates are usurious.

In fairness–much as Verizon, AT&T, and the like are close to Comcast on my list of most hated corporations–it's not Verizon that's ripping you off so much as Bell (Canada) or Rogers, with Verizon just passing on their ridiculous "Welcome to Canada"  rates and taking a cut. I calculated that on Bell's roaming rates, if I used my phone as normal, I'd be paying something like $34,000 per month for data.

So I definitely qualify as a heavy data user.

But back to the original question: On my travels through Canada, I've managed to make do without data. Sure, it's often been a relay ride of Tim Hortons to Tim Hortons, but in a way, I look back fondly on my times Up North when I wasn't getting emails, Skype wasn't going off, etc. Just the CBC on radio and paper maps–like stepping into a different era.

[froggie]

Some good points about foregoing the data, but the main motivation would be to bring up a map, check web sites for places we're about to visit, and to remain available by email (most of which will be ignored until we return anyway).

Paper maps are an option mentioned by others.  There are also apps out there that allow you to download maps for "offline use".  As for E-mail, between WiFi spots and SPARING use of data, this one is manageable.  As the spouse of a college professor/department chair, I totally understand the E-mail need.

When I took a trip to Montreal a few years ago, I deliberately turned off the data on my iPad, relying on WiFi instead.  Though I also downloaded a Montreal map to use while offline.

[Dr Frankenstein]

As a Canadian going to the U.S., I use a prepaid SIM that I got through Roam Mobility (which specialized in U.S. plans for Canadians) in my unlocked iPhone. (This may be of interest to you, AsphaltPlanet.)

I don't know if there is a similar provider in the U.S., and if not (and if you do need data), I would consider getting a prepaid Canadian SIM.

Canada roaming in the U.S. is also, as Pete puts it, usurious, and word got out from a couple of telco employees that the markup percentage is somewhere in the four digits (if not more). IOW, we're all getting scammed with those roaming charges.

[realjd]

Is your ipad unlocked? A local SIM is the only way to do international data in a cost effective way. I never travel internationally without picking up a prepaid SIM with a generous data package. Most countries have much cheaper mobile service than we do so expect to not pay much.

If your ipad is carrier locked, just pick up a cheapo unlocked used Myfi type device and drop your local SIM card into that.

[froggie]

If your ipad is carrier locked, just pick up a cheapo unlocked used Myfi type device and drop your local SIM card into that.

I presume the "Myfi type device" is then used to create a local hotspot?

[Jim]

Is your ipad unlocked?

It's an iPad 2 with AT&T 3G, so I assume it's locked.   That might give me only the options of buying their international plan (which isn't cheap but not ridiculous given the short time frame) or going wifi-only (which is OK but we're looking for the ability to look things up on the road, while at parks, etc.).

[Thing 342]

Is your ipad unlocked?

It's an iPad 2 with AT&T 3G, so I assume it's locked.   That might give me only the options of buying their international plan (which isn't cheap but not ridiculous given the short time frame) or going wifi-only (which is OK but we're looking for the ability to look things up on the road, while at parks, etc.).

SIM-unlocking for phones was recently made legal again, however I don't believe the new law applies to tablets.

[Dr Frankenstein]

Most countries have much cheaper mobile service than we do so expect to not pay much.

Not Canada, unfortunately. They're even worse than their American counterparts.

[AsphaltPlanet]

As a Canadian going to the U.S., I use a prepaid SIM that I got through Roam Mobility (which specialized in U.S. plans for Canadians) in my unlocked iPhone. (This may be of interest to you, AsphaltPlanet.)

It is, I looked it up, their rates are quite reasonable.  My iPhone isn't currently unlocked though, so changing the SIM isn't currently an option.

To be honest, when I am on the road, I don't mind being off the grid for a few days.

[hbelkins]

As the spouse of a college professor/department chair

Are you looking into the future, or did something happen that you haven't told us about?

[Pete from Boston]

My Verizon service is still 3G.  With 4G (I barely know what these terms mean), is there a SIM card?  This was always a CDMA feature foreign to us. 

[mtantillo]

When I travel, I activate the international roaming feature. Data is $25 per 100MB, which is pretty expensive (but dirt cheap compared to turning on data without a data roaming plan). Then I go into my phone settings and drastically cut which apps can actually use that data. Then I just have to remember to think long and hard....do I REALLY need to use data right now, or can it wait till the next Tim Horton's? If I'm on the road and looking for a place to stop for food or something else where realtime info is needed, I won't hesitate, because the convenience is worth it. But checking facebook and other non-essential stuff, I will wait until I'm in a spot with WiFi. On my trips to Canada, I usually end up only using one 100MB block of data. On my weeklong trip to Europe last spring, I went through 2 blocks. It wasn't fun seeing $50 in extra charges on my bill, but given the choice between that or totally disconnecting, I chose to pay for the convenience.

As I understand it, high roaming charges are pretty common within the EU as well, so I'm not surprised at the limited effect of NAFTA on the issue. I will likely get some kind of prepaid SIM in the future when traveling after I hit the two-year mark on my current Verizon phone and get a new one. I'll use the old one for foreign travel.

[Thing 342]

My Verizon service is still 3G.  With 4G (I barely know what these terms mean), is there a SIM card?  This was always a CDMA feature foreign to us.

As LTE (4G) is a GSM-based technology, most Verizon phones with LTE have a SIM card. You can replace them with other networks' SIM cards, but most other networks use other bands for LTE. Plus, you won't get voice or text service.

[lordsutch]

One option to consider would be to get a postpaid data-only plan from T-Mobile, if your tablet is unlocked. Although they really don't make this clear on the website, all of the postpaid data-only plans include global roaming at 128kbps, which is painful or unusable for lots of things but will at least get you through apps like Google Maps and your email. (It has to be a postpaid plan, though, and you must activate the SIM on your device on T-Mobile's network before you leave the U.S.) The SIM is free w/promo code FREESIM if you order online from T-Mobile's website.

If you do go with a Canadian prepaid SIM, my research suggests either 7-11 Speakout Wireless or PetroCanada Mobile have the best deals on data, and by "best" I mean "still seriously overpriced by US or European standards."

That said I just spent 4 days in Montreal and didn't suffer too badly from data withdrawal, in part because WiFi was pretty common (although by no means ubiquitous or even reliable in some spots). I didn't try either 7-11 or PetroCanada since the former doesn't actually operate in Quebec and I was never really close to a PC gas station.

Good threads here on international data roaming in general: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-technology-169/

[realjd]

If your ipad is carrier locked, just pick up a cheapo unlocked used Myfi type device and drop your local SIM card into that.

I presume the "Myfi type device" is then used to create a local hotspot?

Yep, that's exactly what it does.

[Jim]

So I ended up going the easy route and bought a 120 MB/30 day one shot international plan for $30 through AT&T right on the iPad.  It worked great - I was able to get service from Rogers, Bell, or Telus - whatever was strongest where I was.  I was able to use it as much as I wanted for the 2+ days in Canada, which was often leaving Google Maps updating, and ended up using about 80 MB.  Could end up being pricey for a longer trip, but it was good for this short trip.  I could also easily conserve the data for a longer trip and probably do a full week on the 120 MB without much trouble.