Canadians using U.S. SIM cards

[valiamo]

Did you use that much data with the app? On another thread people were telling me they used more like 100 MB for three days.

When I in the parks I tend use my phone for everything. I am constantly checking times, taking photo's, looking at my reservations, seeking out wait time on rides, reading emails, playing games.. etc, etc, etc. I have to carry a back-up battery with me, as my phone will have poured through it's charge by mid afternoon. I have not yet been in the parks with Maxi-pass so I know that this will add to the over all usage.

I have had a few days where I have used 250MB for a day, and others that I used almost no data at all. I just know that when I am in the park, my usage tends to be much higher. I am on the side of being safer than sorry, I am on Bell and their over charge for hitting +100mb can get expensive.

I actually like the ROAM service as it gives me a private US phone number, unlimited calling, texting and 5GB data (EDIT: plan has recently been reduced to unlimited data but only 512MB per day is at 4G) for $4.95 a day (less than Bell, Rogers or Telus and way more data). Plus as bonus to the activity is I get no phone calls from people that I do not know or want to talk to (especially work!). The only draw back is having to use Whatsapp for texting as anyone at home that texts me gets charged a southbound text.

 

[NewbieMouse]

When I in the parks I tend use my phone for everything. I am constantly checking times, taking photo's, looking at my reservations, seeking out wait time on rides, reading emails, playing games.. etc, etc, etc. I have to carry a back-up battery with me, as my phone will have poured through it's charge by mid afternoon. I have not yet been in the parks with Maxi-pass so I know that this will add to the over all usage.

I have had a few days where I have used 250MB for a day, and others that I used almost no data at all. I just know that when I am in the park, my usage tends to be much higher. I am on the side of being safer than sorry, I am on Bell and their over charge for hitting +100mb can get expensive.

I actually like the ROAM service as it gives me a private US phone number, unlimited calling, texting and 5GB data for $4.95 a day (less than Bell, Rogers or Telus and way more data). Plus as bonus to the activity is I get no phone calls from people that I do not know or want to talk to (especially work!). The only draw back is having to use Whatsapp for texting as anyone at home that texts me gets charged a southbound text.

That is a good point - the idea of me using only that app is not very realistic. I love the fact that you could be connected but still "off the grid", so to speak. It's tough because my alarm company (which texts me when someone comes in and out, or if an alarm goes off at my house) has my regular number. Not sure if I could use a US number for that. Off to ponder....

 

[kyrkea333]

When I in the parks I tend use my phone for everything. I am constantly checking times, taking photo's, looking at my reservations, seeking out wait time on rides, reading emails, playing games.. etc, etc, etc. I have to carry a back-up battery with me, as my phone will have poured through it's charge by mid afternoon. I have not yet been in the parks with Maxi-pass so I know that this will add to the over all usage.

I have had a few days where I have used 250MB for a day, and others that I used almost no data at all. I just know that when I am in the park, my usage tends to be much higher. I am on the side of being safer than sorry, I am on Bell and their over charge for hitting +100mb can get expensive.

I actually like the ROAM service as it gives me a private US phone number, unlimited calling, texting and 5GB data (EDIT: plan has recently been reduced to unlimited data but only 512MB per day is at 4G) for $4.95 a day (less than Bell, Rogers or Telus and way more data). Plus as bonus to the activity is I get no phone calls from people that I do not know or want to talk to (especially work!). The only draw back is having to use Whatsapp for texting as anyone at home that texts me gets charged a southbound text.

Thanks for all that detail. Very helpful!

 

[geergirl]

That is a good point - the idea of me using only that app is not very realistic. I love the fact that you could be connected but still "off the grid", so to speak. It's tough because my alarm company (which texts me when someone comes in and out, or if an alarm goes off at my house) has my regular number. Not sure if I could use a US number for that. Off to ponder....

Back when we had a monitored alarm system I called and gave them an alternate number when we would be out of the country without cell access. They can set it up as a temporary thing usually.

 

[valiamo]

Just an update on the amount of data we used in the parks when we were on our most recent week in Disneyland (Dec 3-9). We purchased 2 ROAM SIM cards ($4.95 day - unlimited texting, talking and data) for the 6 days, and used them vs our Bell account (@$5 a day and 100 MB data).

During the first 3 days in DL, we were running ~75 MB of data each, and had the DL app open almost all the time. We used "WhatsApp" for texting as southbound texts (from Canada) were not free from family. There were a few times that we did not have service (minutes at a time) and could not connect but this was not a huge inconvenience. Phone calls home were no problem, and we were able to keep in touch with our kids and Mom's (both over 80) both in the States and Canada. The last 3 days were ~100 MB per day of usage.

We did not use the Maxi-pass and opted to just use Fastpasses. So this might be a consideration as it would use more data.

On day 4 my phone decided to update itself, and I ended up using 2 GB's of data. I guess I forgot to turn off roaming (This was a shock as I was not expecting this. Had I still been on Bell, I would have been charged ~$100 - $5 per 100 MB's over).

All in all, without the unexpected system download, we would have broken even if we had stayed on Bell vs using our ROAM SIM cards.

My iPhone 6s needed to be recharged at least once a day, and my SO's didn't, I suspect I use my phone WAY more than she does. I have a portable backup battery that I purchased at Best buy for $30.00. It charges my phone at least 4 times per charge (highly recommended to get one). You can also get portable backup batteries in the Parks (machines inside the parks see this link) that cost ~$30 for the first one, and FREE exchanges in their machines.

 

[kyrkea333]

Just an update on the amount of data we used in the parks when we were on our most recent week in Disneyland (Dec 3-9). We purchased 2 ROAM SIM cards ($4.95 day - unlimited texting, talking and data) for the 6 days, and used them vs our Bell account (@$5 a day and 100 MB data).

During the first 3 days in DL, we were running ~75 MB of data each, and had the DL app open almost all the time. We used "WhatsApp" for texting as southbound texts (from Canada) were not free from family. There were a few times that we did not have service (minutes at a time) and could not connect but this was not a huge inconvenience. Phone calls home were no problem, and we were able to keep in touch with our kids and Mom's (both over 80) both in the States and Canada. The last 3 days were ~100 MB per day of usage.

We did not use the Maxi-pass and opted to just use Fastpasses. So this might be a consideration as it would use more data.

On day 4 my phone decided to update itself, and I ended up using 2 GB's of data. I guess I forgot to turn off roaming (This was a shock as I was not expecting this. Had I still been on Bell, I would have been charged ~$100 - $5 per 100 MB's over).

All in all, without the unexpected system download, we would have broken even if we had stayed on Bell vs using our ROAM SIM cards.

My iPhone 6s needed to be recharged at least once a day, and my SO's didn't, I suspect I use my phone WAY more than she does. I have a portable backup battery that I purchased at Best buy for $30.00. It charges my phone at least 4 times per charge (highly recommended to get one). You can also get portable backup batteries in the Parks (machines inside the parks see this link) that cost ~$30 for the first one, and FREE exchanges in their machines.

Wow, thank you for all that info! That makes me feel really comfortable with using the ROAM SIM card. I’ve gotten a portable charger thanks to advice from this thread and I waited until December 1st to get my phone unlocked, also thanks to information on this thread! You guys are saving me money right and left!

 

[kyrkea333]

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[kyrkea333]

As of December 1st, they're not allowed to charge unlocking fees. So if your trip is after that, you may be in luck.

Ah I don’t have an unlocked phone. I guess I’ll just stick with Telus.

Thanks so much for the information! I had no trouble calling my provider to get the unlock code earlier this month. I was concerned whether I would be able to as I’m still under contract, but no problem at all.

 

[GrandBob]

It's tough because my alarm company (which texts me when someone comes in and out, or if an alarm goes off at my house) has my regular number. Not sure if I could use a US number for that. Off to ponder....

Can't you just call-forward your Canadian number to your temporary US number? Your Canadian carrier will likely charge you for routing the call to a US number. But as long as you're not expecting too many calls to that number, it may be tenable. Worth looking into.

 

[cmwade77]

We have used the ROAM SIM cards for a few years now. The only thing you need to make sure of is that your phone is unlocked. Other than that, it is pretty easy to use. (That reminds me, I need to top up our plans for our weekend at Great Wolf Lodge next week)

We didn’t find that our batteries were drained any more than normal but for Disney trips I always make sure I toss a small phone battery charger in my backpack.

For a battery pack, they actually sell Fuel Rods at kiosks in the park. You can always recharge them at home, but they also let you exchange them for fully charged ones as much as you want for free at any of their kiosks anywhere in the world.

 

[SGDisneyFam]

We used to use Roam, but now with the ALMOST decent plans that the big 3 offered this month and the easy access to roaming data we just add the easy roam/roam like home to our plans and use our phones like normal when we're down there. Battery life is always an issue in the parks, so we usually have a juice pack or a battery case too. All carriers in Canada are now required to unlock a phone free of charge now.

 

[PinkHelloKitty]

We are with Telus and use their easy roaming $7/day charge which is worth it for the amount of data we end up using in the parks. And I agree with PP, having a portable battery really comes in handy! I think ours was $30 on amazon, has two charging ports and lasts forever