Best options for using an unlocked iPhone 4 in France & Italy?
May 11, 2013 8:12 AM Subscribe
I'm going to France & Italy for about 3 weeks with my freshly-unlocked iPhone 4. I'm looking to pick up a SIM while I'm there and use it on a pre-paid plan, but the French carrier websites aren't being super helpful; none of them indicate whether their pre-paid SIMs will work on iPhone. Any advice, including best carrier/plan?
Response by poster: I'm looking for a bit of a mixed salad of voice, data and text (focusing more on data, though, I guess). For some reason I thought some carrier's pre-paid plans weren't iPhone-friendly, but maybe I'm wrong?
posted by saltykmurks at 8:20 AM on May 11, 2013
posted by saltykmurks at 8:20 AM on May 11, 2013
Here in France a law was passed that phone manufacturers and carriers cannot restrict their phones/SIMs to a carrier (SIM)/phone, respectively. This is why the websites don't spell it out: it's understood as being a (legal) fact of life here.
So, all SIMs sold in France will work on all phones. Mainly what you need to look for here is 3G coverage, as plans with 3G will cover everything you need (data, naturally, as well as voice and text).
posted by fraula at 12:11 PM on May 11, 2013
So, all SIMs sold in France will work on all phones. Mainly what you need to look for here is 3G coverage, as plans with 3G will cover everything you need (data, naturally, as well as voice and text).
posted by fraula at 12:11 PM on May 11, 2013
Hey, I have a related question! I mostly wanted to know about the micro sims - will I likely have to cut down the SIM? I'd really rather not. If there's a carrier that offers micro sims I would prefer to use that carrier over one where I would have to cut down the sim myself.
posted by mskyle at 4:02 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by mskyle at 4:02 PM on May 11, 2013
Fraula is correct. There is no such thing as a locked phone or a carrier subsidy, universal compatibility is the law. (Just one of those things where "socialism" actually means more competition.) You might pick up a cheap SIM cutter to convert a regular SIM into the micro (not nano) version for your iPhone 4, but that's also a very common tool for places that sell SIMs.
If you have a close friend with a French bank account, you might consider free.fr, which has very cheap monthly plans and is recommended by a friend of mine in Bordeaux who is up on these sorts of things.
posted by wnissen at 4:25 PM on May 11, 2013
If you have a close friend with a French bank account, you might consider free.fr, which has very cheap monthly plans and is recommended by a friend of mine in Bordeaux who is up on these sorts of things.
posted by wnissen at 4:25 PM on May 11, 2013
I used a pay as you go sim in France around 2 years ago. I bought it in the big Fnac in Les Halles. Around €15 for a few days of data I think. There may have been some initial trouble setting the network settings, but it was smooth after that. I used it in my iPad and iPhone (it was a micro sim). I only used data on it, no voice.
posted by nevan at 5:08 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by nevan at 5:08 PM on May 11, 2013
Like wnissen said, SIM card cutters are available in almost all cell phone shops.
posted by karst at 3:23 AM on May 12, 2013
posted by karst at 3:23 AM on May 12, 2013
saltykmurks: "I'm looking for a bit of a mixed salad of voice, data and text (focusing more on data, though, I guess)."
How much voice, how much texts, how much data? National or international?
mskyle: "Hey, I have a related question! I mostly wanted to know about the micro sims - will I likely have to cut down the SIM? I'd really rather not. If there's a carrier that offers micro sims I would prefer to use that carrier over one where I would have to cut down the sim myself"
Why not? In any case, as others have said, it's very easy to find a place with a SIM cutter if you don't fancy doing it yourself.
fraula: "Here in France a law was passed that phone manufacturers and carriers cannot restrict their phones/SIMs to a carrier (SIM)/phone, respectively"
How could a network make a SIM that couldn't be used on an (unlocked) iPhone even if they wanted to? Is this possible in some countries?
If you go with free.fr you'll also need an address to get the SIM sent to and will have to remember to cancel the contract when you leave.
posted by turkeyphant at 1:14 PM on May 12, 2013
How much voice, how much texts, how much data? National or international?
mskyle: "Hey, I have a related question! I mostly wanted to know about the micro sims - will I likely have to cut down the SIM? I'd really rather not. If there's a carrier that offers micro sims I would prefer to use that carrier over one where I would have to cut down the sim myself"
Why not? In any case, as others have said, it's very easy to find a place with a SIM cutter if you don't fancy doing it yourself.
fraula: "Here in France a law was passed that phone manufacturers and carriers cannot restrict their phones/SIMs to a carrier (SIM)/phone, respectively"
How could a network make a SIM that couldn't be used on an (unlocked) iPhone even if they wanted to? Is this possible in some countries?
If you go with free.fr you'll also need an address to get the SIM sent to and will have to remember to cancel the contract when you leave.
posted by turkeyphant at 1:14 PM on May 12, 2013
You can also ask a mobile shop (the off-brand kind that repairs phones) to cut a SIM down to a micro SIM for you. They'll probably charge the equivalent of a few dollars for the service, and a SIM cutting tool only costs a few dollars, but it's an option if you'd prefer somebody with some experience to do it.
posted by dreamyshade at 2:58 PM on May 12, 2013
posted by dreamyshade at 2:58 PM on May 12, 2013
This thread is closed to new comments.
All SIMs should work on an iPhone 4 - it's just a phone. Make sure you cut it down to the right size yourself if it doesn't come as a micro-SIM.
posted by turkeyphant at 8:19 AM on May 11, 2013