Cheap prepaid Internet for short stay in Germany? [merged]
 

I'm visiting Germany Mid-March for two weeks and am looking for an easy and cheap way to get into the net for email and surfing while there.

A friend is loaning me their T-MOBILE Web´n Walk Compact II card, which is supposedly not SIM or Net locked.

Now, I've read what seems like a million different things about rates and such, but am still not clear what I really need to get online, and which company offers reasonable speed and reliability.

Tchibo, Blau, O2, Simyo, Fonic...

Can I just purchase one of their SIM cards and I'm all set? Where would I find the info to sign in and the connection software? I don't have a Handy there, nor a bank account, and I haven't found a way to purchase online with a creditcard from here.

I have an address I could have the card sent to in Germany, but I can't find a way to pay for the card ahead of time from the US.
And how would I register the card once I've bought it?

Is it easy to buy a SIM in a shop, once in Germany?

Frankly, I'm totally confused by all the offers and the small print (am fluent in German), and my questions via email to a couple of companies have only muddied the waters further. :D

I'd prefer a prepaid flatrate for 30 days, so I don't have to watch my usage and load up the card again. Something that isn't linked to a cellphone contract and can be activated without a cellphone.

What I need are instructions like:
buy this brand SIM here,
download this conncection software,
fill in the following data... ;)

I hope I can find some enlightenment here!:o

If you have a german shipping adress i would give a try to buy on Ebay. There are some traders who accept paypal so this should work. The Blau.de SIM-cards would be a good solution for you as they have a standard data rate of 0.24€/MB and you can buy 1GB for 10€ or the data flatrate for 20€. The booking of data packages is possible via the 1155 customer care center free of charge.

Chris

That T-Mobile card should do the job.

Keep your hands off Blau and simyo and all those MVNOs on the eplus network, as it's total crap due to permanent congestion and lacking support of EDGE and HSDPA.

I think Tchibo would be the best for you - I wrote a complete guide at Germany - Tchibo - Prepaid Wireless Internet Access

You don't need special connection software - just use the one which which comes with the T-Mobile card. All you need to do is changing the APN to "webmobil1".

Tchibo SIMs can easily be purchased at any of those 1000 Tchibo shops throughout Germany - just read the linked article. Actually Tchibo SIMs are currently sold for € 1 during a promotion, which ends today. Also I could sell you a brandnew sealed one for the price, I got it, namely € 1.

If you are interested in getting your own 3G-adapter, have a look at Vodafone Websession PrePaid UMTS USB-Stick zum Sonderpreis - November TT Special! - Telefon-Treff - these guys sell an unlocked Huawei E160 3G-dongle (in Vodafone-branded version) + a netlocked phone (SonyEricsson J110i) with Vodafone SIM for € 40 incl. shipping within Germany. That 3G-dongle also supports GSM and UMTS at 850 and 1900 MHz, so you could use it back in the US on AT&T's 3G network and on all American GSM-networks and it's easily debrandable by a simple firmware update, which takes one minute.

check all the coverage maps - the place I was at last summer had 3g from only Vodafone at the time, and looks like it's gained T-mobile since

Yes, the o2 network is better. But as this data pack from Tchibo is not longer on their website i thought its better to show the official offers...

Chris

Thanks, everyone!

So, if I buy a Tchibo card, I'd have to load it up with 20Euro for the Dataflat for 30 days? Or does it come with some credit on it already?
I checked on the Tchibo website, and under the prepaid options, the data pack doesn't show up as an option.
And could I use a regular landline in Germany to activate the data option? I won't have access to a cell there.

You have to send a SMS from the Tchibo card to activate the data pack.
SMS to 7777 containing "START DATENPACK" for the 500 MB pack or
SMS to 7777 containing "START DATENFLAT" for the flatrate

But the software for the datacards can ususally also send SMS messages, so that shouldnt be the problem. Otherwise ask anyone at the hotel reception or your friends if you could stick your SIM in their phone for a minute.

Chris

Thanks, Chris!

Does anyone know if I can use one of those free O2 Loop cards and their connection software, too?
I had 3 of them sent ahead to my address in Germany a week or so ago, in the hopes they might be useful.

Regarding internet access O2 loop and Tchibo are the same service (both use the O2 network), however Tchibo is € 5 cheaper per month. But if you already have some of those free O2 Loop SIMs waiting for you, it doesn't really pay off to buy a Tchibo SIM (and pay shipping costs) for a single month of use.
Regarding connection software the T-Mobile Web'n'Walk Compact card II, which is produced by Option, should work with this version of O2's "connection manager".
But if you use O2 Loop, you could also use the T-Mobile connection software, since O2 Loop doesn't require a (correct) APN to be set. So even if T-Mobile's APN is preconfigured in the T-Mobile software it will still connect through O2 Loop.

One more question:
are there any cheapo cellphones without SIM/Net-Lock available?
Since I have 3 O2 Loop Freikarten, I could use one in the phone, and have an easier time loading exactly the amount I need onto my card, plus I could use the extra cards for emergency phone calls, if needed.
It would have to be a really cheap phone, though, or one that I could later use with prepaid sim cards in the US.

SIM/Netlock free phones start around 20-30 Euro in the electronic retail stores. But these are usually EU-dualband models and useless in the US.

Chris

The cheapest unlocked quadband phone, which would also work back in the US, is a Samsung SGH-M310 for € 61 incl. shipping within Germany.
A complete list of unlocked quadband phones available from German online retailers can be found at: GSM ohne Vertrag Preisvergleich bei Geizhals.at Deutschland

Thanks again for all the help!
If everything works out with the configuration, I should be all set for my visit to Germany!

Am looking forward to seeing how much things have changed there during the last 5 years!

Do you know if this offer is still valid? Because it says on the other forum that it is valid until the end of November 2008.


Thanks

Yes, in this posting from February 10th the seller stated, that the offer is still valid.

no, it is still valid as long as they can get new modems on stock. Verified by the dealer about a week ago here: Vodafone Websession PrePaid UMTS USB-Stick zum Sonderpreis - November TT Special! - Telefon-Treff

Chris

Thanks. My German is not that good any more (and I didn't see the first time that there were more page in that thread)

new problem: I have to select a payment option (Zahlungsweise) but there I can't choose anything, it will just tell me that there only one option available to me (Zur Zeit bieten wir Ihnen nur eine Zahlungsweise an.) I don't see any option to to log in to paypal or anyting. The only option is to enter a "Guthaben Gutscheine / Gutschriften" but if I understand correctly that is a discount code.

Can someone point me in the right direction? thanks again

I get the choice between PayPal, "Vorkasse" (vooruitbetaling) and "Nachnahme" (remboers). Maybe you can't chose any payment option because they don't deliver abroad. If you know someone living in Germany you could try ordering with his/her address.

Thanks.
They say they do deliver to the Netherlands.
Deltatecc Shop
And on the Versandinformationen page they do add 15 euro's for delivery. I really don't understand. I will see tomorrow and otherwise I might just send them an email.

I managed to do it in the end. I changed my address to a fake German address. Then there were actually some payment options to choose from. And in the next screen I could change the address back to my real address in the Netherlands. Not really the way it is supposed to go, but it worked anyway.

So now I will just wait and see if it gets delivered to the right address

unlocking the endless subject
 

Dear guys,

bring your stuff to Vienna to Semaf Electronics - www.entsperren.org / Startseite

They unlock nearly everything, also data cards, sticks, modems, Blackberrys etc.etc. for 10-20 €.

Have a look!

I'm back from my visit to Germany, and used my unlocked T-Mobile card, plus an O2 sim (I tried one of their Freikarten to see if it worked and then loaded it and ordered their unlimited internet for one month).

This worked in most areas I went to. As long as I was in or near a major city, things were fine, but in less lived in areas, the only available UMTS net that showed up was T-Mobile.

Prepaid data/internet in Germany
 

Hi everybody,

I'm going to stay in Germany for business a couple of weeks on next may.

My current data USIM and plan by 3 are good in Italy, but not convenient abroad (0.5€/MB).

Therefore I'm looking for some prepaid card + USB modem to be able to download and surf over internet while being in Frankfurt.

I searched over several German phone companies, but almost everything is written in German and I'm not able to read it... I hope to find here someone so kind to help me in finding some possible solution.

Thanks in advance
StefanoA :)

I think Tchibo is the most interesting offer for you. You'll find detailed information on German prepaid offers including Tchibo at Germany - Prepaid Wireless Internet Access

Thanks for your prompt reply,

I'm checking your link and trying to get in contact with Tchibo for details and confirmation (I hope no problem arise from being non German!).

I'll keep all incoming news updated on this thread... ;)

Regarding the USB modem including SIM card, you'll find information at Tchibo - Internet Stick inkl. Prepaid SIM-Karte

However for regular Tchibo SIM cards purchased separtely (without USB modem) data options are not officially available. So don't expect Tchibo to confirm any of the infos in the linked article, which btw was written by me. But believe me, it works flawlessly - I've several friends, who use Tchibo's data options with a regular SIM card.

Ok, your second link looks even better to me:

please check if I understand well:

1) I can buy directly such kit at any Tchibo shop (or buy it online and let it ship to some German address) without signing any "long" contract (such as 24 months or similar). Just pay and get it.

2) With 50€ I get the USB modem, the prepaid SIM and 10GB of traffic within one month from activation.

3) Finally, I just havo to plug the SIM into the USB stick, the stick into my notebook, install required driver/software and activate the account to be able to surf for 1 month/10GB well and fast enough?

If I understood all well, I think I solved my problem thanks to you!

Generally you can buy the Tchibo "Internet Stick" online and in any Tchibo shop, but that bundle is not a permanent offer but is only sold during promotions. So hurry up as it could be sold out and it could take weeks until they start another promotion. Until now Tchibo has sold the stick three times (in December 2008, February 2009 and in April 2009).
As we are in a prepaid GSM forum, the offer of course is without any contract. So you can buy it and use it without any obligation. You just need to register with Tchibo upon purchase, which isn't a problem even for non-residents.

Yes. But keep in mind, that the USB modem is netlocked. If you want to use with another SIM card than O2 Germany's, you'll need to unlock it for € 15.

Yes, just plug in the stick and the access software including drivers will automatically start to install. 10GB is more than enough for a month and bandwidth depends on network coverage. If you are within 3G coverage, you'll get up to 3.6 MBit/s, while you'll get 200 KBit/s in the regular GSM-network.

I thought I'd add my 2 cents to this.

My brother and I bought one during the December promotion. We filled out a form, using our hotel address and returned to the Tchibo store. I seem to remember we also had to call a number to activate the SIM -- I don't remember if we did that from a mobile or whether we put the Tchibo SIM into unlocked phone.

The stick worked fine in both my brothers window laptop and my Macbook. The software automatically installs when you connect the stick. It worked flawlessly.

I am headed back to Germany next month for three weeks and I hope to use it again. It appears (thanks Inquisitor) that all I'll need to do is purchase a €20 top up and then using the software loaded from the stick, send an SMS to activate.

Once again thanks for your prompt and precise reply.

Now everything is clear for me. I'll manage to buy immediately one stick online (I'll check if it's possible to let it be shipped to my hotel in Frankfurt).

One more time Internet was the right place to provide me the best solution.

I'd would be happy to offer a good German beer to all of you in case we can meet in Frankfurt in first middle of may!

I think the Tchibo stick is the easiest option (unless you already have a UMTS card that's not simlocked), but if you need coverage outside large cities, it might not always get you connected.

I was okay at my parents' house, but not at my friend's (and she lives fairly close to Koeln). Out in the country=forget it with o2!

That's because O2 roams on T-Mobile outside urban areas.

I'm going to stay in the Frankfurt Exhibition area.

I suppose it is one of most "covered" area (but also heavily loaded, I hope to be able to get enough band).

O2 covers 99,9% of Germany's population with GSM/EDGE and some 60% with 3G/HSPA. Further for some rural regions O2 still has a unilateral national roaming agreement with T-Mobile, which will last until the end of 2009.
So if you run out of coverage with an O2 SIM that's really bad luck. All in all T-Mobile and Vodafone still provide better coverage but unless you leave civilization O2 should do the job. Also keep in mind, that the cheapest prepaid offers on T-Mobile and Vodafone are their dayflats for € 4,95 per day - that's nearly € 150 for one month, which costs € 20 with Tchibo.

Does that mean I should have been able to connect through T-mobile in those areas (I thought I remembered something about the roaming)?
I tried many times, but it was a no-go.

I was very surprised to not get a connection at my friend's house, who lives very close to Koeln.
There were many not covered areas along the train route from Duesseldorf toward the coast (Norddeich), but it *is* a very thinly populated area along the way.

Frankfurt should be no problem at all!

The roaming is switched off from area to area starting last year already. By the end of this year it will be completely disabled. While o2 is still building a lot of GSM stations these days there will be for sure areas without coverage with o2 (at least temporarely) towards the end of 2009.

Chris

Ah, no wonder!
Thanks for the explanation.

Coverage inside long-distance trains is an issue, since modern IC (InterCity) and ICE (InterCityExpress) wagons have metal-coated windows and a steel frame, which severly attenuates radio signals (up to 30db in a ICE). Allthough a lot of waggons have so called intrain-repeaters installed, older ones do not work for O2 and eplus, as these two operators use EGSM900 and GSM1800 but older repeaters do only amplify the PGSM900 band and eplus' portion of the GSM1800 band. 3G is not amplified by those repeaters at all. According to press releases german rail operator Deutsche Bahn is about to swap those old GSM repeaters, but if you're in a waggon without repeater or with an old repeater, you'll experience bad network coverage.
Upon request seats can be reserved in waggons with repeaters, which carry this symbol:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...andyaussen.jpg
For more details in German see Intrain-Repeater ? Wikipedia

I have read all the posts and I am quite close to buy Tchibo.

I am a frequent traveller all around Germany and ask herewith if there is somebody else with such a profile of usage.

Experiences? Are you content?

Thanks