Is the need for an intl SIM card nearing an end?
 

I don't think it will be "soon". However,
(1) Don't members of EU countries now get favorable rates when roaming within the EU?
(2) For U.S. users, it's a slow start, but all carriers now have an "add-on Canada" option to allow calling and roaming in Canada. Until recently, roaming in Canada was very expensive n all carriers. So was calling. (Knowledgeable users knew/know they could seamlessly call Canada for free by using the Google Voice app.) Many years ago, some carriers did have Canada options but those were abandoned.

(3) The 3 major carriers now, in recent months, have an option to let you data roam in over 100 countries for about $25.00 for 100mb. They were all charging $15-$20 per mb before the recent change. Cost is now about 1/60th of what it was before!! I don't think any "international roaming card" can match this.

(4) All U.S. carriers still charge a fortune to voice roam overseas, starting at $1/min. for most of Europe to $3/min. in China and lots of other countries and even more in others. So, it will still pay to use Piranha which charges 1/10 of that.
(5) Years ago, T Mobile U.S. charged 29¢/min. to roam (incoming) in lots of countries. About 6 years ago they decided to match ATT and raise their rates substantially.

(5)One problem for me is that TMobile is my U.S. carrier and their low intl. data rates are only available to people they classify as "business" users. I am hoping they make the new intl. data roaming rates available to all users.

mike

Not yet, thank you!
 

As long as there are international SIM cards that are cheaper to use than ones own [US] provider there will be a need. [The need in the EU is different question. ] Whether the international SIM card providers can last that long might be an important factor. They also provide competition that national providers will have to aim at.

Data will be the last bridge to cross, since voice and text can be done via data as the end game approaches.

The EU is moving in the right direction, but carriers had to be forced by legislation. In the US, I'm on T-Mobile, and even their business roaming rates are far too high.
The carriers make money from people's lack of technical savvy - unlocking phones, finding the right sims, managing them online - a hassle most people avoid!

within the EU definitely no need for international SIM anymore, here in germany the carriers even start to offer roaming-free calling and texting or interesting bundles that are way cheaper than the regulated tariffs from the EU.

True talk - If one is traveling within the EU and calling within the EU, there is no need for an international sim. For the US there is still a need if it has lower rates. That's probably one of the reasons just about all the international sims have a UIS number, in addition to the UK/EU number. As for data, there is no need. For me, AT&T offers better data packages that I use if I am not using a local sim.

Hi all. Interesting comments, but there is always hidden caveats when it comes to roaming in the EU. I was reading an article where in particular someone said they get incoming calls and outgoing calls within their home bundled package. (when roaming in the EU UK O2) After some reasearch it is not as straightforward as you may think.

The package is called O2 Travel.
1. You sign up to O2 Travel (Pay monthly).
2. You get free incoming and the outgoing calls are taken from your contract bundle up to 60 mins per session.
3. You Pay £1.99 for a days worth of Data.

a. The downside is you get charged a connection fee of £0.50 for every incoming or outgoing call, which could end up being very expensive on calls under 2 minutes or if you receive or make a lot of calls, the maths is simple 10 x 3 minute calls = £5.00 10x incoming 3 minute calls = £5.00. Total cost = £10.00 extra per day.
b. The Data is per day its "use it or lose it" and the allowance is only 15 MB per day, going over the allowance will cost you another £1.99 for another 15 MB.

Roaming outside of the EU on O2 has recently increased in price.

Example 1: making a call back from Turkey to the UK on your contract Sim £1.50 Per Minute, incoming £1.25 Per minute, SMS £.040 per text and Data is £6.00 per MB.

Example 2: making a call back from USA to the UK on your contract Sim £1.10 Per Minute, incoming £0.90 Per minute, SMS £.040 per text and Data is £6.00 per MB.

So all in all there are no free lunches, and i am sure all other networks in the EU will have their own caveats.

questions
 

Is this a grandfathered package or is this something currently available? And is it postpaid? What is its name? How much data per day do you normally use?

These data rates for ATT and Verizon are rather new. ATT's can be found on their web site, altho it's not easy to find. As I recall it was $30/mo. for 120mb. Vz. is charging $25 for 100mb.
TMobile just announced, about 10 days ago, they now have low intl. data rates for their "business" customers. I am not on a business plan and can't find on their web site what the rates are.
I could, I guess, switch over and become a "business" customer for our 2 lines. I'll wait and see if they make the new rates available to everyone. It makes no sense to have some customers paying 60 times more for the same service than they are charging other customers.

I was comparing to roaming sims that charge per certain KB. AT&T has worked well for me in this regards. I usually just do the $30/120 MB. Also, the last 2 times I used it, the price has been prorated, even though the data itself is not. And this is for postpaid, so may not be a good comparison, since we are talking about prepaid.

Global Data Add-On Packages for International Travelers | AT&T

There will always be a need for good international SIM deals.

I was talking to a cellco in Germany recently who told me a number of MVNOs (mobile virtual network operators) are planning to offer stick-on SIMlets that will peel on and off as required, to overlay your existing SIM card, and so get around the network lock problem.

The SIMlet will only cut in when you are roaming or making an international call - a bit like Foocall's app on smartphones.

Introduction is Q3 in Germany and the UK, I am reliably told - think the name is Kingcall.

+Steve :)

They are already available in Denmark and Sweden. It's a Danish company called Zapna that owns the rights, for the European market, to this kind of product.

If you are familiar with a Scandinavian laguage you can have a look at

www.smartsim.se
www.zerocall.com

Strangely enough, some European networks are becoming cheaper for roaming, while others are dreaming up clever ways to show the politicians what they think of regulation across Europe.

In the last year or two there have been per call connection fees introduced by default and the customer must ask to go back to the Eurotariff if they want to, or flat rate daily charges for the first use of the contract included calls or data in a day, which will be a bit steep for just a short call or 100 KB of data.

Here is a news item I found:
In the early days of cellular, each major city area you traveled to in the U.S. incurred a hefty daily and per minute charge plus long distance if you were calling back home. Now, the entire U.S. fro Hawaii to Boston is considered "local". Looks like it won't be too long before the EU is one entity for cellular purposes.
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EU Commissioner Calls for Scrapping of European Roaming Fees

Published on: 2nd Jun 2013

European mobile networks are facing another threat to their revenues from the European Commission as the Vice-President of the European Commission, Neelie Kroes said that roaming fees shouldn't be reduced, but scrapped entirely.

"I want us to show citizens that the EU is relevant to their lives. That we made the digital rules catch up with their legitimate expectations," Ms Kroes said in a speech.

"I want you to be able to go back to your constituents and say that you were able to end mobile roaming costs."

Neelie Kroes has long campaigned to lower roaming fees, and as the former head of the EU's telecoms regulatory body, she pushed through regulations that saw roaming fees slashed within Europe.

She has campaigned for a single market in telecoms and suggested that scrapping roaming fees could be proposed within a year.

"It is my belief that we can deliver such a package - this full, final, package - around Easter 2014. Imagine that." she said in the speech.

Although bad news for the telecoms networks, the lower fees would be welcomed by consumers, and be a rare populist move from the EU which is often seen as dealing with arcane business matters that don't really affect consumers.

Countering her call for regulations banning roaming fees, The European Telecommunications Network Operators' Association (ETNO) said that it believes that the Single Market should not be imposed through additional regulatory obligations. The Single Market should be driven by market forces, enabled by an investment friendly and supportive regulatory framework, the trade group added.