Czech Republic
 

Hi,

Do I need a legal address in Czech Republic to buy a Prepaid SIM? Do I need to register it? Can I also use a hotel's address?

THX

When I buy a SIM, let's say a Vodafone, are there any activation or any settings necessary?
Or is it "plug and play", means insert SIM, enter PIN and call. I ask this because I don't know one word czech.

I bought a O2 sim card in Prague last year, no address was needed and the seller spoke excellent English (as usual in the Czech Republic). I only needed to show my passport.

No need to show even passport, I believe.

Hi, no need of passport or ID card. You can buy prepaid sim almost everywhere but i would recommend you to buy it at an official store of the provider.

Does anyone know much about T-Mobile CZ? It seems like a good option, but their web site is only in Czech, unlike O2 and Vodafone, which I guess puts off many temporary visitors.

Their Twist SIM card seems like a good deal, particularly as it says "DobÃ*jÃ*te si, jen když potřebujete" (recharging only when needed), it's only CZK 200 (unlike O2) and you get free data with a new SIM card and top-ups.

It turned out that T-Mobile was a complete waste of time. They wanted CZK 200 for a mini-SIM, which they would cut to a micro-SIM, and it included only 50MB of data, not enough to last me for 3 days. I therefore went to O2, who sold me a multi-size SIM (where you can break out a micro-SIM) for CZK 150 including CZK 150 of credit, whereby data cost CZK 75 for 150MB for a week. This was ideal, although I noticed that I received a warning by SMS that I had used 80% of my allowance when my iPhone's data counter showed only 70% and just as I left the Czech Republic, another message telling me that I had used all of the 150MB when my iPhone's data counter showed only 11.6MB+120MB sent+received. O2 seems to be the market leader and download speeds were good all over Prague, at around 3-4Mbps. When the wireless internet went down in my hotel one night, I was delighted to find that iOS tethering was enabled as standard, meaning I could connect my laptop via my iPhone. O2 seems like the obvious choice in the Czech Republic. I can't find out their prepaid SIM expiry policy; does anyone know?

I found the answer to the SIM validity question. According to O2 | Is the validity of a prepaid SIM card limited in any way? - FAQ "A recharged SIM card is valid for at least one year depending on the sum it has been recharged with. It is necessary to recharge your credit by CZK 500 at least once a year or CZK 200 every half a year so that you can keep on using our services". However it's not clear what happens with a new SIM card to which no credit has yet been added.

My sim card (which I bought summer 2011) was valid one year from activation.
2×200 CZK per year... that's €15 per year to keep the sim card alive - rather expensive :(
I think none of the Czech operators had a policy which extends the validity on calling/making an SMS.

I agree, and it also doesn't make sense that the minimum top-up and minimum to extend for a year are more than the cost of a new SIM card which is valid for a year.

I discovered that what I thought was a micro-SIM was actually a mini-SIM punched out. The O2 shop must have done this under the counter without me seeing. I always wondered why it didn't fit into my iPhone 4 very well. After getting an iPhone 5, I asked a friend who went to Prague to swap my SIM for a free nano-SIM as explained on O2's web site, but they simply punched out a nano-SIM and gave it back to him. I'm not impressed with O2 after this.

Another friend (Czech) tried to swap my SIM card for a nano-SIM at another branch. It seems they need the outer credit-card-sized card in order to do this. But the first branch had taken that from my first friend and threw it away! I'm going to try to do the swap myself later this week.

I'm very confused by O2 Czech's expiry policy:

• CZK 150 buys a new SIM card with CZK 150 of credit and 12 months
• CZK 200 buys CZK 200 of credit but only 6 months
• CZK 500 buys CZK 500 of credit and 12 months

I just don't understand why CZK 200 buys less time extension than CZK 150. It doesn't make any sense. Therefore I'm better off getting a new SIM card than topping up an existing one. Surely this discrepancy creates unnecessary churn for O2?

I have just returned from a trip to Prague and I am shocked by O2 (Czech)'s incompetence and blatant inconsistency between shop branches, between shop staff and their web site, and even between staff at the same branch. What I have learnt is that you shouldn't believe anything they tell you. Here are some examples:

• In January, a friend tried to replace my 2FF mini-SIM for a 4FF nano-SIM at the NáměstÃ* Republiky branch in accordance with this guidance. Instead of giving him a nano-SIM, they used a SIM cutter which did not reduce the thickness from 0.76mm to 0.67mm, and they also threw away the outer 1FF credit card sized outer card which had the PUK number etc on it. Although it could be forced into an iPhone 5, this has the potential to invalidate the warranty because 0.76mm cut nano-SIMs can get stuck in the iPhone 5.
• In early April, a second friend tried to replace this cut 0.76mm nano-SIM for a genuine 0.67mm nano-SIM at a branch in Plzeň. They said they couldn't replace it because she needed the 1FF outer card which NáměstÃ* Republiky had thrown away, and also because my SIM card hadn't been registered to anyone's name. She tried again on another day and was told the same thing.
• In late April, I visited the Nový SmÃ*chov branch and spent an hour in there. I showed the cardboard packaging in which my SIM card was originally supplied, and he said he could swap it for a nano-SIM but he wanted to charge me CZK 99. When I showed him a printout of the relevant web page which stated a free SIM swap, he consulted a colleague and agreed to swap it for free; he then did the swap.
• As I had almost no credit on my account, I then asked the same guy whether a new SIM card (CZK 150) would be valid for 6 or 12 months; he replied 6. So I asked him why my existing SIM card was still valid, having bought it in August 2012. He had no clue, and referred me to another colleague.
• His colleague looked at my account and said that my SIM card had expired in February 2013, even though it was showing a balance and still working (to some extent). She then tried to sell me a new SIM card, but refused to sell a nano-SIM, wanting to use a SIM cutter which would leave it at 0.76mm. She said that nano-SIMs were only for contract accounts. I then explained that her colleague had already done a SIM swap to a nano-SIM on my existing prepaid account (so why couldn't she do the same on a new SIM?) but he hadn't noticed that my account had expired. She then consulted him and my account showed a different status on each of their computers.
• Between them, they managed to revive my account. By this time, I had lost the will to buy yet another SIM card, so I paid CZK 200 to top up my new nano-SIM on my existing account instead of a cheaper new SIM card. I therefore kept my number, which had some benefit as I had already given it to business associates in Prague, which later proved to be very useful.
• Because my SIM card had continued to lose credit after I left Prague in August 2012 as a result of mobile data still being active and wanting to avoid the same mistake twice, I visited the NáměstÃ* Republiky branch and they confirmed that my one-week mobile data package would naturally expire and not be renewed. However, the guy wasn't convincing. I also asked him to register my SIM card in my name, which I believe he did.
• I then visited the NárodnÃ* třÃ*da branch and asked them to confirm. She said that my mobile data package would be automatically renewed, contrary to NáměstÃ* Republiky's answer. She put a stop on it at the end of the 7 paid days. I immediately received an SMS confirming this in Czech.

O2 is the best prepaid deal in the Czech Republic, and they are the incumbent fixed line network with a huge infrastructure and lots of shops everywhere. I also asked T-Mobile and Vodafone about their expiry policies and they are all similar; you likewise have to top up quite often.

query
 

hi,

You guys on here appear extremely knowledgeable about all this - whereas I am a complete novice - could you possibly answer a few novicy questions for me please:

I am off to Prague in just over a week, and in order to save money, I think buying an o2 simcard is the way to go:


I have an unlocked old HTC Wildfire phone - reading about the problems with sim card sizes, is this likely to be a problem for my phone ?
Am I right in thinking that the simcard costs 150 CZK (but comes with that as credit) and if I were to need to make a local call (ie: in Prague) - this would cost me 6 CZK per minute? (I'm slightly confused by the two tariff options).

And finally, I would also be interested in purchasing the 150 MB data option for 75czk? I assume that would come out of the initial 150 CZK credit (Assuning I had not spent it on calls).

actually - one more important question - will I have to go through a process with my phone in order to sort out the internet settings? I remember when I first unlocked it and put in a UK simcard I did.

And if I did have to do this - would I have to go through the process all over again when I returned to UK and replaced it with my UK sim card?

Many thanks in anticipation.

B

No, quite the opposite. They want to give you a standard 2FF mini-SIM.

Yes, the SIM card costs CZK 150 and includes the same amount of credit. Yes, calls are either CZK 6.00 or CZK 5.60 per minute depending on which of the two tariffs you choose. The weekend one might be advantageous if you want to send SMS to Czech numbers or call other O2 numbers (mostly starting +420 72).

This is the really confusing bit. The price you see is weekly but the allowance is 4-weekly. Therefore if you buy the 1GB option for CZK 90 per week, you will get 250MB each week. Make sure you cancel it after a week. There is also a default daily option of CZK 30 for 30MB per day if you're there for one or two days more than a week.

I don't know about your HTC Wildfire, but my iPhone reads the APN etc from the SIM card. Whenever I switch SIM cards, I don't have to change the APN manually.

Tesco Mobile have just launched in the Czech Republic. Their daily data price of CZK 20 for 50MB is more favourable than O2's price of CZK 30 for 30MB.

Unfortunately their SIM validity policy aligns with other Czech networks rather than with Tesco Mobile in the UK and Ireland. It is no better than O2, requiring top-ups every 6 or 12 months. In Tesco Mobile's FAQ, it says:

Jaká je platnost kreditu, který dobiju?
Každé dobitÃ* kreditu má platnost 6 měsÃ*ců od data dobitÃ*. Pokud před skončenÃ*m Å¡esti měsÃ*ců nedobijete kredit, zůstatek VaÅ¡eho kreditu expiruje a nebude možné ho použÃ*t. Expirovaný kredit lze obnovit dalÅ¡Ã*m dobitÃ*m.
UpozorněnÃ*: Pokud nedojde k dobitÃ* v průběhu 12 měsÃ*ců od poslednÃ*ho dobÃ*tÃ*, platnost SIM karty vyprÅ¡Ã*, kredit propadne a SIM karta i s telefonnÃ*m čÃ*slem bude deaktivována.

Jakou má vaše SIM karta platnost?
VaÅ¡i SIM kartu je potřeba zaktivovat do data uvedeného na obalu. Po aktivaci SIM karty je platnost nastavena na 12 měsÃ*ců a každým dobitÃ*m kreditu je tato doba vždy automaticky prodloužena na dalÅ¡Ã*ch 12 měsÃ*ců.
Pokud si nedobijete kredit vÃ*ce než 12 měsÃ*ců, může být SIM karta deaktivována.

They only offer combi mini/micro-SIMs, no nano-SIMs.

I used O2 in Czech Republic. We traveled also to different cities by train and
There was great to have Internet in train (slow speed in inhabited areas and good speed in all medium cities)

If you have time before travel you can order SIM card online on ebay (make a search on ebay.com there are sellers that sell Czech SIM cards)
I bought one with 50 CZK and topped it up at home with credit card 800 CZK to activate 3GB Internet and few calls/SMS I also activated this bundle online before I came to Czech

So if im looking for unlimited data for about 1o days what prepaid plan would be best. And if there is not unlimited plan, what is the best suggestion for data.

Internet in Czech sim
 

Take O2 operator

They have these options:

3GB - 550 CZK
10GB - 800 CZK
(I think it is impossible to use more than 10GB in 10 days)

Step 1: but SIM card O2
Step 2: Topup ammount
Step 3: activate bundle

Step one: you can buy in Czech or you can buy in advance
on Ebay
Step two: Topup online in advance or Topup in Czech O2 or small kiosk
Step three: activate bundle online if you bought in advance or send sms
IVML to 999000 (for 3GB) or IVMXL to 999000 for 10GB

Cheers

Are there any other viable options for travelers besides O2? Any MVNOs I should look at? I am possibly going to be in Prague for two weeks. So a plan with at least 1GB of data would be good. Looks like the O2 plan is 550 CZK ( $28 ) for just the 3GB of data and I assume about 150 CZK ( $8 ) for a SIM card. So looking about about $36 to get up and running for data. Cheaper would be nice of course :)

Replying to myself. T-Mobile seems like a possibly reasonable option if I can trust Google Chrome translate :)

200 CZK ( $10.24 ) for a SIM card with 200 CZK credit. And then 241 CZK ( $12.34 ) for 300 MB of data which is valid for 30 days. For a total of $22.58. Then if I run out of data I assume I can add another 300 MB for 241 CZK. I kind of doubt I will use more than 300 MB during two weeks as I will be staying in a place with WiFi.

On O2's web site at http://www.o2.cz/osobni/en/197134-ca...66185-x18.html it states "The credit on your SIM card is valid for up to one year, depending on the amount of recharge. Up to CZK 99 is valid for 45 days, CZK 100 to CZK 499 for six months, and CZK 500 for one year". If I try to top up by credit card on their web site, the minimum is CZK 200. Does anyone know how to top up by less than CZK 99 or even by CZK 100?

Tesco Mobile
 

I ended up buying this on my first day here in Prague. Using exchange rate as of 1-Oct-2013 of 18.948 CZK per USD

You can find out a lot of this info on their website at:
https://www.tescomobile.cz/domu/

I used Google Chrome and had it translate the pages for me.

First I signed up for the CLUBCARD program as your credits get doubled when you top up. Luckily there was a helpful lady at the "Tesco Expres" who spoke very good English and was able to lead me through the paperwork, otherwise it would have been very difficult. You could of course take the Clubcard application and find someone to help you translate it and then bring it back. The Clubcard program is free to sign up for. It might be wise to go to a big Tesco store as maybe more likely to have someone who speaks English. I went back to the same "Tesco Expres" later and six people were working the cash registers and none of them spoke English.

The SIM card was 150 CZK ($7.92). It comes with 150 CZK of credit.

Also helpful to have a program which can translate your SMS messages, and likely want to be on WiFi until you have fully activated the data plan. I use Android and used this app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...smstranslator2

My steps:
1) Sign up for the Tesco ClubCard program.

2) I disabled cellular data as I wanted to activate one of their data plans later. If you don't do this then as soon as your phone uses cellular data you will be charged 20 CZK and get 20MB of data for the next 24 hours.

3) Buy the Tesco SIM card for 150 CZK ($7.92). Install Tesco SIM card into my phone.

4) Send a text message to 999346 with the string "CLUBCARD ####" where "####" is your clubcard #. In my case it was 18 digits.

5) I received a reply of: "Pozadavek byl prijat ke zpracovani" which means they received the message and are processing it.

6) Within an hour I received a message: "Cislo Clubcard bylo prirazeno k Vasi SIM karte. Nymi pri kazdem dobiti dostanete stejne mnozstvi bonusoveho kreditu zdarma. Prvni prirazen muze trvat az 24 hodin " Which basically means the clubcard has been activated to the SIM and you will get bonus for buying credit.

7) I then went to the Tesco register and bought 300 CZK ($15.83) of credit.

8 ) A few minutes later I get a text message that 600 CZK of credit has been added to my account. I now have a total 750 CZK of credit.

9) I sent a text message to 999346 with the string "INTERNET350 A". Options are INTERNET150, INTERNET250, and INTERNET350 which are 150 CZK for 150MB/30days, 250 CZK for 400MB/30days, and 350CZK for 1GB/30days. I wanted the 1GB of data option (INTERNET350) which cost 350 CZK of my 750 CZK credit. Leaving me with 400 CZK credit. Once you get confirmation it is active you can then re-enable your cellular data.

10) Since I am traveling with another person who also got a Tesco SIM card, I also activated the Tesco package which gives you unlimited texting and calling to other Tesco Mobile customers. Plus 120 minutes of calling and 60 SMS messages to non-Tesco mobile customers. Cost for the package is 300 CZK and they recommend you keep 40 CZK of credit on the account as they first charge you to call non-Tesco mobile customers and then within 15 minutes credit it back if you have free minutes left.

11) To activate the Tesco calling package send a text message to 999346 with the string "BALICEK A". Similar to the Internet activation you will get a message saying the request has been received and then later another message saying it has been activated.

So I paid a total of 450 CZK ($23.75) to get 1 GB of data and unlimited calling to my travel companion. They did the same. We are here for 15 days so it made sense for us.

Complete pre/postpaid calculator is here:

http://www.dtest.cz/tarify

I have an update on O2's expiry policy, given that I've had a SIM card since 2012 and have seen exactly how the expiry works, both online and from warning texts received.

The SIM card, including any credit, will expire 13 months from the last top-up. No chargeable use is possible from 6 months after the last top-up (12 months if the top-up was for CZK 500 or more).

With the requirement to top up once per year by at least CZK 200, you can accumulate an apparently useless surplus credit balance. However, this can be spent on tickets for the Prague metro. Simply send a text to 90206 containing "DPT" followed immediately by the value of the ticket you want. For example, to buy a 24-hour ticket for CZK 110, text "DPT110" to 90206. You will then receive a text back with the ticket number, which you can show to a ticket inspector if requested.

That might be useful. I wish this could be done in the US somewhere. A market for large balance PAYGO SIMs could be created if even one city had this ability.