Just to confirm from a registration of a few days ago that the Fonic registration process clearly offers you a choice of initial topup and payment preferences (as radio buttons): from your German bank account, or from the
aufladebons / topup vouchers you buy from retailers. (For those not familiar with these: they come in the form of small cards usually hanging on hooks near the other Fonic products at the retailer. When you take the cards to the register and purchase them, the twelve-digit topup code is printed on the sales receipt.)
Also a quick note about the issue of whether passports or other ID are required for purchase of the SIM itself: at the DM-drogerie in Nuremberg where I picked up mine, the suggestion seemed to take the sales staff by surprise. Though I showed them my passport, no one seemed interested in taking any note of the info in it.
Registration went smoothly, and the SIM was online within a few hours. The topup from a 20-euro aufladebon went without a hitch. I immediately signed up via text for the one-day unlimited surfing tariff: both the message confirming receipt of the request and the confirmation that the service had begun came through within minutes.
The Fonic SIM works beautifully in a smartphone, whether just used for mobile browsing or when using the phone as a wireless hotspot. The network speeds were quite high, though I couldn't give you exact numbers. I never did get around to putting the new SIM into an unlocked Huawei stick or MeFi: for the time being, that can wait.
When we're back in Germany next month I plan to get at least two more of these to go in my husband's phone and the stick, and possibly a SIM from the Lidl as well for the MeFi. Thanks again to
Inquisitor and the others here whose advice has made this process way simpler than it might have been otherwise.
Best! -- Diane