Prepaid unlimited gprs data now in Mexico

RTuesday · 24-11-2008, 01:51

I've been testing this today (as it'll be my back-up internet if my main connection is down for a while).

There's good news and bad news.

The good news: the "1 day" connection is 24 hours from when you request it, not a calendar day. After texting BAT1 to 5050 you get back (about 10 seconds later) a confirmation message showing the time your unlimited service expires, which is 24 hours ahead. (the time shown is Mexico City time, even if you're in another time zone).

The bad news: the money (66.81 pesos in border areas, 69 pesos elsewhere) is NOT deducted from the bonus time first. Unlike texts and pay-as-you-go internet it comes only from the actual money on the account. This limits how low the price can go (you could still use the bonus time for PAYG internet most days to quickly check email, and just sign up for a day when you actually need a longer connection).

This is with my laptop (Ubuntu Linux) tethered to my Nokia E51 with bluetooth. Gets around 192kb/s download, 96 kb/s upload. There are several hops on Telcel's internal network before the connection comes out onto the internet in Mexico City, so quite long latency to get anywhere. But good enough for basic email and web.

It's very flexible for short-term visitors, and usable (if a bit pricey) for seasonal residents, especially given the months it can take to get a normal phone+internet.

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RTuesday (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Expert Posts: 344 Join Date: 28 Mar 2005 Location: See flag Country:	24-11-2008, 01:51 I've been testing this today (as it'll be my back-up internet if my main connection is down for a while). There's good news and bad news. The good news: the "1 day" connection is 24 hours from when you request it, not a calendar day. After texting BAT1 to 5050 you get back (about 10 seconds later) a confirmation message showing the time your unlimited service expires, which is 24 hours ahead. (the time shown is Mexico City time, even if you're in another time zone). The bad news: the money (66.81 pesos in border areas, 69 pesos elsewhere) is NOT deducted from the bonus time first. Unlike texts and pay-as-you-go internet it comes only from the actual money on the account. This limits how low the price can go (you could still use the bonus time for PAYG internet most days to quickly check email, and just sign up for a day when you actually need a longer connection). This is with my laptop (Ubuntu Linux) tethered to my Nokia E51 with bluetooth. Gets around 192kb/s download, 96 kb/s upload. There are several hops on Telcel's internal network before the connection comes out onto the internet in Mexico City, so quite long latency to get anywhere. But good enough for basic email and web. It's very flexible for short-term visitors, and usable (if a bit pricey) for seasonal residents, especially given the months it can take to get a normal phone+internet.