KnowRoaming

[Stu]

I pass on this new website without any opinion:

https://www.knowroaming.com

[DRNewcomb]

It's been a recent topic on HoFo. Seems that you apply a SIM "sticker" on the bottom of your regular SIM and when you are outside your home country or network it takes over as a multi-IMSI roaming SIM. Strange concept to me. I'd need to know a lot more details on how, when and where it takes over. IMHO, it's just too easy to swap SIMs on the plane before you land. No real need for this product.

[powerlifter]

Originally Posted by DRNewcomb

It's been a recent topic on HoFo. Seems that you apply a SIM "sticker" on the bottom of your regular SIM and when you are outside your home country or network it takes over as a multi-IMSI roaming SIM. Strange concept to me. I'd need to know a lot more details on how, when and where it takes over. IMHO, it's just too easy to swap SIMs on the plane before you land. No real need for this product.

I have to agree with you. As soon as we are airborne I switch sims to the country I am going to. If I don't have a local sim I drop in my UK sim card.

[DRNewcomb]

http://mobilesyrup.com/2013/10/11/kn...e-sim-sticker/
http://www.howardforums.com/content....oesn-t-Know-Me

[Stu]

Where I think Knowroaming's technology would be helpful would be in a cross-border situation where you cross the border regularly. For example, the US/Canadian border. There are places around the border where you really have to cut through the other country to get where you want to go. For example, imagine if you lived in Windsor, Ontario and worked in Sarnia, Ontario. Cutting through the US, your commute time is a little over an hour. Staying in Canada, your commute time is like 2.5 hours. I can give you tons of examples both ways.

I was in a border community in upstate Washington where we wound up crossing the border five times in one day and it was so common that Customs was used to it. Because of a really screwy border arrangement, even the US mail went through Canada to get delivered.

I have a Jewish friend in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan who sends her son to religious school in Sault Canada and drops him off/picks him up three times a week in another country. SIM swapping probably isn't a great option for a soccer mom with a minivan full of kids. I helped her with a dual SIM phone, but TMobile's new plan would be perfect for her (if TMobile had native coverage in her area).

When I lived in the UAE we had an open border with Oman (which has been somewhat closed in the intervening years). There were a number of routes that we took where we cut through the other country to get to our destination. If you went from Dubai to Hatta on Emirates 44 you drove for thirty miles through Oman to get to your destination. We had Omani enclaves with UAE exclaves in their enclaves. Having a seamless solution would make perfect sense in both cases where the roaming deals aren't very good.

In both situations, it is not where you can easily swap sims, reprogram call forwarding back and forth, as you do it. Canadian/US roaming is somewhat better than the UAE/Omani deals, but Canadians get hosed by their carriers. On the US side, we can get Canadian packages with Verizon and ATT, but voice, data, and text packages are all separate and you'll wind up spending $50 extra per phone (per month) if you go that way.

[hrgajek]

Just dropped in to this thread, as a friend asked me about it (he doesn't understand english) .

After reading this thread and the linked pages the main question is stil unanswered for me. Which countries and Networks will "knowroaming" use for their ownIMSI or multi IMSIs?
How stable will this solution be?
(especially "new" or "Island-based" carriers have Problems with routing and accessibility, we remember Isle of Man SIMs or "new" british area/Network prefix codes etc.

Which number will you get for this SIM and what does your conventional carrier charge you for call forwarding to this number?

[bylo]

KnowRoaming is now open to the general public.

Reduce Roaming Fees with KnowRoaming

Canadian startup to offer technology aimed at cutting roaming rates

KnowRoaming sticker SIMs can now help more people avoid roaming charges

From what I can tell it's $30 for the SIM sticker and then fixed costs for voice calls, SMS, data, etc. It seems like a reasonable option for people who stay in a country for short periods that don't justify the cost and hassle of getting a local SIM card. The convenience of not needing to swap SIMs is a great feature. Also "Balance Expires after 15 months of no activity."

[hrgajek]

Hello,

Do I understand it right, you fix a sticker on your existing SIM-Card.
This "piggypack" would be a little bit "thicker" than the original SIM-Card. How Do you insert this in state of the art smartphones with Micro or Nano-SIM-Cards?

e.g. Apple denies any warranty, if the SIM-card-holder is damaged by home designed or Piggy-Pack SIM-cards.

[bylo]

Originally Posted by hrgajek

Do I understand it right, you fix a sticker on your existing SIM-Card.
This "piggypack" would be a little bit "thicker" than the original SIM-Card. How Do you insert this in state of the art smartphones with Micro or Nano-SIM-Cards?

Indeed it's a sticker that intercepts electrical signals before they go to the regular SIM. If you're in your "home" country it passes everything through. Otherwise it "takes over" and functions as a second SIM.

Knowroaming claims that this sticker will fit over regular, micro and nano SIMs. They also claim that their latest sticker is 30% thinner than previous versions and was designed to fit into SIM card holders and frames. (See KnowRoaming announces unlimited data plans in 55 countries, 30% thinner sticker.)

I don't have any trips planned outside Canada for the rest of the year so I'm in no hurry to buy and test their SIM. But unless I see bad reviews I intend to buy one next year.

[hrgajek]

Hello again,

I've got one.

Its really thin like a sticker and is "pressed" with an included Kit on the existing SIM card.

I plugged it very carefully in the slot of and low cost Android (4.2.2) device and it fit. But be very careful!

You can activate the SIM-Package by a onboard SIM Tool Kit Application - even with a pre Smartphone-aera Phone - plus an app available for Android or iOS or via the web.

After registering it, I've got to international numbers for it

+44 7418 5xxxxx which belongs to Telecoms North America Mobile (says british OFCOM)

+1 304 275 xxxx

Both numbers cannot be reached from Germany. (Tested various Carriers and networks)

So I contacted the support.

They told me to top it up (minimum 25 US$), but numbers remain unavailable.

Support advised me to change manually from "Home SIM" to "Germany".
The SIM-Cards changes its name from "E-Plus" (this is my home sime, to be exact "Simyo") to "260060".

If I understand it right 260-06(0) is the Network Code of Poland "Play/P4" a 3G-only Provider with national roaming with 2G networks inside of Poland.

If switched in the "Play" mode, my Phone sees 4 german networks (Telekom D1, Vodafone D2, E-Plus, o2) but no network allows me to enter it.

I'm not sure, if "Play" has full roaming agreements in Germany or if there is problem in the HLR /"Switch" of Play in Poland or Knowroaming in CDN or if german networks alltogether do not want this creative idea.

Or I have really to login in a foreign network (to france it would be 100 kms from here) before the SIM cards get active? I could check this out earliest at weekend.