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Joined: 16/12/2009
Posts: 1
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Good afternoon. I am hoping for some advise from some seasoned yachties out there about these roaming specific SIM cards. I got tipped off in the bar the other night to some 'Global Sim cards' to avoid incurring crazy charges while abroad working onboard and changing countries regularly. Truphone was the first one I looked into...then came across a comparison website called http://www.prepaidgsm.net/ that looks at others such as WorldSIM. I currently have an unlocked Iphone and often change from my UK & Spanish SIM's...neither of which I can keep credit on for more than a few days. I am hoping someone has found the perfect SIM and tarif for us working on boats to keep in touch with the world....and perhaps even a better job opportunity =) Cheers Gregg
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Joined: 01/06/2008
Posts: 1011
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Gregg wrote: I am hoping someone has found the perfect SIM and tarif for us working on boats to keep in touch with the world....and perhaps even a better job opportunity =) Cheers Gregg
One day... at least we can hope... I've been waiting for the telecom industry to get it together for 25 years and it hasn't happened yet. Just too much profit in the roaming.
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Joined: 10/05/2008
Posts: 21
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I travel between 6 Caribbean countries on a regular basis and including central America visit others often. I carry a Verizon global sim card in an unlocked Blackberry, and a second Blackberry for a local sim card for each port. While I can still use the Verizon phone anywhere it is expensive. No roaming from Mexico and Canada if you get the plan. So if I recieve a call on it I call the number back. They also offer very cheap black Berry plans. my last one was $20 for three months. I have found Digicel to be used in all of the countries and a sim card from one will work when you pull into the next port, but roaming charges occur until you get a local number. Digicel has the best calling rates back to the US and Canada (as low as 0.02/m). I still use Skype to keep in touch with friends and family back home. Lime, Claro and in some places (Cayman) Digicel offers a wireless internet plan that works the same as 4G in the states. If you get an unlocked dugle stick you can get a sim card locally for the internet as well. I have found cheap unlocked Black Berrys on Amazon, refurbished Storm and Bold are what I use. Hope this helps.
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Get a "Pay as you go sim card" as soon as you can in the country you are and use Skype for international calls.
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Joined: 01/06/2008
Posts: 1011
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benjaminfisher wrote:I travel between 6 Caribbean countries on a regular basis and including central America visit others often. I carry a Verizon global sim card in an unlocked Blackberry, and a second Blackberry for a local sim card for each port.
That's basically what I do only I use T Mobile out of the US since they are the only company that supports Wifi calling. As long as I have a good enough signal on the VSat and my phone is on wifi calling and my Ft Lauderdale phone number rings anywhere in the world; works on any broadband network and they charge me as my normal plan. Still get latency though...
Gotta have 2 phones still though internationally, if not for voice for data. Data roaming is horribly expensive.
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Joined: 22/12/2011
Posts: 1
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Hi seafarers,
I use a system named Global Yacht Mobile.
The site is GYMSIM.COM
Prepaid SIM,
Recharge on internet,
Best prices (so far) to call mobiles OR landlines,
NO ROAMING CHARGES,
DATA.
DOES NOT WORK IN FRANCE
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Joined: 06/01/2011
Posts: 81
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Whilst In UK Try 3 ( three.co.uk) their call credit never ever times out if you do not use it although to keep the number live you need to make one call on it every 6 months. So unlike the rip offs in France where you top up €15 for 14 days - this lasts forever with three. Once I made £10 last a whole year. No joking. I asked everyone to call me and if I had to make a call I asked them to call me back - or I used Skype..
2) their handsets all use Skype and this is free - they say it always will be - so you do not incur additional data charges for using it - they were the first in the UK to offer skype on handsets.
3) They have however just this week made their offers last from 90 days to 45 which is essentially a doubling of prices. So if you buy a 500 MB data add on to surf the net this used to last for 3 months if you were sensible, now it only lasts for a month and a half. In effect a doubling of prices.
Before I had 3.co.uk (2008-onwards), in 2007-2008 I had a WorldSIM which I bought on the Easyjet flight to Nice. This was free to me to receive calls and the caller just paid a UK charge or it came out of her bundle of minutes. Or so we thought. Although an 079 number which is mobile in the Yookay, it actually was registered in Jersey. The upshot was she had a massive bill for £120 as she was calling me *from* a "Jersey" mobile to a UK number 3 times a week and there was a certain time lag before bills came in and we realised. I complained to Easyjet and them, their customer service number pertained to be in London but was VOIP to ...you guessed it.. .. Jersey. After that they then started charging a 50p a day WHEN a call was received which was different to what I read on the plane So if I had received at least one call a day, I would have paid Min £15 a month - which started to look un-competitive. I let it drop...
I give you this information so you to do not get stung, there is no solution really apart from to use Skype wherever you can although Morocco has just disenabled Skype over their Internet in the last few days (23/2/2012) so you cannot use it, they want you to use their network and pay their MAD - Caribbean do not like you using it really, in Nelson's Dockyard the english-run Café next to the stores there had a sign saying it was illegal - but just let the authorities try and organise themselves to catch you - And of course with each caller on Skype taking 80-90kb upstream, it will not take long for the average upstream speed - (especially in Carib countries where ADSL is low) of around 250k to become saturated and for calls to drop out.
But its your only hope
Yours 'aye Cap'n Ed MCP, MSCE, CompTIA
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Joined: 21/09/2009
Posts: 2
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Hi Greg,
I have used http://www.gymsim.com/ a couple of years back and found it to be great.
They have included France and therefore Monaco, in their country list and say it works fine there.
The reason I really like this Sim is the one number world wide concept so Owners, Captains, Crew and Friends can access you with ease.
If you satrt giving out a perfusion of different numbers for several countries, it will not be long before the important call you are waiting for simply goes to someone that can be contacted!
Hope this help, Peter... British Peter, Technical Troubleshooter.
PS. Some Yachtie Items For Sale!
http://bit.ly/xOrLOF Seatel TAC92 Satellite Antenna Controller £9.95
http://bit.ly/wqaFXG Simtronics GD10p Gas Detector, Brand New, Unused. Buy Now or Best Offer! £299.
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Joined: 15/02/2009
Posts: 13
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I am with Henning on that!
(One day... at least we can hope... I've been waiting for the telecom industry to get it together for 25 years and it hasn't happened yet. Just too much profit in the roaming).
I got the GYMSIM for all crew years ago. Good system and relative cheap but ..... it's not always working. They use "existing" platforms for the service and sometimes you are just cut off. Not good if you need to be on-line or available to owner, agents, managers 24/7/365 ....
... I have a box with around 35 pre-paid SIM cards for the countries I am sailing ..... the problem are always the phone numbers you have stored on the cards .... and the lack of time you have to take care of it.
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Joined: 14/10/2008
Posts: 34
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Last year I was denied a pay as you go sim in the UK, because I did not have a UK credit card.
In France, I got a France Telecom Pay as you go data plan, wonderful, it cost me less than 100 Euro for two month pretty heawy use. They do need an address, but "carpark Nice Airport" was perfectly acceptable. I also got a Lebara voice plan,, which also worked ok.
In the States this winter, I signed up for a AT&T iPad pay as you go, again wonderful and cheap, 25 usd/month. Again, they required a local (US) credit card. Remember to cancel when leaving, since ther is an auto-renewal on. I also did an AT&T voice plan, but found tat this did not go over the AT&T network (???) and often coverage was bad.
This all on the US Continent, not the Caribbean.
It is still a jungle, I think Henning is right, the profit is too good for anyone ro seriously plug that hole.
good luck.
Soren
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Joined: 14/01/2009
Posts: 1029
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Local Sim cards and handsets as you travel seem to be the only way out. Ive got a whole locker full of the buggers ...some might be valuable as classics.
UBS sticks charged 1gig for data coupled with Skype seems to do the trick for yacht buisness.. I have best luck with reception , price and recharge abilty by staying inside the Vodafone network when working the East West Mediterranean region . There might be better options.
Some countries restrict access to sims for non residents so fast talking and two stepping may be needed to get your hands on local service. .
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