[kousik]

Originally Posted by adityabenz

is it worth to buy an android mobile and use skype in it ? my dad will be going to Germany for a week and will be making local calls there and calls back home.

Provided you get wi-fi networks to latch on, this can be very good. Last time I traveled, made skype calls to home (installed skype on wife's mobile) from Hongkong (airport's free wifi) and hotel room (free wifi there too). (And both of us using cheapo Nokias not Android). Only problem might be those calls have to be scheduled beforehand.

[Somnita]

Hi,
Next month we are planning for 18days Europe tour (France,Switzerland and Italy).We need a SIM before leaving the country or is it better to go for local sim.But then I think we need 3 different sim for 3 countries.Kindly suggest what to do. At present I'm having vodafone prepaid connection.
Thanks,
Somnita

[sgiitk]

Please contact Matrix on inquiry@matrix.in You may get some answers. They are sure to be there in Bangalore. My friends have been using them for ages.

[vasoo]

If you are traveling to multiple countries, Matrix is a good option. Else try to pick up local prepaid SIM cards. I found using Matrix for a particular country to be too expensive. Had an experience of getting a INR 9k bill for a 10 day trip to US with very limited calls. The bill actually showed far too many calls than I have actually made/received and have disputed the same. Yet to get a proper response from them. Did not pursue further since it was an official trip. For US trips, picking up a T-mobile prepaid and filling it up with $50 will give you unlimited calls and messages with 1GB data for one month, excluding international calls. You have to register the number on their portal and change your plan accordingly.

[ghodlur]

Matrix is way too costly. During my trips to UK, I always used Lebara, very cheap. The calls to India costed around 2p/call (1min). There are other operators also in UK who would give you a 5p/call SIMs but nothing beats Lebara.

International Calls | Pay As You Go | Low Cost Calls | Lebara Mobile

[CRV2010]

Any suggestions for carriers in Malaysia. I would be in kuala lumpur for a week. I basically require free incoming, low rates to India and a good data plan

[.anshuman]

^^ I used DIGI on my trip to Malaysia some months back. Calls to India were cheap but Data was very expensive. Coverage was not an issue, not even in Langkawi.

[sgiitk]

Suggestions for the UAE? I also heard of the occasional fake billing problems with Matrix

[aks_karthik]

Another option is UNICONNECT UniConnect - Global Roaming SIM Card Provider .
I tried it twice when travelled to Germany.
It's good and no bombarding charges in biils.
Customer Care is also better than Matrix.

[shankar.balan]

Absolutely correct. This Matrix scam is a total waste of time.

Lebara in the UK is way way better and far far less expensive too - 2p per min to India is absolutely correct. Very nice indeed and inexpensive Internet access too.

I think the best thing is to land up in whichever country and then pick up a local SIM after checking rates. They are so freely available that it is really not a problem to get one.

Until one gets the local SIM, one can always (if need be and if one is extremely particular about staying connected) activate the home network International Roaming and use it if required, though personally I would not do it on account of the ridiculous costs involved.

Originally Posted by ghodlur

Matrix is way too costly. During my trips to UK, I always used Lebara, very cheap. The calls to India costed around 2p/call (1min). There are other operators also in UK who would give you a 5p/call SIMs but nothing beats Lebara.

International Calls | Pay As You Go | Low Cost Calls | Lebara Mobile

[dre@ms]

Local sim anytime with callback cards. When inside office and if they have wifi connectivity, i would prefer Nimbuuz. VOIP calls.

[Sahil]

I am skeptical with the horror stories of Matrix that I see here. However, I am tempted with their BB roaming chip, its 80 euros unlimited enterprise service or 60 euros unlimited personal mail service.

Clay has 200mb BB data usage world wide sim for 3500

Anyone tried either ?

[mail4ajo]

Any service providers offer microsims? I dont want to go Matrix as their charges are ridiculously high and bad experience on my last UK trip.

I have been using Uniconnect for a while. But they dont support microsims.

I have never tried to get a local SIM in the US on my past trips. Is it easy or difficult like India?

[Deep Blue]

Any suggestions for Singapore? Are local prepaid SIM cards available?

[rtandon]

Originally Posted by Deep Blue

Any suggestions for Singapore? Are local prepaid SIM cards available?

Starhub Green Prepaid. http://www.starhub.com/prepaid

I usually get the Happy 128 recharge. It gives you $28 worth of international call + $100 worth of local.
You would need to produce your passport to get a sim.