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Two Questions

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  Two Questions Ken Blake <Ken@invalid.news.com> - 2024-12-02 11:24 -0700
    Re: Two Questions Andrew <andys@nospam.com> - 2024-12-02 18:53 +0000
    Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-02 22:03 +0100
      Re: Two Questions Andrew <andys@nospam.com> - 2024-12-03 01:15 +0000
        Re: Two Questions micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> - 2024-12-02 23:04 -0500
      Re: Two Questions Ken Blake <Ken@invalid.news.com> - 2024-12-03 08:30 -0700
    Re: Two Questions micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> - 2024-12-02 22:57 -0500
      Re: Two Questions Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2024-12-03 14:15 +0000
        Re: Two Questions Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2024-12-03 14:25 +0000
          Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-03 15:46 +0100
          Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-03 16:01 +0100
            Re: Two Questions Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2024-12-03 16:21 +0000
        Re: Two Questions Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2024-12-03 16:28 +0000
          Re: Two Questions Ken Blake <Ken@invalid.news.com> - 2024-12-03 11:58 -0700
            Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-03 20:14 +0100
          Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-03 20:11 +0100
            Re: Two Questions Dave Royal <dave@dave123royal.com> - 2024-12-03 19:25 +0000
              Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-03 20:38 +0100
            Re: Two Questions Ken Blake <Ken@invalid.news.com> - 2024-12-04 08:21 -0700
              Re: Two Questions Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2024-12-04 16:36 +0000
                Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-04 19:46 +0100
                  Re: Two Questions Chris <ithinkiam@gmail.com> - 2024-12-04 18:54 +0000
                    Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-04 20:10 +0100
                      Re: Two Questions Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2024-12-04 19:22 +0000
                        Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-04 20:57 +0100
                        Re: Two Questions Chris <ithinkiam@gmail.com> - 2024-12-04 23:26 +0000
                          Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-05 00:53 +0100
                            Re: Two Questions Chris <ithinkiam@gmail.com> - 2024-12-05 08:10 +0000
                              Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-05 11:45 +0100
                                Re: Two Questions Chris <ithinkiam@gmail.com> - 2024-12-05 11:10 +0000
                                Re: Two Questions Dave Royal <dave@dave123royal.com> - 2024-12-05 12:48 +0000
                                  Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-05 15:22 +0100
                                Re: Two Questions micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> - 2024-12-06 00:13 -0500
                                  Re: Two Questions sticks <wolverine01@charter.net> - 2024-12-06 00:53 -0600
                                  Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-06 13:18 +0100
                          Re: Two Questions Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2024-12-05 11:13 +0000
                  Re: Two Questions Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2024-12-04 19:08 +0000
                    Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-04 21:00 +0100
                Re: Two Questions Chris <ithinkiam@gmail.com> - 2024-12-04 18:52 +0000
                Re: Two Questions Ken Blake <Ken@invalid.news.com> - 2024-12-05 08:42 -0700
                  Re: Two Questions Chris <ithinkiam@gmail.com> - 2024-12-05 18:32 +0000
      Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-03 15:50 +0100
      Re: Two Questions Ken Blake <Ken@invalid.news.com> - 2024-12-03 08:36 -0700
    Re: Two Questions Chris <ithinkiam@gmail.com> - 2024-12-03 07:54 +0000
      Re: Two Questions micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> - 2024-12-03 13:16 -0500
        Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-03 20:19 +0100
          Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-03 22:24 +0100
            Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-03 22:54 +0100
              Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-04 02:07 +0100
                Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-04 03:10 +0100
                  Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-04 07:26 +0100
                    Re: Two Questions Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2024-12-04 11:08 +0000
                    Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-04 12:58 +0100
                      Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-04 15:46 +0100
                      Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-04 15:53 +0100
                        Re: Two Questions sticks <wolverine01@charter.net> - 2024-12-04 09:57 -0600
                          Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-07 08:57 +0100
                            Re: Two Questions "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2024-12-07 14:38 +0100
                              Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-07 14:54 +0100
                              Re: Two Questions micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> - 2024-12-09 09:20 -0500
                                Re: Two Questions Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> - 2024-12-09 18:41 +0100
                            Re: Two Questions sticks <wolverine01@charter.net> - 2024-12-07 08:13 -0600
    Re: Two Questions "s|b" <me@privacy.invalid> - 2024-12-04 22:38 +0100

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#144750 — Two Questions

I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy) this coming March and April.

I have a Google Pixel 4a. What can I do to enable my phone to make and
receive calls while I'm away?

What can I do to get walking maps of the cities I'll be in into Waze
or Google maps.

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#144752

Ken Blake wrote on Mon, 02 Dec 2024 11:24:33 -0700 :

> I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy) this coming March and April.
> 
> I have a Google Pixel 4a. What can I do to enable my phone to make and
> receive calls while I'm away?
> 
> What can I do to get walking maps of the cities I'll be in into Waze
> or Google maps.

I'm a purposefully helpful kind-hearted person so I wrote up a lot below to
help you (and to help others like you) route offline while they travel.

If you have a T-Mobile post-paid plan in the USA, you're "probably" covered
since my basic plan covers me in my visit to Europe every year with free
unlimited data & unlimited roaming & unlimited texting (including MMS).

Hotspotting/tethering (which they call the same thing but it's not) is
limited to only 5GB/month per phone on the T-Mobile basic postpaid plan.

Even if you do NOT have the basic T-Mobile plan, most carriers 'should'
allow you to buy an enhanced plan (particularly for data) on a monthly
basis (e.g., T-Mobile offers a $10 per month addition for hotspot data).

In that T-Mobile basic plan, the only thing you pay for is phone calls. 
They're 25 cents per minute, coming or going, to and from the phone.

That is, they're 25 cents per minute calling the USA or receiving a call
from the USA and 25 cents per minute calling locally or receiving a local
call. That's the only expense - but you can get around that expense too.

Make your calls on Wi-Fi (if you can find a local access point that is).
If you're not on T-Mobile, ask your carrier if they have a European add on.

If you don't have a plan that covers it, you'll need a SIM card that does
have the service where you'll be traveling - where the frequencies "may"
matter (Steve always talks a lot about that) but in my experience, most
phones have at least one frequency that is the same as the local area.

And that one frequency is all you need.

You may need to turn on roaming though, so I would advise you to call your
carrier at 611 on your phone and ask them how to turn on your roaming.

As for maps, what's wrong with OSMAnd~ offline maps?
 *OsmAnd& Maps & GPS Offline by OsmAnd, In-app purchases
 Free, ad free, 4.5 star, 153K reviews, 10M+ Downloads
 <https://osmand.net/>
 <https://f-droid.org/repo/net.osmand.plus_431203.apk>
 <https://f-droid.org/en/packages/net.osmand.plus/>
 <https://github.com/osmandapp/OsmAnd>

You can download Google Maps offline, which I did for years when it first
came out, but it's so much of a PITA that I don't bother with that anymore.

While I am aware you're not all that technical, someone technical like I am
easily uses geoPDFs of any area in the world which you can download and
route and show your position (all the USA parks and every inch of the USA
except for the military locations has a free georeferenced PDF for that).

Most people use Avenza for routing on georeferenced PDFs.
 *Avenza Maps* Offline Mapping by Avenza Systems Inc., In-app purchases
 Free, ad free, 4.6 star, 72.6K reviews, 1M+ Downloads
 <https://www.avenza.com/avenza-maps/>
 <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.Avenza>
 <https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id388424049>

But I use Paper Maps because it has fewer limitations than does Avenza.
 *Paper Maps* by Abbro Inc, In-app purchases
 Free, ad free, 5K+ Downloads
 <https://www.paper-maps.com/>
 <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ca.abbro.androidmap>
 <https://apps.apple.com/app/nextmap/id1147385120>

While this is for technical people, meaning not so much for you, what I use
also is a site which generates geoPDFs for any area, such as Caltopo.
 <https://caltopo.com/map.html#ll=40.14529,14.83154&z=5&b=mbt>
 <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.caltopo.android>

With Caltopo, you can plan a route and save it on a georeferenced PDF.
Then you can load that georeferenced PDF & route into any map program.
 <https://www.offline-maps.net/>
 <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.psyberia.offlinemaps>

There's more (much more) if you know what you're doing, as I never have any
problem in Europe (I visit Germany every year like clockwork) routing.

Good luck. Most of what I said above is for experts though.

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#144771

On 2024-12-02 19:24, Ken Blake wrote:
> I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy) this coming March and April.
> 
> I have a Google Pixel 4a. What can I do to enable my phone to make and
> receive calls while I'm away?

The important detail is who is your provider and what plan you got from 
them. You have to ask them what are their fees while you are in the EU, 
and whether they have travel plans.

If they are too expensive the solution is to buy, either on Amazon 
before departure, or in the EU, a prepaid SIM card, and connect it as 
secondary SIM card in your phone, which I hope is dual SIM.

Otherwise, replace your normal SIM and tell your family your new number.


> 
> What can I do to get walking maps of the cities I'll be in into Waze
> or Google maps.

My preferred method is to install OSMAnd app, and dowload now the 
countries of interest.

With a proper secondary SIM card, you can navigate as usual.

Notice that the conditions of a card bought in one country of the EU 
might be different when you change country, so ask the merchant about 
that. There are agreements so that the cards work when changing 
countries, with similar prices (no roaming charges) but there are limits 
and some differences.

-- 
Cheers, Carlos.

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#144782

Carlos E.R. wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 22:03:55 +0100 :

> Otherwise, replace your normal SIM and tell your family your new number.

Which reminds me that there are a bunch of "second line" apps which give
you a "real" phone number (so to speak) if you can get on the Internet.

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#144792

In comp.mobile.android, on Tue, 3 Dec 2024 01:15:16 -0000 (UTC), Andrew
<andys@nospam.com> wrote:

>Carlos E.R. wrote on Mon, 2 Dec 2024 22:03:55 +0100 :
>
>> Otherwise, replace your normal SIM and tell your family your new number.
>
>Which reminds me that there are a bunch of "second line" apps which give
>you a "real" phone number (so to speak) if you can get on the Internet.

I set up one of those for my 83 year old friend, who has no cellular
account but piggybacks on her next door n'bor's wifi.  I thought it
would be good for her when she walked over to a farther neigbbor, or
went to the doctor, but she wasn't interested and if you don't use it
for ???? 30 days???, the number gets taken back and you have to start
all over.  It worked well, I could call out and call in. Maybe I could
even leave messages?   I don't remember which one worked the best but if
anyone cares, I can check her phone next time I see her. 

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#144812

On Mon, 2 Dec 2024 22:03:55 +0100, "Carlos E.R."
<robin_listas@es.invalid> wrote:

>On 2024-12-02 19:24, Ken Blake wrote:
>> I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy) this coming March and April.
>> 
>> I have a Google Pixel 4a. What can I do to enable my phone to make and
>> receive calls while I'm away?
>
>The important detail is who is your provider and what plan you got from 
>them. You have to ask them what are their fees while you are in the EU, 
>and whether they have travel plans.
>
>If they are too expensive the solution is to buy, either on Amazon 
>before departure, or in the EU, a prepaid SIM card, and connect it as 
>secondary SIM card in your phone, which I hope is dual SIM.
>
>Otherwise, replace your normal SIM and tell your family your new number.
>
>
>> 
>> What can I do to get walking maps of the cities I'll be in into Waze
>> or Google maps.
>
>My preferred method is to install OSMAnd app, and dowload now the 
>countries of interest.
>
>With a proper secondary SIM card, you can navigate as usual.
>
>Notice that the conditions of a card bought in one country of the EU 
>might be different when you change country, so ask the merchant about 
>that. There are agreements so that the cards work when changing 
>countries, with similar prices (no roaming charges) but there are limits 
>and some differences.


TVM.

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#144791

In comp.mobile.android, on Mon, 02 Dec 2024 11:24:33 -0700, Ken Blake
<Ken@invalid.news.com> wrote:

>I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy) this coming March and April.

Lucky you.  Now I want to go somewhere.  (We'll see if the doctor can
lessen my back pain, so I can walk again. (At least I can still drive.))
>
>I have a Google Pixel 4a. What can I do to enable my phone to make and
>receive calls while I'm away?

For a trip that long, I doubt any plan by your US cellular provider will
be anywhere near as cheap as what I do, rent a sim in the country I'm
going to.   One or 2 years I had it mailed to me in Baltimore (they had
an agent in the US who did that.) Other times, I got the SIM at or near
the airport, when I landed. I got good advice from Trip Advisor on which
sim guy was good. (there were really only two selling to the US and they
were both good.)   The first year I used Skype to call home and even
bought a Skype phone number, then Whatsapp, but as time went on, the
SIMs I got there included a USA phone number, so it was really easy for
people to reach me.  I don't know how common this is in the 3 countries
yuu're going to.  
>
>What can I do to get walking maps of the cities I'll be in into Waze
>or Google maps.

I know someone who helped develop Waze, so I have great affection for
it, but Waza in my opinion is mostly for directions, but google maps is
mostly for knowing where you are and what is nearby.  I don't need
directions that much, I know how to read a map, and Google maps has
directions when I need them, so I use it.   I brought a laptop and when
directions mattered, I would plan my travels the night before, and send
or email or both the directions to the phone. 

Are you renting a car?  Lots of suggestions if you are. What's the best
clip to attach the phone to the dashboard, etc. 

Do you speak the languages of any or all 3 countries?   Because I still
don't, and I wanted news or talk radio, not just music, I wanted some
non-local station.  YOu don't have to decide this until you need to, but
the way to get stations out of the geographical zone is with a VPN.  I
tried Firefox VPN and I couldnt' get it to work, then Nord VPN and I
coudln't get it to work, and I wondered if I was as smart as my mother
told me I was.  But Express VPN installed very easily, and for the same
price, it goes into Windows and on your Android phone. Worked really
well, including for videos from the US. (Had to turn if off a few times
to listen to a local station)  Pay by the month and when you get home
you can cancel it.  

I used Tunein to listen to American news etc. (I was careful not to but
I accidentally said I wanted the paid version and let the free month go
by using it and had to pay for the next momnth.) 

The new/used  laptop I bought tonight has a place for a SIM, but I used
and will likely still use, my phone as a hotspot to feed internet to the
laptop.  All phones can be hotspots now, right?  Or at laest yours can? 

At least 2 or 3 years, my car had a video screen and worked with that
app which casts Android to the car radio. I forget the name. So I could
get google maps on the car screen, but it's not the whole system. The
map is there, and maybe, I forget, restaurants, hotels, tourist things,
at least a few, but  you can't tap on them and learn anything about
them.  For that you need the phone, and at least in 2021, you could not
have anything on the phone and the car screen at the same time, iiuc. So
I ended up putting OSMand on the car screen, and it turns out it's
easier and safer to read when driving than google maps is. I kept google
on the phone and referred to it and all its details when I needed it. 

(Sometimes I ran the laptop off the cigarette lighter, and one day I was
really into it and wanted to put GPS into the laptop, and they have
that, but it didn't sound like it worked that well. I've given up that
plan to have GPS.  But I still use the laptop in the car a lot.
Sometimes I sleep in the car, use it before I sleep and then check my
email in the morning.  I roll up my clothes so the laptop can sit level
on the passenger seat.   The new laptop is only 4 pounds, instead of 6.
I guess that is good, even though all the accessories weigh another 4
pounds.) 

There was also a local app with walkng tours of a quite a few places
around the country. I only found one interesting but it was really good,
historical. Your countries probably have that.  I think I heard about
mine on TripAdvisor.com. 

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#144806

micky wrote:

> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.

A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU 
country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.

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#144808

Andy Burns wrote:

> micky wrote:
> 
>> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
> 
> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU 
> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.

Not sure why I said "free", I should have said at no additional cost.

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#144809

On 2024-12-03 15:25, Andy Burns wrote:
> Andy Burns wrote:
> 
>> micky wrote:
>>
>>> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
>>
>> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU 
>> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.
> 
> Not sure why I said "free", I should have said at no additional cost.

But sometimes companies apply a limit. I'm unsure of the details.

-- 
Cheers, Carlos.

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#144811

On 03.12.24 15:25, Andy Burns wrote:
> Andy Burns wrote:
> 
>> micky wrote:
>>
>>> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
>>
>> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU 
>> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.
> 
> Not sure why I said "free", I should have said at no additional cost.

Intra EU roaming charges are forbidden for many years.

A new SIM for a couple of days? Not really.
The OP should ask his US-provider what it has on offer for such trips.

When I travel in the US - the opposite direction - I use my regular plan
from my Swiss provider that includes 40GB data and unlimited calls to
and from USA, Canda and all of Europe. Costs $50/month.

That is really trouble free usage of mobile communication.

Coverage:

Alaska, Andorra, Belgien, Bulgarien, Dänemark, Deutschland, Estland,
Färöer, Finnland, Frankreich, Gibraltar, Griechenland, Grossbritannien,
Guernsey, Hawaii, Irland, Island, Isle of Man, Italien, Jersey, Kanada,
Kroatien, Lettland, Litauen, Luxemburg, Malta, Monaco, Niederlande,
Norwegen, Österreich, Polen, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Rumänien, San
Marino, Schweden, Slowakei, Slowenien, Spanien, St. Croix, St. John, St.
Thomas, Tschechien, Türkei, USA, Ukraine, Ungarn, Vatikan, Zypern

-- 
"De gustibus non est disputandum."

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#144822

Jörg Lorenz <hugybear@gmx.net> wrote:
> On 03.12.24 15:25, Andy Burns wrote:
> > Andy Burns wrote:
> > 
> >> micky wrote:
> >>
> >>> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
> >>
> >> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU 
> >> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.
> > 
> > Not sure why I said "free", I should have said at no additional cost.
> 
> Intra EU roaming charges are forbidden for many years.
> 
> A new SIM for a couple of days? Not really.

  Not a few days, probably two *months*: "this coming March and April"

> The OP should ask his US-provider what it has on offer for such trips.

  Yes, whatever he does, he should *also* ask his US-provider.

[...]

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#144823

Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> wrote:
> micky wrote:
> 
> > rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
> 
> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU 
> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.

  And for the EU you probably don't need to rent a SIM, but just buy
one, probably with a pre-paid plan.

  Ken said "I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy)...". If he visits
them in that order, Carlos may be able to give some suggestions/pointers
for Spain. If Ken could indicate how much minutes/'texts'/GB he would
need per unit of time, that would help.

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#144834

On 3 Dec 2024 16:28:17 GMT, Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid>
wrote:

>Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> wrote:
>> micky wrote:
>> 
>> > rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
>> 
>> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU 
>> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.
>
>  And for the EU you probably don't need to rent a SIM, but just buy
>one, probably with a pre-paid plan.
>
>  Ken said "I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy)...". If he visits
>them in that order, 

Yes.


>Carlos may be able to give some suggestions/pointers
>for Spain. If Ken could indicate how much minutes/'texts'/GB he would
>need per unit of time, that would help.


There's free wi-fi in all the hotels I'll be in.  I don't know how
many minutes/'texts'/GB I would need. I was mostly concerned with
calling a taxi if I wasn't able to walk any farther. Or getting Uber
if I'm someplace that has it.

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#144838

On 2024-12-03 19:58, Ken Blake wrote:
> On 3 Dec 2024 16:28:17 GMT, Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid>
> wrote:
> 
>> Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> wrote:
>>> micky wrote:
>>>
>>>> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
>>>
>>> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU
>>> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.
>>
>>   And for the EU you probably don't need to rent a SIM, but just buy
>> one, probably with a pre-paid plan.
>>
>>   Ken said "I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy)...". If he visits
>> them in that order,
> 
> Yes.
> 
> 
>> Carlos may be able to give some suggestions/pointers
>> for Spain. If Ken could indicate how much minutes/'texts'/GB he would
>> need per unit of time, that would help.
> 
> 
> There's free wi-fi in all the hotels I'll be in.  I don't know how
> many minutes/'texts'/GB I would need. I was mostly concerned with
> calling a taxi if I wasn't able to walk any farther. Or getting Uber
> if I'm someplace that has it.

Yep.

One note, taxi calling in Spain is now done with an app. Varies per 
city, I think. There are competing apps.

-- 
Cheers, Carlos.

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#144837

On 2024-12-03 17:28, Frank Slootweg wrote:
> Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> wrote:
>> micky wrote:
>>
>>> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
>>
>> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU
>> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.
> 
>    And for the EU you probably don't need to rent a SIM, but just buy
> one, probably with a pre-paid plan.
> 
>    Ken said "I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy)...". If he visits
> them in that order, Carlos may be able to give some suggestions/pointers
> for Spain. If Ken could indicate how much minutes/'texts'/GB he would
> need per unit of time, that would help.

Orange had a nice offer two years ago, but I don't know currently. 
Almost unlimited usage for 50 or 60 euros, for a month.

The best method is not asking the locals, but entering a shop that tends 
to multiple brands in an immigrant district. My cousin did that in 
Barcelona and surprised me by finding a very good deal I did not know about.

Just a note: they will ask you to show an ID. This is counter-terrorism 
measures since 9-11 and 11M

-- 
Cheers, Carlos.

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#144840

"Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> Wrote in message:

> Just a note: they will ask you to show an ID. This is counter-terrorism 
> measures since 9-11 and 11M
> 

11M = 11th Marzo - i.e. Atocha?
-- 
Remove numerics from my email address.

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#144841

On 2024-12-03 20:25, Dave Royal wrote:
> "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> Wrote in message:
> 
>> Just a note: they will ask you to show an ID. This is counter-terrorism
>> measures since 9-11 and 11M
>>
> 
> 11M = 11th Marzo - i.e. Atocha?

Exactly.

-- 
Cheers, Carlos.

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#144885

On Tue, 3 Dec 2024 20:11:38 +0100, "Carlos E.R."
<robin_listas@es.invalid> wrote:

>On 2024-12-03 17:28, Frank Slootweg wrote:
>> Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> wrote:
>>> micky wrote:
>>>
>>>> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
>>>
>>> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU
>>> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.
>> 
>>    And for the EU you probably don't need to rent a SIM, but just buy
>> one, probably with a pre-paid plan.
>> 
>>    Ken said "I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy)...". If he visits
>> them in that order, Carlos may be able to give some suggestions/pointers
>> for Spain. If Ken could indicate how much minutes/'texts'/GB he would
>> need per unit of time, that would help.
>
>Orange had a nice offer two years ago, but I don't know currently. 
>Almost unlimited usage for 50 or 60 euros, for a month.

Thanks, but much more than I'm  willing to spend. I hope to never need
to use it, but just want something available in case I need to.


>
>The best method is not asking the locals, but entering a shop that tends 
>to multiple brands in an immigrant district. My cousin did that in 
>Barcelona and surprised me by finding a very good deal I did not know about.
>
>Just a note: they will ask you to show an ID. This is counter-terrorism 
>measures since 9-11 and 11M

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#144888

Ken Blake <Ken@invalid.news.com> wrote:
> On Tue, 3 Dec 2024 20:11:38 +0100, "Carlos E.R."
> <robin_listas@es.invalid> wrote:
> 
> >On 2024-12-03 17:28, Frank Slootweg wrote:
> >> Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> wrote:
> >>> micky wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> rent a sim in the country I'm going to.
> >>>
> >>> A SIM for any EU country ought to allow free roaming to any other EU
> >>> country, so the O/P won't need three SIMs.
> >> 
> >>    And for the EU you probably don't need to rent a SIM, but just buy
> >> one, probably with a pre-paid plan.
> >> 
> >>    Ken said "I'll be in Europe (Spain, France, Italy)...". If he visits
> >> them in that order, Carlos may be able to give some suggestions/pointers
> >> for Spain. If Ken could indicate how much minutes/'texts'/GB he would
> >> need per unit of time, that would help.
> >
> >Orange had a nice offer two years ago, but I don't know currently. 
> >Almost unlimited usage for 50 or 60 euros, for a month.
> 
> Thanks, but much more than I'm  willing to spend. I hope to never need
> to use it, but just want something available in case I need to.

  You said you wanted to be able to call a taxi, in case you need one.
If so, you need to be prepared and that something is "available" is of
little help in such cases, you need to *have* it.

  My advice: If you have a dual-SIM phone, buy a local pre-paid SIM when
you arrive. Will probably only cost you the credit supplied on the SIM,
i.e. some 10 dollars or so. If you don't have a dual-SIM phone, but can
swap SIMs (i.e. you can't be contacted on your US number, but can still
use things like WhatsApp), do the same (pre-paid SIM).

  If you want more advice, *talk* to us. Sofar you have given very
little information/feedback.

> >The best method is not asking the locals, but entering a shop that tends 
> >to multiple brands in an immigrant district. My cousin did that in 
> >Barcelona and surprised me by finding a very good deal I did not know about.
> >
> >Just a note: they will ask you to show an ID. This is counter-terrorism 
> >measures since 9-11 and 11M

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