Pay As You Go Data Plans Is The Way To Go

Having spent almost ten days in London this month and experimented with Pay as You Go Data plans from T-Mobile and Hutchison 3, I have to say the USA carriers are missing the mark big time.

Forget the fact that to use them you need a SIM card capable PC like the Flybook or Sony Vaios, or an unlocked USB Broadband modem like what I'm using from Sierra Wireless. That's the price to come to the party. But at a pound a day, and with unlimited data use, I'm finding that staying connected is a whole lot easier.

Here's how it works. You buy a SIM. Depending on the carrier you have to notify them via their web site or by calling up that you want their data plan, otherwise you get charged against your minutes on the pre-paid SIM. For five pounds a month you get unlimited Data from 3. For a pound a day you get Web N Walk from T-Mobile UK. For me, with a schedule that takes me to or through London every two months or so these days, its a great deal.

Need to add more to your balance? No worries. You just go into almost any supermarket or news agency, and buy a Top Up from a the pay point.

One more benefit. With T-Mobile, I can make calls back to the USA for 4p a minute. That's 8 cents and that means when I'm not using VoIP, I'm really saving money. 3 has similar plans.

The bottom line here is voice and data on the pre-paid front makes working anywhere in the UK an interestingly different proposition now for me.

Comments

[Jason]

This is awesome. I'm in the US and trying to use an N95. I already have a Verizon Wireless contract until June so pre-paid is how I wanted to go. Unfortunately with t-mobile to get prepaid I had to do a monthly plan (with no contract) and then add the unlimited data. You can't do unlimited data with AT&T or T-Mobile without having a month-to-month plan.