Best Smartphone Plan Covering US and Canada? 199
Posted
by
timothy
from the move-to-regular-scotia dept.
from the move-to-regular-scotia dept.
j00bhaka writes "I am a US citizen attending university in Nova Scotia, Canada. I currently have the Verizon America and Canada plan (also known as the North American plan). My bill is currently around $80-$100 per month. I chose this for a couple reasons. One, I have had my number for about 7 years. Two, I do not permanently live in Canada. I live in Canada for 8 months out of the year at school, then travel home for the summer months. Either way, I would be dealing with international roaming without having both countries in my plan. Currently, I obviously don't have a smartphone. Through Verizon, I could purchase one, and add their international unlimited data plan on top of my (already) hefty phone bill. I have looked into Telus and Rogers here in Canada and cannot find anything better. As a student, my budget is obviously limited. Is there any way to reasonably have (and utilize) a smartphone while I am living in both countries? If so, what do you suggest I do?"
Why a smartphone? Google voice + prepaid is best (Score:2, Interesting)
For your internet on the go, you would rely on wifi and your notebook/netbook.
I'm not sure what you want to achieve: (Score:3, Interesting)
International roaming will always be expensive, be it for calls or data.
1- do you really need it ? I'd expect Wifi to be available most anywhere you are (though not while you're actually on the move), so VOIP, maybe with both a Canadian and a US provider, should be OK for you most of the time.
2- for when you DO need voice or data on the move or out of Wifi coverage, it's you choice between a single number w/ expensive international roaming, or 2 numbers, swapping SIMs.
I don't know what your situation is, but lotsa students have managed to survive without mobile phones, or without $100 monthly bills. Might require a little planning and temperance.
Get multiple sim cards or.... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Don't bother (Score:1, Interesting)
Only idiots walked up hill both ways. You and your parents were part of that gene pool? Need some more chlorine in there?
My family walked down hill both ways.
Cell phones weren't given to children until the last 7 years. In 1999, most adults didn't have a cell phone. It amazes me how often people think they need a cell phone when they clearly just want one.
I've been using a pay-as-you-go T-Mobile phone for 4 years and have spent less than $200 total. I have a Nokia N800 and use Skype over WiFi all the time. It has worked in central and south America just fine too, so I suspect it will work in Canada.
An unlimited SkypeOut plan is just $3/month which will get you a number that others can call.
You ARE on slashdot. Setup an Asterisk PBX that has 2 DTDs (USA/Canada) to forward calls to whatever location you are at - skype, cell, home, mom, wherever.