Oh, the holidays! In principle, it’s time to pick up and stop worrying about everything and nothing. Abroad, however, all you have to do is take your phone out of your pocket to see your level of anxiety skyrocket. Fortunately, there is a remedy for this. And it’s surprisingly durable.
It takes the form of an application that can be downloaded free of charge, from home, and which, once you land anywhere else in the world, allows you to connect to a local cellular network at very little charges and, above all, without receiving a bill artificially inflated by huge roaming charges from their usual service provider a month later.
If you’re planning on visiting a country other than Canada this summer (or whenever, in fact, from now on), this is the kind of app that could save you tens, if not hundreds of dollars. Especially if the whole family is with you. And that each of its members has their own phone. And craves to let his contacts on Instagram, Snapchat or TikTok know his moods live with the help of short videos that are as entertaining as they are expensive, if you forget to deactivate the use abroad of data mobiles on your mobiles…
Climbing roaming
Indeed, we will tell each other, the way Canadian providers calculate wireless roaming charges in 2023, it flirts dangerously with scams. Ten years ago, anyone who activated their cell phone when they landed in the United States only had to pay $5 to use their cell phone plan while roaming for the next 24 hours.
Over the past few years, this sum has increased steadily, reaching $14 these days at some providers. And the allowed roaming time has been changed from “the next 24 hours” to “until midnight today,” so anyone who decides to text when they land in Florida around 11:54 p.m. will have to pay $14 for it. one touch, then pay $14 again six minutes later if a second text is sent.
It gets a bit trickier if you’re unfortunate enough to be texting from an iPhone and the message you’re sending takes the form of a green bubble. Unlike the blue bubbles, the messages colored in green do not go through the wifi network, but through the cellular network. So even if you think you’ll avoid charges by using the airport’s — free, but probably insecure — network, you’ll be in for a nasty surprise when you get back.
In short, roaming charges are like water seeping through the rock: all the interstices are explored. And since there is a cure for this problem, it seems more appropriate to speak of a climbing disease…
eSIM on request
The remedy, in a nutshell, is to install an application on your phone that lists the different eSIM plans offered by local providers where you will be staying for the next few days.
A package what?
These days, for a wireless to connect to a network in Canada, you have to insert a SIM card into the slot provided. The SIM card is the famous “chip” which, in another era, gave Fido its name. Because a dog has chips… This chip identifies the handset to the network and allows access to its wireless services.
An “eSIM” is the equivalent of a SIM card that is permanently grafted to your phone. Most newer smartphones have one. Its advantage: it can be configured to connect to the network of its choice, almost anywhere in the world. Provided you activate it with a predetermined plan.
So there are apps where you can find a bundle of eSIM plans available in virtually every country, including Canada. An eSIM plan is good for a day, a week, a month… and includes an agreed number of calls, texts and mobile data. Once exhausted, the package is deactivated. You can renew it or buy another one.
That’s all.
Where it gets interesting is that these eSIM plans, no matter where you go on the planet, are cheaper than the roaming charges imposed by Canadian carriers. They allow you to stay connected at all times, without losing your shirt.
eSIM comparator
eSIM cards have been around for a while now, and their popularity is only growing. So much so that there is a profusion of applications that will offer them to you on the mobile stores of Apple and Google. It gets mixed up pretty quickly.
So that consumers can find their way around, the creators of the PlanHub wireless and Internet plan comparator have just launched a site specializing in eSIMs. His name: Simbud. The site is under development, but is already online. It indicates the country visited, the length of stay and the amount of mobile data desired and then compares the available offers.
Above all: it’s free. And from what we’ve seen, it’s reliable. The options offered include plans that we have tested in the United States and Europe, and which have kept in touch for days and every time for less than $10.
Competition drives prices down, they say. eSIMs are further proof of this. And on the eve of the holidays, they will reduce the anxiety of many travellers…