Click below to
find interesting
information from our
July 2010a
newsletter
relating to:
Roaming
Travel
Mobile phones
Roaming
Unlocking
iPhones
The popular
iPhones are
increasingly
being used for
international
trips. iPhones
in particular
are often sold
"locked" to the
home network, so
to use another
SIM such as our
vSIM, the iPhone
needs to be
unlocked.
iPhones are
"locked" both in
the conventional
sense (the
handset needs to
be unlocked by the
network), and
the iPhone
firmware is also
highly protected
against
unauthorised
unlocking
(jail-breaking). iPhone users
(once they have
arranged for
their network to unlock
the handset) need to
re-synchronise
the iPhone with
their iTunes
account
(generally this
is with the
iPhone connected
to the PC/Mac)
with the new
SIM installed.
Without this
last step, the
iPhone will not
connect to any
networks other
than the home
network.
Once
complete, using
a
vSIM
is the next
logical step!
Travel
Travel
power
If you're
like the typical
traveller,
you're carrying
an increasing
number of
electrical
appliances when
you are
travelling.
Perhaps a
laptop, almost
certainly a
mobile phone,
maybe even an
e-book reader.
Electric
toothbrushes,
razors, PDAs,
medical
appliances,
digital cameras,
maybe a video
camera round out
common gadgets
that travellers
take on
international
trips.
They all use
power, and
unless you're on
a short trip or
have lots of
batteries,
you'll almost
certainly be
wanting to plus
them into mains
power sooner or
later. There are
three things to
watch out for
and this article
deals with the
first: getting
the power right.
That really
means getting
the right
voltage (most
gadgets are
pretty
low-power, so
the current
drain isn't a
big deal). The
frequency of the
mains power
isn't a big deal
as pretty-much
any device runs
these days on
either 50 or
60Hz (the two
main
frequencies).
The notable
exceptions are
alarm clocks
(which use the
frequency for
time-keeping)
and aircraft
power which at
typically 400Hz
won't work with
many devices
(unless you have
a specific
aircraft-only
power adapter or
the aircraft is
specially
equipped).
Australian-purchased
gadgets will be
rated for 240V
(volts), and
will work on
220-250V without
problems. Some
parts of the
world (notably
Japan,
North/Central
America
and
the northern
parts of South
America) use 100
to 124V power.
Generally
Australian
appliances will
not work at
these voltages,
unless they are
specifically
labelled
(generally they
would be
labelled
something like
100-250VAC,
50-60Hz). These
power adapters
generally will
have electronic
switching
circuits inside,
the other
(240V-only)
adapters will be
a heavier type
(they have
iron-core
transformers)
and be more
square in shape
like the picture
on the right -
don't use these
on the wrong
voltage.
You may be
able to reduce
the number of
adapters you
travel with by
sharing one
between several
gadgets. Be
careful doing
this, as the
output voltage
has to be the
same, the
current
capability
(marked in A or
mA) has to be
sufficient (take
the larger one),
and the polarity
of the plug
(whether the
outside sleeve
of the plug is
positive or
negative) has to
be the same.
Only try this if
you know what
you are doing
(and try it at
home first
before you
leave).
There are
universal
adapters
available
(something like
the picture
left), which
have different
tips for
different
devices (they
also change the
voltage to
suit). These
universal
adapters can
really lighten
your load (some
can even plug
into airplane
seat outlets and
car cigarette
lighter
sockets).
Mobile phones
Vodafone raises
international
prices
Vodafone
Australia
recently hiked
prices for
international
(non-roaming)
calls, by an
eye-watering
factor of
roughly eight
times. This
reverses the
historical
trend:
international
call prices have
been one of the
fastest-dropping
in telecoms (in
the bad old
days,
international
calls were
regarded as a
luxury, and you
paid
accordingly).
For example,
prior to
mid-March,
Vodafone
post-paid
customers
calling to New
Zealand paid
14.3 cents per
minute (plus a
27.5 cent
flagfall). Now a
new Vodafone
customer faces a
rate of $2.20
per minute (plus
a 35 cent
flagfall). The
increases are
across-the-board,
to all
countries; no
rate is less
than $1.00
(again, plus
that flagfall...),
but only apply
to new plans
(you're still -
at least for now
- on the old
rates if you are
already a
subscriber). The
compensation for
new customers is
that the new
rates are
included in
contract caps,
so you only pay
those rates once
you've used up
the "included
value" of your
cap.
Whilst this
mostly affects
non-roaming use,
it also raises
roaming prices:
if you are a new
Vodafone
subscriber and
use the
"Vodafone
Traveller"
option, the call
charges are a
certain amount
(zone-based,
from $1 to $4
per minute) PLUS
the "standard
call rate" as if
you were at
home. As the
"standard" rate
is now increased
for unfortunate
new Vodafone
customers,
roaming rates
have therefore
gone up (the
"Vodafone
Traveller"
option is much
more expensive
once your cap is
used up).
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