Before I left on an extended European vacation I knew from past experience that having cell service with data would be important for me while there. My style is to handle as much as I can before I leave rather than waiting for my plane to land. I have been researching this for some time and this SIM card looked to be a fair price for what you get.
The SIM arrived attached to a generic brochure with easy to understand instructions for activating it. The SIM itself can be detached as either a full-sized or nano-sized card. Somewhat concerning is that nowhere on the envelope or brochure did it indicate how much data is included or what the limits on calls/texts are. It did state that it's a 30 day plan on the envelope, however.
It installed easily on my iPhone 12. On the evening I arrived in London, I tried to activate it using the provided QR code. It had 4G connectivity but did not assign a UK phone number automatically as expected. That prevented activation that evening since I had to drive North a few hours and was overdue at my hotel. Fortunately, my rental car had its own GPS or I would have been in a fix.
The next morning I started troubleshooting it and found nothing helpful online. Then it magically started to work. Not sure why, but it was mostly OK for most of the rest of my trip. Others in my travel group were able to text me at the new number and data access worked nicely. It was essential for me as a means to navigate on my own on England, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Germany.
I was able to make voice calls in England, but couldn't figure out the trick for doing so in other countries. Instead, I successfully used the data plan to carry text messages and voice via an VOIP number I have. Also worth noting is that this SIM also allowed me to do wireless data tethering from my phone to my iPad. That way I could have internet access on the iPad whether or not wifi was available.
I was initially worried that I would run out of data over the 21 days I was out of Canada. At first I thought I might need 50GB of data but found that by prudently using wifi whenever available I was able to get by easily with under 6GB. My return was through the US and I was pleasantly surprised that the SIM continued to work during an unexpected 5 hour layover there. Once I crossed the border again, things got too pricey , so I removed it.
Aside from the mysterious activation process and the difficulty making voice calls, this SIM worked well for me on my trip. Perhaps a more cellphone savvy traveler would have an easier time with it. Recommended.
| Brand | travSIM |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | travSIM |
| Place of Business | travSIM GmbH Friedrich-Franz-Str. 19 Haus A 14770 Brandenburg a.d.H. Deutschland |
| Model | 10GB |
| Number of Items | 1 |
| Batteries Required | No |
| Cellular technology | LTE |
| Does it contain liquid? | No |
| Includes rechargable battery | No |
| Manufacturer | travSIM |
| Item model number | 10GB |
| Product Dimensions | 14.5 x 9.4 x 0.1 cm; 16.2 g |
| ASIN | B0D3LZKCXK |
