ipad sim cards

[mickymac]

Hey all:

I am wondering how many of you have experience with sim cards for the iPad? Where to get them how they work outside of the major urban areas, how much do they cost, usage plans etc? When I go this January I want to try one out to see how it works.

Mickymac

[Newforestcat]

I have been using mine since Xmas. You mean Thai SIM?

[Newforestcat]

I need to go out soon:-

Assuming you do:-

I live in Kamphaengphet, there aren't many places more rural in the north of Thailand.

If you want the cheapest deal, buy just SIM for normal internet. If you mention iSomething, you pay more monthly and extras for some downloads! It is a bit dishonest, but I don't like to be ripped off either!

I had AIS normal internet SIM which my hubby trimmed manually to fit my iPad. It worked fine in big cities but utterly struggled in my rural areas! I paid approx 90-100 Baht for the SIM and approx 900 Baht per month for unlimited use and unlimited WiFi. When it started to iritate me, I switched to Truemove after I heard that they had 3G in my rural areas. I never look back since. The cost for the SIM was about the same as AIS but I am paying approx 750 Baht per month for exactly the same allowance.

Just go in a Truemove store anywhere. Tell them you need a monthly contact for internet for your laptop, don't mention smart phone or iPad! You should not have to pay more than me, might even get some discount for the first few months. You can pay for your bill each month at any 7/11 store (15 Baht fee) or a local postoffice ( free).

IF YOU CAN, go for a monthly contact, because if you pay late, your internet is still connected. PAYG, if you forget to pay, you get some surcharge to re-connect, at least that is what AIS did to me!

Check Truemove coverage in your areas first. Also, if you use the same SIM for smart phones ( except maybe iPhone) and normal laptops, connection could be slower than in your iPad. Obviously, you cannot make a call but you can receive it if you use the SIM on an iPhone or other smart phone. Unsure about blackberry though, I don't have one to try.

You might even find it cheaper to get a deal with two SIM's where you get allowance for calling and texting, too. But my Truemove shop said they only had them in BKK. They might have them online. Truemove website is also in English.

Hope this helps.

[Newforestcat]

You can get LAPTOP internet SIM from Truemove on PAYG basis. No need to trim for iPad or iPhone use now. This is cheaper than buying iPad or iPhone SIM cards.

[101richard]

iPhone 4 uses a Micro SIM which is 15 mm × 12 mm in size while the standard Mini SIM is 25 mm × 15 mm in size. After Jail breaking you can easily use your iphone anywhere.

[101richard]

iPhone 4 uses a Micro SIM which is 15 mm × 12 mm in size while the standard Mini SIM is 25 mm × 15 mm in size. After Jailbreaking you can easily use your iphone anywhere.

[Newforestcat]

I don't doubt that what you have said is correct, 101richard, truly...

With AIS SIM, 

it was a standard SIM not even mini SIM as I asked for a laptop SIM. So my husband trimmed it. It fit and worked in his iPhone 4, my iPad 2 and my old laptop ( with Aircard).


Truemove SIM,

From your post, I can only conclude that maybe no Truemove mini SIM is going to fit iPhone 4 now? 


First of all, if you buy a normal SIM from Truemove, you can also make it into a 12x 15 mm mini SIM with your hand gently! Just follow the pre-cut marks!

I have just measured the Truemove mini SIM and it is 12x15 mm. So it should fit iPhone 4? 

I know nothing about Jailbreaking but we did not need to have that on our iPhones and iPad, I guess my hubby got them directly from an Apple store in England.

Anyway Truemove mini SIM works in my iPad 2. I have had this for three months only. Of course, there is a chance that network providers may soon try to outsmart crafty customers anyway by making it impossible to make standard-sized SIM into mini SIM that would fit an iPhone or iPad. But a SIM is about 50-100 Baht if you cannot find one to try! 

IMPORTANT

If you are going to get an internet SIM for your iPhone or iPad, the shop or network provider will try to sell an Aircard (AKA dongle in the UK) to you. If you don't have one, might need it for your laptop and it is on offer, go for it. It is approx 1400-1800 Baht each from Truemove and AIS. But based on my experience, try to stick with aircard and SIM from same network provider, or the connection is utterly bad. I had used my AIS aircard with my Truemove SIM on my old laptop and my cousin's much better laptop with so much irritation! As soon as I had obtained a free Truemove aircard, it was fantastic.

If you don't need any aircard, just say that you already have got one. They cannot and should not force it on you.

I am not technical. This is my experience. If yours differs, you'd better share it with us.

Cheers!