[Wavshrdr]

Be careful with the international email plan. I couldn't find anything specifically regarding usage or their policy toward file attachments. If they bill you per megabyte it will be over $15 per MB. Also you will be billed for each call coming in whether you answer it or not. You will also be billed when it goes to voicemail if you don't answer. If you were in Moscow for example EACH call you don't answer and that goes to voicemail could cost you about $10. In Germany it will be a minimum of $2.

I made sure to turn my phone off except when I wanted to download my email or when I was expecting a call or needed to make one. Personally I think this system is a rip off. First time in my life I've had to pay for unanswered calls or ones that went to voicemail.

[pbbjr]

I don't know if this would work or not, but before you leave your local calling area, couldn't you just go into Options > Call Forwarding in the Phone module and have your messages forwarded to a voicemail service which sends you an email containing the voicemail as a wav or mp3 file? As I understand T-Mobile's billing, you get 500 minutes each month for calls which are forwarded using the Forward Unanswered Calls option. I don't think you would be charged for the voicemail, because you never have to use the phone service to check it.

From Tmobile's website:

Using Voice Mail While Roaming

NOTE: If you check voice mail from your phone while roaming, you will be charged for roaming and long distance, as follows:

* Domestic GSM Roaming = $0.49/minute airtime + $0.20/minute for domestic long distance International GSM Roaming
* International GSM Roaming = Airtime rates will vary depending on the country in which you are roaming. For more information on international roaming and pricing, go to International Services.

There are multiple ways to call your voice mail while roaming. Option 1 is the primary method and should always be used first. Options 2 and Option 3 should only be used when Option 1 is not successful. Long distance fees will apply for the duration of the call.

There are a number of free options for wav or mp3 voicemail services. Try k7.net (wav) or freedigits.com (mp3). I have accounts at both. I prefer k7.net because the email message you receive includes the phone number of the caller in the subject line (if that number is available to caller id services). However, Freedigits is faster on sending emails notifying you of your voicemail. K7.net can be delayed for hours occasionally. As I've mentioned in other posts, you can use your Pearl browser to listen to your voicemail message.

I know that the next time I'm going to be roaming internationally, I will change my voicemail message at k7.net or freedigits to tell users to leave their email address when they leave their message. That way, unless I actually need to talk with them, I can email a reply. I might even use the voicenote feature.

Using the $19.95 international blackberry option and a system like I've described might work well. Of course, you will still get dinged when you use your blackberry as a phone.

[headtailgrep]

You lucky bastards.

There is no unlimited on the Rogers Canada network -- you pay $40, $60, or 100 dollars a month, 100 bux gets you 200 megs..

[SanFrancisco]

Originally Posted by Akir

K. I'll just use this then when I get my new computer since highspeed isn't available where I live.

Why doesn't it say I post my messages from my BB like it does for others?

That's the decision I'd go with. And while you cannot get DSL or Broadband where you live, 115k is a hell of a lot better than the old 40k max dial-up days, even though you said you cannot get "high speed" EDGE where you are at and your speed will be slower.

Let us know how fast your GPRS "non-EDGE" speed indicates, as compared to 115k EDGE.

[JJG]

Originally Posted by jeffharris

Excuse me, if you are on T-Mo USA, you will never be charged for ANY data roaming ANYWHERE in the world. If you were, then you were not provisioned correctly. You should have, of course the Blackberry BIS or BES plan, International e-mail roaming ($19.99) option, as well as making sure they have you provisioned for wap.voicestream.com, which is a free inclusion in the Blackberry plan.

I have roamed the world the 8 months, Europe, Asia, Oceana - surfed, e-mailed, used apps that access wap.voicestream.com, even used my (then 8700) as a tethered EDGE modem on my laptop, and was NEVER CHARGED ONE PENNY for data roaming.

Jeff, All,

I am planning an upcoming trip to Manila. I just called Tmob USA and asked for the international email roaming option. Confirmed I am provisioned for wap.voicestream.com and I have the BES plan. They still insist I will be charged $15/meg for data roaming. Could this have been a fluke? Anyone else actually surf free abroad?

Many thanks,
John

[getthething]

Originally Posted by JJG

Jeff, All,

I am planning an upcoming trip to Manila. I just called Tmob USA and asked for the international email roaming option. Confirmed I am provisioned for wap.voicestream.com and I have the BES plan. They still insist I will be charged $15/meg for data roaming. Could this have been a fluke? Anyone else actually surf free abroad?

Many thanks,
John

I just got back from europe. I haven't seen my bill yet, but i was told by tmo customer care that the international plan ONLY covers EMAIL. It doesn't include regular data such as web browsing. I just changed my voicemail to tell people not to leave messages and to email me.

[Wavshrdr]

I posted this in another thread. My PERSONAL experience IS if you use a browser, you WILL be billed for it. I sadly have a $400 bill I received for just this situation from several months ago. I went with the Tmo unltd BB email in Europe. I was told by a rep that would cover my Tmo data service IF I used my BB. This was back in March of this year with my 7100.

If you use your browser, you will be charged. I am still fighting with Tmo about this and it doesn't look likely I will get my money back anytime soon. All I used my PC and the data connection to download 3 attachments I couldn't get on my BB and I had a $400 bill!!!! I downloaded 3 files each about 8MB each. Instant $400 bill. If I had known, I could have gone 2km to an Internet cafe and downloaded them there for about $5 instead. Every day that I checked a weather site via the browser in the BB I was billed for each KB of data I downloaded so don't think it is just because I used the BB as a tethered modem.

Don't believe ANYONE who tells you using the browser on your BB is free. This is a HUGE profit center for the companies and don't think they don't want to have their hands in your pockets. Typically if you use WiFi there you will be paying a minimum of $10/hour (if you have a roaming agreement) or $30/day. Home internet isn't much more expensive than here but the companies who provide public internet really put it to you. Tmo is terribly expensive if you do data roaming. It has ticked me off to the point that I am looking for a better company for when I do use data service in Europe.

I've been a Tmo customer for 10 years going back to Aerial->Voicestream->Tmo and this was pretty much the last straw for me. Actually the last straw was when it I got billed for VM call and unanswered calls even when my phone was OFF!

[PGChi]

Even though JeffHarris clearly states he was not charged for data usage while roaming my personal experience having TMO-Usa's BES unlimited plan with TMobile has been different which makes me concur with WavShrdr. While driving through Canada and using my 7105T at that time for reviewing emails incurred charge. Maybe as he states I wasn't provisioned correctly but I will be careful next time.

[SanFrancisco]

Originally Posted by Wavshrdr

I posted this in another thread. My PERSONAL experience IS if you use a browser, you WILL be billed for it...

Don't believe ANYONE who tells you using the browser on your BB is free. This is a HUGE profit center for the companies and don't think they don't want to have their hands in your pockets.

Typically if you use WiFi there you will be paying a minimum of $10/hour (if you have a roaming agreement) or $30/day. Home internet isn't much more expensive than here but the companies who provide public internet really put it to you. .

I've been a Tmo customer for 10 years going back to Aerial->Voicestream->Tmo and this was pretty much the last straw for me. Actually the last straw was when it I got billed for VM call and unanswered calls even when my phone was OFF!

I thought the OP was a question about using his unlimited data plan in his home state of Minnesota.

Because people got off topic, they started talking about roaming plans and charges.

You should reword your post or are you saying in your post about charges that such apply even in one's own region in the U.S. ?

[Akir]

I don't really know what everyone is talking about in this thread or how it got to roaming in Europe but I've been using it and it works better than the 26.4k that I usually have to use where I live.

[SanFrancisco]

Originally Posted by Akir

I don't really know what everyone is talking about in this thread or how it got to roaming in Europe but I've been using it and it works better than the 26.4k that I usually have to use where I live.

My point exactly, your inquiry was about U.S. data plans.

Sometimes threads get off topic or stray, well actually quite often.

The only part that bothers me is the guy who wrote as if U.S. data plans are not unlimited. He should rewrite his post so it's more clear that he is referring to roaming data plans.