Europe sim card/commbank problems

djpalmer · 20th June 2012, 1:21 PM

Hey guys just a quick question. I'm going to europe for a month and I was wondering if anyone has had experience buying a sim card over there? Is there a company that covers a lot of Europe or will I have to keep swapping them out everytime I go to a different country?

The other problem is using a mastercard to book hotels/flights online over there. If I book a flight it will send an smscode to verify that its actually me, but if I dont have global roaming I wont get the message.

Does anyone know a way around this? I could do global roaming but I don't want to end up with a massive bill at the end...just worried about that.

Cheers.

edzknows · 20th June 2012, 1:36 PM

When using your credit / debit card to buy things, you shouls not have to verify that with the netcode SMS. That's only for online transfers to new bank accounts. (If you have transferred to an account before, no SMS either.)

I used a vodafone sim in Italy, but only for a day or 2 cause i forgot to unlock my phone before I left, and that took a few days.

Also get a 28 degrees MasterCard if u can.

djpalmer · 20th June 2012, 1:49 PM

When I was over there in 2010, because I was booking from another country it would ask me for a netcode....I don't know if it will do it this time.

I could always just call and book I suppose.

I'm leaving on monday, had a bit of a family emergency and only booked flights on yesterday.

cheers.

edzknows · 20th June 2012, 6:45 PM

Just call the bank/visit a branch to be sure

always good to tell them you are going overseas, so they dont think its fraudulent activity.

death · 20th June 2012, 10:33 PM

yes some bookings online go through the secure method of net /sms codes

What you should do is turn on global roaming on your carrier, turn on celular data but disable global data on your phone. You should still get sms' but not using global data that is the problem.

You will need to insert your aussie sim before booking anything then switch sims to the international one.

yes you will need to get a sim in each country if you want the cheapest call rates

there are global sims you can buy in the news agencies here but they are expensive for data and calls

You could also buy local international phone cards and use a payphone if you can find one

With some phone cards friends and family can call you on an aussie number and leave you a message

You can buy those phone cards here that cover a range of countries

The 28 deg card is highly recommended, great rates and no cash advance fees (you still pay interest from the moment you take cash out but not fees like most other cards)
No annual fee either
They also have shoppers insurance which is free provided you pay off your credit card in full before the statement cycle day

Wet Sandwich · 21st June 2012, 9:36 AM

I got a '3' UK sim and it roamed into most countries I went to. Not that cheap outside of england, but 1 standard number I guess..

2xCPU · 29th June 2012, 7:33 PM

Roaming charges have been dropping across Europe in the past few years, which is great is you have a European SIM - makes no difference to using an Oz SIM.

There are companies offering cheap roaming SIMs that are probably better than a single country card if you'll be on the move.

If you will be based in a single country, then a local SIM is probably better.

Once you have a SIM (Oz issued or local), you should be able to link that number to your bank account over the net.

2.

20th June 2012, 1:21 PM	#1
djpalmer Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 421	Europe sim card/commbank problems Hey guys just a quick question. I'm going to europe for a month and I was wondering if anyone has had experience buying a sim card over there? Is there a company that covers a lot of Europe or will I have to keep swapping them out everytime I go to a different country? The other problem is using a mastercard to book hotels/flights online over there. If I book a flight it will send an smscode to verify that its actually me, but if I dont have global roaming I wont get the message. Does anyone know a way around this? I could do global roaming but I don't want to end up with a massive bill at the end...just worried about that. Cheers.

20th June 2012, 1:36 PM	#2
edzknows Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Sydney 2112 Posts: 528	When using your credit / debit card to buy things, you shouls not have to verify that with the netcode SMS. That's only for online transfers to new bank accounts. (If you have transferred to an account before, no SMS either.) I used a vodafone sim in Italy, but only for a day or 2 cause i forgot to unlock my phone before I left, and that took a few days. Also get a 28 degrees MasterCard if u can. __________________ Intel i3 530 2.9ghz \| Gigabyte H55N-USB3 mitx\| Gigabyte HD6850 \| 2x2gb DDR3 1333 low profile \| 240GB Crucial M4 + 2TB storage \| IBM PC 300 case \| 150W Pico + Xbox 360 psu 54 Successful trades

20th June 2012, 6:45 PM	#4
edzknows Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Sydney 2112 Posts: 528	Just call the bank/visit a branch to be sure always good to tell them you are going overseas, so they dont think its fraudulent activity. __________________ Intel i3 530 2.9ghz \| Gigabyte H55N-USB3 mitx\| Gigabyte HD6850 \| 2x2gb DDR3 1333 low profile \| 240GB Crucial M4 + 2TB storage \| IBM PC 300 case \| 150W Pico + Xbox 360 psu 54 Successful trades

20th June 2012, 10:33 PM	#5
death Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Melbourne Australia Posts: 1,439	yes some bookings online go through the secure method of net /sms codes What you should do is turn on global roaming on your carrier, turn on celular data but disable global data on your phone. You should still get sms' but not using global data that is the problem. You will need to insert your aussie sim before booking anything then switch sims to the international one. yes you will need to get a sim in each country if you want the cheapest call rates there are global sims you can buy in the news agencies here but they are expensive for data and calls You could also buy local international phone cards and use a payphone if you can find one With some phone cards friends and family can call you on an aussie number and leave you a message You can buy those phone cards here that cover a range of countries The 28 deg card is highly recommended, great rates and no cash advance fees (you still pay interest from the moment you take cash out but not fees like most other cards) No annual fee either They also have shoppers insurance which is free provided you pay off your credit card in full before the statement cycle day __________________ Successful trades (in order of trade): r4z3r, ejukated, po3tik_one, joshconno, Ulan, aTa, ScreaM, smunsa, bajor1, troll, triggerhippie, kdistill, kr0k, Johnny English, antari

29th June 2012, 7:33 PM	#7
2xCPU Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: melb Posts: 2,395	Roaming charges have been dropping across Europe in the past few years, which is great is you have a European SIM - makes no difference to using an Oz SIM. There are companies offering cheap roaming SIMs that are probably better than a single country card if you'll be on the move. If you will be based in a single country, then a local SIM is probably better. Once you have a SIM (Oz issued or local), you should be able to link that number to your bank account over the net. 2. __________________ If "building a computer" doesn't involve powertools, you're just assembling spare parts. ---- The universe is made up of atoms and empty space, the rest is mere opinion. Democritus, 400 BC.

20th June 2012, 1:49 PM	#3
djpalmer Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 421	When I was over there in 2010, because I was booking from another country it would ask me for a netcode....I don't know if it will do it this time. I could always just call and book I suppose. I'm leaving on monday, had a bit of a family emergency and only booked flights on yesterday. cheers.

21st June 2012, 9:36 AM	#6
Wet Sandwich Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 2,356	I got a '3' UK sim and it roamed into most countries I went to. Not that cheap outside of england, but 1 standard number I guess..