How to use iPhone in Mexico?

[pinkoos]

Continuing with the planning stages of our future trip to Mexico, I'm wondering what's the best way to use an ATT iPhone while there?

I briefly looked at ATT's website and saw that they have a $4.99 plan to get reduced calling rates and then a separate plan to be able to send SMS (I believe receiving SMS just takes away from your monthly allowance - we're unlimited - so that's a non-issue). The cost of the SMS plan depends on how many you want to be able to send.

We plan on turning our data off b/c we'll mainly just be in an all-inclusive with free wifi all over and I've read horror stories of roaming/data charges when traveling.

In terms of the $4.99 calling, I guess I would need to keep cell roaming on for that, correct?

Anyway, are there any other options to be able to call out and receive calls as well as text out and receive texts without having to go through ATT?

Thanks.

[datbeme]

Don't hold me to this because I've never turned my phone on in Mexico (but I have done so in Europe)...

Looks like calls from Mexico are .99/min without a plan and the $5.99 World Traveler reduces the rate to $.59/min. I doubt your unlimited texting will help you avoid the international $.50 send/$.20 receive rate, so if you still plan on texting, you may want to add the 50 global texts for $10.

[dmann]

If you have unlimited texting currently, incoming texts are free and outgoing texts will cost you. At least this was the case when I was in Canada last year and Europe this summer.

DM

[Will Collier]

I recently tried buying a Mexican SIM card on eBay and using it in what I thought was an unlocked iPhone. Unfortunately, when I landed in Cabo it turned out either the card was bad or the phone wasn't actually unlocked. Either way, it didn't work...

[pinkoos]

Decided to do the following when we travel:

just add the $4.99 Mexico plan to decrease per minute cost to 59 cents (down from 99 cents). Opted not to go for a text package.

We'll keep my phone on (for emergency contact purposes) and put my wife's in airplane mode, but turn wifi back on.

Thanks for the replies.

[Speedy]

We leave all four of our iPhones off when we go to Mexico. Buy a phone there. I have nothing else to offer.

[OWC Jamie]