This is a question for the iPhone geeks out there.
We are booked to spend a week in Auckland, New Zealand, in late November. Meda’s keynoting the annual meeting of the Australia and New Zealand Society of Criminology.
So I’m trying to figure out how to manage our communications during our stay down under.
I had a very unsatisfying experience with the Genius Bar at the Apple Store in Kahala on Friday. My question about how to limit data usage while in New Zealand went over the head of this particular genius.
So I’m appealing to readers.
I’ve read all the horror stories of people hit with outrageous data bills after trips abroad.
Assuming that we purchase ATT international data plans, how do we cut off as much of the automatic and extraneous data use while we’re there in NZ?
We’re using new iPhone 5’s.
Any suggestions or advice would be much appreciated.
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AT&T was able to shut off the automatic renewal of my data plan after repeated calls; maybe, with patient and persistent attempts, you will eventually encounter a human who can help you. Good luck!
Here’s a few things you can do:
Turn off Cellular data when you don’t want to use it.
General > Cellular >Cellular Data > OFF
Also, the Cellular settings has granular settings that you may want to shut off as well:
– iCloud Documents
– iTunes
– FaceTime
– Passbook Updates
– Reading Lists
If you’re not concerned about getting phone calls while you are on your trip, just use Airplane mode.
Settings > Airplane Mode
If you have Wi-Fi connectivity and want to ensure you ONLY use Wi-Fi and no cellular data, you can use Airplane mode as well. Simply turn on Airplane Mode, then go to Wi-Fi and select your wi-fi network.
Aside from that, you can also do the following:
– Don’t use Maps or anything else with GPS.
– Turn off push email and set to manual
– Turn off iMessage
– Don’t use Siri / dictation (Siri uses a little bit of bandwidth for each query)
When you start your trip, you may want to reset your cellular data usage meter:
General > Usage > Cellular Usage > Reset statistics.
This should give you a fairly accurate read of your network incoming and outgoing cellular data.
You could also look into getting an app that can track your data usage:
DataMan https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dataman-real-time-data-usage/id404513413?mt=8
Datawiz
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/datawiz-free-mobile-data-management/id544544238?mt=8
Is there no widget that lets you control data by turning it on and off? Maybe in the setting area. In Android you can put a widget right on the screen that can be turned off and on.
Yup, it is easy on an android phone. I have it setup so I use the widget to toggle data on only when I need it. That way it doesn’t burn megabytes doing stuff in the background when I am not actively using it. I thought the iPhone5 was the next BIG THING.
Sorry, I couldn’t resist.
I heard that with wifi connectivity and a Google Voice account, an iPod Touch can function as a free phone, perhaps with some of the functions that you need and now get with your iPhone. This might make a good backup when travelling, perhaps when coupled with Skype.
Launch the settings app. Click the general tab. Then click the cellular tab. And finally, click the roaming tab. You will then be led to swtches allowing you to control data roaming and voice roaming.
Buy two pre-paid “dumb” phones once you’re in NZ. Incredible as it may sound, you will both survive without an iPhone.
There are these things called “maps” and “people willing to help other people” that have proven to be effective. Heh.
Easiest way is to turn data roaming off when you don’t need it.
Settings – > General -> Cellular
Gives you options to turn off cellular data altogether or just turn off data roaming. There are also a few options for how cellular data can be used, but they may not give you the control you want.
Hopefully you’ll have WiFi at the conference/hotel. But you can turn cellular data back on when you want to go online and don’t have access to WiFi.
A big help for outgoing phone calls from New Zealand is Skype Out, maybe now called Skype to Go. With a little bit of Skype credit on file you get a local New Zealand phone number that you can call from any telephone, then get a pre-entered menu of your favorite international numbers or dial from scratch. Less than 3 cents a minute. Mine’s still good three years after I got it. But I found myself leaving the phone switched off and only checking emails and the ‘Net when I was in a wi-fi zone. Probably would have been better off with a cheap local phone.
You can google your question and find all kinds of answers online, in various forums, and use bits of info from different answers to tailor them to your particular situation.
Talk to your service provider, too.
Try this: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/data-usage/id386950560?mt=8
App called “Data Usage” and it gets good reviews from what I can see. Good luck & have fun in NZ. Beautiful country – make sure to take your camera.
Ian, the two suggestions above about turning off data roaming are the simplest, easiest, and most effective. You can even do it today, as it won’t affect your reception around the island here and will be one less thing to worry about when you get there.
The problem is that you can buy a reasonably priced data plan with 125 megabytes for use in NZ. Our thought is to keep in touch via text messages or Apple’s iMessages rather than phone calls when we’re away from wifi. So we don’t want to turn data completely off. I just want to stop any unnecessary data feeds, of which there are apparently many at different levels.
Ian, I purchased an AT&T international data plan for my iPhone when traveling to Canada (make sure you get it before traveling). Worked excellently. Just watch the MB limit, as you get charged a lot if you go over. As for the suggestions about turning off data roaming: I did that when staying at the hotel, within wifi range. Then, when venturing away from wifi location, I’d turn on the data roaming. Have a good trip!
By the way, you also need to worry about phone messages. If someone calls and leaves you a message you will be charged the international rate for however long their message is whether you listen to it or not, (Then, you pay again to listen to it.) The only way to turn voicemail off (as of June this year) is to call AT&T and have them do it for you.
How about forwarding to a number here in Honolulu? Assuming we don’t give our numbers to anyone in NZ?