Visiting Waterloo after a year away

[taylortbb]

Also, this is a hail merry to be sure but does anyone know of a pay as you go provider that's....cheap.

I buy eSIMs from Airalo when travelling. Their Canadian eSIM is USD$15 for 30 days with 3GB of data. It's a data-only plan, but IMO that's generally fine. Can use messaging apps to stay in touch with people.

[bravado]

Good news, you can still do this one again in 2023.

Lol...rough.

Also, this is a hail merry to be sure but does anyone know of a pay as you go provider that's....cheap. I no longer have my local phone, but any pay as you go provider (really, they aren't even pay-as-you-go but rather "prepaid") seems like it would be (for 4 weeks, spanning a month boundary) at least 10 (sim) + 30 + 30  = 70 bucks for a minimal (1 GB or less + calling + texting) data plan. To me this isn't really worth it and I can manage without a phone.

I shouldn't be surprised, Canada's telecoms man.

Since I'm sure you are all sick of me lording our bike lanes over you'all here's a different one for today: I currently have a pay-as-you-go plan for my phone. No data, but texting and calling. I don't use it much, only local appointments and texting my partner and occasionally neighbours or other parents of Carrie's friends. I spend <3 euro per month per line. And, when I have people come, I buy them a sim for 5 euros, that includes 5 euros of calling, which is 50 text messages or 50 minutes of talk time. (And if I need data its 3 euro/day or 5 euro/weekend unlimited).

Do you have a pretty new iPhone? eSIMs are great for travelling. There's a million different eSIM providers like this: https://www.airalo.com

[danbrotherston]

Yeah, a data plan is fine, and two positive recommendations from here, I'd say that's pretty compelling.

I have an iPhone XR which is like....not new, I'll have to check if it can work with an eSIM. But if it does, that sounds like a great solution.

Thanks guys!

[tomh009]

Lucky Mobile, $30/month for 4GB of data (with bonuses), and unlimited talk/text. No activation fee as an eSIM. And that's well less than three euros per day.

https://www.luckymobile.ca/shop/plans/prepaid

[dtkvictim]

Lucky Mobile, $30/month for 4GB of data (with bonuses), and unlimited talk/text. No activation fee as an eSIM. And that's well less than three euros per day.

https://www.luckymobile.ca/shop/plans/prepaid

Canadian carriers really suck at the low end, which I think is was Dan is looking for. The mid range data options have been improving a lot over the last year though. Pretty much all of them have unlimited Canada wide calling and texting, and very usable data options in the $30-60 range.

I'm grandfathered in with Public Mobile's legacy reward system, giving me a $10 discount each month, but even without the discount the offerings are pretty reasonable: https://www.publicmobile.ca/en/on/plans#ALL

[danbrotherston]

Lucky Mobile, $30/month for 4GB of data (with bonuses), and unlimited talk/text. No activation fee as an eSIM. And that's well less than three euros per day.

https://www.luckymobile.ca/shop/plans/prepaid

Canadian carriers really suck at the low end, which I think is was Dan is looking for. The mid range data options have been improving a lot over the last year though. Pretty much all of them have unlimited Canada wide calling and texting, and very usable data options in the $30-60 range.

I'm grandfathered in with Public Mobile's legacy reward system, giving me a $10 discount each month, but even without the discount the offerings are pretty reasonable: https://www.publicmobile.ca/en/on/plans#ALL

I mean, I think things have gotten better in Canada...but it's still terrible globally.

FWIW I do think most of this was actually due to Freedom Mobile and the like. I had Telus for years and spent like 65. Eventually they upped my plan to 70 and I called them and told them I wouldn't pay more than 65, and that I was willing to take a lesser plan for that cost, and was told they could not sell me any service for less than 70. So I switched to Freedom and paid like 35. I did enjoy the "how can we get you back" call, in which they told me they could do 65 now, and I replied that I was now with Freedom at 35, and that if they wanted me back they had to pay me for the asinine hassle and lies so it would be 30...which they obviously would not do.

But Freedom has gotten a lot better, they no longer charge for roaming on partner networks, which means their coverage is just as good as Rogers or Bell and so much cheaper. So I think other networks are having to compete with them.

But yeah, that's all with a monthly plan.

Even for monthly plans here, you're still looking at much less. But I hardly use my phone, so I'm on a pay as you go plan, basically I pay only what I use, and I top it up every 3-4 months for 10-15 euros, which really is unbeatable for a low user like me. The only thing I miss is data, but I can learn to live with less .

FWIW, I am sure this used to exist. This was the type of plan I had when I had a flip phone in University, and I know I had similar plans when living in the US with a throw away convenience store phone. But I cannot seem to find such a thing anymore. All of the "pay as you go" phones seem to be more "prepaid" where you pay every month, but at the beginning instead and your money expires at the end of the month. That being said, I do remember when I got my phone in university having to look for a pay as you go plan that wasn't just a prepaid monthly plan, so maybe it was rare even then.

[dtkvictim]

But Freedom has gotten a lot better, they no longer charge for roaming on partner networks, which means their coverage is just as good as Rogers or Bell and so much cheaper. So I think other networks are having to compete with them.

I used them in their early years when they were Wind Mobile. I appreciated what they offered but the coverage was so bad I didn't get service 50% of the time I was out of my house (when I want to use data) and the speeds were often too slow to stream music. Good to hear they are improving still and creating competition.

FWIW, I am sure this used to exist. This was the type of plan I had when I had a flip phone in University, and I know I had similar plans when living in the US with a throw away convenience store phone. But I cannot seem to find such a thing anymore. All of the "pay as you go" phones seem to be more "prepaid" where you pay every month, but at the beginning instead and your money expires at the end of the month. That being said, I do remember when I got my phone in university having to look for a pay as you go plan that wasn't just a prepaid monthly plan, so maybe it was rare even then.

I think my first phone plan with Telus was prepaid combined with pay as you go, i.e. you loaded money on your account, bought a prepaid plan, and then did pay as you go with the remaining money for whatever your plan didn't cover. Maybe true pay as you go was before my time.

I do remember my account balance expiring though (complete scam), and having to go buy Telus cards at Future Shop every month to reload my account.

[tomh009]

Yes, you are correct that Canada is not very cheap for mobile plans. But not many people are looking for your 50 test/50 minutes/no data plan.

Anyway, your original request was for a cheaper plan than your $70 example. As has been posted, Lucky Mobile and some others do offer a 30-day prepaid in the $30 range, which meets the requirements in your post. And should be a rather small percentage of your travel costs.

[ludo643]

You can also try Freedom Mobile. It has a variety of prepaid plans that can be more cost-effective compared to the bigger players. They also offer flexibility with no long-term contracts, so you can easily switch up your plan based on your needs