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how easy is it to get nano sim cards for ipad mini when traveling

how easy is it to get nano sim cards for ipad mini when traveling. I am going to Greece over the summer and am hoping to take one with me and be able to access data whereever I am.

iPad

Posted on May 13, 2013 11:09 AM

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15 replies

May 13, 2013 12:47 PM in response to eigrant

eigrant wrote:


how easy is it to get nano sim cards for ipad mini when traveling. I am going to Greece over the summer and am hoping to take one with me and be able to access data whereever I am.

You will need to buy in Greece and you will need a data sim on prepayment


See following for Approved Carriers who will carry nano sims .


http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1937


You will not be

May 15, 2013 5:20 AM in response to Diavonex

Hi, new to the forum, but have exactly this dilemma so hoping someone here will be able to help.


My elderly parents arrived in Greece from Sydney with their unlocked iPad mini on Monday. They went straight to the Vodafone store at Athens airport for a nano sim so they could Skype, facetime, email or message us. To their dismay they were told there weren't any nano sims because the iPad mini is so new!!! This was the same response over the next 3 hours as they went all over the city hoping to track down a nano sim. So unfortunately, even though you'd expect they'd be everywhere (which is what we thought before my parents left), they are very hard to find in Athens. Can anyone offer suggestions about where to go for help? They are travelling to Italy at the end of May, could they get a nano sim there to use in Greece and for comunicating to Australia as well?


Many thanks

May 15, 2013 1:48 PM in response to hrissa

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1937


The above will show a world wide list of Apple approved carriers who should carry the nano sin ,Communications

for the iPhone 5 and a data nano sim for the new iPads Retina iPad and mini

Only these carriers are likely to carry a nano sim as Apple is the only manufacturer using the sim


In Italy you should also find a nano data sim .However all sims are only valid in the country of purchase and attempts to use in another country will involve roaming which is inherantly very very expensive


Both Countries you mention are not in good economical shape at this time so not finding a nano sim is not a total shock but I am surprised

May 15, 2013 5:55 PM in response to hrissa

Hi,

I am new to the forum too and spotted your question by chance.

I too was faced with the same dilemma earlier this year. I purchased an iPad Mini 64GB Cellular at the end of January and flew out to Greece for a 10 day holiday in early February. I flew to Athens but stayed in Nafplion, Peloponnese.

I tried to do my homework before leaving London for Athens but it seemed then that I would be in a similar situation to that which your Parents face now.


I found a similar thread to this one on the following website:-


http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=924196


If, for some reason, the discussion does not load from this link then from the home page in the upper right hand corner there is a search bar and type in iPad Greece. The discussion is/ was about half way down the page.


I did telephone the then largest authorised Apple re-seller based in Athens and their website address is:-


https://foursquare.com/v/goldeni/4c9d99027c096dcb590fcdd1


At the time, most retailers had very limited stock of Nano SIMs and it was anyone's guess that they'd have any by the time I arrived. Owing to a public transport workers' strike in Athens on the day I arrived I had to forget about going to Athens for a SIM card and instead wait until I arrived in the Peloponnese.

Obviously, I feel I cannot help you further in your quest for Nano SIM providers in Athens but I did find that the Operator WIND in Argos was very helpful. They may have a branch in Athens?


WIND like COSMOTE and VODAFONE were more than happy to sell me a 'local' 3G Nano SIM for my iPad Mini. I made sure I took my iPad with me on the day. Their charge was quite reasonable, €14 for 1GB data.

What I hadn't banked on was that WIND would not sell me a SIM card without evidence of ID, like my Passport. Apparently, it is a national requirement that even Greeks have to provide ID when purchasing pay-as-you-go SIMs.

I left the shop empty-handed but safe in the knowledge that Nano SIMs for iPad Mini do exist.


I hope your Parents have better luck!


Best wishes,

Rob

May 15, 2013 8:17 PM in response to Robbie_2013

Thanks for the replies guys, it's really helpful to have all this information!


So, to check that I've understood correctly: If they manage to find a nano data sim, they will be charged roaming fees if they use it to Skype, Facetime etc to Australia? And seems they will have to get a separate one in Italy, again with roaming fees. Is there any such thing as a Universal/Global data sim?


Rob, I will ask my parents to get in touch with cosmote or wind as the forum link you provided indicates they stock nano sims. An affordable plan would be the next challenge!


Many thanks

May 15, 2013 8:47 PM in response to hrissa

hrissa,

It's my understanding in line with Peter Gilespie's that provided your Parents purchase a 'local' data-only Nano SIM (by local I mean a SIM that will only work in Greece) then your Parents shouldn't incur additional costs i.e. Roaming charges, to use iPad apps to communicate with Australia. If they leave Greece altogether and continue using the SIM subject to coverage then I would have thought it only natural that your Parents would incur Roaming costs in addition to Greek data charges. Best to buy a local Nano SIM wherever possible.


I personally have not come across a Universal SIM before. That would be too easy ;-)


Hope this helps and wish your Parents a joyful holiday!

Rob

May 15, 2013 9:05 PM in response to hrissa

Hi (again)


If it's of any help, here is the link to COSMOTE's English/ Greek homepage:-


http://www.cosmote.gr/cosmoportal/page/H01/section/Personal/loc/en_US



And finally a link to what appears to be their data-only SIM for iPads but as the website warns, this page is only available in Greek:-


http://www.cosmote.gr/cosmoportal/cosmote.portal_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=HDV&sku=20 261815&catName=IOTG_Prepaid_Prs


if the second link doesn't want to play ball, it isn't hard to find from COSMOTE's homepage :-)


Rob

how easy is it to get nano sim cards for ipad mini when traveling

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