Tips for traveling in London and the UK with an iPhone

I've learned a few new things that make travel in London a lot easier and thought I would share a few.  I use an iPhone on AT&T and it is a huge help to be able to fully use it in London--of course this means getting creative, or forking over a kidney to AT&T.

For Data
Obviously many plans are limited to UK citizens who want a contract.  This clearly doesn't work for visitors.  If you don't mind jailbreaking and unlocking your iPhone, there are tons of good plans where you buy a pay-as-you-go sim card for the iPhone.  Data rates are very cheap compared to the US.  The main carriers that offer this are O2, Orange, Vodaphone, and Three.

A second option is wifi.  London is fairly well blanketed, and I see BTOpenzone everywhere.  TheCloud is also rumored to be good.  Finding free wifi is not as easy.

A final option, and the one I went with, is really great if you ever plan to visit again in the near future, or need lots of data.  The UK mobile company Three sells a py-as-you-go mifi for 72 pounds, and that includes VAT and the first 3GB of data.  Top ups are very cheap compared to US data plans.  The mifi ensures that you have wifi based on the 3G networks in your pocket wherever you go.  I consider this the best option for anyone who doesn't want to jailbreak their phone.

Texting
Obviously since I only had a mifi, I had no access to voice or texting.  A very cool trick to be able to text your friends and family in the US is this:  setup a free gmail and and Google Voice account, and configure the Voice account to forward texts to gmail.  Have people text that Google Voice number and it will go to your gmail account on your iPhone, where you can simply reply and it will appear as though you texted them back from your Google Voice number!

Text someone from your email
All the major US carriers allow you to email a text directly to someone.  Suppose the number you want to text is 212-555-1111.  Depending on the carrier, send email to the following addresses to text that person:

  • AT&T - 2125551111@txt.att.net
  • Verizon - 2125551111@vtext.com
  • Tmobile - 2125551111@tmomail.net
  • Sprint - 2125551111@messaging.sprintpcs.com
Other useful bits
If you're staying any length of time at all, it's well worth it to buy an Oyster card for the tube and the buses.  A 7-day unlimited card cost me about 28 pounds, or you can buy a pay-as-you-go card and just stick money on it (they make sure to never charge you more than the max daily rate, which is nice).

There is an app called Tube Deluxe that is very useful in getting around, and the iPhone Maps application is priceless for walking and finding tub stations.

Time Out London is a nice free app for finding things to do, including a feature for finding things near where you currently are.

The free GateGuru app is great for navigating airports.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New hearing aids - Rexton Cobalt 16

I picked up my new hearing aids today and thought I would post my initial thoughts. First, let's take a little journey back in time to understand some of my history. I got my first set of ears 10 years ago. They were the Senso+ model in the CIC (completely-in-the-canal) size, made by Widex. They were almost invisible and functioned fairly well, but after four years they were no longer powerful enough to keep up with my progressive loss, so I got a new set. The new set were Phonak Claro ITE (in-the-ear) models, and were far more technologically advanced, and also far larger and more noticeable. I was able to control the volume and choose programs using my Phonak wristwatch. I have worn these for about five years now, but again my hearing loss has outgrown the volume possible with these models. Fast forward to present day. I recently bought a pair of Rexton Cobalt 16 (same as Siemens Pure 700) and a bluetooth remote control that Rexton calls an RCU (same as the Siemens Tek). The
Read more

Guest Blog - Children and Hearing Loss-Changing Lives by Raising Awareness

This is my first guest post, by fellow blogger John O'Connor -  bloggingwjohno.blogspot.com Perfect hearing is something that the average person really takes for granted. When people think of hearing loss, they often associate the condition with people who are old in age. Hearing loss is common in babies and young children. A person can be born deaf of suffer hearing loss gradually over time. Of the estimated 738,000 people in the U.S. who have experienced substantial hearing loss, 8 percent of those people fall under the age of 18 . People should understand that hearing loss is something that affects people from all backgrounds of all ages. Many people, especially children, are at risk for hearing loss. It is estimated that 15 percent of children between the ages of 6-19 years old have experienced low or high frequency hearing at the 16th decibel in one or both ears. Children who may be hard of hearing may find it hard to grasp certain concepts like word order or may hav
Read more

ASL class starts today - Level TWO!!

I am really excited about taking the level 2 class this year. We were all really worried that it wasn't going to happen since we needed a minimum number of people and a couple people from level 1 moved away over the summer. So it is very welcome news that the class is happening, and I am really looking forward to taking my ASL to the next level!!
Read more