BajaNomad

Using ATT cell phone in Mexico

mirko - 12-15-2013 at 09:56 PM

I went to San Quintin last spring with a friend that used his ATT (Apple) cell phone while there. When he got his monthly bill in the US, the charges were extremely high. Fortunately he was able to get them to waive them.

What is the best way to use an ATT cell phone in Mexico?

This is for a friend that is going to La Paz with us for Xmas and she has ATT. We use phone cards that we purchase in Mexico and use pay phones.

Thank you,
Mirko

Hook - 12-15-2013 at 10:55 PM

The best way is to not use it except for important things.

The next best way is to investigate the various plans they have for roaming in foreign countries BEFORE you go. And then sign up for one, if you just cant seem to stay off the phone. I have friends that are like that.

Did this really take him by surprise? It is a foreign country. How many total minutes did he rack up down here? Was he doing a bunch of data and texting, too? I hear that's really expensive.

Yes, smart phones are smart. They are very smart at racking up charges for the carrier when you are outside of your PLAN.

I have an ATT go-phone with NO plan; I just make sure I have sufficient credit on the phone. I pay about 22 cents/minute; is that expensive? I dont know as I probably put on only about 30-60 minutes per month. That's for calls within Mexico to the US or Mexico. I have a dumb phone. Basically, I can talk to people and that's about it.

Well, it has a calculator. I guess that still makes it pretty dumb these days, eh. :lol:

[Edited on 12-16-2013 by Hook]

mirko - 12-15-2013 at 11:37 PM

I use Tracfone in the US. I have an old "clamshell" type of phone. I pay $84 per year for around 2,000 minutes which is plenty for me. I don't text; I think texting is the work of the devil :lol:. I do research on my computer, not my phone.

My friend racked up around $140 in three days in SQ. He only made a few calls. No data downloading. They waived his charges since he is such a good customer.

mcnut - 12-16-2013 at 03:29 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Hook
I have an ATT go-phone with NO plan; I just make sure I have sufficient credit on the phone. I pay about 22 cents/minute; is that expensive? I dont know as I probably put on only about 30-60 minutes per month. That's for calls within Mexico to the US or Mexico.[Edited on 12-16-2013 by Hook]


Hook,
I just ordered a AT&T dumb phone from Amazon, $15 to my door. My plan is to take it in to AT&T to activate and using it like a GoPhone load some minutes for use in Baja.

Should I expect to receive calls to this phone (US number) while in Baja? Should I expect to receive voice mail notifications or will I have to randomly call my mailbox to see if there are any new messages?

Bruce

Hook - 12-16-2013 at 06:28 AM

Yes, we get calls on it from the US. It's really pretty seamless, crossing the border. Suddenly, it says TelCel instead of ATT.

And, yes, we receive voice mail notifications, missed call notifications, caller ID, everything on it. As a go-phone, I think we are charged a penny to check voice mail.

Mirko, I'm the same as you. Flip phone (clamshell), never text, any research I need I wait till I am at my laptop. What's waiting an hour or two to find something out? Everything doesnt have to be so immediate; we managed before smart phones, didnt we?

I still read printed books, too.:o

But they are great for voice communication. The greatest emergency tool, really. I go days without a call and sometimes think about leaving it at home. But I carry it for the odd emergency.

Dont get me wrong. If I still lived in the US, I probably WOULD have a smart phone, if I could find a plan that was reasonable. But it seems like most people with smart phones are paying about 100.00/month for a minimum two year contract. That's just too much........or I'm too old school.

But, hey, I participated in my first Christmas Bird Count last Saturday and it was pretty cool to have someone there with a bird call app. "Here's the curve-billed thrasher." "Here's the cactus wren." The apps are pretty amazing.

shari - 12-16-2013 at 07:45 AM

thanks for the tip Hook...bird call App...fantastic! I am old school too and always just had a 400 peso Nokia dumb phone...that battery lasts a week without charging and you get 150 pesos of free minutes when you buy it. It is so easy to buy in baja now, I highly recommend just doing that...you can buy a local chip whichever area code you are in for 100 pesos too.

But my new plan comes with a smart phone and I LOVE IT! It is 400 pesos a month with some internet time thrown in too...enough to check email in SAn Roque! Geezo...soon they will have a phone that tells you who that whale is you saw by listening to it sing!

nbacc - 12-16-2013 at 07:51 AM

go to your att store...there are several options

roundtuit - 12-16-2013 at 08:10 AM

I have used attt dumb for for 4yrs now. Cheaper than calling card. Take your $15 phone to att and get a $100.00 chip. This # is good for a year and if you renew it before it expires (lack of funds) you can keep the same # forever.
You can add money to this acc. on your comp. with credit or debit card
If you want I will give you my number to practice with

I have an ATT phone and it's doing really well

sequoyah - 12-16-2013 at 08:53 AM

all over Mexico.

I changed to the "Viva Mexico" plan while still in the states. This allows me unlimited calling to the states when in Mexico and into Mexico when in the states.

The actual coverage changed to TelCel, but I haven't had to deal with them at all (thank goodness).

Be aware that coverage for all kinds of phones can be spotty in Baja, but the larger towns, including San Quintin, are generally covered.

dasubergeek - 12-16-2013 at 09:07 AM

If you're going to use your phone in Mexico, call AT&T and ask for an international Mexico calling plan (information here: http://www.att.com/att/global/affordable-world-packages/?cal...). You can also get a data plan. They are very expensive. Verizon and Sprint are terrible in Baja; they claim to have great coverage but outside of the northwestern cities (Tijuana and Rosarito and part of Ensenada) it's no bars for you.

If you're going to use a lot of data or you want to make a lot of calls, or if you're going to be in Mexico often or for a long while, it would be more worthwhile to get a Mexican phone. Take your passport to a store like Ley, Sanborns, or even a Telcel centre in one of the cities (there's a Sanborns on Revolución and 8th in Tijuana, for an example, and a Ley in downtown Ensenada). You can get a "dumb phone" for 301 pesos ($23 dlls.) that comes with 300 pesos' credit; you can buy an Android smartphone for $120 dlls. or so. You will get a Mexican telephone number, so buy it where you'll use it most—Mexico still has domestic roaming. For data on a smartphone, you'll get a small bucket to use up front and then after that you'll need to send a code to an SMS code (at http://www.telcel.com/portal/personas/amigo/detalles/paquete...). When you run out of credit, you go to any Oxxo, 7-Eleven or grocery store and ask for a "recarga", then pay and give them your phone number.

absinvestor - 12-16-2013 at 10:06 AM

Since they already have service with Att I also recommend viva Mexico. I use it and it works perfect. I call ATT right before I cross the border. The cost is about $50/mo for 450 minutes. In addition to the 450 minutes weekend calls are free and unlimited etc. When I cross back from Mexico into the US I call and cancel Viva Mexico. The monthly rate is prorated. No hassle and no need to give relatives etc a new phone number etc.

Sweetwater - 12-16-2013 at 11:18 AM

I have an unactivated AT&T Nokia flip phone. Is it better to activate it in the United States or to find a chip after crossing the border? My smartphones and Verizon plan are still much better coverage and information in the western United States.

mcnut - 12-16-2013 at 12:06 PM

Reading all the replies, thanks.

In my case I'm not interested in a contract and only spend a couple weeks a year in Baja. Most the few dumb phone calls will be from MX to a US numbers. As we will be traveling I'm not sure a local number will help, actually prefer a US number as the phone will serve as a backup in the US the rest of the year.

I hope it's not $100 to activate, if so it's going back, Amazon is great with returns.

Bruce

CortezBlue - 12-16-2013 at 12:32 PM

Viva Mexico Plan
Check it out at ATT

dasubergeek - 12-16-2013 at 12:38 PM

Then you're better off with the Viva Mexico plan, as other have said.

aguachico - 12-16-2013 at 01:28 PM

If you have a android phone on an ATT Mexico plan, be sure to ask for the "choose your network" release function to be sent to your phone. This will allow you to scan network operators for the 4G signal of your choice. Because most of Mexico does not support 4Glte, it will keep your phone from searching for one also.

bajatravelergeorge - 12-16-2013 at 05:44 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by aguachico
If you have a android phone on an ATT Mexico plan, be sure to ask for the "choose your network" release function to be sent to your phone. This will allow you to scan network operators for the 4G signal of your choice. Because most of Mexico does not support 4Glte, it will keep your phone from searching for one also.


Be sure to get the same feature on your iphone if you have one. Get it done in the states if you can. Otherwise, in some areas away from large cities, your phone will only search and never log on to a signal.

Lee - 12-16-2013 at 08:15 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by sequoyah
all over Mexico.

I changed to the "Viva Mexico" plan while still in the states. This allows me unlimited calling to the states when in Mexico and into Mexico when in the states.

The actual coverage changed to TelCel, but I haven't had to deal with them at all (thank goodness).

Be aware that coverage for all kinds of phones can be spotty in Baja, but the larger towns, including San Quintin, are generally covered.


Same here. People call me using a US area code and I can call North or in MX anytime. For me, the Viva MX plan is $5.00 extra a month.

captain4tuna - 12-18-2013 at 09:52 AM

we have a throwaway ATT dumphone we use in Mex ....calls to US and from US a breeze....Load it each time we need it and it's 25 cents a minute in Mex and 10 in the US.....we also cheap mex phones where we load 100 pesos here and there...1 is through telcel for baja norte and movistar for the mulege area.

JZ - 12-18-2013 at 10:20 AM

The best way is to get your company to pick up the bill when you travel to Mexico. That works pretty good iyam.