It would be a shame to go over budget on a trip that was socarefully planned with a thorough review of cheap traveloptions, such as cheapairplane tickets, discount hotel rooms, discounttravel deals, and cheap vacation packages,because you neglected to proactively take necessary cellphone money savingsteps.
The following are smartphone tips that should be followedprior to departing on your next trip overseas, according to Smarter Travel:
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Familiarizeyourself with your plan and your phone. Only GSM and CDMA phones will work abroad. Check with your provider to see if your phonewill be operable overseas. Look intoyour phone plan to find out what phone calls and data use will cost whileoverseas. Determine if you could savemoney by purchasing a temporary international calling or data package.
T-Mobile recently announced that it willeliminate roaming charges for data usage in over 100 countries and capinternational calling rates at 20 cents per minute.
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Lookinto purchasing a text package. AT&Toffers Global Messaging Packages that start at $10 per month for 50 messagessent from over 150 countries. Receivedtexts are deducted from your domestic plan.
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Thereare a variety of items and add-ons that will enhance and protect your phonewhile overseas, such as portable batteries, microfiber cleaning cloths, andtravel friendly phone cases.
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If youdo not intend to use data while overseas, but will carry your phone, you shouldturn off cellular data as well as turn off data roaming. You should also contact your cellularprovider for further suggestions on how to shut off data. Failing to do this, will result in automaticdownloads that come with emails, program updates, meeting notifications, andother data that will most likely lead to very expensive roaming charges.
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Lookinto travel apps well before you leave so that you have time to research,compare prices, and download the apps you want. Desirable travel apps include flight notifications, map, itinerary,language translation, destination guides, gas finders, and weather.
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Downloadentertainment before departing to avoid data charges.
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Makecertain to pack chargers and adapters in your carry-on so that there is nochance of them being misplaced or lost in transit.
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Useyour cellphones camera to create digital backups in case your identificationgets lost or stolen. Take a picture ofyour passport and drivers license and email it to yourself. Consider taking pictures of the contents ofyour checked bag which would be useful in the event the airline lost yourbag. Also take pictures throughout yourtrip of things that would serve as helpful reminders, such as your airportparking lot spot and your hotel room number.
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Checkyour smartphones storage before you leave. Create room on your phone by transferring photos and videos to yourcomputer, deleting unused apps, and clearing your Internet cache.
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Lookinto purchasing a prepaid country specific SIM card. Such cards allow users to make calls and usedata the same as many locals do through a local provider. Not all phones will accept new SIM cards. Check to see if you have an unlocked GSMphone.
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