Setting up US phone from UK

[zuben el genub]

I'm getting ready to send the kid my old Nexus 4 for use in the US. I feel better that she has a US phone available as soon as she can use it to check on hotels, car rentals, and text her friends. She's on an extra line on my TMO account so she has a US number and US SIM.

She has a Gmail account, and our US addy, plus an American credit card.

Can she set the phone up via wifi from the UK?

Can I send her a Play gift certificate for some paid apps?

I've had the 4 updated to stock 5.1.1

It's a stopgap, her old Nokia C6 will only do Edge. I'll keep an eye on what will be coming down the line and probably buy her a new phone when she's here.

 

[KOLIO]

Looks like you can e-mail her a gift card:
https://play.google.com/intl/en_us/about/giftcards/

As for setting up the phone via WI-FI,I'm not getting what you're asking for......

 

[Jfalls63]

If you are going to be sending it via mail you might not want any user data/ info on device in case it doesn't reach her. Things do get lost.

 

[mikedt]

I'm pretty sure you can do that, if you got all the necessary details, including US credit card. Although if it's a UK Play voucher in Pounds Stirling, don't think you can use that with a US Play account. If you securely lock it before you mail or ship it, even if it does go missing, nobody else can access and use it. And then send the kid the unlock PIN or password by email or whatever separately.

You can even change the country that a Play account is for, by registering a different credit card from another country. I've done that, changing from UK Play to Hong Kong Play. I remember I was at my dad's house in the UK one year, and the Samsung still had featured Play Store apps and content for Hong Kong!

 

[zuben el genub]

Thanks. There will be no data on it as it was just factory reset and updated to 5.1.1. It just has whatever it came with when updated. There will also be no account on the phone.

I'm putting the SIM in one of those RFID wallets in the same box, but not in the phone. Should I mail the SIM instead? That's where the info will be. If so, send it via airmail? what to keep it secure and make sure she gets it?

The phone will have US bands, not UK, so it will be roaming unless she uses wifi to set up. I understand you can use wifi wherever on your local account.

The phone will not be used in the UK, only to set it up via wifi. I don't have an international plan.

 

[aysiu]

She's on T-Mobile? I think you can actually activate the SIM on your phone and then just mail the activated SIM to her and have her put it in her phone.

Or if she already has the SIM and you have the phone (which is what it sounds more like), she's already activated, so she can just put the SIM card in the new phone.

 

[zuben el genub]

I have both. Her old phone used the standard SIM, so she couldn't get another in the UK, and needed a Micro Sim. I need to send it to her. It's activated. The C6 was the same vintage as the Samsung Behold, and card won't fit.