Verizon Global Plan - good deal or rip off?

[jcal0820]

I'm on the Verizon network in the States, and will be traveling to Seoul, Korea next month for 3 weeks. I have an unlocked smart phone, & I was looking into buying or renting a local SIM card when I got to Korea. Or, using an International plan from Verizon... Verizon offered its. 'Global Plan', which costs $4.99 to set up, plus $25 for initial 100 MB data. Thereafter, All incoming & outgoing calls, regardless of where, costs $1.99 a minute, and texts are .50 per text. Is this plan worth it, when compared to getting a local SIM in country instead?

 

[SiempreTuna]

Not sure what prices are like in Korea, but I would take a punt that a local SIM would be radically cheaper, if somewhat less convenient than that Verizon plan.

I know you pay way more for telecoms in the US than we do here in the UK, but those prices .. ouch

It's a long time since I lived in Asia, but back then it was cheaper than Europe and the US. My guess is that's still true.

 

[Thom]

Thread moved to sub-forum where carrier comparisons are discussed.

... Thom

 

[kate]

I'd agree with SiempreTuna - chances are a local option will be cheaper.

 

[jcal0820]

From my research, local Korean plans for prepaid accounts seem pricey, maybe more so than, say, in Europe. For instance, one of the major Korean providers, KT Telecom, offers about 100 MB data for 56,000 KW (equivalent to approx. $52 U.S.). Plus, you have to purchase/rent the SIM, but local phone calls would be cheaper.

The Verizon Global Plan was $25 per 100 MB data; Since I'm looking more for data use out there, I'm still debating...

 

[rui-no-onna]

From my research, local Korean plans for prepaid accounts seem pricey, maybe more so than, say, in Europe. For instance, one of the major Korean providers, KT Telecom, offers about 100 MB data for 56,000 KW (equivalent to approx. $52 U.S.). Plus, you have to purchase/rent the SIM, but local phone calls would be cheaper.

Where'd you get that info? A quick Google search gave me the following rates:

Prepaid Rate Plans | [ olleh! ] – Welcome to KT

100MB: 5,500
300MB: 8,800
500MB: 11,000
1GB: 16,500
2GB: 22,500
4GB: 38,500

 

[jcal0820]

Googled all over, & Didn't find that one.

** after reading that, looked Olleh/KT up, & in S. Korea, apparently you have to wait 3 days after arriving in country in order to register for a SIM. Because of a local immigration statute that I don't understand. That just perplexing.

 

[rui-no-onna]

Googled all over, & Didn't find that one.

Google. No idea why you didn't see that page as well as others with similar rates.

** after reading that, looked Olleh/KT up, & in S. Korea, apparently you have to wait 3 days after arriving in country in order to register for a SIM. Because of a local immigration statute that I don't understand. That just perplexing.

I believe that wait time is regardless of carrier. They seem to be pretty strict when it comes to giving out mobile phone numbers in Korea.

 

[jcal0820]

...& now, finding out you can only rent, not buy, a prepaid SIM. Need to verify that, since that goes against the concept of 'prepaid'

 

[rui-no-onna]

...& now, finding out you can only rent, not buy, a prepaid SIM. Need to verify that, since that goes against the concept of 'prepaid'

From what I understand, the rent thing is if you get a SIM card at the airport and I believe the fees are higher. If you wait 3 days, you can buy the SIM card locally.

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[jcal0820]

Well, just came back home after 3 weeks in Korea, and looked like getting a local SIM card was the way to go. I, regrettably, started the trip on the Verizon Global Plan I described earlier. While roaming on this plan, damn phone could barely connect to any of the local networks or hold it, with data being almost useless. I called Verizon tech support, but to no avail. Finally, I just walked into a local Olleh KT store in Iteawon, bought a prepaid SIM with 200 min of calls and 1GB data. Worked like a charm, & was getting like 20mb download speeds on just a 3G connection!! & the prepaid Plan was much cheaper than what Verizon had to offer, of course. I should have just done this from the start, as some of u recommended, and now I know better. I didn't even have to endure a waiting period, got it working before I even left the store! Getting a local SIM is the way to go.