Too many SIM cards - Prepaid internet while traveling

Getting a mobile internet connection when you're traveling outside your own country is not always easy: it can be a hassle to find prepaid SIM cards. And the free wifi you get in some restaurants is not as convenient and secure as having your own portable always-on connection.

I’m still using a Huawei to share 3G internet between the iPhone/iPad/Macbook. The iPhone has my regular UK SIM, useful to be reached on my normal number.

I managed to find prepaid SIM cards for 3G in almost all countries I visited except Japan. Every time the SIM card I bought was compatible with my unlocked Huawey. Often I had to manually configure the APN to get internet working on the Huawey.

Here are the details, country by country.

• Singapore, M1 broadband

Bought a SIM card at the airport immediately after arrival from an M1 stand. Unlimited data for a set number of days. When registering you need to show your passport and they keep a record of your passport number.

When the card expires, you need a separate connection to top it up, either with a credit card of with a voucher. You can buy the voucher in 7-11. You need to remember your broadband mobile number, you’ll need it to top-up.

5 days of unlimited data cost SGD18.

To top-up, go here.

• Taiwan, Chungwa Telecom

Went to the store in the shopping area near Taipei 101, had to bring two photo IDs with me. The Chungwa store was crowded, I had to wait about half an hour. There is a number calling system so once you have your ticket you can walk around the other shops before coming back so it wasn't that bad.

The vendor spoke English, the price of the card was reasonable.

• Hong Kong, one2free

Went to the one2free shop outside Fortress Hill MTR station. No ID required, no registration, the connection is entirely anonymous unlike in Beijing, Taiwan or Singapore. Unlimited data, you pay for a number of days. When your credit expires, your browser automatically prompts you to recharge. You don’t need a separate internet connection to recharge an expired card which is good.

If the one2free card was a beer...

To top-up

• get $100 vouchers in 7-11 (it's just a receipt paper with a number on it)
• top-up your balance online with the voucher number
• Buy more days (7 days of unlimited data costs HKD78)

• Beijing, China Unicom

Went to the China Unicom store located right outside the Dongdan subway station. Google map here. The passport is required. Only one employee spoke English in the store, which allowed me to skip the queue. The price for the card was reasonable.

This is not unlimited data, they charge you per KB so it's fine for Twitter/Email/FourSquare but no more. To buy recharges, go to any newsagent kiosk and buy a China Unicom recharge card. Topping up is a bit convoluted: you do it from a mobile phone. You call their phone number and type in the voucher number. You can call from a different SIM than the one you are recharging.

Important: you have to set the APN manually for the SIM to work correctly.

Warning! Not all China Unicom stores sell the SIM card. I also went to the main store in Wangfujing, which is the Beijing equivalent of London's Oxford Street. They sell much more expensive cards that do both voice and data, the price is ridiculous.

Twitter and Facebook are blocked in China (at least they were at the time I was there). US sites are a bit slow, Whatsapp and Wechat work fine. I haven't tried using VPNs there but here is a list of VPNs that are supposed to work in China.

• USA, T-Mobile

In Los Angeles T-Mobile sells a data-only SIM that works just fine. I went to the Santa Monica store and paid $35.95 for a SIM that kept me running for the remaining 8 days of my US trip.

Warning: don't get the card sold at LAX airport, it's way too expensive.

• Philippines, Global

I bought a Global data SIM card at a kiosk for PHP600 at MNL airport terminal 1 (Manila). This gives you 7 days of unlimited data. No document required, activation is anonymous. As the nice Filipino lady at the kiosk said "it's more fun in the Philippines".

You have to set up the APN manually.

To top up put the SIM in a mobile phone and dial a number to access a WAP menu. Then you have to:

• recharge your account using a prepaid card (I bought one for PHP300).
• create a 'promo' to choose the plan (I chose another 7 days).

• Japan, no luck

I found nothing in Japan!

My plane landed too late for the airport kiosk. None of the phone shops I visited in Osaka had any prepaid 3G SIM card - they told me the only place to get it was the airport.

I found free wifi in some bars (not so much in coffee shops, tea rooms or restaurants).