Monday, July 13, 2009

O2 Data Roaming - short and curlies

With all the talk about reduced costs for using your phone abroad, the carriers still have you by the short and curlies.

As I've previously indicated, the hotel we'll be staying at on holiday has wifi, but it'll cost 3 euros an hour. Not overly extortionate, but no use if I need/want data when out and about.

In the end I bit the bullet and have taken out an O2 data bolt on. But there's a catch - the cost of the bolt on relates to your billing date.

Therefore, if I want to start it from my next billing date I'm already on holiday. If I start it now, I'm being charged for data I'm not using because I haven't gone away yet.

Had a long and complicated chat with the O2 people about this. I think I'm just going to have to avoid using data for the first few days of my holiday (or use the hotel wifi), after which I should be good to go.

Why is this such a pain? I also wonder, with so many smartphones in use these days, particularly iPhones, how many people will not think about this and come back to horrendous bills?

No comments: