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MySIM: a local SIM even before taking the plane!

Throughout the EU and some “close” countries (such as Switzerland or Norway for example), it is easy to call your French operator without spending more than you would in France. Since June 2017, this new regulation regarding roaming has been delighting travelers.

The only difference is in the volume of mobile data. On a 60 GB package, for example, you will have 6 or 8 GB of data dedicated to roaming (ask your operator to find out what is happening with your contract). This means that you will have Internet in Greece at no extra charge… but in 3G only. It helps out, but if you’re a heavy consumer, it might be annoying.

€ 16,000 per Gigabyte!

Outside the EU, it’s the red zone! Small examples of prices? With Bouygues Telecom, calls made from Ukraine cost 2.90 € / min (each minute started must be paid). A received call costs € 1.45 / min and an SMS € 0.65. You will have to pay € 10.24 per MB of data. Yes, per MB (Megabyte) and not GB! In Tunisia it is 16 € per MB. At 16,000 € per GB, it is better to deactivate data roaming, because the slightest application update can be fatal to your wallet.

So certainly, the operators offer you travel packages. In our case, Bouygues (which is not really a bad student in this area) offers 1 GB for 20 €. It’s better than nothing, but most of the time it’s best to go with purchasing a local SIM. For 300 hryvnias (10 €), there is a SIM card with 20 GB of Internet and 750 minutes of valid communication to local numbers. The problem is that you have to find it, speak Ukrainian or Russian and know how to configure it. The same if you go to Taiwan, the USA, Japan, Australia, Pakistan, Israel or Qatar.

The solution ? ESIM with MySIM

The solution is to opt for eSIM, a dematerialized SIM that you can buy before your trip to take advantage of very attractive prices once there. However, you have to find the right service depending on the country. The easy solution is a French startup that offers it: MySIM. This is an application that makes it easy to buy an eSIM package to around sixty destinations. You choose the country, you pay from the app by credit card or PayPal and it’s done. Please note, the number of devices is very limited, but this is the case for eSIM technology in general anyway: Samsung Galaxy S20, S20 +, S20 Ultra, S21, S21 +, S21 Ultra, Z Flip, Fold, Pixel 3 , 3 XL, 3a, 3a XL, 4, 4 XL, 5, Nuu Mobile X5 and Motorola RAZR 2019. Please note, for the Pixels only a few countries are available, because it seems that some operators are locking the eSIM. Important detail to know: an eSIM card via MySIM does not give you the right to a phone number.

The rates ?

You will therefore have to systematically go through an alternative solution for your calls. But is this really a problem? Everyone has a WhatsApp, Messenger, Skype, Signal or Telegram account, right? The same goes for messages. The advantage of this system lies above all in the quality of the connection and the prices. Count € 12.99 for 6 GB in the USA and Australia (the same price for 4 GB in Russia and Serbia), € 9.99 for 6 GB in Japan and Laos… It’s 4G of course and each offer is displayed with a validity date and compatible devices. No risk of crashing. The app is of course available on the App Store.

mysim
There is no operator that offers eSIM in Ukraine, but when it does it will be easier to use MySIM …

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