Prepaid microsim for Germany?

[Chupa Chupa]

I'm traveling to Germany this spring. Do any of the carriers there sell prepaid microsims for the iPad? Or could I get one at the Munich Apple Store? Is one carrier better than another? Most of my time will be in the south with a couple days in Berlin.

 

[pureMG]

hey,
you can go check out simyo (www.simyo.de) or blau (blau.de) they both sell micro sims for the ipad with a prepaid data plan (100MB for 3.90€ and 1GB for 9.90€ a month). i'm not sure if you can buy the sim cards at retail stores though. i think they only sell them online so you'd have to ask someone in germay to order them for you.

 

[GrafEberhart]

Hey,

It really depends on how much you plan on using the iPad.
Basically every super market chain has their own prepaid offer which are all about 24cents/MB.
As pureMG already mentioned I would recommend you to go with the 1GB internet package offered by simyo. They usually give you a sim with 5 Euro of top-up for 4,95. You do have to cut it to fit in the micro sim slot though.
There are also some ad based solutions where you get an internet flat (however only the first 200mb are full speed). You agree though that they are allowed to call you and send you text messages on that number. But since you use it with the iPad no harm done there.
Greetings from Germany

 

[VelocityChris]

I'm traveling to Germany this spring. Do any of the carriers there sell prepaid microsims for the iPad? Or could I get one at the Munich Apple Store? Is one carrier better than another? Most of my time will be in the south with a couple days in Berlin.

Just wondering if OP found a solution? Did Simyo or Blau.de work for you? I am traveling to Germany in May and I want to get a micro-sim for my 3G iPad while there. I am hoping I will be able to walk into a provider in Germany and purchase the micro-sim and data plan. Or do I have to order a card over the internet and have it shipped to me?

Thanks

 

[foranor]

At Frankfurt Airport (for example), there are e-plus stores in the public store area. (http://www.frankfurt-airport.com/co...op_enjoy0/shops/photo_electronics/e-plus.html)

They should sell you iPad compatible phone options.

However, finding a store that sells Simyo or Blau.de cards is another matter entirely.
I think it depends entirely on how badly you need your 3g to work.

Blau.de sells simcards at the following stores:
http://www.blau.de/aufladen/auflade...id=39F90400759235415A010C4FE440AAE3.titanium3
(the graphic shows stores that sell cards and recharge-codes (left side) and stores that only sell recharge codes (right side))

Aldi sells simcards in their stores, too.

 

[VelocityChris]

Excellent- I am going to be at Frankfurt Airport. So by "iPad Compatible phone options" you mean that I can purchase some kind of wireless data plan, right? Basically I am trying to find a 3G plan with 1 or 2GB for the two weeks that I will be in Germany.

Thanks for the info!

 

[foranor]

I mean data plans that will work with the iPad. Obviously telecommunication companies here still make a difference between tethering, 3g on your notebook and 3g in a tablet.

You should be able to find something to suit your needs.
This:

I think it depends entirely on how badly you need your 3g to work.

actually meant that if you don't need 3g to start working at the airport right away, and you don't arrive on a shops-closed-sunday, you should try to get one of the blau.de sim-cards from one of the stores I linked on that graphics, or check out an ALDI-Store.

Neither ePlus (which I linked at the airport) nor Telekom or Vodafone are competetively priced for short vacations like that.

Enjoy germany, hope you have some time for sightseeing, and not just business. It's actually a nice country.
Unless you race from sight to sight ... BTW: The colloseum in rome is not in germany, neither is the eiffel tower in paris.. Just in case you're travelling like The Griswalds.. Europe in a week.

 

[VelocityChris]

Great- that does clarify. Thanks foranor.
Do you or does anyone know if it is as simple as swapping the microsim, maybe a validation check through 3G and then done? In the early days of iPad there are MacRumors threads discussing a need for a validation through laptop (presumably through iTunes). But it also sounds like the carriers didn't know yet how to deal with the data plans. So I am not sure, but hoping this is no longer the case, or at least that it can be done through the store's hardware. I am trying to do this trip without the MBP and would hate to have to bring it just for an initialization. Sorry for the pile of questions- first trip outside the country with the iPad.

Trip is actually vacation. Not a Griswold trip though! 2 weeks road tripping through southern Germany (first time in Europe, though). Even keeping to that small area will be busy enough. Would never try to do multiple countries in such a short stay- would miss the flavor of the region.

 

[foranor]

About your germany trip question: I have no idea, sadly, because so far I don't even own an iPad.
However, what happens if you swap your ATT sim for a t-mobile one? (Aside from the fact that since this week, they are one and the same..)

Do you have to 'unlock' it first via iTunes?

I can only tell you about the iPhone 4.. I witnessed a young girl with her mom buying an iPhone 4 and they said they don't have a computer, so the saleslady hooked it up to their computer and she said "No problem, I'll hook it up to ours to unlock it." and that's exactly what she did. So I'd think they might be able to help you with the iPad as well, unless you really end up in a supermarket selling simcards.

I suppose it all depends on how much money it's worth to you to have 3g for those two weeks.
If you don't need it right at the airport and money is no issue but you'd like to possibly have the aforementioned kind of support, you should check out a mall in the frankfurt area, because those most definetively hold a multitude of carrier-owned stores. A t-mobile store or an o2 one, vodafone or BASE, and I guess they'd be the safest bets. The ones I provided in the article-links are the cheaper, but I doubt you'd get support like this there.

For t-mobile, you might want to check out what they call: Xtra Web'n'walk Flat Special -- 34,95 for an entire month, unlimited traffic slowed down after exceeding 3 GB, includes a HotSpot Flatrate, which for example means you get to use your ipad with Wifi speeds in McDonalds
Simyo might be cheaper, but no idea about how to acquire their simcards.