We have used a tesco pay monthly unlimited data sim in our Teltonika router and were achieving great connectivity and speeds across Spain, Portugal and France where 5G coverage is widely available. We got ths SIM on a deal for £17 per month and there is no cap on roaming for the duration of the contract.
Internet SIM options for our French Summer trip
- Thread starter barryd
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- Jul 14, 2019
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We also use HUAWEI E5577C and not had any trouble with it Even though some campsites do try and block our signal
- Jul 7, 2019
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I vote for Reglo. You can change your usage online, on the months I'm not using it extensively I drop it to 10 gig which is around €4. You can roam in the UK with it too...
- Oct 24, 2023
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looks good. any way to buy it remotely from UK?
OP
OP
Reglo I think offer 32gb roaming outside of France also whereas the Lebara one seems to be 7gb.
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No I don't think you can. Go to a Leclerc that has a separate phone shop in the shopping centre if possible. They will set the SIM up for you on a mobile phone, then you can transfer it to the MiFi.
- Dec 22, 2018
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Being able to stop the plan when you're finished in the EU is important. Nice if you can do it from an app or website. I've been able to do it by removing my payment method (credit card).
- Dec 22, 2018
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In increasing level of fanciness and effectiveness:
1. Just a phone hotspot. Works fine if you're close to a tower. Can get limited if your van is metal.
2. A MiFi device (without antenna). Not really any better than a phone. Could be worse as better phones have decent built in antennas.
3. MiFi with antenna. That could be a simple antenna inside the van, but better if it's outside.
4. Modem/router with antenna (usually mounted permanently on the roof). You can get used 4G home setups quite cheap and can be powered off 12 volt and they work well.
5. Fancy modem/router with 2x2, or even 4x4 MIMO antenna on the roof. This refers to a number of antennas actually inside the antenna unit. There are a few more antenna combinations too.
I've tried all those options and now have the last with a 4x4 MIMO. For most people the phone will be fine unless you like remote areas and/or want a fast connection. then at least some kind of antenna on the roof and a modem/router is worthwhile.
Again I disagree but based on our own experience only
1. the iPhone (14) is no where as efficient in signal strength as a a Mifi unit. Ours is an A class without a metal body.
2. MIFI unit has been really successful - just plug it into a usb and the tv picks it up really well to stream Netflix and the like
3. would not know but sounds logical
4. agreed
5. beyond my knowledge
For most, in my experience, a Mifi would work okay and that's without an antenna. just wanted a balanced view here.
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- Dec 22, 2018
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There will be some variance amongst phones and amongst MiFi units (and also particularly amongst mobile provider networks), but generally they're a similar device as far as signal reception goes. I have an iPhone 14 too and found with some networks it's not very good, but it does vary depending on location.
'...the TV picks it up really well...' is a different issue. That's how good the WiFi sent from the device (phone or MiFi) sends around your van (guessing you know that though and weren't meaning that). Effectively you're saying you're receiving a good enough signal to watch TV. That really depends how far you tend to camp from civilisation. I mainly go for very rural France and Australia which tests a setup and is why I've tried all sorts (not Starlink though). Though it surprises me that with the population density in the UK the place doesn't have sea to sea 5G.
The good thing is if you want to try something better than your phone hotspot, you can buy a MiFi, but just make sure it has the 2 small antenna sockets (they're only about 3-4mm and often hidden behind a flap) so if it isn't any better than the phone, then you can connect an antenna to it which certainly will be better.
Another thing I do is download a lot of stuff at home, stick it on a USB drive, then I can plug it into a TV if I'm out of range or data allowance.
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MisterB
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- Feb 25, 2018
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- enough to know i shouldnt touch things i know nothing about ....
you could always 'rent' a french registered starlink, so youre only paying £61 per month for completely unlimited access ....I know there are several threads on this but I thought I would start my own for our specific needs.
We are heavy internet users and both our mobiles are currently 250gb Talkmobile (Vodafone network) contracts. Talkmobile only allow 5gb of roaming and its also limited to 61 days so very restrictive.
As we will only be in France for the full 90 days my thoughts were to either purchase a single Lebara (SFR) sim and stick it in a router (Which router?) or as they appear to be cheap as chips just purchase 2 x 250gb 30 days sims, one for each of our phones and then divert our main Talkmobile numbers to whatever the Lebara sim numbers are. Im not sure if you need to be in the UK to do a divert though, hopefully not.
They seem too good to be true these deals though. €7.99 for 250gb!
No Contract Sim Card with Lebara Mobile -
Our best deails on No Contract Sim Card. Unlimited calls and SMS to France + unlimited calls to 43 destinations + gigaswww.lebara.fr
How easy is it to pick up and install a Lebara sim and get it activated once in France and where from? Im hoping I can find a friendly "phone shop" that will do it for us in case its all in French
Open to suggestions on the best way forward so any advice appreciated.
OP
OP
Thanks but I would rather give £61 to charity each month for nothing than pay a penny to Musk!
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