I hope to get an iPhone soon on a Telstra Corporate plan (when they announce the corporate pricing, who knows...) I'm then off o/s for 6 wks US/UK/EU. If it's locked onto Telstra's NextG network here, how does it roam o/s? Do you just step down to GSM on compatible networks?
Any help appreciated!

It roams just like any other phone. It picks up the nearest/strongest tower, depending on arrangements Telstra have with the providers. What you cannot do is use most overseas sim cards in the iPhone.

Don't forget to enable the roaming option as well (on iPhone 3G. Not sure about 1st gen as I don't have one handy).

Settings > General > Network > Data Roaming > On/Off



Take note of the warning there.

Huy,

That's DATA roaming. You may want to check the cost of enabling Telstra DATA roaming. That's for sure!

Also, if the phone is on a cap or plan VF or Optus will unlock for free (I'm not sure about T - best to check) so you can slip a el cheapo OS sim in when overseas.

Don't data roam overseas! I did it earlier this year on a 1st gen iPhone and got a bill for $1800 for (I think) about 250mb of data. The cost is astronomical. My very strong advice: turn off data roaming when overseas.

Yes, thanks for the warnings above on O/S roaming charges! I called my Telstra Corporate account manager today and asked about data roaming o/s. The answer was the same - TURN IT OFF! Otherwise you're in for a BIG bill shock when you return. Of course you can use any WI-FI found, it's just the d/l data. And still no word on Telstra iPhone Corporate Plans...

I'll be on a Telstra plan (corporate) soon... When travelling overseas, would I have access to Telstra's roaming partners' free WiFi hotspots? In the USA, Telstra's partner is AT&T, and it seems their own iPhone subscribers can now use AT&T's free WiFi hotspots. (Or maybe not). In the UK there are WiFi Hotspots too. Anybody have any experience of this? I'm thinking of anything to avoid the international roaming data charges!!!

Telstra's partner is AT&T? Where does it say that?

If you are a customer of AT&T, then you will be able to login and use the free wireless.

Do you think AT&T customers from USA can come over here and connect to Telstra WiFi and use it for free? The answer is no. Not unless they are customers too in the given country. i.e. Telstra customers.

Free WiFi is not by device-type, but by account-status. They give out the free stuff based on whether you're paying them or not (contractually). Otherwise, no free lunch for you.

I reckon they're talking about voice. If it's data, it'll be through AT&T's 3G/EDGE network. Which means money.

If you're going overseas, my advice is to avoid using your mobile as much as possible. It's ridiculously easy to rack up massive bills when roaming, especially if you're using data.

Your best bet is to stick with only using your mobile when absolutely necessary. If you need to use the internet, try finding an internet café (I know that every second shop in Europe is an internet café).

When calling home, try and use calling cards. You can pick these up at any convenience store or newsagency. These offer the cheapest rates by far. If the places you're staying at have landlines, get people in Australia to give you a call. We can get cheaper rates from Australia than you can get overseas.

Do NOT get anyone to call you on your mobile. You'll pay money just to receive calls.

When I went overseas, my friend called home from Italy using his mobile. The call roaming rate was around AU $5/minute from Italy. His phone call lasted an hour. You do the math.

Roaming data is freaking expensive, why do you think apple added the switch?
It wasn't there in 1.02

I'm heading off to New Zealand next month.
I rang Optus (I'm on the $89 plan) and they told me the call rates which are expensive and outside of my included call allowance, but the data charges are the same as when I'm in Australia.
A very pleasant surprise and one that I will be confirming before I leave the data roaming switched on.

Nice! That's good to know, if I ever want to travel to New Zealand.

The further away you travel, the more expensive the rates will be. When I was with Vodafone (and I assume it's the same now), they had zones. Zone 1, which was the cheapest, had all the nearby Asian countries. Rates progressively become more expensive, depending on distance.

answer = very expensively $$$$$$