# Which data sim UK



## stumardy (Oct 25, 2009)

Hi All,

picking my new TT up on Sunday and just want to know which is the best PAYG sim to buy? also how many gb's should I go for per month? not really sure what the normal useage would be? I have an iPhone 6 on 3 with unlimited data but not sure if you can teather this to the TT?

What would folks suggest doing? Oh and I'm guessing it uses the date for the nav for google maps right?

Any help would be great as coming from a Mk2 with not much tech in to a Mk3 with loads is a big jump for me!

Thanks


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## Gogzy01 (Oct 9, 2012)

EE are currently doing a SIM on PAYG that gives you 100gb per month for 2 months for £10.

The deal runs out on 29th Dec so after your 1st 2 months are up then you can get a second to last you until February. There is no tethering limit on the plan. Works out at £20 for 400gb of data for 4 months.

http://shop.ee.co.uk/campaigns/christmas-sim-from-ee


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## AdamA9 (Jul 8, 2011)

stumardy said:


> Hi All,
> 
> picking my new TT up on Sunday and just want to know which is the best PAYG sim to buy? also how many gb's should I go for per month? not really sure what the normal useage would be? I have an iPhone 6 on 3 with unlimited data but not sure if you can teather this to the TT?
> 
> ...


Just tether to the car. I do this on my iPhone. I only use it when driving using the SatNav as I find TMC to be rubbish in the UK. Just go to settings > personal hotspot and switch on personal hot spot. You then need to connect your car to the hot spot and you're done.


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## stumardy (Oct 25, 2009)

AdamA9 said:


> stumardy said:
> 
> 
> > Hi All,
> ...


Hi thanks for the info but I'm not sure if 3 let you teather from your phone. I've tried this on my laptop and 3 block teathering saying I need to pay extra for this service. Does that sound right to you?


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## kmpowell (May 6, 2002)

stumardy said:


> I'm not sure if 3 let you teather from your phone. I've tried this on my laptop and 3 block teathering saying I need to pay extra for this service. Does that sound right to you?


Depends on your tariff. Most (I know mine is) of 3's tariffs do allow 'Personal Hotspot' tethering, capped at 4GB a month. Log-in to your account and it'll tell you if you have it or not. Here's a screenshot from my app which shows 4GB of tethering data available (I've not used any this month)...










If you just want a cheap PAYG data-only sim, be warned that nearly all the PAYG data allowances expire after 30days, so you have to top-up again every 30 days. There was/is however one EE 24GB sim that was/is being sold on Amazon that the guys on the RS forum were snapping up for their cars. The allowance expires after 1 year rather than 30days,

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-listin ... dition=new

Personally I use the tethering route because it's easier and more convenient.


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## ianle (Apr 2, 2015)

I was originally using the tether from my iphone (as I have unlimited data) and yes it generally works, but:

1. If I forgot or found myself unexpectedly in traffic, I'd have to stop to dig my phone out (which might be in the boot) to connect it

2. It drained the battery on the phone more quickly

3. The car sometimes forgot about the phone hotspot and didn't connect even though the hotspot was on [smiley=bomb.gif]

So with either my failings or the technologies failings, I dropped a 1GB data only sim from my iPad into the car for a few weeks to then see how much it used.

With a 2 hr drive using SatNav and on-line traffic, it came to about 15MB for that day. Rough maths says I'd get about 130 hrs a month from 1GB. 130hrs of driving per month at 30 mph (my sad average speed according to its memory) is just under 4,000 miles per month. I'm closer to 1200 miles a month so the 1GB sim should last quite easily.

1GB from Three is £7.50 per month and IMHO is a small price to pay to avoid all the faffing about with tethering...

I hope this helps.

Ian.


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## stumardy (Oct 25, 2009)

ianle said:


> I was originally using the tether from my iphone (as I have unlimited data) and yes it generally works, but:
> 
> 1. If I forgot or found myself unexpectedly in traffic, I'd have to stop to dig my phone out (which might be in the boot) to connect it
> 
> ...


Thats great Ian thanks for all the info and yes I think a 1 or 2 GB sim would be fine for me. Just one question. I presume the sim only uses data when you are only using the sat nav with a route planned right? if you are not using it i'm guessing it wont run on in the background using data?


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## ianle (Apr 2, 2015)

Even when Sat Nav was on (but no programmed route) it was using some data but it was less than 1MB per day - what it was doing - who knows :?


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## AdamA9 (Jul 8, 2011)

stumardy said:


> ianle said:
> 
> 
> > I was originally using the tether from my iphone (as I have unlimited data) and yes it generally works, but:
> ...


You really don't need one. Honestly, it's so easy to get in your car, switch on personal hotspot and that's it. There's a charger in the centre console so your battery won't drain. I don't know why anyone would want to take a second sim when it's so easy to tether to these cars.


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## m-a-r-k (Nov 17, 2009)

rescinded


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## RamsayTT (Oct 10, 2015)

Does anyone know if you have to have a 4G connection to work with the connect? I have seen a sim for £3.50 a month for 1gb of Data but it only offers 3G coverage...


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## Pugliese (Aug 4, 2010)

RamsayTT said:


> Does anyone know if you have to have a 4G connection to work with the connect? I have seen a sim for £3.50 a month for 1gb of Data but it only offers 3G coverage...


No 3G is fine. Initially tried a 3g GiffGaff sim and it worked well. Ended up buying a 6gb 4G from EE via a cheap Ebay deal. I think it was £12 for 3 months. I agree tethering is super easy but for less than £1 a week, just pop in a sim and forget tethering.


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## Critter10 (Nov 4, 2010)

Pugliese said:


> RamsayTT said:
> 
> 
> > Does anyone know if you have to have a 4G connection to work with the connect? I have seen a sim for £3.50 a month for 1gb of Data but it only offers 3G coverage...
> ...


+1 - and the EE deal referred to is excellent value. I know there are other one-off deals out there that are better, but I've been buying these 6GB/3 months EE cards for the last three years and they provide really good coverage almost everywhere. And this deal is available all the time.


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## RamsayTT (Oct 10, 2015)

Critter10 said:


> Pugliese said:
> 
> 
> > RamsayTT said:
> ...


Grand - I shall have a search on Ebay.


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## Dash (Oct 5, 2008)

Not got stuff in my car, but for low usage data only, I've previously used Three 123 PAYG. It doesn't expire every month so you can land up topping it up every six months or so.

Alternatively, there is this now: http://www.freedompop.com/uk

It's just launched in the UK, and I think you have to pay a fiver or something for the SIM but then that's it. You get a small amount of data free every month. Their business model is they hope you'll want more! But if you know you're not going to use a lot, then it sounds like a great idea.


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## stueychewy (Oct 6, 2015)

AdamA9 said:


> stumardy said:
> 
> 
> > ianle said:
> ...


Because as Ian said it's not actually that easy, at least not with an iPhone.


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## stueychewy (Oct 6, 2015)

ianle said:


> Even when Sat Nav was on (but no programmed route) it was using some data but it was less than 1MB per day - what it was doing - who knows :?


I had presumed mine was downloading the Google Earth images?

Of course you could be tweeting from your car too! (Yes I did it once, just the once!)


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## AdamA9 (Jul 8, 2011)

stueychewy said:


> Because as Ian said it's not actually that easy, at least not with an iPhone.


 :lol:

I'm not sure what part of pushing 'hotspot on' is complicated, but sure If people are happy to pay £10+ a month I won't try convince them otherwise.


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## ianle (Apr 2, 2015)

Adam - you are right - it's not complicated but I have to remember each time and it doesn't always work. If you leave the hotspot on all the time, the car doesn't always connect. So I'm paying £7.50/month to have one less thing to worry about. 1st world problems... :roll:


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## AdamA9 (Jul 8, 2011)

I find that if I've left the hotspot on and get back in the car switching it off and on again connects it back up. But as you say, if you've left your phone in the boot or it isn't accessible it could be annoying.


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## TortToise (Aug 22, 2009)

To anyone looking for a data SIM, this would seem to be a very good deal:

http://www.hotukdeals.com/visit?m=37125&q=2310769

Basically, pay £20 up front for an EE PAYG 4G/3G dongle with SIM card, get 2GB in your first month and a free 500 megs a month for the next 11 months.

As far as I can tell, you don't need to spend any more than the initial £20 to get data for the entire year. Just take the SIM out of the Dongle and put it in your car's SIM slot.


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## Critter10 (Nov 4, 2010)

TortToise said:


> To anyone looking for a data SIM, this would seem to be a very good deal:
> 
> http://www.hotukdeals.com/visit?m=37125&q=2310769
> 
> ...


Interesting find. Not sure how you would use this in the car (I'm no techie!). I'm assuming the SIM has to be inserted into the appropriate slot - would it work if it's removed from the dongle? Also, it may not actually matter, but this is restricted to 3G only.


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## ianle (Apr 2, 2015)

And of course which ever Sim you choose, you get another 8) thing on the dash.


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