Phone Cards for Second Phone on Road - Question

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- Hedy Lamarr

Phone Cards for Second Phone on Road - Question

October 15, 2020, 04:04:16 pm

This year I was RVing in Florida and later in Missouri. I have a Visible phone plan which uses Verizon’s network. In both states I was unable to use my phone in certain areas. My friends with AT&T plans could use their phones. I have an older I-Phone and I am thinking of using it as a second and backup phone. I am thinking of purchasing AT&T phone cards to use for these situations. I know very little about this topic. I don't know if this would work. Have others done this and do you have any suggestions or advice? Thank you in advance for any information.

Monica
2017 Mid-Bath

Re: Phone Cards for Second Phone on Road - Question

Reply #1 – October 19, 2020, 05:31:32 pm

I am not sure what you mean by "AT&T phone cards". There was back when phone cards for long distance calling, but that won't solve your problem.
You may mean an AT&T sim card, and yes people use different sim cards for the carriers.

Many RVers that travel a lot use both Verizon and ATT.
Often they use a hotspot for the one of the companies and a phone for the second, using wifi calling over the hotspot when they need that carrier.

Newer phones will hold 2 sim cards, so you can have 2 different carriers (with 2 different phone numbers) on the same phone. You can only use one carrier at a time (change a setting on the phone for the one you are currently using) and you won't see the texts or calls from the other carrier until you switch the setting to that number/sim card.

You can also just have two sim cards and swap them in and out of your phone as needed.
Of course you have to decide on what plans to get for each wireless company.

Of note, some plans are cheaper but put you at the bottom of the list, so ask for and read the fine print on connecting.
One person reported (I am not sure if it was this forum or another one) that they had a cheaper plan and they found that they were given lowest priority, so they never got a signal at places like airports where there was a lot of use (and that was one of the places they wanted to use it).

Jane

Re: Phone Cards for Second Phone on Road - Question

Reply #2 – October 20, 2020, 10:41:37 am

Quote from: Jane and Scott - October 19, 2020, 05:31:32 pm

Of note, some plans are cheaper but put you at the bottom of the list, so ask for and read the fine print on connecting.
One person reported (I am not sure if it was this forum or another one) that they had a cheaper plan and they found that they were given lowest priority, so they never got a signal at places like airports where there was a lot of use (and that was one of the places they wanted to use it).

Jane

Without getting to far off topic and getting too deep in the weeds of cell phoneish --- there are too many variables ie signal grabbing, to blame any one issue on whether you get a cell connection or not in any given space. IMHO most of the time it's the quality of your cell phone and it's innards that make or brake the connection. Some cell phones like Apple products are very piggy. They suck up lots of bandwidth but on the downside they have a weaker modem. I'll stop here.........<smile>

glen

glen

Re: Phone Cards for Second Phone on Road - Question

Reply #3 – October 24, 2020, 02:11:00 pm

Thank you Jane and Glen. Your responses were interesting and helpful.

Monica
2017 Mid-Bath

Re: Phone Cards for Second Phone on Road - Question

Reply #4 – October 24, 2020, 04:02:31 pm

It is worth noting that not all phones work with all carriers. Even phones purchased 'unlocked' may have issues. Most carriers use GSM technology, while Verizon has used CDMA for years. I believe they now may support GSM, but many phones designed for Verizon do not, and many phones likewise do not support CDMA.

Steve

Re: Phone Cards for Second Phone on Road - Question

Reply #5 – October 29, 2020, 01:42:33 pm

Thanks Steve. I hadn't realized that this was so complicated.

Monica
2017 Mid-Bath

Re: Phone Cards for Second Phone on Road - Question

Reply #6 – October 31, 2020, 10:41:04 am

Quote from: Steve - October 24, 2020, 04:02:31 pm

It is worth noting that not all phones work with all carriers. Even phones purchased 'unlocked' may have issues. Most carriers use GSM technology, while Verizon has used CDMA for years. I believe they now may support GSM, but many phones designed for Verizon do not, and many phones likewise do not support CDMA.

Steve

The US federal government 'wanted' competition among cell phone providers. Most of the world 'picked' GSM as the dominate cell technology. The US FCC 'forced' Verizon to use CDMA tech. That and a very large investment from a Japaneses company has allowed them a step up in the race. In the long run other cell companies now have an equal and in some classes larger cell foot print. As of today Verizon is riding in it reputation more then its technical power. <smile> of course marketing always trumps reality.

glen

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