La data roaming o roaming they are words as well known as unknown in turn. Everyone knows that data roaming exists, but few know what it is, how it is activated / deactivated and what it is for.
We don't know how to go anywhere without our Smartphone in our pocket. We share photos, write emails or posts and browse our social networks wherever we are. We have so internalized this practice that it is shocking when we leave our country and see that we do not have access to the internet. But what is the reason for this restriction? Let's talk about the data roaming o roaming .
What is data roaming?
la data roaming o roaming is to be able to send and receive calls, SMS or use internet data outside the service area of our mobile operator. Or what is the same, roaming It occurs when you connect to the internet through a network other than the one we have contracted with our mobile, either within or outside our country.
How to activate data roaming or roaming
En Android We must follow these steps to configure data roaming:
- Let Settings of Android.
- We click on More and then to Wireless connections and networks.
- Let Mobile networks
- We activate or deactivate roaming with the button.
En iOs o iPhone The steps to access the roaming settings are as follows:
- Let Settings of iPhone
- We click on Mobile data
- We activate the mobile data tab
- We click on Options and we activate the data roaming
Another option is to call our mobile phone operator to configure and regulate the roaming of our Smartphone. In addition to activating or deactivating the roaming of our rate, The operators can also limit the expense that we can make abroad.
Can I use the internet on my mobile phone outside my country and free of charge?
When we leave our country, our own mobile operator will notify us by SMS with information regarding the current rates in the country of origin. Thus, if we go to a country in the European Union, our operator will send us an SMS informing us of possible changes or limitations in our rate regarding the European regulations on roaming.
However, since June 2017, surcharges for roaming they do not apply to countries belonging to the European Union. Therefore, currently we can use the mobile internet in any EU country and without extra costs, but there are certain limitations that you should check with your operator (restrictive and limited use of mobile data, calls, SMS, etc).
However, if we want to use our mobile in a country outside the Union, we will have to continue paying to call, send SMS or consume data. In this case, we should call our operator to find out about the rates and prices of the destination country or acquire a chip or SIM with data from the country of origin once we are there.
Can I send and receive calls or SMS outside my country free of charge?
If we are within the European Union, there should be no problems making calls or sending SMS. Now, outside the Union, things change: If we are NOT within an area covered by the roaming of our rate, it will imply a cost on our bill.
It also affects whether we receive a call from outside the country we are in. In principle, they will charge the person who is calling you, but the call can also be collect and you will be responsible for the costs of this. We recommend not making or receiving calls. For this, it is a good option to activate the diversion to the answering machine.
When should I activate data roaming?
Data roaming is usually disabled on our phone by default. We must activate it whenever we are going to travel abroad and we want to call or receive calls, send SMS or use the internet. However:
- YES will entail an additional cost: if we travel fuera of the European Union and activate data roaming or roaming.
- DO NOT will entail an additional cost: if we travel in of the European Union. As we have already said, if we enter a country belonging to the Union, we should not have problems with our tariff, since the European roaming no longer exists.
Tips to avoid cost overruns on our invoice
If we want to avoid seeing unpleasant surprises on our mobile bill after activating data roaming, we must take the following into account:
- The country we are going to is included in our plan of roaming : we are talking about the countries that belong to the EU, or what is the same, they do not apply extra costs to the use of the mobile.
- The country we are going to is outside the European Union: we must call our operator before traveling to the country to inform us of the rate (price per call minutes, price per SMS, price per megabytes consumed, etc). Even so, when we arrive in that country, the operator should send us this information without requesting it before, but it is It is convenient to have previously informed.
Our recommendation is that, if we are going to travel, we must always have data roaming disabled or roaming to avoid making use of calls (outgoing or incoming), SMS or mobile data and only use our Smartphone if it is strictly necessary. At the end of the day, if we go to a different country, it is to do tourism, visit monuments and enjoy its gastronomy and culture, not to call or 'wasap' with friends. Thus, we will enjoy the trip more and avoid an unpleasant surprise on our bill.