Pay-per-use wifi

Hi,

i know this has been asked many times, but do allow me to sort this again..

i'll be travelling to japan alone for 2 weeks, and most of the hotels that i had booked will provide free wifi access and i have done fair share of research for my trp. as i foresee that most of the times i need not be online, i would prefer if i could get a SIM that gives me easy access of the internet when there's a need, at low cost. i've searched and it starts from JPY3,500, which to me, is a bit steep since i am just using it when an emergency arises; like, for check on train schedules if there's a last-min change. my phone is an HTC, working on android.

Y3500 to cover an emergency seems cheap. If you were buying roaming data from your provider it would probably cost you more than that.

As alternative questions: how much are you prepared to pay and how much do you want to pay? (now compare to the total cost of your trip)

If you don't plan to use a lot of data, an alternative would be to get a sim from Piranha Mobile

http://www.piranha-mobile.com

It's ��12 for the sim and you can add credits in increments of ��10. Voice calling is also included, and a US number is provided if you need one. Also the sim only expires if not used for 420 days, so you can save it for future trips to Japan or other countries.

With this sim you can switch between the Softbank and DoCoMo networks. Although DoCoMo is much more expensive for data, it does have better coverage in rural areas. Most of the time I used Softbank.

Hi,

I'm not from UK nor US. Would this card work? I got confused when I was asked to indicate calling countries from and to.

As what JCT said, any amount for emergency is worth it, for 3500Yen, that is considered cheap for a sim in Japan, what country are you from, if you are from HK, for approximate 1550 yen you get 1.1GB for 7 Days.

If you do not need wifi, you can use your sim it will be cheaper as coompare to wifi. If you buy roaming data then it will be costly.

It's ��12 for the sim and you can add credits in increments of ��10.

Their data rates are 18-55 yen per mb, so if you actually price it out that ends being quite a bit more expensive than the local options options. I would estimate for internet use is 50-100mb per day if you're not too restrictive. But no way the 50mb initial allowance is gonna last even with emergency usage. A large percentage of that can easily be eaten up when your phone first activates just updating its settings!

I'd recommend something like the econnect offerings, especially their 100mb/day high speed options. They offer a reasonable amount of data at a good price for the Japanese market (3100 yen for 15 day).

https://www.econnectjapan.com/products/

Alternatively, if 3000 yen is outside you budget then consider using free wifi hotspots instead. Many of the major train stations in Eastern Japan, plus huge networks of convenience stores nationwide offer free wifi, so it's not too hard to find a place to connect if you know where to look. More info on this page:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2279.html

Their data rates are 18-55 yen per mb, so if you actually price it out that ends being quite a bit more expensive than the local options options. I would estimate for internet use is 50-100mb per day if you're not too restrictive. But no way the 50mb initial allowance is gonna last even with emergency usage. A large percentage of that can easily be eaten up when your phone first activates just updating its settings!

There's a setting on your phone to restrict background updates. On my recent 10 day trip I used my phone in the same way the OP plans to use hers; mostly on hotel wifi at the hotel. Outside the hotel, I used it occasionally for google maps, navitime, line conversations and a few voice calls and i still have a ��11 balance for my next trip.

Thank you very much for all input.