Three UK: how to activate SIM and top-up account from USA?

[Boz1]

Boz1,

Yes, when I set up the KwikPay app, I just used a hotel address in London. Use Google to look up an address in the UK and use that. I use PayPal to pay for the top-up through the KwikPay app.

Eric

Thank you!

[Boz1]

Another question...for those that have used their Three SIM cards in the US and elsewhere, does it connect with LTE, or is it H or H+?

[rfranzq]

Another question...for those that have used their Three SIM cards in the US and elsewhere, does it connect with LTE, or is it H or H+?

On my NON LTE phone it is "H" for AT&T and "H" for T-Mobile.
I would be curious about LTE also.

Have to experiment sometime.
I am in Los Angeles County so I would think this is
the best it can do on the phone the SIM is currently in.

I have two pre-2018 SIMs but not that interested in testing and paying 15 pounds.

[fv22652]

Boz1,

No LTE for EU prepaid sim cards, only H or H+. I've found H or H+ plenty fast enough when in Europe. I'd have to look through some of my older posts, but I think download speeds were in the range of 5 - 13 Mbps.

Eric

[Boz1]

Boz1,

No LTE for EU prepaid sim cards, only H or H+. I've found H or H+ plenty fast enough when in Europe. I'd have to look through some of my older posts, but I think download speeds were in the range of 5 - 13 Mbps.

Eric

Thanks for the info.

[rs899]

Boz1,

No LTE for EU prepaid sim cards, only H or H+. I've found H or H+ plenty fast enough when in Europe. I'd have to look through some of my older posts, but I think download speeds were in the range of 5 - 13 Mbps.

Eric

Depends on where you are and what phone you have. I agree with the above, but I got 4g LTE on 3uk in UK with an LG G3 D855, the euro version.

[djphilosophy]

No LTE for EU prepaid sim cards, only H or H+.

Eric

This is just false. It totally depends on the country and provider. I'd agree that it's more likely that if you're on prepaid (especially budget-priced MVNOs) you won't have LTE access, but to say "no LTE for EU prepaid" is simply not the case. Look at the prepaid data SIM wiki for any EU country. I've looked at France, Spain, Germany, and Greece, and found LTE offerings on prepaid in each. Some of them are phenomenal: look at Free Mobile in France, which gives you 100GB (yes, one hundred) of LTE data for 20€/month.

[Boz1]

Another question...for those that have used their Three SIM cards in the US and elsewhere, does it connect with LTE, or is it H or H+?

Boz1,

No LTE for EU prepaid sim cards, only H or H+. I've found H or H+ plenty fast enough when in Europe. I'd have to look through some of my older posts, but I think download speeds were in the range of 5 - 13 Mbps.

Eric

Depends on where you are and what phone you have. I agree with the above, but I got 4g LTE on 3uk in UK with an LG G3 D855, the euro version.

This is just false. It totally depends on the country and provider. I'd agree that it's more likely that if you're on prepaid (especially budget-priced MVNOs) you won't have LTE access, but to say "no LTE for EU prepaid" is simply not the case. Look at the prepaid data SIM wiki for any EU country. I've looked at France, Spain, Germany, and Greece, and found LTE offerings on prepaid in each. Some of them are phenomenal: look at Free Mobile in France, which gives you 100GB (yes, one hundred) of LTE data for 20€/month.

Wasn't the context of the comment that there is no LTE while roaming with a Three UK SIM outside of the UK?

[djphilosophy]

Wasn't the context of the comment that there is no LTE while roaming with a Three UK SIM outside of the UK?

Even in reference to your question, the wording of fv22652's comment seems like a blanket statement about EU prepaid SIM cards, which by extension includes the Three UK SIMs in answer to your question. Maybe it's a poor choice of words.

[Boz1]

Even in reference to your question, the wording of fv22652's comment seems like a blanket statement about EU prepaid SIM cards, which by extension includes the Three UK SIMs in answer to your question. Maybe it's a poor choice of words.

Maybe.

Is there any reason to think a Three SIM card using paygo (3/2/1) should get something better than H or H+ in the US?

[rs899]

Maybe.

Is there any reason to think a Three SIM card using paygo (3/2/1) should get something better than H or H+ in the US?

I don't think so. I have a 3UK SIM that I am trying to keep alive until October when we go to Italy. I just put it into my (rooted, ROMd) LG G3 D851, which was a Tmo phone. It gets a signal, but only H+, though I know 3UK roams on Tmo here. I was able to send myself a text from my (free) Sprint 1yr BYOSP phone , so I know both work (Yay!). That will get free 2G data in Europe, but I will still likely want some faster stuff (though I may wait until I get there and see how slow it is before I fund the 3UK account).

I am pretty sure I read somewhere on the 3UK site that the Feel at Home countries would only be 3G or H+, but I can't find it there now.

[Yeswap]

3 UK says Feel at Home roaming is supposed to be HSPA+ or less. I got LTE in Hong Kong in Feburary so there are undocumented exceptions but the US doesn't seem to be one.

[fv22652]

Folks,

Sorry for the confusion on my earlier post about "No LTE on EU prepaid sim cards". From what I've read and experienced with different European prepaid sim cards, I've never had LTE while in Europe. I'm using an iPhone SE which supports the European LTE bands. I'm sure there are exceptions to the various European mvnos, so I should have worded my response differently.

With my Three UK sim card I've not gotten LTE in the UK, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, or Switzerland.

With my Vodafone UK sim card I've not gotten LTE in the previous list of countries.

With my German prepaid sim cards I've also not gotten LTE in the previous list of countries.

Thanks.

Eric

[high technology]

Generally, the EU roaming requirement requires service, not LTE which is still a "premium product" in most of Europe (though more and more it's being included in all plans). So most carriers at the present time don't allow LTE -- for example, my Vodafone Germany SIM only advertises 7.2Mbps service (which is HSPDA single carrier) not LTE even while in Germany. It worked great in France -- HSPDA was basically as fast as my LTE roaming on Verizon's $10/day Travel Pass plan (really hard to tell any difference), and I used 2GB on that SIM and all of 400MB on Verizon over the course of a week.

[Aclondon]

Incorrect

EE and Voda are the only companies that offer EU LTE roaming. This is provided that your device has support for the different LTE bands in EU. To confuse things LTE can sometimes be termed as 4G in Europe.

Which is very different when you compare 4G in the US on TMob/AT+T.

Also Three UK now offer a tablet SIM that gives you 200mb of 3G Data free monthly when you register the sim with an email address. The SIM is free to ship to UK addressses

Personally though after having dealings with all the Big Four Networks in the UK and whilst the U.K. is part of the EU I would only purchase sims for Voda or EE as 3G Data speeds in the EU can be painfully slow and the 4G/LTE coverage is far superior as there’s little investment in 3G these days.

Boz1,

No LTE for EU prepaid sim cards, only H or H+. I've found H or H+ plenty fast enough when in Europe. I'd have to look through some of my older posts, but I think download speeds were in the range of 5 - 13 Mbps.

Eric