Prepaid unlimited 3G sim card?

Is this with or without an ARC? I’d like to compile the scenarios into an FAQ since this topic of data is coming up more and more often both for short and long term visitors with and without ARCs.[/quote]

I did it with an ARC and had to put down a NT$2900 deposit which was refunded to me in cash after I cancelled two months later.[/quote]

OK thanks. That sounds like exactly what I did back in early 2010 when I had just gotten my ARC and was waiting for the 3GS to show up on Taiwan Mobile. I also needed an ARC to do the monthly plan, and they ended up refunding my deposit when I swapped to the 2 year contract with the 3GS.

The key consideration when this question of data plans comes up really does seem to be about ARC or not. One might assume that a good number of folks who are asking are likely either waiting for an ARC or won’t have an ARC during their stay, so whatever table or FAQ comes out of this needs to cover both scenarios.

Panda, for this, you can simply get a prepaid SIM card from either MyFone or Senao and just buy some credits for it. 500NT should be a good amount to start, and you can reload the SIM at a 7-11 or Family Mart.

I forgot to mention something about unlimited data, Taiwan Mobile have contracts with certain operators in Asia to offer day and week rates for unlimited data roaming. For example I was just in Kuala Lumpur and signed up for 24hrs unlimited data at TW$300. You sign up by SMS and decide when to activate the service for 24hrs, I save a small fortune with Skype and it’s great having access to Google maps etc. in a foreign country.

Yes, it would be most useful to have a (reasonabhly complete) summary! :thanks:

(You can see something similar to this new project of yours: a summary concerning Visa Debit Cards at A guide to Taiwanese VISA Debit Cards - that summary also came about because after a lot had been posted on that topic some people were still confused because one of the most important factors - you need an ARC to get the card - had been unclear.)

Yes, it would be most useful to have a (reasonabhly complete) summary! :thanks:

(You can see something similar to this new project of yours: a summary concerning Visa Debit Cards at [A guide to Taiwanese VISA Debit Cards - that summary also came about because after a lot had been posted on that topic some people were still confused because one of the most important factors - you need an ARC to get the card - had been unclear.)[/quote]

We had a cell phone summary thread in the Tech forum before, but because it was not stickied it just sort of went away to the back pages.

Yes, it would be most useful to have a (reasonabhly complete) summary! :thanks:

(You can see something similar to this new project of yours: a summary concerning Visa Debit Cards at [A guide to Taiwanese VISA Debit Cards - that summary also came about because after a lot had been posted on that topic some people were still confused because one of the most important factors - you need an ARC to get the card - had been unclear.)[/quote]

Here is the old thread:

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=87492

Yes, it would be most useful to have a (reasonabhly complete) summary! […][/quote]

Here is the old thread:
forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopi … =7&t=87492[/quote]

Thanks… that’s very good info! :slight_smile:

And since here (in this new thread) we have additional information about Taiwan Mobile as well and more explicit information to the effect that an ARC is required for a regular service contract (as opposed to prepaid service), i hope one of the moderators will combine these two threads into a sticky “read me first”. :bow:
Maybe “Cell Phone, 3G SIM, 3G internet FAQ (READ FIRST)” :smiley:

PS: Do you think these threads could be added to the FAQ?

[quote=“mabagal”]I will create a sticky for this at some point because it comes up about once a week it seems.

The easiest pre-paid SIM with unlimited data is from MyFone, aka Taiwan Mobile, aka 台灣大哥大. 350NT for every 5 days of unlimited data then prepaid minutes & text of top of that. So 2100NT/month for unlimited data with no contract. Pretty cheap.

I recommend this to everyone I know who comes to visit, and everyone has been pretty happy with it so far.

There are similar unlimited pre-paid data setups in most places countries in the world where people have smart phones in any quantity. Some are more expensive than others, but the 台灣大哥大 pre-paid unlimited-data setup is among the least expensive in the world.[/quote]

Sorry for resurrecting this thread, but I just found something.

On the Taiwan Mobile you would normally dial 535 to buy a data plan, they have a 30 day plan for 1500 nt (you dial 3 in the Chinese menu to find out about various packages they offer).

That’s great, thanks for the find!

Chungwha has increased the price to 950 for unlimited. I got 5 GB for 750 instead. It’s on a monthly basis. You need a phone subscription as well though. The cheapest is 183 per month. I got in my wife’s name since she had her Id card and passport on her for another errand.

[quote=“Taiwan Luthiers”]

Sorry for resurrecting this thread, but I just found something.

On the Taiwan Mobile you would normally dial 535 to buy a data plan, they have a 30 day plan for 1500 nt (you dial 3 in the Chinese menu to find out about various packages they offer).[/quote]

Wow - that’s great! I’m on FET now, but I might make the switch :slight_smile: Thanks a lot for finding that!

Thanks for the heads up! A bit of a bummer, because it’s a sign that the carriers here will all soon adopt data caps on their plans, but good to know there is now a bigger menu.

For some reason that’s just the display price - if you actually go in to subscribe to it, its only 700nt.

(Tried it last week in Xin Yi - got stuck at the ARC part though)

For some reason that’s just the display price - if you actually go in to subscribe to it, its only 700nt.

(Tried it last week in Xinyi - got stuck at the ARC part though)[/quote]
Ok. We’ll see when the bill arrives. The clerk didn’t mention anything about it, but she seemed to be a newbie though.

Right - to fill in a few more blanks.

FarEastone don’t offer a monthly prepaid package, the best you can get is 5 days for $350nt.

I forgot to go to Chunghua - doh!

But yes, Taiwan Mobile do the 1 month for $1500nt - HOWEVER - if you top up 1000NT in a Taiwan Mobile store, you get a bonus $350 on top, then top up the remaining needed $150 (which requires a min $300) and you get a bonus $50nt.

So taking all that into account, you get unlimited internet for $1100 a month :slight_smile:

Oh and if you are too lazy to go to a Taiwan Mobile store, or if you live too far away from one (like in the East), you can also top up online:

http://consumer.taiwanmobile.com/mobile/prePay/save/index_4.html

You still get the same discount/stuff and sometimes Taiwan Mobile will drop a surprise gift… I got a 35nt gift certificate for 85C, not all that useful for me as I don’t really care for bubble tea much…

[quote=“Taiwan Luthiers”]Oh and if you are too lazy to go to a Taiwan Mobile store, or if you live too far away from one (like in the East), you can also top up online:

http://consumer.taiwanmobile.com/mobile/prePay/save/index_4.html

You still get the same discount/stuff and sometimes Taiwan Mobile will drop a surprise gift… I got a 35nt gift certificate for 85C, not all that useful for me as I don’t really care for bubble tea much…[/quote]

Great tip - thanks :slight_smile:

Just got the bill. It actually ended up at 600 NT. It always happened when I first moved to Taiwan that I’d get all sorts of discounts that I didn’t know about because of the language. This time my wife was there but somehow there was still this magic discount. Well, who am I to complain?

[quote=“Taiwan Luthiers”]Oh and if you are too lazy to go to a Taiwan Mobile store, or if you live too far away from one (like in the East), you can also top up online:

http://consumer.taiwanmobile.com/mobile/prePay/save/index_4.html

You still get the same discount/stuff and sometimes Taiwan Mobile will drop a surprise gift… I got a 35nt gift certificate for 85C, not all that useful for me as I don’t really care for bubble tea much…[/quote]

Are you sure about this? My GF asked about this, and they said no - if top up online you only get the 20% bonus, if you do it store it’s 35%…?

[quote=“monokuro”]Right - to fill in a few more blanks.

FarEastone don’t offer a monthly prepaid package, the best you can get is 5 days for $350nt.

I forgot to go to Chunghua - doh!

But yes, Taiwan Mobile do the 1 month for $1500nt - HOWEVER - if you top up 1000NT in a Taiwan Mobile store, you get a bonus $350 on top, then top up the remaining needed $150 (which requires a min $300) and you get a bonus $50nt.

So taking all that into account, you get unlimited internet for $1100 a month :slight_smile:[/quote]
How do you get this deal?, I have had a look on Taiwan Mobiles English site and the best prepay deal I can see is $300nt for 300 MB. english.taiwanmobile.com/english … dCard.html

In the past I have signed up for a prepay for a month to get the unlimited data but it is always a hassle trying to convince the staff that it is possible. You also have to return to the store to cancel and get your deposit back. A prepay option sounds so much more straightforward.