I am going on international travel and planning to take my iphone (locked to At&t) with me. I am expecting some important calls so would like to keep my current number active. Now, when someone from US calls me and if I don't answer and it goes to voicemail, will I be charged for roaming? I will turn off the data, just the phone connection. I can call my voicemail number from a local phone to check voicemails and call back.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
International roaming?
- Thread starter gaanee
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I have included AT&T's FAQ's on International Roaming, looks like you would be charged for roaming. What I do when I travel internationally is forward my AT&T number to my Google Voice Number. When ever a call comes in, I get an instant text notification and a transcription along with the actual recorded voice message sent to my email. if you are able to get a Wi-Fi connection you can access your voicemail that way.
A. Voicemail calls are charged as follows:
When your device is on:
Calls that you do not answer that are routed to the AT&T voicemail system will be charged as an international roaming incoming call to your device.
In addition, the foreign carrier's routing of that call to the AT&T voicemail system may generate an outgoing call charge from your device's location to the U.S.
These charges apply even if the caller disconnects from the voicemail system without leaving a message.
If your device is turned off or in flight mode and the wireless network is off:
When someone tries to call you, the call will go directly to your personal voicemail greeting.
Since the network does not try to deliver the call to you in a foreign country, there are no international roaming charges.
When receiving Visual Voicemail messages on your smartphone or Apple® iPhone®:
Visual Voicemail messages received when roaming outside of the U.S. will be charged at international roaming data rates, either at the international pay-per-use data rate or against your smartphone or iPhone international data package.
That FAQ needs a little more detail. Visual Voicemail works over data, so you could get to it even if your phone is in Airplane mode as long as you're connected to WiFi and, obviously have WiFi turned on. You would NOT be charged anything in that case.
Before you go, make sure you have data roaming disabled, then set to airplane mode and then turn WiFi back on. So whenever you can get free WiFi, you would be able to see your visual voicemail. If you have to absolutely make a call, then when you exit airplane mode, data roaming would not come into effect.
Before you go, make sure you have data roaming disabled, then set to airplane mode and then turn WiFi back on. So whenever you can get free WiFi, you would be able to see your visual voicemail. If you have to absolutely make a call, then when you exit airplane mode, data roaming would not come into effect.
Where is the option to disable data roaming or do I need to call At&t for that?
Also, I do not want to us airplane mode, so that I could see who is calling me. Now if I forward voicemails to google voice number but do not turn on airplane mode and do not pick up the calls, will I be charged for roaming?
Also, I do not want to us airplane mode, so that I could see who is calling me. Now if I forward voicemails to google voice number but do not turn on airplane mode and do not pick up the calls, will I be charged for roaming?
If you forward to Google Voice, you would not see any calls coming in to your iPhone so you would not be able to see who is calling.
----------
Visual Voicemail does not work for me if the phone is in Airplane mode and connected to WiFi.
To turn off data roaming, go to Settings, Cellular, Data Roaming off toggle.
Last edited:
It should still work if only the voicemail is forwarded to Google Voice (rather than just all calls directly).
Excuse my ignorance, but how would you forward just your voicemail to Google Voice and not all of the other calls?
It's basically about regular call forwarding vs. conditional call forwarding. If you use regular call forwarding then all calls are immediately forwarded to wherever you want to forward them, but if you use conditional forwarding (typically for busy or no answer) then the calls will go to the phone first and then when they would normally be sent to voicemail they would get forwarded to wherever the forwarding was set up to go.