Hello,
Hopefully coming to Boquete in the near future. I want to be able to purchase a data SIM for my cellphone, as I would like to access the Internet on my phone when I'm out and about.
Can I buy one in town, and how much, depending on data size, are they?
Regards,
David.
Replies
There are several carriers in Panama, and they all sell sim cards at just about any Chinese market, and many other stores. I think the last one I bought cost $5 and then all you need to do it also buy a prepaid card of the denomination you want and load it into the card then choose a data package.
Mass Movil is the state owned operator and their service is pretty good for voice and data, although depending on where you are using the phone another carrier might work better. I use Mass Movil for voice and data and have been recently using Movistar for data only which seems to work better for me. I don't use it in Boquete much though since I don't live there. Since the sims and the cards don't cost much, experimenting is cheap, but not necessarily easy.
The challenge I have found is knowing how to use the cards once you buy them and knowing how to choose a data plan and how to check your remaining minutes. Since I have been using MM for a while I can help you with that on that carrier:
Buy a sim and a $15 card for Mass Movil. Then you insert the chip into your phone and then dial *166* the card number (scratch off section of card) # and send. If you want to confirm the available minutes (dollar amount) you can dial *165# send. To choose a data package, *456# send and then follow the prompts (which are in Spanish) to choose the plan you want. Then you can just use the phone browser and if enabled check email, etc. To check your remaining data GB amounts, dial *261# send (from the number that is located with the sim card) of course.
You also probably get some talk minutes as part of the purchase, but if you don't choose a data plan your minutes get eaten up by voice calls.
Hope that helps you. It is a bit confusing.
Thank you all so much for taking the time to write such extensive and informative replies. A true wealth of knowledge that is very much appreciated.
I'm thinking of using the 'Google Translate' app on my cellphone to communicate with Spanish speakers, as my Spanish is very limited. With the said app, you speak in English, it translates into Spanish and plays back in Spanish so the Spanish person can understand what you are saying - and vice-versa. It just struck me that it would be a neat tool to have; should communication problems should arise. The downside is that it needs an Internet connection to work! Hence my need for data on my phone.
Speaking voice-to-translation apps are a "neat tool" but in my experience the technology is not their yet to handle all the accents, syntax and outside distractions which occur in live situations. Best to learn some basic words for what you want - - - you don't need to be able to conjugate verbs or sentences just a few key nouns. Fortunately SIM is SIM the world over.
I just went through the whole sim card, buying minutes thing a few days ago. I did it in David, not for any other reason than we were already shopping there. Although I speak enough Spanish to "get by" this turned into one of the hardest, simple things I have done. I have found that in Boquete, vendors limited English along with my limited Spanish make it much easier to do business. The hardest part was since I didn't have my phone when purchasing the minutes they could not install them for me. The SIM card part is straight forward but understanding the instructions for installing your minutes/data kicked my ass. Had to go to a Spanish speaking friend to get it done.
Without that long story I could have just said, do what Hil says and go to a place that will take care of the whole process for you in Boquete.
Telphone time is sold in dollar increments "cards", $3, $5, $10 etc. Data can be bought for $15 a month and you will not exceed the data for one month. Mas Movil is a great provider. I use Whatssap for most phone calls. Everyone here text and does voice calls through Whatsapp. My simms card cost around $3 but that was a long time ago. They are probably a little higher now. Claro and Mas Movil have offices downtown Boquete. They will install the simms and setup your phone at no charge when you buy a simms card. Ask your friends in the UK to install whatssapp and use it to call back the UK free.
If your U.K. phone is unlocked no problem to buy a local sim card at the cell phone shop in front of the central park in Boquete. I recommend Movistar.
The other day I noticed a vending machine offering SIM cards from a number of carriers in the Arrivals area at Tocumen Airport.