International Data Sim Card with Imessage

[iMore Question]

Hello there,

I'm traveling to Europe at the end of the month and am looking to find a good way to travel with a bunch of unlocked iphone 4 or 5's. As i said they are all unlocked and can easily have a sim card slipped into them.

Would i be able to buy a couple 1G preloaded data sim cards, and be able to use Imessage off of this data?

Also, if i only buy two sim cards, is it possible to have the two phones be hotspot enabled and have the other phones connect and use that phones data?

 

[Tartarus]

Hello there,

I'm traveling to Europe at the end of the month and am looking to find a good way to travel with a bunch of unlocked iphone 4 or 5's. As i said they are all unlocked and can easily have a sim card slipped into them.

Keep in mind that American iphones don't support all LTE bands in europe, so there is a slight chance you'll only get 3G in some instances.

Would i be able to buy a couple 1G preloaded data sim cards, and be able to use Imessage off of this data?

Yes, most countries sell pre-paid simcards. I advice you to inform at a local phoneshop about the possibilities and the cheapest cellular provider.

Also, if i only buy two sim cards, is it possible to have the two phones be hotspot enabled and have the other phones connect and use that phones data?

Keep in mind that using hotspot, albeit at a very low rate, will drain your battery. I recommend you to carry external batterie(s) with you. If you're planning to use data extensive apps on all devices, it could be better to buy more sim cards, as the data speed will be shared by all connected devices.