I am going to Israel for 30 days in June for a archeology/biblical program that was given to me for my 25th anniversary as a Catholic Priest and then I travel to Mexico City for a 30 day Spanish program to help improve my Spanish that I use a lot at my parish.

If I take my iPad which has the wireless and all the features, how will I be able to connect in Israel and Mexico? Has anyone ever done this? Should I call AT&T and find out about plans for overseas? Or should I just leave it at home and take my MacBook Pro laptop instead? Or both? Thanks!

Originally Posted by andrewjv

I am going to Israel for 30 days in June for a archeology/biblical program that was given to me for my 25th anniversary as a Catholic Priest and then I travel to Mexico City for a 30 day Spanish program to help improve my Spanish that I use a lot at my parish.

If I take my iPad which has the wireless and all the features, how will I be able to connect in Israel and Mexico? Has anyone ever done this? Should I call AT&T and find out about plans for overseas? Or should I just leave it at home and take my MacBook Pro laptop instead? Or both? Thanks!

There will be no problem using your iPad in Israel - for a start we have several Israeli Forum members who I'm sure will be able to add to my reply with more credible information. You definitely don't want to use your existing AT&T plan there as the roaming charges would be prohibitive. GSM is widely available in Israel and you might want to consider purchasing a pay-as-you-go plan when you get there - with a new SIM. Here is a list of the current operators in Israel and you can look around this website and see the various plans and coverage

Mobile networks - GSM and 3G coverage

WiFi is widely available too in urban areas so, if you don't need Internet connectivity when you're 'out and about' you might be able to manage without 3G.

Remember that the iPad uses a new, not yet widely available, microSIM and not all operators have them readily available. But (seriously) a regular SIM can be cut down to microSIM size with a microSIM cutter that trims the excess plastic off a regular SIM to make it microSIM. These cutters are widely available in the US - Google is your friend and Amazon have several in stock - so, if you do plan to go 3G in Israel and purchase a pay-as-you-go SIM there, you might want to invest in a SIM cutter.

I hope you enjoy your visit.

Tim