Datasim for mobile phone

[Kajumpi]

Hi, Can I use OPTUS data only SIM for my mobile phone?

[Davelew]

Hi

I cannot see why you shouldn't if you want to access the internet from your phone.   If you want to set up your phone as a hotspot I think this would depend on the plan.   Some plans, I believe, don't allow tethering.

You may have to add the APN.

Dave

[Kajumpi]

Thanks, Dave

I raised this question here because I have contacted Vaya and was told that they could not be sure if the their "data only" sims worked on phones as those sims are made for tables. I simply thought a sim was a sim, did not know sims for data plans only were different from sims for mobile plans used on phones. What do you think? Please help.

[Davelew · Accepted solution]

Hi

I am sure they are the same.   look at this post on Vodafone community:

https://community.vodafone.com.au/t5/Windows-Phone-Mobile-Broadband/Mobile-Broadband-SIM-in-Mobile-P...

Dave

[Davelew]

Here is a link to a post on this forum:

https://yescrowd.optus.com.au/t5/Broadband-Telephony/Using-Mobile-Prepaid-Broadband-SIM-to-create-WI...

[Kajumpi]

Thank you very much, Dave.

Cheers

[SamSam]

I get why you'd think they were all the same because they really should be. Don't know about Optus and Voda to be honest but I do know that Telstra block you buying a data only SIM and using it in a phone. 

[Davelew]

What we need then is for somebody who has an Optus data SIM to try it in their phone. Is somebody reading these posts who can try?

Dave

[catchcryhamm]

We bought a new Mobile Broadband SIM (15G for $35) for just this purpose. We used it in our Samsung S4 for about 3 weeks, just for data, as a mobile hotspot to our PC, laptop and tablet. After about 3 weeks, one day the data would not show as turned on. The phone signal shows, as in 3 or 4 bars, the Mobile data Icon that you push to turn it on lights, but the 4G arrows at the top right do not come on, and no data is available. Long Phone conv. to the Philipines, and she says I should go to Optus and get a new SIM for a phone and this will fix the problem. The Optus shop man, says won't make any difference, changed a few APN settings, and it worked. Worked for a few hours that night. Back to the Optus shop. Girl this time, she says different sim wont make a difference, but gave me one anyway. It worked for one and a half days, so back to Optus Shop tomorrow. 

Original salesman said we should use it with a wifi modem, cost about $60, but we did not want to, as we had a spare old phone. This looks like what they are forcing us to do.

Has anyone used a Broadband Sim plan in a mobile phone for a longer time?

[Malufran]

@catchcryhamm

did you manage to solve the issue? I am also thinking of buying a data sim plan and use my spare mobile phone for tethering but before I commit to a plan, I want to make sure that it will indeed work.

I don't want to buy a modem.

would appreciate your inputs. Thanks