Tuesday, August 26, 2008 -- 3:33 p.m. -- at my desk

Great news, international travelers. Now there are more plans in more places ... more ways for you to make sure you don't end up with a jaw-dropping iPhone bill.

Starting Wednesday, AT&T will offer two new plans -- one offers 100 MB and the other 200 MB a month and both can potentially save customers hundreds of dollars compared to pay-per-use international data roaming charges.

For discounted international data usage in 67 countries, the 100 MB iPhone plan is available for an additional $119.99 a month, while the 200 MB plan costs an additional $199.99 a month. These new plans are in addition to existing 20 MB and 50 MB plans. And another part that's great is that there are no long-term commitments required, so customers can add or remove these plans to their existing packages on an as-needed basis.

The discounted data roaming package rate applies in: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Barbados, The Bahamas, Belgium, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Cayman Islands, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominica, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, France, French Guiana, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Haiti, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Martinique, Mexico, Monaco, Montserrat, The Netherlands, Netherland Antilles, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Singapore, Slovak Republic, South Korea, Spain, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Martin, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos, United Kingdom and Vatican City.

Rates outside the 67 discounted countries are $.010/KB except in Algeria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bolivia, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Brunei, Faroe Islands, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Macau, Macedonia (former Yugoslavia), Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Venezuela, where the rate is $0.0195/KB.

With access to full HTML e-mail, visual voice mail, enhanced Web browsing and other feature-rich applications that can use a significant amount of data, iPhone users may need more than they think while traveling abroad. Just 2 MB of data use at pay-per-use data rates of $0.0195 per kilobyte would cost almost $40, making these new plans very valuable for customers traveling outside the U.S.

iPhone customers can also save money by following some simple tips, including keeping data roaming in the preset off position, using Wi-Fi when possible, turning off automatic checks for e-mail and setting the usage tracker to zero at the beginning of a trip to monitor use.

For more information about international coverage and rates, visit www.att.com/wirelessinternational or call 866.MOBILITY (662-4548).

I'm curious to know how many of you have taken advantage of the smaller plans in the past and what you think of the new offerings. Let me know in the comments, please.

Thanks for calling.

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Used to 50mb package in May in Austria and Czech Republic- watched the usage counter to know where I was MB-wise and it was fine. Used wi-fi as often as possible which is possible over there bc there so far ahead of us that way. Strange timing/ karma; just called AT&T yesterday to see if they had changed their int packages and they told me it's the same as before. Trying to go to Italy next month. Nice they did that bc 3G eats up WAY more usage- noticing that when I reset the data counter at night on days I've used 3G. Both of us agreed it would be nice if they had an unlimited data package like they have for BB. Then I see this post while I'm walking through Lincoln Park. Btw, I was out late this aft/ early evening enjoying this amazing weather we're having and I had the phone fully charged leaving the house. I listened to 1 hr of music, read the NY times Week in Review and a couple other articles for about an hr, surfed the web, checked your site etc- had 3 hrs of usage all with 3G on and somehow had only used up barely a 3rd of the battery. Also, never dropped the signal/reverted back to Edge once! Wonder if it was bc I was away from downtown that the signal was so solid and fast connecting. Still wouldn't really fully explain why the battery was SO much better. Wonder if AT&T is tinkering with this as we speak- see if you notice any difference. Maybe it was just a fluke but sure was a lot different on both fronts!

SCOTT's REPLY: I haven't been out of the office since this morning, so I haven't checked, but that's some great sounding news on the usage front. And yeah ... good timing on the international plans. I think the fact that you can add them and drop them as necessary is a great, great thing.

Just a follow up- as soon as I got back downtown, spent 20-30 minutes outside and then back in the house, in about 45 total minutes of continued usage, the battery indicator seemed to drop from around 2/3 to about 1/3. Maybe the indicator was just catching up but don't think so. Being in the higher density/ usage area make THAT big a difference?! Wish we had a % readout for the battery so you could know more precisely how you're battery is really doing. Lincoln Park isn't exactly unpopulated or something- just not as heavily as around Chicago and Michigan. I'll check this again next time I get a chance to wander like that- sure was nice!

SCOTT'S REPLY: Me too ... been a while since I've wandered. And I will ... traveling for a weekend in September to a spot without 3G, so will test out the other stuff ... GPS, etc. The buildings here really do impact that coverage, but still ... what a difference.

Following day update- battery downtown was the same as it been in the past on 3G; not so great but usable if not used hard. Need to come out of the house like caller Pat said previously with a full charge if possible. My connection was better downtown than it has been and not bouncing between edge and 3G or displaying "no service". Seems like an improvement- the same that way as it was in Lincoln Park. Also have noticed that the text messages I'm sending seem to be getting out quicker and not hanging up as much as before. Had any time yet to play with this- know you're busier than I am.

SCOTT'S REPLY: I did some testing today while walking home from work. I didn't get the 3G bounce, but I went back to edge the minute I walked into my building. The battery life is just as dismal as ever. Text messages for me on 3G are always faster, it seems, than edge.

Sorry- forgot to say that I would like to know if anybody out there has noticed similar incremental improvement like this.

SCOTT's REPLY: I would also like to know ... are we imagining this? I really hope not.

I plan to buy iphone 3G in singapore,is usable in indonesia?
If can..is the simple way?
If not,.. what should i do?

SCOTT'S REPLY: I truly don't know if an iPhone purchased in Singapore can be used in Indonesia, but I know of at least one person here who would know ... MacSheikh? Your assistance is needed in aisle 2. :-D

If I get an answer, I'll update you, so keep checking back, ok?

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