I'm going to Australia for a 2 month placement in a hospital. I want to bring my o2 locked iphone 4 with me to use for internet and to call the friend I'm going with (I don't want to call home to the UK). Can anyone help me solve this problem? I considered getting my iphone unlocked by o2 here then getting a prepaid microsim whilst out there but i read that you need to put your new microsim into your iphone and sync it with itunes to tell it that it's unlocked. However, my PC with itunes will be back in the UK. There are several companies that sell sim cards that work in Australia to UK residents, however they aren't microsims and more importantly, the tariff is focussed on calling home (which I don't want to do) and data is around £18 per MB. Can anyone give me any advice regarding this?

Thank You

It really depends on how much you are going to use it. The main killer is the cost of using the internet whilst roaming abroad.

Where you are staying, does it have any internet facilities? Do you have a laptop or 'net-book, that you could use on free WiFi out there?

You could have the iphone unlocked here. Many places on the average high street will do that for £5-10, then when you get to Oz, you could buy a local prepaid SIM card. Check what they charge for data, but it will likely cost you less than what o2 will charge you for roaming.

You can go into the settings and disable the automatic updating, which will stop you running up a huge bill as your 'phone will keep checking for emails.Just do a manual update for those.

Have you considered buying a cheap Australian pay as you go handset for calls? A basic Nokia can go for $30 including some local talk time and then either selling it there or giving it away at the end of your trip? You could always get it unlocked and use it as a spare here (with a UK sim). What I did.

Ringing your friend would count as an international call and they would have to pay a roaming rate to receive it.

You could ring o2 and see what they could offer you as far as data charges and allowances.If you are on a contract and near the end of it, you may have some bargaining clout.