I suddenly have pay-as-you-go 3G on my iPhone...

InsanelyOne

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Oct 21, 2008
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....and it's costing me a fortune!

I've never signed up for a data package of any kind for my iPhone. I just have a pre-paid SIM card from Claro that I top-up every so often. I rarely make phone calls so the minutes usually expire before I use them up. A 100 peso top-up will reactivate the minutes. So just a few days ago I had about 1200 pesos balance on my iPhone. Today my balance is a couple of pesos. Turns out I'm now getting 3G internet on my phone. And they are charging outrageous rates. I didn't even realize that I was using 3G. I'm typically within range of Wi-Fi but last night while at the San Juan plaza in Bavaro I must not have been connected and was using 3G. Unfortunately I was using Google Earth and other data intensive stuff. So now I'm out about US$30. My partner's 1st gen iPhone is also suddenly getting GPRS/Edge internet access as well.

I've turned off the cellular data on our phones so we won't get charged anymore but thought I'd put this out there in case anyone else gets burned.
 
Feb 7, 2007
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Nothing new, Orange had pay as you go data on both prepaid and postpaid voice plans ever since I have been with Orange, I am surprised it took Claro that long... Before I activated BB service I found it useful I could check my email with a Gmail app on my Nokia and not be tied to a data plan... Used to spend about 200 pesos monthly
 

InsanelyOne

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Oct 21, 2008
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Well I don't know what Claro's rates are but it's appears to be exorbitant. And it should be something you specifically subscribe to.
 

Eddy

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Jan 1, 2002
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Well I don't know what Claro's rates are but it's appears to be exorbitant. And it should be something you specifically subscribe to.

Very Expensive. Over New Years, I turned on my 3G and Cel. data on my iPhone to use Skype for a few calls to Canada. I forgot to turn them off untill a few days later. Expensive lesson.
 
Feb 7, 2007
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To the OP, you can "deactivate" Claro access by removing Claro access point from your Setup/internet Connection preferences.

It may be referred to as "APN", "Access Point", "Internet Access". etc. I don't know Iphones so I don't know how/where that is set up. On BB's it's under Settings/Options/Advanced/TCPIP, on Nokia's under Settings/Connectivity/Destinations
 

InsanelyOne

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Oct 21, 2008
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On the iPhone, it's up to the carrier to decide if you can edit the APN settings. As far as I can see, you can't change them with Claro. However, it's very easy to shut off the 3G / Cellular Data.

Just go to Settings > General > Network:

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InsanelyOne

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Oct 21, 2008
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In regards to my earlier post, that only works for the newer iPhones running iOS 4.x.

For earlier iPhones you can navigate to Disable EDGE/3G data on iPhone - iphonenodata.com - for free and click the "Disable Edge/3G" button. It will download fake APN settings that will disable cellular data on the iPhone. Not sure if this requires a jailbroken/unlocked iPhone but if you're using an iPhone in the DR more than likely it's unlocked.

I have tested this method out on my partner's 2G iPhone and it worked.
 

InsanelyOne

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Oct 21, 2008
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If anyone is interested, I no longer have 3G data service on my iPhone. As quickly as it appeared, it has now disappeared. While I did like having the ability to turn in on in case I needed access to the internet and wasn't near Wi-Fi, it was so expensive it really wasn't worth it.