If you’re travelling to new Zealand, the last thing you should do is leave your phone in global roaming mode. as we’ve covered recently, both phone calls and data are extortionately expensive when roaming with your Australian telco.

Optus customers travelling to new Zealand are particularly hard hit, with the worst data roaming rates of all the Australian mobile networks — a minimum of $9.09 per megabyte, and $20/MB if you forget to pre-arrange a roaming plan with Optus.

In fact, the problem is so great that there’s a current joint Australia/New Zealand government enquiry into why global roaming charges between the two countries are so astronomical.

Fortunately, it’s very easy to get a pre-paid SIM card when you arrive in new Zealand. there are three main mobile networks — Vodafone new Zealand, Telecom new Zealand and 2Degrees, and they have stores and outlets all over the place.

Another network, by Australia’s Telstra, called TelstraClear, doesn’t do prepaid, so it’s not really an option for travellers. (It’s a mobile network in name only, anyway, as it resells airtime on Vodafone new Zealand).

Where to buy a new Zealand SIM card

  • Find a Vodafone new Zealand store
  • Find a Telecom new Zealand store
  • Find a 2Degrees store

At the airport: Vodafone has mobile phone shops at the international terminals of Auckland and Christchurch airports. But don’t just pick up a SIM card because of their convenient shop locations — it may not be the right mobile  network for you. Read on…

Vodafone new Zealand

Vodafone new Zealand claims coverage in “97% of the places Kiwis live and work”. what it really means, though, is that it has an old 2G mobile network with 97% population coverage, which provides phone calls but only very slow data coverage.

The 3G coverage is much more scant (and Vodafone NZ does not disclose a percentage). The red bits on the map below shows where there’s some Vodafone 3G towers that will work with all Australian mobiles (using the common 2100MHz radio frequency).

However, if you have a phone that is compatible with the 900MHz radio frequency, you can access Vodafone’s “Extended” 3G coverage, which is broader (orange areas on the map below).

The iPhone 4 supports this 900MHz frequency, but the earlier models of iPhone don’t.

Vodafone NZ has some very vocal angry customers — especially iPhone users. (If you’re offended by strong language, don’t click this link.)

What Vodafone NZ costs:

The SIM card costs $30 to buy (no calls/data included). You will then need to buy credit with Vodafone NZ to load onto the card.

After you’ve purchased credit, you can choose which prepaid plan to go onto.

The “Simply Prepay” plan is best for travellers — calls are 49c/minute within NZ, texts are 12c to other NZ mobiles or 31c to Australian mobiles. Calls back to Australia cost $2 for up to 60 minutes.

However, casual internet usage on prepaid only includes 10MB per day (for a flat per-day fee of $1) and then increases to a very costly $1/MB. A much better option is to use some of your prepaid credit to buy a prepay mobile broadband plan. 512MB costs $30 (and expires/renews monthly); 2GB is $50. if you need more, top-ups of 100MB are available for $10 and 512MB for $30.

For iPad users, Vodafone NZ offers special iPad data plans for prepaid micro-SIMs. You first buy the prepaid SIM, add some credit to it, and then choose your plan (which renews monthly and comes out of the credit balance on the SIM).

250MB usage costs $20; 3GB costs $50, and the data inclusion expires and rolls over every calendar month.

More information is at vodafone.co.nz/ipad.

  • Find a Vodafone new Zealand store
  • View all Vodafone mobile tower locations

To use the internet on your mobile phone, you will need to change its APN setting to the Vodafone Zealand APN, which is direct.vodafone.net.nz.

To find out how to do this, search Google for your phone’s model and “how to change APN”. For example: HTC Desire how to change APN.

Telecom new Zealand

Telecom new Zealand’s new “XT” mobile network is the best for speed and coverage in new Zealand — it’s more or less new Zealand’s version of Telstra next G, with very fast internet speeds and broad coverage.

To get full use it, your phone has to be 3G compatible (as Telecom does not have a 2G mobile network to fall back to), and to get the best coverage, must also support the 850MHz radio frequency.

Most phones sold by Telstra in the last few years support this, but phones sold by Optus and Vodafone Australia might not.

If your phone doesn’t support the 850MHz frequency, it will connect at the standard 2100MHz frequency in city areas — it just might not get coverage outside city areas.

If you are an iPhone user, you are in luck — the iPhone 3G, 3Gs and 4 all support the 850MHz frequency.

What Telecom NZ costs:

Telecom NZ is (surprisingly) cheaper than Vodafone if you want to use internet on your phone during your trip.

The SIM card costs $30 to buy, but comes with $30 credit and a $30 500MB data plan activated on it already. Essentially, you can either spend the $30 on calls, or on data at an initial rate of 6c/MB ($30 divided by 500).

Mobile calls on prepay are 69c/min within new Zealand, texts are 20c within NZ, and SMS to Australia cost 30c each. Unlike Vodafone’s $2 for 60 minutes overseas offer, there are no capped rates to call internationally, though.

If you need more than the 500MB data included with the SIM card, you can also buy a prepaid mobile broadband plan. 500MB costs $29.95 per month; 2GB is $61.06 per month; 4GB is $81.51 per month.

If you exceed your plan data limit, Telecom NZ rather generously gives you the plan limit again for another $29.95 fee (e.g. if you’re on a $61.06 2GB plan, and use it up, another 2GB usage will only cost you $29.95). if you exhaust the plan limit again, you will start paying costly excess usage rates of 10c/MB.

iPads: Telecom new Zealand does not offer special iPad plans, but does offer micro SIMs for $30, with 500MB of data included as noted above.

  • Find a Telecom new Zealand store.
  • See where Telecom NZ has mobile towers

To use the internet on your mobile phone, you will need to change its APN setting to the Telecom new Zealand APN, which is internet.telecom.co.nz.

To find out how to do this, search Google for your phone’s model and “how to change APN”. For example: HTC Desire how to change APN.

2Degrees

2Degrees is new Zealand’s youngest mobile network, and therefore has very limited coverage with its own towers, but it roams to Vodafone new Zealand, which has 97% population coverage.

Phone calls and text messages sent while roaming on Vodafone new Zealand are the same price, but internet access is much more expensive, which is an important issue to consider if you’re a smartphone or laptop user — more details below.

2Degrees’ prices are very good for people travelling to its native coverage areas of Christchurch, Wellington, Auckland or Queenstown.

Its coverage extends a little beyond those areas, but not far (for example, Hamilton doesn’t have 2Degrees coverage despite being reasonably close to Auckland).

A prepaid SIM card $5 with $1 credit included, and is available from many outlets such as service stations and newsagents across NZ. There’s also a $20 SIM card available through 2Degrees’ website with $20 credit included, which effectively makes the SIM card free.

Calls cost 44c/min within new Zealand or to Australia, and texts cost 9c each, to new Zealand or Australian mobiles.

Data is good value if you live within one of 2Degrees’ coverage areas (Christchurch, Wellington, Auckland or Queenstown).

In these areas, 1GB (valid for 30 days) costs $20, 3GB (valid for 60 days) is $50 and 12GB (valid for six months) is $150.

However, if you are not in one of 2degrees’ “mobile broadband coverage zones”, you’ll have to roam onto the less impressive Vodafone new Zealand network, at much higher rates: 50c per megabyte if you don’t arrange a roaming data pack, or, if you do, $6 for 50MB, or $10 for 100MB.

All phones will work on the 2Degrees network — it uses the most common 3G radio frequency, 2100MHz. in order to roam onto the Vodafone new Zealand network, your phone needs to support the 900MHz radio frequency. Typically, phones sold by Optus and Vodafone Australia will support this frequency, but phones sold by Telstra might not.

To use the internet on your mobile phone, you will need to change its APN setting to the 2degrees APN, which is internet.

To find out how to do this, search Google for your phone’s model and “how to change APN”. For example: HTC Desire how to change APN.

  • Find a 2Degrees store
  • See where 2Degrees has mobile towers

What to buy

  • If you will be travelling only to Christchurch, Wellington, Auckland or Queenstown, 2degrees is the best value, for both phone calls and internet usage. 

  • If reliability of coverage across all of NZ and speed of internet is important to you, Telecom new Zealand is the best choice. It’s not an awful lot more expensive than the other networks.

  • If you want to be able to make long phone calls back to Australia cheaply and don’t care about internet access on your phone, Vodafone new Zealand is a good option, due to its $2 for 60 minute calls to Australia offer.

About Dan Warne

Dan is our deputy editor: a tech enthusiast who frequently qualifies for enhanced airport security screening due to the number of cords and gadgets stuffed into his cabin bag.

No related content found.

I am able to do something meaningful touching on radio scan. This isn't as obvious as it sounds. Ham radio log book is a popular tool to forget in respect to portable ham radio. Collecting hams radio is a very popular occupation among scads of veterans. Did you ever notice the heathkit ham radio infomercial? You should talk to your local provider about their ham radio outlet options. It is because sometimes you just have to be fortunate to catch that one big break. Ham radio books should be lots of fun. You can negotiate it directly if you desire. Are you fed up with being taken for an easy mark? I don't mean to sound like a dummy but that doesn't seem like that would be worth the hassle and I was roped into this. I ought to help you learn the language of radio scan.