Using the Droid overseas....

[javapop]

anyone taken their US droid out of the US?

any tips? will be going to ukraine this summer. Had my laptop last year, it was too big to carry around. Figured I may be able to find open wifi.

What will work off the network?

Thanks!

 

[TigerDirect]

You will have to check to see if the carrier you are going to use in the Ukraine uses GSM or CDMA. If it's GSM, you're out of luck...the Droid can only work on CDMA networks.

 

[droiddoes1912]

The phone function won't work, but you can stil connect to wi-fi to use other internet related apps.

 

[javapop]

The phone function won't work, but you can stil connect to wi-fi to use other internet related apps.

Thats what I was thinking, and wondering if google voice would work with a wifi connection.

 

[takeshi]

Not for calls (GV isn't VOIP). Not sure about text via GV on WiFi though. Seems like it should but I haven't tried it out.

 

[Benton]

I just did a quick check of Verizon's international roaming service and yes, there is CDMA coverage in Ukraine. The CDMA coverage is extensive but when looking at the map it appears centered around cities and towns and maybe not so much in the countryside (I am not familiar with the country so not sure how this is positioned). The CDMA coverage is handled by a voice only roaming agreement as the map is showing voice-only and not data service (3G or 1x), your internet needs will have to be handled from wifi only. I travel to China often where they have this same type of arrangement (voice but not data) but since wifi is very accessible my email isn't too difficult to get.

 

[javapop]

I just did a quick check of Verizon's international roaming service and yes, there is CDMA coverage in Ukraine...

Very interesting, I had no idea,
I'll make a note of this, and contact them about switching on international roaming before I leave. Looks like the charger handles dual voltage as well, like my Macbook Pro.... at least according to the small specs on the charger unit itself!

 

[christim]

We went to Spain last November and I brought my Droid along. We parked the car at JFK and I used one of those "where did I park my car" apps. As it not only displayed an arrow pointing in the direction of the car but also told you that you the distance away you were I thought it would be neat to see how far away the car was while on our travels. I never encountered a wifi hotspot. GPS was on, but we never could get it to work. I don't know if the app needed the internet to work or if GPS was set to only use the satellites over the US. I'd be interested in knowing if someone else's phone worked while not connected to the internet and out of range of towers. We were on a cruise so also were in airplane mode, but with GPS turned on so as to not get roaming charging while going through the ship's connection.

 

[javapop]

...I'd be interested in knowing if someone else's phone worked while not connected to the internet and out of range of towers. We were on a cruise so also were in airplane mode, but with GPS turned on so as to not get roaming charging while going through the ship's connection.

I agree. Hopefully more folks that have, or will be traveling somewhere.... and can experiment a little.
I was thinking airplane mode turned off gps.
Anyone know a little about how gps on droid works?

 

[rlb]

I was thinking airplane mode turned off gps.
Anyone know a little about how gps on droid works?

What do you want to know? Google maps requires data service or wifi in order to load the map. You can download other map apps that will let you access maps off-line (look into orux maps or maverick). GPS is simply a radio signal, so as long as you have a clear view of the sky, the droid should be able to triangulate your position. However, you wont be able to see that position on a google map unless you have a data connection.

 

[rlb]

Looks like GPS works in Airplane mode BTW, but its too cold to go outside and get a complete GPS fix to be 100% sure

 

[Basshammer]

So you can only make calls on Droid in CDMA countries? I wonder why they didn't make it a global phone with a sim card slot for GSM (Verizon makes global phones that have GSM capability if you use a Verizon sim card).

 

[Snooginsguy]

Hey y'all, dredging up an old thread...I'm in Guyana at the moment, and have no gps whatsoever. Completely clear sky above me. Anyone know if there's a "gps initialization" app that would download satellite data etc. Overf wifi? Had something for my old winmo tilt that did that, pulled satellite positions every few days to speed up initialization. Would be nice to fire up gps once to figure out where I am... thanks!