Digicel shares Roaming Rule for Smooth Travels

By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, December 21, 2022 – Christmas is a time for travel for many of us but unceasing upgrades in technology has put a damper lately on roaming for 3G cell phone users.  To be clear, 3G is the 3rd generation of wireless connectivity and determines the network speed that an internet connection can achieve. For many older devices 3G, which caps out at speeds of around 7.2 megabyte per second is the fastest they can go and it’s has been a wild ride.  But for internet adrenaline junkies, 5G, which is the newest iteration, is expected to take users to speeds in excess of 1 gigabyte per second.

Digicel is warning that for some of us with older phones, our 3G devices may no longer allow us to access the internet at all when we travel to the US. “Some of the leading mobile carriers in the United States have shut down their 3G networks and completed their migration to 4G and 5G technologies— This change will impact everyone, from anywhere in the world, travelling to and roaming within the USA.” the telecommunications company explained.

According to the company, Digicel customers in particular roaming in the USA will not be able to utilise 3G services while roaming in the United States on a 3G device, regardless of the US network they chose for roaming. In addition, customers will experience reduced quality on voice calls and/or may not be able to make and receive voice calls at all while on the T-Mobile or AT&T networks.

The United Kingdom, Canada and the EU are all riding the 5G wave as well so the problem is likely to expand to the most popular destinations for Caribbean people.

There is no fix to this other than upgrading your device to a device with 4G or LTE capability.

Being caught with the wrong device when you head overseas can leave you stranded or without a reliable way to contact family members.

It’s not just phones that residents need to worry about, alarm clocks, GPS and other devices on the 3G network will become unusable in areas that have moved on to 5G.

The Caribbean does not seem ready to move on from 3G just yet, so residents at home have no need to worry but must remember to make preparations for their trips and cruises abroad.