Notably for mobile users roaming in the EU, this problem has already been solved by the European Parliament:
Under the wide-ranging telecoms reforms, the cost of making a call
or downloading internet data in another EU country will be the same
as at home.
The change is due to take effect from 15 December next year. It still
requires approval from EU governments.
In recent years the EU has legislated to lower the costs, so telecoms
operators have been forced to cap their fees.
The package was adopted by 534 votes to 25.
Roaming fees have already been capped significantly: it's currently (since July 1st) 19c/mn (calling, 5c receiving), 6c/text and 20c/MB down from respectively 24c/mn, 8c/text and 45c/MB after the 2013 caps (and 70c/MB in 2012).
And operators can and do provide better deals (my own provider's standard charge is 15c/MB and has "roaming packs" for 6c/MB to 8c/MB)
One interesting side effect of this capping is that it is cheaper for me to phone a number on my home network while roaming, than it is when I'm in the country on the same network!
Three Ireland Prepay account mobile calls 35c/min, roaming calls 19c/min.
Hopefully competition among telcos will help as well. On my summer vacation (in Sweden and Italy) I enjoyed dataroaming at no additional cost (Danish telco, 5GB/month at EUR~13).
But progress like this is likely slow outside countries with intense competition among telcos.
Competition among telcos is overrated, i have to see an example where increased competition really drove the price down ( according to my experience => i live in Belgium and prices here are really high)
For those living in US I recommend buying TMobile service for travel - free data roaming abroad (speed-capped) and 20 cent/minute calls. I think text messages are free as well.
I can see carriers getting pissed off and nixing this. However, aside from that potential fail, it looks like a really expensive solution to a nice to have problem. Since 'buy a local sim card' is the effective competition here and the thing is as big as two phones, this is only going to appeal to people who (1) travel frequently (2) have a constant need for connectivity (3) do not have time to buy a local sim card (4) don't mind carrying extra weight. I wish them luck but wouldn't bet on this product succeeding.
I love the idea, especially since I live in Switzerland and chances are that the EU laws won't apply to us. BUT the device is way too bulky for my taste. I'd love to see something like a usb/data stick instead of this huge box.
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/content/2014...