I’m thinking about going with Y! MOBILE because they offer the cheapest plans while utilizing SoftBank towers.
Are there other phone data carriers you could recommend?
I’m thinking about going with Y! MOBILE because they offer the cheapest plans while utilizing SoftBank towers.
Are there other phone data carriers you could recommend?
2 comments
I’m on [Rakuten’s UN-LIMIT 7](https://network.mobile.rakuten.co.jp/fee/un-limit/) plan, where the monthly price depends on the amount of data you use. It starts at JPY990/month if you use under 3Gb, and “unlimited” (#) data is capped at JPY2,980/month.
Unlimited free outgoing calls and SMSs (but you have to use their voip app for it) is a nice plus as well, and free global roaming data (2Gb limit, then it falls to low speed).
The biggest downside is it can be quite difficult for a foreigner to get a line with them. Their requirements aren’t published anywhere, with various anecdotes shared on the internet rather than actual “facts” that can be verified.
Last I heard, foreigners must have at least 1 year remaining on their residence card (364 days, or less, and they won’t sign you up), and an “approved” payment method (Japanese credit card, or bank account) – they won’t accept foreign credit cards; for a period of time, there were posts that they no longer accept anyone on a student visa, regardless of duration remaining.
There used to be a loophole where you could use the “home delivery verification”, but that loophole was closed some time back.
The other downside is, they do not “grandfather” previous plans. Everyone on their previous UN-LIMIT 6 plan was pushed onto the UN-LIMIT 7 plan this year. The previous plan was effectively free if you used less than 1Gb/month, but that tier was removed in the current plan.
It’s hard to recommend them with all the hoops one has to jump though. I think it’s great if you can get with them; but am not a huge fan of the overwhelming discrimination and disappointment one might feel when you can’t.
(#) “Unlimited” while connected to their network. You’ll want to check [their coverage maps](https://network.mobile.rakuten.co.jp/area/), as well as the bands your phone supports if you’re [bringing your own device](https://network.mobile.rakuten.co.jp/product/certified-products/?l-id=campaign_byod_product_certified-products).
I was on Y!Mobile before, Y! Mobile isn’t that cheap and is stuck in a weird place between SoftBank (the “full price” brand) and LINEMO (SoftBank’s no frills discount brand). It’s only worth it if you need some sort of customer service/help at a physical stores but don’t want to pay full SoftBank pricing. For the pricing of Y! Mobile M tier plan you’d be better off with any of the discount brand from the 3 big carriers (Ahamo from DoCoMo, Povo from KDDI AU, and LINEMO from Softbank).
I went with Ahamo because it’s the discounted DoCoMo service and uses the DoCoMo network and gives you 20Gb a month for 2970yen incl. tax. DoCoMo’s coverage and service is still superior to the other networks 90% of the time and you’ll get signal and good speed nearly everywhere, which is especially important if you travel out of Tokyo frequently (which I do).
There’re a lot of minor brands which rents spectrum from the 3 carriers and you can get 3GB a month for ~900yen but IMO they are mostly headaches due to their spotty services and is only good for like a throw away second line. For a good stable primary line I won’t get anything lower than Ahamo/Povo.