Ultra Paygo USA SIM Card
I recently purchased an Ultra Paygo SIM card. My goal was to buy an Apple gift card through Walmart’s app, which requires a US phone number for verification. This led me to purchase the Ultra Paygo SIM.
The service is provided by Ultra Mobile.
My experience with Ultra Paygo is similar to that of Giffgaff. However, unlike Giffgaff, I was unable to get 4G data service. Although my phone displayed an LTE signal, I couldn’t access the internet.
Therefore, the SIM card effectively only provides a US phone number and SMS functionality. Unfortunately, the Walmart app requires a Visa card issued by a US bank, which I do not have. Consequently, I was unable to purchase the Apple gift card through Walmart.
I remember that in 2016 and 2017, when I visited the USA for about 20 days each year, I used a T-Mobile SIM card.
Their relationship is as follows:
Ultra Mobile is a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that uses T-Mobile’s cellular network.
It costs $3 USD per month. I’m unsure if I will continue using it long-term.
After using the SIM for a month, I needed to recharge it. I attempted to do so through the official Ultra Mobile website. However, I encountered login issues, with the site displaying the error: “Whoops! Something went wrong and we weren’t able to fix it ourselves. Please try to log in again.” This is in contrast to my initial activation a month prior, which was problem-free.
Consequently, I recharged through the JD.com store where I originally purchased the SIM, paying 39 CNY for a 5 USD credit.