Temporary mobile data for trip

Hey guys,

would be nice to have some internet for my upcoming trip. Is it possible to buy a SIM card with some pre-loaded data (~500MB) from a mall kiosk/convenience store/etc. or is that Not A Thing in the States?

If it is, who should I go to? Recommendations?

Need good coverage in the PNW obviously. Something I can pick up in San Fran or on the way.

Best I can think of would be a pre paid hot spot. But your looking at $50 for the device, cost of data would vary with the provider.

Second thought, what device(s) are you looking to use this for and what is your current phone?

Depends on what you're using as in unlocked phone or not. Verizon(CDMA), ATT(GSM), Straight talk(GSM), and others have the phone and data on a prepaid basis.

If you have a Nexus phone I hear a lot of good things about ProjectFi though Google.

Any 3G(+) SIM would work... I have a couple of old Android phones that would do the job (both American phones originally so I know they work on US networks) and an unlocked USB modem already. So I'd prefer to avoid buying more hardware if I have to.

Edit: my main phone is ex-Verizon (GSM/UMTS+CDMA) and the one I was intending to use is ex-T-Mobile (GSM+AWS). Both unlocked & not blacklisted.

I'd take the T-Mobile GSM phone and get a Ting GSM SIM card and a new number. SIM card is... $10? Then your 500MB would be $15 plus tax. No contract, cancel after a month.

I use these guys all the time and love them. Check for coverage in your travel area. Mid west can be sketchy. They do have an upgrade to kinda help in the thin zones.

https://www.roammobility.com/

Thread got canoe-resurrected, but these days that would be an ideal use for temporary service with an eSIM. You can even get physical SIM cards that add eSIM capability to phones that didn't come with it.

Disagree - best way to get a temp service is just pay the nut with your current provider for one month.  Its $12 a day or $100/month and my phone works just as good as it does at home, anywhere in the world that you would want to be.  It works from wheels down to wheels up.  I dont have to go to a shady mall kiosk and ask a dude for something I don't totally understand in a language I don't use.  

In reply to 93gsxturbo :

I may be odd man out , but I want a local Sim and phone number when I travel overseas .....

Why ?   Because your Hotel , tour Guide , Uber etc is not going to want to call you in the USA when you are just down the street !

And this does change if you have data and can use Whatsapp , Line or whatever message app is used at your destination. 

ADDED:   you also need to make sure your phone is unlocked , many of the USA mobile phone companies can unlock your phone  permanently if its paid for , or a few weeks if its not.......

In reply to 93gsxturbo :

Or (at least in Europe, for instance), you can stop in the airport and have a major carrier install a SIM card with a month of service for about 25 euros.  Why pay the Verizon tax?

Although if you have US T Mobile service it just works pretty much anywhere at no additional cost.  But that's not the question here...

US Mobile has a cheap prepaid plan, T Mobile will sell a month prepaid, and Walmart, Target, etc. sell prepaid plans with SIMs.

If you're staying in the US, check your local library. Many of them check out mobile hotspots, and you may not have to pay a dime to borrow it for a week or two. You'd be surprised at what you can check out from most libraries.