U.S. Bank has launched a new benefit on the Altitude Connect card: complimentary GigSky global mobile data (up to 1GB of data valid for 15 days from activation). While that’s not a ton of data, I think this is an awesome benefit that I’d love to see other card issuers implement — and based on the announcement from GigSky, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see this expand to other cards.
The Deal
- GigSky and Visa are partnering to offer complimentary global smartphone data (available in 125+ countries) via eSIM (with a complimentary 1GB / 15-day data plan that can be redeemed multiple times) to US Bank Altitude Connect cardholders
- Direct link to details
Key Terms
- Data available per complimentary plan: 1 GB
- Duration in which data can be used once plan is activated: 15 days once activated; if not activated within 30 days of receiving a complimentary plan, the plan will auto activate.
- Maximum annual redemptions of the GigSky Visa complimentary global mobile data plans annually: Annually, there is no maximum number of times a complimentary GigSky global mobile data plans can be redeemed. You must wait to activate another complimentary data plan until the prior plan’s 15-day duration has expired.
- Countries Available as part of GigSky complimentary data plan: Current list of 125+ countries participating
- Last date that offer can be redeemed on: 8/31/2024
Quick Thoughts
This is a nice benefit if you are a cardholder and have an upcoming international trip. If your alternative is paying something like $5 or $10 per day to your cell phone carrier in order to have international data, the savings with this benefit could add up provided that you don’t need a ton of data. The Altitude Connect card already comes with a respectable welcome offer (see current offer details here). This benefit certainly enhances the value proposition.
While you can activate this benefit an “unlimited” number of times per year, you need to wait until the previous 15-day pass has run out of time before activating the next pass. That basically means that you’ll only be able to use this twice a month at max I suppose, but it is nonetheless a very good deal if it meets your needs.
Personally, I am on T-Mobile’s Magenta Max plan, which includes 5GB per month of international high-speed data, so this benefit wouldn’t be of much use for me. Nonetheless, I can see that this would be highly useful for many people. Even if your plan is ultimately to buy a local SIM card, having access to 1GB of high-speed data upon arrival would be plenty to be able to hail an Uber or find directions to your hotel and then to a cell phone shop to grab that local SIM if you’ll need it.
While I wouldn’t get the Altitude Connect card just for this benefit, I could certainly see it being useful for many customers. I’d love to see this kind of benefit launch on other travel cards. Based on the GigSky landing page for the Visa offer and an announcement they made on LinkedIn, it sounds to me like we may see this benefit expand to other Visa cards in the future.
H/T: Doctor of Credit
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No love for the Reserve 🙁
Is this for the consumer or the business version? The link in your first paragraph points to the business card, which is a MC, not a Visa?
Definitely the consumer version — my fault for clicking in the wrong spot for that link. I’ve fixed that, thanks.
Nice to see this kind of card perk. Shame it’s only via eSIM, though.
1GB would last me 3 to 5 months, lol. But then I don’t do a lot of web browsing on my mobile, which is running degoogled Android with mostly open-source applications. Not a lot of data-hungry background activity going on.
“Shame it’s only eSIM, though”. — Oh yeah? Would you rather need to order a new physical SIM far enough in advance of each trip to make sure that you’ll receive it in the mail in time? And then have to juggle multiple physical SIMs if your trip will be more than 15 days?
I think for the vast vast majority of people, eSIM will be highly preferable.
Not if you’re still using an iPhone 6
Well right, understandable, but given that Apple support for that phone ends this year and I think all of the iPhone models released over the past 5 years support eSIM, I imagine that the number of people who will not be able to use an eSIM is dwindling. I can’t imagine that the market segment of people who 1) own a phone that does not support eSIM *and* 2) travel internationally *and* 3) would order a physical SIM from GigaSky in advance of their trip is likely a lot smaller than the market segment of people who could and would use eSIM. But I see your point as to why it would be disappointing in your shoes.
Gigsky’s compatible list:
-recent iPhones and iPads
-recent -Samsungs
-Pixels
-a very few other devices from assorted OEMs
I wouldn’t expect that list to be exhaustive. There are lots more devices on the markets that are eSIM-compatible. Here is a list from another eSIM company:
https://esim.holafly.com/how-to/esim-phones/
Besides the fact that a card issuer could theoretically offer longer validity periods than 15 days, I only travel to the EU, where one SIM card should work everywhere, I plan my travel far in advance, so getting a SIM by mail would not be an issue, and although I always stay longer than 15 days, I’m organized enough that keeping track of 2 or 3 SIMs is easy.
Anyway, my chosen phone is not capable of using eSIMs, and the number of devices that can use them seems still to be somewhat limited. I kinda like the convenience of popping a physical SIM card in or out, switching to different devices, etc.
🙂
“I think for the vast vast majority of people, eSIM will be highly preferable.”
Only if they own one of the eSIM-capable devices.
I actually wasn’t even aware that some modern phones are being released without eSIM capability still. The technology has been around long enough that I had thought that all of the major manufacturer devices had been primarily eSIM. I guess not!
I kind of chuckled at this sentence though: “I kinda like the convenience of popping a physical SIM card in or out”. I have never thought to describe needing to find a tool to pop the tray and to fumble with the tiny cards and then find a place to put those little things where I won’t lose them as being “convenient”. I did it for many years, and it obviously isn’t terribly onerous, but I never considered it to be a convenience. To each his/her own!
Lol. Yeah, my Sony is slightly older, but getting security updates and version upgrades because the custom ROM developers provide them.
All my previous Sony phones (and this one) have a SIM tray that can be pulled out with my fingernail, fortunately. (And it doesn’t affect their water resistance, even submerged.)
And I guess for me, part of the convenience is not needing to be connected in order to find and download an eSIM, or, gods forbid, have to engage with customer service reps by phone.
If it weren’t eSim they probably wouldn’t offer it just due to the overhead alone.