Which UK SIM cheapest to activate from abroad just to have a UK number?
 

Giffgaff? Lyca? Else? They seem to have the same tariffs but Lyca says it is preactivated which sounds pretty interesting given the fact that you can't be sure you can successfully activate a Giffgaff number from overseas(?). Giffgaff's site is pretty clear regarding prices, Lyca's is quite annoying: you have to select countries one by one.

As I understand the minimum top-up is GBP 5 (for all carriers), but as Lyca is preactivated I may use it even with zero balance for incoming calls whenever i'm in the UK. When outside the UK, I just want it to produce the "this number is not available at the moment" sign, but not the "this number is not activated yet" sign, preferably without having to top it up with GBP 5 from abroad, which may or may not work anyways. As I understand, I can keep alive a UK number by sending a text to that number every 6 months?

It's only 10p with Orange (in 10p increments), but the only want to buy these micro top-ups is in Orange shops (mostly rebranded now to EE). Another advantage of Orange is that you only need to receive a communication every 6 months in order to keep the SIM card active.

Thanks for the info.

So back to my original question:

- Which is the best SIM which I can pick up in a convenience store, not shipped to an address?
- Only a SIM to be active and me being available on it is needed, the cost of outgoing texts, minutes and data is secondary at this point

Eg. GiffGaff is out of the question it seems as they can only send it to your address. No info on Ovivo, though.

Do you need a mobile number? There are plenty of UK VoIP providers who offer free landline numbers.

I already have a UK VoIP number. But I need the ability to receive SMS messages.

The main network brands will all be in shops, plus some MVNO brands such as Lyca and Vectone are in some shops, which you can search on their websites. I believe I've seen Lyca in Sainsburys, which is a national supermarket chain.

Ovivo, I think will be internet order and post only.

Have you looked on eBay? There are a lot of SIMs there. Or you can ask on giffgaff's forum, where some members are willing to post abroad; I could offer that myself, but I don't have any SIMs here at the moment, so that's not helpful if it's urgent.

Thanks for pointing me that out. I guess some giffgaff will be the winner, since a GBP 5 credit there will take me much longer than a GBP 20 activation for the 'free' OVIVO offer.

I have activated giffgaff SIMs from overseas without any trouble.

Before you activate yours, PM me and I'll give you my number for the extra recommendation credit. (Or you can just use my giffgaff username, also Motel75, but you get less extra credit that way.)

Thanks. I will do that.

General question:

In the UK is it customary that your prepaid card remains active when you have a communication on it (send or receive a call or a text) every 6 months or so?

Nearly all networks will deactivate the SIM card 6 months after the last change in the credit balance. Exceptions are Lycamobile (3 months) and White Mobile (2 months). In practice, most networks will also start the 6 months from the last incoming call, but this is not guaranteed by the terms and conditions. Giffgaff allows some additional ways to keep your SIM card active, making it the best SIM card for an infrequent visitor to the UK; the full list is at http://giffgaff.com/boiler-plate/terms#OurRights

I confirm it......Giff gaff is the best solution.
I find some one that send it at my home for free. I recharge and use once in England. Then i send an sms every six months and it's still alive and very cheaper

I have kept a GiffGaff card alive for more than a year without visiting UK or topping up. However, I don't think receiving an SMS is sufficient to do this currently. This used to work. The policy now states that you must receive a minimum of 4 calls of at least 10 seconds duration each. Because I am not in the UK, this would mean roaming charges if I left the SIM in an active phone. Instead, I make the calls with the SIM out of a phone, so that they are forced to Voicemail. This seems to work!

Excuse for my BAD english .... i want say that i have to SEND an sms at least every six months to keep the number with g.g. and in this year i have no problem... :)

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I've got a backup giffgaff card that I forgot about that lasted much longer than six months without being cut off. But obviously, this is not something worth risking, especially if keeping your phone number is important to you. Virgin Mobile was historically very good about keeping SIMs alive, but their published policy is also six months (I was told by a rep several years ago that the "real" policy is 365 days - but there's always the chance this might have changed).