Ascension Island

Basics
Ascension Island is an island and part of British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha the South Atlantic. Even though it's the same territory as Saint Helena, the mobile networks are separate and hence merits a separate article. It's not considered part of EU, so EU roaming caps don't apply. Many providers either charge a very high price or offer no roaming at all. The island has no submarine cable and so all the communications go through a relatively narrow satellite channel. So expect low speeds (even on LTE), high latency and high prices. The first and so far only network operator started in 2012:


 * Sure South Atlantic Ltd.

It operates a 2G/GSM/EDGE on 900 MHz and LTE on band 3 (1800 MHz). Note that there is no 3G/UMTS, so if you want data, you need a phone that supports LTE band 3 or you'll be limited to 2G/EDGE speeds.

Sure
Sure by Sure South Atlantic Ltd. is offering WiFi hotspot, landline and mobile broadband services on the island. In 2012 it started the only network on the island in 2G and 4G/LTE.

Availability
A SIM card costs £30.00 with £10 included. It's sold at their at their service centre at Georgetown and other places.

Top-ups are available from different stores. To top-up dial *177* #

Data rates
Default data rate is £0.14/MB (£14 per 100 MB or £140 per GB). They have 2 data bundles:


 * 100 MB for £13. To buy dial *173*100#
 * 200 MB for £24. To buy dial *173*200#

Note that the same amount of data would cost £14 resp £28. So if you're unsure that you'll use the whole bundle, it may not be worth getting one.

More info

 * Website: http://www.sure.co.ac/
 * Balance check: dial *178#
 * APN for prepaid (make sure you put it allcaps): SUREASC
 * Mobile helpline: 111
 * This network is separate from Sure on Saint Helena, subject to Roaming fees
 * Tariff and service details