Extremely slow data while traveling

[Ghengis]

My wife is on vacation in Spain, and is trying to use a Lumia 920 she bought in Germany with a prepaid SIM from Orange.

She's getting terrible Internet speeds -- connections time out constantly and she can't even get basic websites to load. Some data still gets through, though (for example, she can chat, slowly, over WhatsApp) so I she must have a valid APN, etc. The speeds were fine in Germany, so I don't think the phone is at fault, and I did check to make sure that the German and Spanish 3G bands are the same (they are).

I've advised her to download the MS Network Speed Test application and check her results from multiple locations, to account for reception problems. What else can she do on her end, to rule out the possibilities of misconfiguration? I've been an Android user for 5 years now, so beyond "document the performance issues" and "go ask the carrier to fix it" I'm not much help to her.

 

[David P2]

If it's an unlocked handset I would probably get a local SIM to use while in that country (it'd rule out the handset being at fault as well). It could be a case that people roaming onto a network are lower down on the bandwidth food chain than the locals, so roamers will have lower speeds. Failing that, make use of any free wifi hotspots that happen to be around.

 

[Ghengis]

Sorry, I meant the prepaid SIM is from Orange *Spain*. (Is there an Orange Germany?) She got a local SIM, and actually I think she's had them replace the SIM once already just to rule out a bad one. The main problem is that the wifi at her vacation apartment is offline, so the only Internet access she has in the evenings is via the cellular network

ETA: it is an unlocked handset, yes.