SINGAPORE — In today’s connected world, losing that link to the World Wide Web even for a day just seems unthinkable.

That’s even more so when you are travelling. In a foreign place, the desire to check in with loved ones, contact local friends and find your way around is even more pronounced.

But the high costs of data roaming make it harder to stay connected. For many, an affordable solution is to get a pre-paid SIM card at your destination, which enables you to make calls, surf and find your way around while paying only local data charges.

Now, users in Singapore, Hong Kong and soon Macau will have another option to help them stay connected while travelling.

Handy, a smartphone rental service, offers a customised user interface and comes loaded with guide apps for transport, food and tourist sites.

For S$15 a day, travellers get unlimited 3G data and unlimited local and international calls (to 25 countries including Brunei, China, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, the United States, Japan and South Korea), as well as Wi-Fi hotspot on the go, to which they can tether their tablets and laptops. Handy even offers group deals on tourist attractions and other promotions.

The guides, which are updated monthly, are locally curated by an in-house team of editors and freelance writers, who recommend the best eats, shopping and destination ideas.

For now, the service is not cross-border friendly so a traveller cannot pick up a smartphone in Singapore and continue to use it in Malaysia.

But when the solution is launched in Macau, travellers will be able to pick up a handset in Hong Kong and continue using it in Macau, said founder and CEO Terence Kwok.

“Both Singapore and Hong Kong receive a lot of travellers and the numbers are growing. We think this is something that travellers want. Roaming is expensive; making calls, using the Internet will put a dent in your wallet. Finding content and useful information is also very difficult for travellers,” said Mr Kwok.

If you have concerns about your privacy — such as your contact information, SMSes or pictures ending up in the wrong hands— Mr Kwok assured that the rental smartphone will be restored to factory settings when it is returned, in the presence of the customer.

“We’re seeing more Chief Financial Officers loving this product. With it, they can control the travel costs of employees and not have to worry about employees racking up massive costs when they turn on data roaming, as this is a fixed cost,” said Mr Raymond Ng, General Manager of Handy.

Customers can choose between the Samsung Galaxy Note or Galaxy Nexus when they reserve a smartphone. (UPDATE: Handy has clarified that visitors to Singapore only have the option of the Samsung Galaxy Note but they are looking to standardise the options across all regions.)

In Singapore, they can pick up or drop off the device at the Singapore Visitors Centre on Orchard Road.