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Cell phone for European travel
This question is mostly for the USians on the group but anyone else is, naturally, welcome to chime in. I need advice on a CHEAP way to have a cell phone available for travel in Europe. It doesn't have to be fancy (God, please let's not get into another ****ing contest over the glories of smart phones!). All it has to do is make and receive voice calls. Some years ago I got a bottom-of-the-line Motorola C123 from CallInEurope.com operating out of Connecticut somewhere. $60 complete w a French SIM and all the doo-dads; I lent it to someone and they lost it :-( CIE seems to have gone out of business, but if they were still around, I'd pick up another just like it. Any alternative suggestions? FrankC (chg Arabic# to Roman to reply) |
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Cell phone for European travel
Tue, 20 Aug 2013 13:16:46 -0400, Frank Clarke
: I need advice on a CHEAP way to have a cell phone available for travel in If you're visiting several countries on your trip, don't bother. Firstly, initial SIM registration may take several days. Secondly, you'd be roaming anyway. So, bring your US phone and give it a try, first. On top of that, many countries still show phone booths at street corners. -- Erick |
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Cell phone for European travel
On 20/08/2013 20:15, Erick T. Barkhuis wrote:
Tue, 20 Aug 2013 13:16:46 -0400, Frank Clarke : I need advice on a CHEAP way to have a cell phone available for travel in If you're visiting several countries on your trip, don't bother. Firstly, initial SIM registration may take several days. not in my experience |
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Cell phone for European travel
On Tue, 20 Aug 2013 20:57:29 +0100, Mike O'Sullivan wrote in post :
: On 20/08/2013 20:15, Erick T. Barkhuis wrote: Tue, 20 Aug 2013 13:16:46 -0400, Frank Clarke : I need advice on a CHEAP way to have a cell phone available for travel in If you're visiting several countries on your trip, don't bother. Firstly, initial SIM registration may take several days. not in my experience Mine neither. Never ever, not even years ago when mobile phones were teh size of a shoebox. It might take 20 minutes or so - if you want a contracted phone/SIM, but for pre-paid it takes as long as it takes to hand over your money. -- Tim C. Linz, Austria. |
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Cell phone for European travel
Tim C.:
On Tue, 20 Aug 2013 20:57:29 +0100, Mike O'Sullivan wrote in post : : On 20/08/2013 20:15, Erick T. Barkhuis wrote: Firstly, initial SIM registration may take several days. not in my experience Mine neither. I start wondering...have you guys ever actually tried to get across the pond as a US citizen and buy/register a new SIM in Western Europe? |
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Cell phone for European travel
"Erick T. Barkhuis" writes:
Tim C.: On Tue, 20 Aug 2013 20:57:29 +0100, Mike O'Sullivan wrote in post : : On 20/08/2013 20:15, Erick T. Barkhuis wrote: Firstly, initial SIM registration may take several days. not in my experience Mine neither. I start wondering...have you guys ever actually tried to get across the pond as a US citizen and buy/register a new SIM in Western Europe? It took me about 15 minutes to buy two sims from an Orange shop in France for my phone and my mothers. This was in 2011. It took a similar length of time in 2007, also in France. Faster to buy a tmobile sim in Bonn in 2008. I may have needed my passport in some or all cases. I know I had it with me just in case. |
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Cell phone for European travel
On 21 Aug 2013 06:32:30 GMT, Erick T. Barkhuis wrote in post :
: I start wondering...have you guys ever actually tried to get across the pond as a US citizen and buy/register a new SIM in Western Europe? No, have you? But I have, very recently, bought 3 "vertragsfrei" SIM cards here without any documentation or anything. It is clear I am not local, from my accent. Instantly. No-one would ever know you're American. You can even buy contract-free SIM cards at (some) supermarket checkouts here - though I have never done that. -- Tim C. Linz, Austria. |
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Cell phone for European travel
On Tue, 20 Aug 2013 21:15:42 +0200, Erick T. Barkhuis
wrote: Tue, 20 Aug 2013 13:16:46 -0400, Frank Clarke : I need advice on a CHEAP way to have a cell phone available for travel in If you're visiting several countries on your trip, don't bother. Firstly, initial SIM registration may take several days. Secondly, you'd be roaming anyway. So, bring your US phone and give it a try, first. On top of that, many countries still show phone booths at street corners. My US phone is CDMA -- guaranteed not to work in Europe. I will need a new phone. The base question is "Where to get an inexpensive unlocked GSM phone and cheap service for Europe?" Lots of companies offer the service -- I can look that up online -- but what do you experts opine? FrankC (chg Arabic# to Roman to reply) |
#9
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Cell phone for European travel
On Tue, 20 Aug 2013 19:03:30 -0400, Frank Clarke wrote in post :
news I will need a new phone. The base question is "Where to get an inexpensive unlocked GSM phone and cheap service for Europe?" Lots of companies offer the service -- I can look that up online -- but what do you experts opine? There are thousands of second-hand cellphone shops. You can get a cheap phone there, and get a SIM that will work with it almost immediately. It's generally simpler to get a pre-paid SIM - for example from 3/Hutchinson, as you shouldn't need any documentation. -- Tim C. Linz, Austria. |
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Cell phone for European travel
On Wed, 21 Aug 2013 08:23:17 +0200, "Tim C." wrote:
On Tue, 20 Aug 2013 19:03:30 -0400, Frank Clarke wrote in post : news I will need a new phone. The base question is "Where to get an inexpensive unlocked GSM phone and cheap service for Europe?" Lots of companies offer the service -- I can look that up online -- but what do you experts opine? There are thousands of second-hand cellphone shops. You can get a cheap phone there, and get a SIM that will work with it almost immediately. It's generally simpler to get a pre-paid SIM - for example from 3/Hutchinson, as you shouldn't need any documentation. I'm presuming you're talking about getting a phone in Europe after I arrive? FrankC (chg Arabic# to Roman to reply) |
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