Cell phone abroad

[LHR02]

Thanks annonymous! It does get confusing, especially with regards to the original poster here who is going to be in both Europe and Australia/New Z region. Personally I always think if getting a new phone, get the biggest, baddest, most feature filled one you can afford at the time...knowing that in 6 months it will be outdated anyway! ;D Particularly if going to use it overseas...why I suggested the quad vs the tri-band...and your post seems to bear that out.

ging

[Laura]

Thank you all for your suggestions and help. Right now it looks like t-Mobile has the best package for what I need. The only thing I am concerned about is the type of phone.

The Motorola V600 is $250, and is a quad band. I know this is the best but I dont really want to spend $250. Does anyone know anything about the Motorola V66? T-Mobile says you can use internationally roaming in all the countries I will be in but has anyone had an experience with them? Also this phone is only $50 with a 1 year contract and rebate. Much more my $$ speed.
The downfall is it is only Tri-band or however you say that.

Thanks for all your help!

[LHR02]

Wasn't completely certain so just went and looked.....that is the exact phone I have, the V66 by Motorola. I have been well satisfied with it, it is the one I used this December in Italy and it worked great there. Also, T-Mobile as I have previously said. The battery life is quite good, it is dual voltage charging so all you need is a plug adapter, exterior antenna but it is a little short thing that has caused no problems thus far. Have had this phone just shy of a year and really can't offer any negatives for it. The one thing I don't know...maybe Eagle will?....is how it will/will not operate in Australia/Asia. I can say it is fine for both US and Europe. Just be sure and call before you go and get the info on how to change the bands before you go.....it's easy to do, but not something 'I' would have been able to figure out on my own...non phone tech person that I am.

[Annoymous]

The V66 will be an excellant phone for your travels, it has 1900 for North America and 1800/900 for the rest of the world (So it will work perfectly in Asia/Australia) It is actually the phone I plan to use when I leave in 3 weeks for a month long trip to Europe. As for changing the bands the option it is in the menu under >Settings >Other Settings >Network

Dustoffmom is right too about the voltage thing which will come in handy, and as far as I know some boxes come shipped with the plug adapters for the UK and Continental Europe (mine did anyways) ;D

[LHR02]

So did mine....and I actually used it for several things, not just the phone. A small expense plug adapters, but hey, it came with the phone so why buy another?

[Twizzla]

here in New Zealand, you can buy a Vodafone SIM card for $15NZ on prepay, and then buy top up cards from there. And also, you can take your Vodafone NZ SIM to Australia... its already set up, and you pay no roaming charges on calls made... just the usual price you'd pay in NZ! SMS messages are free to receive and 20c to send.

Just thought I'd point that out to the author of this thread and to anyone wanting to use a mobile down here in NZ and Aussie

[rando]

I live in California and travel nationwide as well as into Canada. I currently have cell service thru Sprint. Personally, i think they have the best coverage for the US.
I recently switched over to TMobile as they appeared to b the best bet for WORLDWIDE coverage. Rates vary from .99-$2.99(US) per minute depending on the country you are traviling in. And you don't pay extra fees or srvc charges when you want to use your phone out of the country. The above stated minute rates do apply tho.

Make sure you get a a phone with a SIM card and that it operates on 900mhz/1800mhz(world usage) and 1900mhz(US onlyl).
Simply put, purchase a dual band TRI MODE phone.
No sim card to buy or replace, no minute cards to buy to "refill" your phone, etc.

The only thing i have to do when i leave the states to go international is call TMobile and let them know i am going to whatever countries and they will unlock your phone so that when you land yer phone is active

The nice thing about cell providers these days is that you can take your current # with you. That came in real handy in my case as i use my cellphone as my home/business # and would have lost contact with numerous clients and friends had i had to get a new #.

I purchased the Motorola v300 as after teh mail in rebate i got it for $149. I added the data plan to my phone plan so i can use my cellphone with my laptop as a modem to connect to the internet for email and researching stuff(like this mssg board!).

when your friends/family from home call you, they simlply call your regular # and it finds you worldwide.

hope this helps!

Peace,
Rando

[Daniel]

What kind of power charger for my cell (motorola v300) should I bring to Europe for your cell? Should I just bring my regular 120 v North American adaptor, then get a general 120-220 v plug adaptor over there? Or do I need to get a special power charger that works on 220 v? Sorry it's such a basic question, but I've asked all around and can't seem to get the answer. Help!

[Eagle]

DANIEL, The Voltage specifications should be listed on your Motorola Charger (check the bottom). I suspect the Charger supplied with your Cell Phone will be configured for operation on 115-240 VAC. I use a Motorola V-60 and my charger works fine in Europe. It seems to have been designed for travel, as it's very compact and has folding pins to make it easier to pack. However, be sure to confirm the spec's on the model you're using.

You will need Plug Adapters however. I assume you live somewhere in North America, so your Charger will be equipped with the usual NA plug configuration. It's probably best to buy these in your home area, as they're very easily obtained. You should be able to get these at any Radio Shack store, or try www.magellans.com as they have a good selection. You will need different Adapters for travel in the U.K. as opposed to the European mainland, as the configuration is different.

A few final points. Your V300 should work in Europe as it's a tri-band model. However you may have to change frequencies to 900/1800 in the "settings" menu when you land in order for the phone to be able to find a network. Were you planning on roaming when in Europe or using European SIM cards? Roaming can be a bit on the expensive side -- check with your home carrier for the rates. If you're just using it for emergencies or whatever, this shouldn't be a problem. If you want to use Euro SIM's, your phone MUST be unlocked.

Hope this answers your questions? Cheers!!!

[LHR02]

Eagle! V60? That's my phone too! Worked like a charm in Italy and with T-Mobile the rates were better than expected and well within reason. I really like this phone.


OOps...Motorola V-66 is mine! Forgetfulness comes with old age huh? ;D

[Eagle]

I won't comment on the "old age", as I'm in the same position.

I'm very pleased with my V-60. I think the V-66 is a slightly newer model? The roaming working brilliantly when I was in England, however the charges were a bit more than I expected. The roaming charges were well documented, with each carrier listed separately, so it was readily apparent that I used the phone more than I realized. $0.99 or $1.98 per minute adds up very quickly!!!

I will be getting my Phone unlocked before I head to Europe or the U.K. again, so hopefully that will provide an option for lower cell phone charges (unlocking is now in progress, should be done by the end of this week). I've already bought a "Starter Pack" for one of the U.K. networks, so will be ready when the time comes. However, I will probably stay with roaming when in Italy, France, Switzerland, etc., as I doubt that I'll be using the phone much in those areas. I have family in England, so need to use it more when I'm there.

I will probably upgrade to a quad-band Phone at some point in the future, but there's no hurry. I've been admiring the Razr V-3 lately, but no way I could afford that! The V-600 looks great too, but it's a bit on the expensive side right now.

Cheers!!!

[schlitz]

can anyone share any info with me regarding cheap-o pre-paid phones for purchase once i'm in europe? i will be with a few friends, so getting two inexpensive phones over there would be handy for keeping in contact. i've heard they can be had for $30-50 or so. we don't plan to use them to call home, just to call each other when we happen to split up from time to time. anyone have any insight to share? thanks!

[Laura from original post]

I was the person who originall posted this message and here is what I learned through my experiences in Europe and now in Thailand and Vietnam...

It is expensive to buy a phone w/o service contract in europe. I paid 299 euro for the only nokia phone that had the right bandwith for all the countries i was going to. The sim cards generally cost an extra 20 euro and you can only fill it up in the country you buy it in.

Then you can put increments of like 20, 40 , 80 euro on the phone. If you can get a phone in the use that allows you to put different sim cards in, as long as it has the right bandwith for europe (see previous messages posted) you might find it cheaper.

Also, TMobile has the best coverage in europe of any provider. They tend to partner with a local country group if TMobile is not listed there (examle in Bangkok it is listed on my phone as Orange but it is still through my Tmobile Sim from Austria)

I hope that was helpful. If you have other questions you can email me directly.

Having a cell phone was extremely helpful in meeting and connecting with people who aslo had phones but it is cheaper over all to buy a phone card in the country you are in to make phone calls long distanc and local. It really is more of a convience that is not really cheap.

[Eagle]

LAURA, Thanks very much for the update! I'm sure your experiences with this will be a big help to others wanting to use a Cell Phone while travelling.

The cost of buying an appropriate phone overseas, is a good reason to buy an unlocked tri-band or quad-band GSM Phone in your home area (where ever one can find the best prices) before travelling. I also found that a Cell Phone was an extremely valuable item to have while travelling, and I will continue to use one in future travels.

Cheers!!!

[bebebelelele]

Sorry, I might be repeating the question. There are too many posts...

I have a Samsung E105 with Tmobile. It's a dual band phone. I don't know if it's "tri-mode"?? If it's not a tri-mode, that means I have to purchase sim card locally in each country I go?