[Idyllchat] Roman (roamin') phones?

[Scott Baldwin]

Patricia,

You have correctly surmised that you need a GSM for use in Europe.  
(Actually the entire rest of the world uses GSM, only in the USA do we 
have three different, incompatible technologies)

GSM in Europe operates on different frequencies than the US GSM phones. 
Europe uses 900 and 1800 mhz, Cingular and T-mobile in the US use GSM 
on 850(800) and 1900.  Therefore a phone that works on just the two US 
bands, will not work in Europe, and visa versa.

The best option is to get a quad band GSM phone.   This phone works on 
all 4 frequencies and with the appropriate SIM card ( a small dime 
sized card that is easily installed and removed from the phone) you can 
use this phone anywhere in the world, including the USA.

It is also a good idea to get an unlocked phone.  Most Cell phone 
providers lock their phones to their own service, but an unlocked phone 
can use any SIM on any system.  If you do get a locked phone, they can 
be unlocked for a small fee.  ($10.00 - 20.00)

Believe it or not the best place to buy an unlocked, quad band phone is 
e-bay.  Before you purchase on e-bay be sure to check the sellers 
feedback rating carefully.

The next thing to consider is the SIM card.

The cheapest option is to get a SIM card once you get to Italy.  The 
Italian SIM will give you the best rate, but it is a bit of a hassle 
finding a place to buy it, and you won't know your number until you get 
the SIM, so the first thing you will have to do is contact folks back 
home to let them know what your number is.  The SIM you buy there is 
preloaded with a certain amount of minutes, which can be recharged.  
It's one more thing to have to think about once you get there.

An option with less hassle, but a little more expensive, is to get an 
international SIM card before you leave.  This way you will know your 
number before you leave, and you don't have to deal with finding a SIM 
when you get there or recharging minutes.

The SIM I use is the Mobal card.

http://www.mobalrental.com/gsm/sim.asp?source=0046G045N&p=C118&cc=

The per minute charge is higher, but you only pay for what you use, and 
there is no contract.  Minutes used are billed to your credit card.  
The SIM itself is free.  So if you have a quad band unlocked phone, you 
can get this SIM from Mobal and you are ready to roam anywhere in the 
world.

This company also sells two phones that will work in Europe, one that 
works in Europe only for $49.00 including the SIM, and another quad 
band for $99.00 which works anywhere in the world.  Both of these 
phones work well but are locked to Mobal's system, so if you ever 
wanted to use a different SIM you would have to get it unlocked.   Not 
really a problem, actually a quick and easy way to get a European cell 
phone and you can always get it unlocked later if you want to use a 
different SIM.

http://www.mobalrental.com/gsm/handsets.asp?source=0046G045N&kw=Mobal


The good news is that Italy supposedly has the best cell phone coverage 
in the world.

Cheers,

Scott






On Mar 10, 2007, at 9:12 AM, Patricia Edie wrote:

> Great question....I am eager to see responses as well!
> Patricia Edie
>
>
>> We're scheduled to be in a Rome UnTours apartment shortly for three 
>> weeks; we've been caring for a family member who had emergency 
>> surgery and we'd like to stay in not-quite-daily touch without paying 
>> exorbitant int'l phone rates.  We  have Sprint (more like a slow 
>> stroll) cellphones, but they don't accept GSM SIM cards for Europe.  
>> So, the question:  What system has worked well for any of  you who 
>> have had similar needs? Pro's and con's?
>>
>> Thanks, Pat and Jack
>
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