Travel Technology - T-mobile G1 in Japan

I'm getting conflicting reports about whether or not my T-Mobile G1 will work in Japan. Some say "yes", others "no".

I know I should buy/rent a prepaid phone but I really don't get very many phone calls, and would rather keep my own number for the few I do (probably cheaper in the long run that getting a different phone.)

But, I'm looking for a first-hand report from someone who has successfully used their G1 in Japan.

Yes, it definitely works. I took an unlocked G1 to Japan just about a year ago.

Roaming is very expensive. The last time I checked the T-Mobile USA website it was $1.99/minute for Japan. If you don't answer the phone and it goes to voice mail, it will cost you $3.98/minute as they charge for the call being forwarded to Japan and back. Also be sure to turn off data synchronization and don't use any data services to avoid huge data roaming charges.

SIM rentals are available from SoftBank for ¥105/day. Domestic outbound calls are ¥105/minute, and inbound calls are free. However, SoftBank won't rent a SIM for use with smartphones because of customers unknowingly running up huge data charges. You'll need to initially present an unlocked non-smart 3G 2100MHz phone as they will want to verify that the SIM works with your phone. When using the rental SIM, I forward calls made to my regular cell phone number on to a forwarding service, which then forwards the call to the rental SIM's Japanese phone number. I think the cost was around 30 cents/minute for the forwarding service.

I have a couple of posts in the Travel Technology forum in the G1 thread about my experience with the G1 in Japan:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-technology/868889-t-mobile-g1-google-phone-post10582756.html#post10582756

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-technology/868889-t-mobile-g1-google-phone-post10757928.html#post10757928

I no longer have the G1. I returned it during the remorse period as I found the battery life to be unacceptable. I have my old Nokia 6630 which has served me well on many trips, but on my last trip to Japan, I also took a cheapie unlocked Sony-Ericsson/T-Mobile TM506. I was surprised to find that the TM506 also works on 3G/2100 in Japan as I assumed that it only supported T-Mobile USA's AWS 3G service. It worked with both the rental SIM as well as roaming with the T-Mobile SIM. During this same trip, I was able to purchase a prepaid 3G phone from SoftBank, which is not usually allowed for non-residents. I'll be using SoftBank's prepaid service on future trips instead of renting the SIM. The prepaid phone uses a SIM so I should be able to use the SIM in any 3G phone.

HTH, and enjoy your trip to Japan!

@YUB,

Thanks for the links, and apologies for not finding them before posting. Since I'll probably get a total of 2-3 calls during my week in Japan and make no more than 1-2 outbound calls, it is just easier to stick with my SIM for that very low volume. Of course, I always turn data connections into "brick mode" so no problems on that front.

Sorry to hear that you returned your G1 - I've come to accept it, and even love it a little.

Milepig: I was in Tokyo in June for acouple of weeks. I use apndroid to switch my APNs to shutoff data roaming, and used it for occasional texting and calls. Inbound texts were free, so that was kinda nice :) It comes off your allotment, so if you have unlimited in the us, unliminted in Japan. Outbounds were about $1.

If it does 3G/UMTS, it does Japan providing i) you're network has a roaming agreement with a Japanese UMTS network or ii) You're lucky enough to have a Japanese SIM card (you'd need a very kind Japanese customer or employer for that, I think).....