Originally Posted by
ifly153
Thanks a lot for the advice, based on your advice, I am thinking its easiest for me to buy a SIM card when I am in Beijing (the city). I understand that I shouldn't worry about roaming charges buying a SIM in Beijing and using in Shanghai. But what about Shanghai locals calling/texting me, is it a problem if I have a Beijing phone number?
-there is no such thing as roaming rates on texts within China (that I'm aware of)
-this is kind of a moot point because SMS is no longer common (i.e. chat apps have taken over, much to the chagrin of the operators... witness Mobile's recent earnings discussion)
-long distance minutes usually do cost some small amount of money (varies by provider/plan) and typically aren't included in base minutes, but I don't notice anyone really caring about this; plus, keep phone calls brief or not calling at all is considered good manners
-finally, in many cases numbers that would otherwise be considered long distance are treated as local when they are roaming in your local area