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-   Travel Technology (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-technology-169/)
-   -   costs of local sim (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-technology/1128193-costs-local-sim.html)

weekilter Sep 22, 2010 7:24 am
Originally Posted by bmosh (Post 14745940)
thanks. the IMEI number was easy to find as you mentioned :)

everyone -- I am returning to my original question.

Is there a way to get a US number without being cancelled ?
I am willing to sign a contract with a US carrier (e.g. T-mobile, AT&T, etc.) as long as: 1) my number is not cancelled no matter how much time it is not in use, and 2) I pay only for what I talk, no fixed monthly payment.

Do you think I can find this deal ?

thanks.
There is no way to keep a number indefinitely unless you find a carrier that has auto refill. With T-Mobile if you add $100 you get 365 day account expiry.

weekilter Sep 22, 2010 7:27 am
Originally Posted by polonius (Post 14745980)
I bought an AT&T sim last time I was in the USA. The only way to keep it from being cancelled in a month is to buy 100 USD worth of credit, then it it good for a year. As long as you put another 100 USD on it within the year, it will not expire. This works for me, as I visit the USA about once a year and use about 100 USD when I do. May not work for everyone.
Or get a T-Mobile $100 voucher which gives you a year and you can just add $10 for the next year to keep the account active.

cordelli Sep 22, 2010 8:12 am
Originally Posted by bmosh (Post 14745940)

Is there a way to get a US number without being cancelled ?
I am willing to sign a contract with a US carrier (e.g. T-mobile, AT&T, etc.) as long as: 1) my number is not cancelled no matter how much time it is not in use, and 2) I pay only for what I talk, no fixed monthly payment.
Yes, but you need to put $100 on it first.

if you go T-mobile, you can fill it with $100 and the number will be good for a year. Each refill will extend that another year from the date of the refill, so you can for example pay $100 the first year and then $10 a year after that and your number never expires.

It's as close to not having a canceled number you will get, and probably for the least amount of money. There are a few services out there that let you keep the number for life like Mobal, but you are paying a fortune per minute for that to happen, and you will probably not get a US number.

bmosh Sep 23, 2010 1:33 pm
thanks all for the advices.
It really helps to get a clear picture of my options.

Dubai Stu Sep 25, 2010 7:24 am
In my opinion, don't even bother keeping the same number. Sign up for a free Google Voice number and forward it to the SIM de jour. When you are back home forward the number to a GoogleChat account and talk free (and have accessible voice mail).

andreadbc Sep 25, 2010 9:09 am
Originally Posted by Dubai Stu (Post 14785316)
In my opinion, don't even bother keeping the same number. Sign up for a free Google Voice number and forward it to the SIM de jour. When you are back home forward the number to a GoogleChat account and talk free (and have accessible voice mail).
That was my suggestion on the previous page as well. Take advantage that you'll be in the US and sign up for Google Voice (it's free!)


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