SIM card question
 

I'm still new at this, so I hope this is not a dumb question. I use Verizon here in the states (CDMA). I've bought a second, unlocked GSM phone to use in Europe. I'm going to buy local SIM cards there. It occurs to me that I might get a pre-paid SIM card here, with a small amount of minutes, so that I can use the phone right away for emergencies until I get the local SIM card.

Any suggestion on which carrier would be best to buy a US-based SIM card here on a pre-paid basis for this purpose?

Your choice is Att Cingular and T-mobile... It depends on how the carrier is in your area.... Here in NYC area ATT seems to be the right way to go.... (If you want GSM service, otherwise Verizon is better)

I think* T-mobile is better in the SFO part....

I can't directly answer your question, except to point out that US prepaid plans generally require adding time/$ every 30-90 days to keep the invested time alive.

Most, if not all, North American GSM operators do not provide any international roaming capabilities to the users of their pre-paid services...

All operators in the US have the same problem; expiring call credit.

You'll need to keep adding money every 90 days or so or the credit will expire.

Not a single US based pre-paid GSM provider allows International roaming that I know of. You can however buy pre-paid sims before your trip at this web site:
http://www.telestial.com

O2 in the Uk do pre paid sims with credit that doesn't expire as long as you make or receive a call once every couple of months, they work anywhere in the world and are very cheap, you can normally buy them for £1 on line direct from the website.

I checked out that website above and oh my god!! $40 dollars for a card that are nealry given away

Link to there website where you can find out the charges for calls in a specific country

http://travelabroad.o2-uktech.com/coverage.php?n=b

Dino

best thins is the buy before leavgin
 

From an in country providor. Like Virgin, t-mobile, etc.

There are companies that will sell online, or go with an ebay seller. Find osmeone with mnay cards, and ask them for one of each once you win an auction.

no us providors do interneational at all

You should be able to purchase a SIM card at the airport upon arrival. They are MUCH more readily available in Europe than in the US. If you tell us where you are arriving I'm sure someone here can even tell you where in the airport to find such a shop!

Having just returned from London with my unlocked GSM phone I can tell you that my US T-Mobile prepaid card did not work in the UK. I quickly found a stationary store and purchased a Virgin Mobile pre-paid SIM. Unlike purchasing a prepaid card in the US; there were no forms to fill out, ID to produce, or credit card to be given.

What was the cost, and how many minutes were included? Is Virgin Mobile 1800MHz only? (My phone uses 900 MHz overseas).

You don't need this in the US either.

They ASK for a name and DOB but that is only for your own account security. You can give them any name and DOB you want, as long as you remember it.

You do not need ID or a CC to get a US (T-mobile) prepaid sim.

Virgin mobile sim is GBP10 with GBP5 call credit.

Virgin is a virtual operator on the One2One network so it's fully GSM1800.

You can buy a starter kit with Nokia phone for just GBP40 or with a colour Motorola for just GBP50.

Are you talking about Virgin USA, because it clearly is CDMA... It would've been nice if they offered GSM service here in the States, then it will be easy for people from UK to use their Virgin Services while in the States....

Prepaid SIMS are terribly easy to find in Europe and some will let you roam here. As Dino2020 pointed out, the prices charged by this web site are in my opinion, bordering on obscene. Check out the web sites for companies like Virgin Mobile, Vodafone and Orange to see how cheap these cards are if you buy them in the country you are travelling to.

Looks like ScottC answered your questions re price, etc. I've got a tri-mode phone so just had to manually switch it to the non US freq. Adding minutes - topping-up - was so easy... just find a store that has the top-up logo posted on their door/window, hand them your E Top-Up Card and tell them how much you want to add and its done.

T-Mobile wouldn't sell me a prepaid SIM in the US unless I signed over my first born, it was truly obnoxious. They wanted Name, address, DOB, and a credit card (not just for the purchase). Maybe it was just some newbie sales clerk or something...

Has to be, cause I've purchased several and they just hand them over, the name and dob was even optional...

I bought one for myy wife to test out TMobile a couple weeks ago. No credit card or anything. I just gave them a name and 50 bucks as I recall.

At my local cell place I got a $40 T-mobile card with 120 mins which includes new activation... I just wanted to see if my phone was really unlocked, even though I was 99.9% sure it was... Oh well, I can switch cards around now on my AT&T Phone...

Btw can a T-mobile Sim from US work on T-mobile UK?

Edit: I wasn't even asked for my name or anything for that matter... Lol

No. There is NO roaming with a T-mobile USA prepaid sim anywhere.

Damn! How about with any other provider? No right?

Mobal?
 

Anyone have any experience with a company called Mobal?

http://www.mobalrental.com/

Looks like if you have a GSM phone which works in Europe, you can buy a SIM card for $19 and then pay just for the calls you make/receive. While the rates aren't nearly as good as pre-paid cards purchased in other countries, it seems like a good alternative for somebody who doesn't expect to make a lot of calls but wants the option available and for people who might be in multiple foreign countries and not want to have to buy prepaid cards in each place.

Any thoughts on this?

cnk

My experience is the same as Scott's. There is no "verification" and nothing to prevent one from claiming to be Donald Duck who was born yesterday (or maybe 18 years ago just not to run afoul of some kind of fine print that may or may not be there).

Where did you try buying it?

The T-mobile UK pre-paid is good in many places worldwide although you pay high roaming fees too. There are some Lichtenstein-based and Monaco-based pre-paid SIMs that are great if you want cheap incoming and wish to globally roam on the same number. Of course in-country SIMs have free incoming in many countries of the world.

There are some creative work arounds but then you will not have a US-based SIM to roam on.

Based on your needs and the nature of your incoming/outgoing call needs and locations, there are some good deals around. $.39/minute incoming regardless of where in the world you roam is pretty useful.

Lousy deal. I would look for something better priced.

What I have done is gotten some pre-paid SIMs that are linked to a "top-up" or similar feature and then have a local party (or go online and) get them re-charged as needed when roaming oversees.

This is a better deal for higher volume users.

http://www.hopmobile.com/explore_costs.html

http://www.hopmobile.com/cgi-hop/pub...T=DISP_COUNTRY

Other options to be found here too:

http://www.prepaidgsm.net/en/international.html

I bought it at a T-Mobile store in the local mall. The whole transaction took 45 minutes. In contrast buying my Virgin Mobile prepaid in London took 2 minutes with no information requested at all. It's tough to find good help in the service industry here in the US anymore.
:rolleyes:

I always think that these international prepaid cards will get you put on some CIA/FBI/TSA watch list :D

FYI on the Virgin Mobile prepaid card (purchased in the UK). I just checked the fine print and you can't roam with the card in the US unless you go for the montly billing plan.

Which is a good reason to go for the O2 prepaid sim, as it DOES roam in the US.

Inst Virgin UK on the GSM Network???

Here in the US they are on the SPrint CDMA Network... So unless Virgin has a deal with one of the 3 GSM providers I don't see how Virgin UK will work here...

Yes, Virgin is GSM, and yes, they DO roam on many other GSM networks, including some in the US. Just because Virgin in the US is on Sprint doesn't mean they can't make use of roaming on another US GSM network.

ROTFLOL Then again Scott, weren't you the one advocating the Swisscom pre-paid card that we used to track down certain Al-Qaeda principals? :D

The T-Mobile UK prepaid works pretty well too in roaming. The downside with the UK mobile pre-paid SIMs is that the rates are in pounds, a currency which remains stronger and more stable vis-a-vis the dollar more than the euro. A non-pound denomination will likely be cheaper per minute than a pound sterling-denominated one.

I have roamed in several European countries with my Vodafone (UK) card. It isnt cheap but it is probably comparable to the deals people are finding on the web. When I put it in my phone in the US it shows that it is working. I havent tried using it for voice. I sent my self a couple text messages. Still waiting for them to arrive. It might not work in the US. But I have used it no problem in France, Italy and Spain.

Well the sms I sent with my prepaid Vodafone UK SIM card from here in SAN worked when sent to my TMobile US postpaid account. So apparently you can use Vodafone prepaid cards in the US. Interestingly, the SMS I sent to my Verizon wireless phone hasnt come through yet. I will try again later. I entered the number manually, perhaps it had a mistake.

Btw, anyone here tried the International Sim card (forgot the name) that has a number based in Monaco?? I always wanted to buy it, but then you have to shell out $79 for the card then buy a $100 worth of credit....

Lol

Not really worth it considering UK and other european sims do pretty much the same or even more.

Unless of course you want a cool "home" number :)

Overdeveloped Monaco is not for me -- unless someone wants to help me seize a certain picturesque castle in a behind the scenes political coup; what was the name of that not so bad looking "princess"? :D

Virgin Mobile UK rides on top of T-Mobile's GSM 1800 network in the UK.

http://www.gsmworld.com/roaming/gsminfo/index.shtml

Indeed, you can pick up a Virgin starter kit at Virgin Megastores or at Cellphone Warehouses, which are about as ubiquitous in the UK as McDonalds franchises.

If you're really hung up on getting a SIM with with Top-Up card before leaving the US, lemme know with a private message--I may have a Virgin starter kit still in box with 5GBP on the card.