Travelling in Europe...

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Brsmnky007 - 08 Dec 2004 16:01 GMT

I'll be going to Europe for a while this summer equipped with my SE T616.
I'm looking for advice for the cheapest way to make calls, what to expect
for rates for both voice and SMS, whether the 1800 MHz band is easily
available nearly everywhere, any general international traveling tips that
anyone may have. Thanks in advance!

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Richie - 08 Dec 2004 16:50 GMT

You should no problem purchasing a phone card in whatever country you visit.
Just go to a phone store and purchase a SIM card and insert it into your
phone -- very convenient. The 1800MHz band is available everywhere in
Europe (however for best coverage and choice of SIM 900/1800MHz would be
best).

> I'll be going to Europe for a while this summer equipped with my SE T616.
> I'm looking for advice for the cheapest way to make calls, what to expect
> for rates for both voice and SMS, whether the 1800 MHz band is easily
> available nearly everywhere, any general international traveling tips that
> anyone may have. Thanks in advance!

Reply to this Message

Brsmnky007 - 08 Dec 2004 17:22 GMT

> You should no problem purchasing a phone card in whatever country you
> visit. Just go to a phone store and purchase a SIM card and insert it into
> your phone -- very convenient. The 1800MHz band is available everywhere
> in Europe (however for best coverage and choice of SIM 900/1800MHz would
> be best).

I appreciate the quick response... any idea on the per minute rates of those
pre-paid SIMs? Also the per message rate on international SMS? BTW... how
is GSM coverage outside cities? I have always been under the impression
that it is more consistent than here in the US.

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Sbeep - 08 Dec 2004 17:49 GMT

As far as the cost is concerened its hard to say because each country has a
different price structure. In any case its a LOT cheaper than in the USA
especially as you do not pay for incoming calls. GSM is practically 100% all
over Europe, it depends, of course, on which operator you use, but I live
and move around all over the place here and always have a signal.

>> You should no problem purchasing a phone card in whatever country you
>> visit. Just go to a phone store and purchase a SIM card and insert it
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> BTW... how is GSM coverage outside cities? I have always been under the
> impression that it is more consistent than here in the US.

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steve - 08 Dec 2004 18:29 GMT

I guess it matters how you define cheaper. If by cheaper you mean more
expensive... ;-)

I have bought sims in Romania and France. The calls cost between .25
euros and .50 euros per minute. Incoming is free, so if you can get
everyone to call you it can work out.

You pay a premium when you buy the sim, like a one time charge.
Recharging gets cheaper the more times you do it, there are lots of
promotions where you get more minutes by recharging more often.

I found coverage to be available anywhere there were people. I was
travelling with a 900/1800 phone.

Hope this helps,
steve
Steves_Usenet_Reply752389@earthunit.net

In article
<N8Htd.1055278$Gx4.571275@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net>, Sbeep
<nospamessbeepee@hotmail.com> wrote:

> As far as the cost is concerened its hard to say because each country has a
> different price structure. In any case its a LOT cheaper than in the USA
[quoted text clipped - 12 lines]
> > BTW... how is GSM coverage outside cities? I have always been under the
> > impression that it is more consistent than here in the US.

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Richie - 09 Dec 2004 08:20 GMT

Steve,

I agree with you that the per minute phone rates in Europe are definitely
more expensive than in USA. My experience is that China, Hong Kong,
Singapore and USA have the lowest phone rates.

Most other countries are however more tourist friendly than USA as it's much
easier to find a prepaid SIM card (maybe because of the denser population
and the ability to get everywhere on foot or public transport).

>I guess it matters how you define cheaper. If by cheaper you mean more
> expensive... ;-)
[quoted text clipped - 37 lines]
>> > the
>> > impression that it is more consistent than here in the US.

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JTH - 28 Jan 2005 14:59 GMT

Everyone has given you good feedback to your question. One thing that has
not been mentioned is to be sure that your cellphone is "unlocked". If it
is not, you will not be able to use the prepaid SIM cards. Some carriers
lock the phones so that you can only use their SIM card in it. There are a
varitey of websites that offer to unlock your phone. I found one that
generated the unlock codes for my Nokia for free!

Country specific are the cheapest route to go, especially if you are staying
in one country. If you have a county specific SIM card, then your incoming
calls are free (the caller pays) while you are in that country. Some of the
country specific SIMS will let you roam in another country, while some will
not.

You can get SIM cards that work in every country, but then you pay for
outgoing and incoming calls, and at a higher rate than if you had a country
specific SIM.

Happy traveling,

JT Head

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