OT:Overseas cell phones

[gasman]

My 18 year old son will be visiting Singapore (and Hong Kong) this summer and I would like a way to keep in contact with him. Do I need to buy an unlocked GSM phone with a sim card or is there some other way ? A pre-paid phone ? A disposable phone ? I'd like to be able to contact him even though he will be with a family we know.

[bike22]

skype?

google chat/voice?

both of the above options are free or very cheap.

[gasman]

He won't have a computer with him but will have access. Want to be able to call him but only if need be.
Thanks

[Pete Serotta]

Check with your cell phone carrier for use and fees.

Verizon did not have it for CDMA technology is not a major one overseas


Pete

[thwart]

Our daughter used a jail-broken iPhone with sim cards for her two years abroad... worked well.

[Bruce K]

When we went to Australia last summer we were able to buy a plan that worked there that wasn't too expensive compared to some rates we had heard.

The roaming costs if you go off their partner carrier ARE expensive and so is excess data.

BK

[93legendti]

Try:

Skype
Fringe
Google Voice
Truephone

Skype can be use thur a pc, as well.

I use Skype or Google Voice to call Israel with no extra charges.
The voip stuff goes gainst your data package rather than incurring roaming/international calling rates.

[1happygirl]

IDK if I would recommend since I never tried, but with Verizon wireless (VZW) you have to notify them in advance and 'rent' an overseas phone. I think it allows you reduced rates still on your VZW bill. Also you must add and be approved for overseas billing /access. What I have done is add the service to my VZW phone just for the time needed (3 wks, month etc) and called overseas from my phone to landlines in the overseas country. The family member/other party overseas we didn't get the cell phone to carry with them as this needs to be done with VZW in advance. They mostly used email, we knew the #s they would be at and called from our VZW cells in the states to the landlines in the countries where they were.

[rice rocket]

If you have a GSM phone, have him pickup a SIM card in whatever country he lands in and shoot you a text when he gets it installed. If you have T-Mobile, send them an email with this info to customercare@t-mobilesupport.com

Thank you for taking the time to contact T-Mobile. All phones sold by T-Mobile are locked for use by T-Mobile SIM cards only. To unlock your handset, you must meet the following criteria and this criterion cannot be waived.

-You must currently have an active account or an account that has been cancelled less than 90 days ago.
-You must have at least 90 days of continuous active monthly service.
-The account must not be delinquent or in Write Off with an outstanding balance.
-Only one SIM Unlock code per active line of service.
-The name on the request must be listed on the account as the billed party name, authorized user, or contact name.
-Handsets purchased through e-bay, garage sales, pawnshops, etc. must still meet these requirements.

Upon meeting these conditions, please provide us with the following and we can make a request for this code.

-Account holders name (required)
-T-Mobile phone number (required)
-IMEI number, press *#06# on handset to get the IMEI (required) -Account Password or last four of the account holder's social security number (required) -Customer's contact number or email address -Make and model of the phone -Carrier's name if the phone is from another carrier -A brief reason for the request


If you have any other comments, questions, or concerns, please feel free to contact us.

Thank you for choosing T-Mobile.

Sincerely,
T-Mobile USA, Inc.




Don't pay out the ass for international roaming.

[kayten]

I'm in Malaysia, whenever our principal comes in from the US, he already has a local sim card (either Singapore or Malaysia) on standby and makes a switch when he lands. According to him, he saves a lot by doing so.
We have prepaid Blackberry sim cards too, if need be...
kio

[CaptStash]

I'm in Malaysia, whenever our principal comes in from the US, he already has a local sim card (either Singapore or Malaysia) on standby and makes a switch when he lands. According to him, he saves a lot by doing so.
We have prepaid Blackberry sim cards too, if need be...
kio


I'll second that. I used to go to Singapore pretty regularly. A sim card and phone number are relatively cheap. Instead of a calling plan, you just pre-pay. "Top-up" cards are readily available and relatively cheap. If he has an iPhone, there is also a Skype App that works quite nicely on wi-fi, but watch-out as using an iPhone without a Singapore roaming plan can add up in a hurry and result in a very frightening bill.

Captstash....

[DRZRM]

Yeah, buy an unlocked GSM phone, and have him buy a SIM card there (or on ebay). Depending on coverage he can then use Skype-to-Go (if the region is covered), you call a local number and it calls you back (incoming minutes are generally free), and you can place international calls cheap (I can't remember off the top of my head, but when I was in South Africa it was like 30 cents to the US, Brazil was less, Europe was under 10 cents a minute, Nicaragua was around 50 cents). Owning an unlocked phone will save you a fortune over roaming on your own network while traveling abroad.

[kayten]

Unlocked handphones are dirt cheap in Hong Kong and Singapore. Ask him to buy one as soon as he lands, get a prepaid simcard for next to nothing and you are already in contact.
kio

[slowgoing]

All of the little newstands in Hong Kong and Singapore carry cheap SIM cards/unlocked handsets for people just like him. This is standard operating procedure for many people who visit.

[Tim]

You can also probably rent a phone here with a local (Singapore) phone number, and use it for whatever time you need it for. When your son returns home, you mail the phone back. I did this last summer when I visited France. Do a search on the web for companies that do this.

[93legendti]

I'll second that. I used to go to Singapore pretty regularly. A sim card and phone number are relatively cheap. Instead of a calling plan, you just pre-pay. "Top-up" cards are readily available and relatively cheap. If he has an iPhone, there is also a Skype App that works quite nicely on wi-fi, but watch-out as using an iPhone without a Singapore roaming plan can add up in a hurry and result in a very frightening bill.

Captstash....
Why do you think there would be roaming charges using Skype?

[gasman]

Unlocked handphones are dirt cheap in Hong Kong and Singapore. Ask him to buy one as soon as he lands, get a prepaid simcard for next to nothing and you are already in contact.
kio


Cool, i was hoping it might be this easy.

Thanks all.

[CaptStash]

Why do you think there would be roaming charges using Skype?

I didn't mean to imply that. Sorry about that. What I meant was that if you do have an iPhone with you and check your mail, etc., you will likely incur roaming charges. My wife recently ran up a couple of hundred dollars on her phone in Canada just by using the maps and checking her mail. (AT & T was very nice about switching us to a Canada plan and not charging us the roaming - but I doubt that would be the case in Singapore.)

[93legendti]

I didn't mean to imply that. Sorry about that. What I meant was that if you do have an iPhone with you and check your mail, etc., you will likely incur roaming charges. My wife recently ran up a couple of hundred dollars on her phone in Canada just by using the maps and checking her mail. (AT & T was very nice about switching us to a Canada plan and not charging us the roaming - but I doubt that would be the case in Singapore.)
Gotcha.
You can buy an international data package-which you need for emails, etc., that covers use of voip calls.

[steampunk]

it is pretty easy.

my dad is on a trip to europe right now. he bought this off amazon, as soon as he got there he bought a prepaid sim.

BLU T200 (http://www.amazon.com/T200-Quad-Band-Flashlight-slot--International-Green/dp/B00359YJE6/ref=sr_1_6?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1306244049&sr=1-6)

it will work in asia.