Looking for cheap GSM phone and international SIM card

I'm thinking of getting an unlocked phone for the 900/1800 frequency and then use a SIM card for using the phone outside of the US (or wherever I can use it).

-Should I go for a quad band phone, or will it be too expensive?

-Is it best to get something like a "passport SIM" that is prepaid for use in many countries, or is it better for me to get the cards in each country I visit?

-Does anyone have any suggestions of cards to visit, etc? I would probably be on the road once or twice a year, so the usage will not be that extensive.

Thanks!

Whether you need quad-band really depends on where you're going. If you're just going to Europe, then dual 900/1800 would have the same coverage. It's only when you're going to countries where the US systems are in use that quad band becomes useful.

Which SIM also really depends on your usage. If you're only going to make a send a couple of SMS in each country, then there's no point in buying a local SIM each time, as the time spent finding one and the money spent buying it will remove any potential savings you'd make on the calls.

I don't make many calls on my mobile whilst travelling, so for me the best option is simply a quad band phone with my home SIM roaming enabled. If I want to use local phones I just buy a local international calling card.

I would buy the quad phone in case your travels expand in the near future. If it is unlocked, then you can buy a "pay as you go" sim card in the country you visit. It's quick and normally not expensive and allows you to make local calls in the country you are visiting without paying long distance. Secondly, check with your home phone provider and see if they have something similar to this. I got a set of numbers from Telus that I can call from any country (different numbers for different countries) and then I can bill the call to my home or office number at Canadian long distance rates. It save me a bundle.

I agree with what the above posters have said, except I thought I'd add that I recently got back from being abroad and got a phone from onesimcard.com. It had a SIM card in it already that worked internationally and I prepaid for minutes. I wouldn't try to use your domestic carrier because they're going to charge you something absurd to use your phone abroad (probably more than a dollar a minute). It's probably not worth trying to get a new card for every country, both because it wont be cheaper but it's also a hassle and you never know, it might not work with your phone, or the network, or who knows. Just get a phone from onesimcard.com and you'll be fine.

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<hr>onesimcard.com<hr></blockquote>
If you are only going to be using the phone occasionally, this is a sensible option.

However, the rates are pretty high compared to buying local SIM cards. For example, here in Malaysia a Digi SIM card costs US$5 and calls to the USA cost US$0.05/minute. With the onesimcard service, calls to the USA cost $0.85/minute. The local SIM card pays for itself after just 6 minutes on the phone.

Also, onesimcard gives you an Estonian mobile number, which is extremely expensive for people to call when they want to get to you. Very few local SIM cards are as expensive for your callers as onesimcard. Using the Malaysian example again, with a service like voipcheap.com, it costs people 5.5 US cents/minute to call a Malaysian cell phone number. On the other hand, it costs them 24.7 cents/minute to call onesimcard's Estonian number. Multiply those prices by a factor of 3 or 4 if the people calling you are not savvy about their long-distance service.

I have never experienced incompatibilities between my phone and SIM cards purchased around the world.

> I have never experienced incompatibilities between my phone and SIM cards purchased around the world.

I think they're referring to SIM/network-locked handsets.

Ok, but in that case it's not going to work with onesimcard and its ilk either.

All of the "global sim card" deals heavily advertized on the internet to North Americans are ripoffs, and I include Telestial, Global Cellular and the whole gang of them. I think they feed on the ridiculous amounts North American cellular operators charged in the past for prepaid cards, and many people's fear and insularity with regard to dealing with "foreign" phone systems.

Yes, prepaid SIMs are cheap just about everywhere except the US and Canada nowadays (and they've gotten cheaper there too). In Thailand, for example, the last SIM I got was practically given away: 99 baht or about $3 with 50 baht credit on it. In Germany you can get them for 10 euros with 10 euros credit from the little phone shop near where I work. Yes, a quad phone is a good idea - make sure the frequencies include 900/1800. When you arrive in a country, visit a phone shop (often right at the airport) and get yourself a SIM. Pop it in the phone and email or SMS/text the number to your friends, family and associates. There are very few countries where you cannot do this. It's quick, easy and dirt cheap.

rajulkabir- I just wanted to note that you're slightly wrong about calling from the US. Onesimcard gave me a 1800 number that I could give friends so they could call from the US that only billed me at 35 cents/minute. I'm not sure what you mean by "not going to work with onesimcard", what's not going to work? Generally they sell pretty newer end phones that are tri or quad band, and the idea is to not switch out the SIM card because you already have one that works.

I think the problem that people like me have is they're scared when they go abroad to find a phone/card that works. I just wanted a phone for emergency service just in case and to check in every now and then, and didn't want to deal with the hassle. Especially when you're somewhere you don't speak the language, you just kind of don't want to go hunting for the best deal. I used phone cards when I was in my hotel room, and my phone was just for occasional calls. I guess the convenience of knowing my phone would work and just not having to deal with it (and not take time to deal with it), was worth paying an extra 10 dollars or so for something I knew would work.

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<hr>I just wanted to note that you're slightly wrong about calling from the US. Onesimcard gave me a 1800 number that I could give friends so they could call from the US that only billed me at 35 cents/minute.<hr></blockquote>
Yes, but if they dial your number directly it will be quite expensive for them. And 35 cents/minute is still expensive.

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<hr>I'm not sure what you mean by "not going to work with onesimcard", what's not going to work?<hr></blockquote>
Lan was talking about SIM locked handsets. I was pointing out that onesimcard won't work with those any better than locally-bought SIM cards will.

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<hr>I think the problem that people like me have is they're scared when they go abroad to find a phone/card that works. I just wanted a phone for emergency service just in case and to check in every now and then, and didn't want to deal with the hassle.<hr></blockquote>
Like I said, for light users something like this can make good sense. I spend about half the time traveling, so for me it would be very expensive. Not everyone has the same needs.

For the onesimcard, does the 1-800 number you are assigned change each time you travel throughout the year(s)?

Also, what is the minimum one must put into the SIM card so that the card does not expire?

GSM 900 / GSM 1800 / GSM 1900

There are some tri-band deals for getting a phone. My question is what might I be missing by not having the fourth GSM band?

The 1800 number is the same, you type in the phone number after the 1800 number when it asks. they said they're working on getting US based numbers that would connect automatically without having to dial the 1800 number.

The minimum is $25 once a year and the card won't expire.

Oh yeah, and just to be clear, you keep your number no matter where you are all year as long as you put at least $25 on once a year. That's a big reason why I got it, because I want to keep the same number and not keep getting a new one every time I get a new SIM card.

For whatever reason, the onesimcard does not work in all countries, even ones where quad band phones will work. Does anyone know any more about that?

There are a couple of countries where standard GSM isn't used; since there's no network to connect to, it's not going to work.

It's also possible that there's no agreement in place between them and the local carrier.

Have a look at the onesimcard FAQ on their site.

As to what you're missing without the fourth band; if you're in a "US based" country (i.e. usually 110V/60Hz/NTSC) then you'll only be able to use 1900 band. Most places where 850 is used it's to add extra coverage where additional 1900 based coverage isn't possible for technical reasons. So, you might not miss it; conversely it might mean that you can't make/receive a call at a vital time, it's impossible to guess exactly how badly it'll affect you. Since unlocked quad-band handsets are pretty cheap (<30quid delivered) and widely available it makes sense to use one IMO.