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I'm going to China next week. Whats the most affordable way to make local calls on my cell phone? I'm on ATT. but they charge $2.29
cell phones in china
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First ensure your phone is tri-band at least. North America operates on different frequencies from most of the rest of the world.
Ensure your phone is unlocked.
Buy a Chinese pay-as-you-go SIM card, not at the airport on arrival, but when you get into town. Shops and stalls selling these are everywhere, places selling top-up cards even more common, instructions are bi-lingual, and call prices a fraction of these you quote.
Peter N-H
Peter is right, you will be able to buy a sim card on every corner where they sell newspapers, or even in some supermarkets. Price for the cheapest Sim cards are around 30 Yuan (4 USD).
Be careful though, make sure you can make international calls before you buy a sim card, since you wont be able to call abroad or send text messages abroad with cheaper sim cards.
You will be able to receive incoming calls on all sim cards, but it will drain your prepaid credit fast. So sometimes it's better to go for a more expensive option.
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