Cell phone rental
 

Hi all:
We are travelling to Thailand in under two weeks and I am considering bringing a rented phone with me from the US to use only in emergencies. Does anyone have any experience with reliable International cell phone rental providers? Thanks so much.

First, renting a phone is never a good deal. Most charges at least $20-30 per week, plus handling/shipping fees. For similar cost, you can get an Unlocked dual-band 900/1800 GSM phone on ebay so you have a phone to keep. [You can also get an unlocked 900/1800/1900 tri-band GSM phone, and it will work with T-Mobile here in the US.]

Once you get to Thailand, get a prepaid SIM card there. I don't know the rates in Thailand, but in Hong Kong, you can get a SIM card for <US$10 with close to 200 minutes of local talk time. Thailand may be similar.

And BTW, do you really need a phone for emergency? What kind of emergencies are you really thinking of, and are you calling the US or local? Virtually everybody in Asia has a cellphone, and if you're in an actual emergency, you won't have problem getting help from locals.

Hi and thanks for the information. I can envision all kinds of emergencies (just my personality) but I am primarily interested in people in the US being able to reach us if need be and being reachable by our kids while we are in Thailand and Cambodia. They will be with us and I think they are old enough to be left in the hotel if they just can't take more sightseeing (16, 14 and 11) but I would be more comfortable out and about if I knew they could reach me. I already have a phone in the US but we plan to do a lot of travelling in the next couple of years. Any tips on buying electronics on ebay?

If you plan on doing a lot of oveseas traveing, them IMO you should buy a dual or tri-band phone and just add international roaming for the months you are outside the US. The charge is minor (like $3 a month), and while you pay for each call, if they truly are just emergency and/or short calls, then it is not worth the hassle of getting a sim car in every country. With a sim card you either have to keep adding value, buying new cards or conversely you may end up having unused amounts left on a card when you leave. Also, with a sim card, the number will be different in each country and card, and it will be hard for people at home to keep track of you. A US number that you use all the time and everyone knows is easiest. Buy two phones and give one to your kids when you are out of the hotel.

do some reaserch on AIS and ORANGE. they are two big netwoks. also offer rentals.. I believe AIS has a shop at the airport. but do the reaserch..

www.orange.co.th

I forget AIS's web site.

you could probable buy a couple of rally old phones for $20 and get some SIMS at MBK mall.

You might want to buy a cell phone in Thailand. Cell phone stores are everywhere. Last year, I bought a new one with airtime for about $120. I sold it for $50 on the way out. If you do this, be sure to get a Thai-speaking person dial in and select the option for English voice prompts or you'll have a difficult time with voice mail.