flirtinfilly

I rented a phone from REBEL PHONE beforemy trip to Italy last year and it was simple and not that expensive. I am travelling to Ireland in a couple of weeks and decided to buy a phone from EuroBuzz for $29 - minutes are extra, but I thought this way I will have one to keep until I can get one of the new Verizon phones.

xyz123

Wow...my hands were on the wrong keys...illiterate me....to each his or her own...some people tell me they don't want to be bothered when they're on holiday..I like to know if somebody chooses to call me, I'll get the call. Of course it doesn't help when some of these pos's don't pay attention to the do not call list.

kybourbon

>>>T Mobile told me that since I had neglected to have the phone unlocked before I departed for Hungary (remember I mistakenly thought it was) that trying to use it and entering different passcodes permanently locked it.
Not even T Mobile could fix what I had done. I guess if you erroneously enter a code several times, which I did, the phone no longer can be unlocked<<<

After entering multiple codes, your phone became "hardlocked". There are companies that offer hardware to still unlock a hardlocked phone, but probably not worth the effort/money.

Andrew

StCirq: <i>Why is it important to have a US phone number? I have an Italian cell phone I bought in Chiusi for about $40 and an Italian SIM card and it serves my purposes just fine and was cheap. My friends in the US had no problem dialing the Italian number. All in all, a LOT less hassle than finding an unlocked phone here or getting one unlocked, etc.</i>

And if you still want people in the US to be able to ring your Italian cell phone by calling a US number, buy a Skype phone number ($18/3 months) in the area code in the US you prefer (like, your home area code) and then have Skype forward calls to that number to your Italian cell phone - which will probably have free incoming calls. So people with free US domestic long distance can call you for no cost (to them) and all you pay is the per-minute forwarding fee to Skype.

FYI, in this instance, you don't have to use a computer to make calls at all in this scenario - just be able to login to your Skype account and set things up, buy Skype credit, etc.

However, if you do have a netbook/iPad/smartphone with you over there, you could throw in Google Voice to the mix (with Skype) and use it to make free calls TO the US from your Italian cell (again, assuming it has free incoming calls). You'd pay only the fee above: $18 to buy a Skype number for three months and the per-minute forwarding fee you pay Skype to forward calls.

Sher

St. Cirq. I would like to ask you a question about your Italian SIM specifically.

I purchased a poster's Italian SIM because she also took a phone that was not unlocked and did not use the SIM in Italy. So it was a way for me to have an Italian SIM for my trip.

She also paid extra for a the ability to use a data plan which I do not need.

Do you have any idea how long the phone number stays active if you do not use it? It is a TIM SIM if that makes any difference.

The instructions are in Italian in the packet, of course, and I asked here for a translation of a text message I received on the phone but really didn't ask how long the number would remain active. The SIM was purchased around March.

I would think the number would still be valid. I need to use it in the coming month.

Thanks.

StCirq

Sher, my Italian SIM was good for 6 months after I stopped using it, but I actually went back to Italy about 8 months later and got it reactivated. It was a TIM card also.

I don't remember the thread asking for a translation, but if you want to repost what the text message was I have enough Italian to translate for you.

Andrew

If the instructions are posted anywhere on the web, or if you want to type them in, you can have a variety of websites (like Google) translate them for you.

Try Babblefish.com for example.

May not be perfect but may do a good enough job to help you figure out what it means.

kybourbon

Some TIMS in the past have been good for a year. YMMV.

You can probably find the info on the Tim website, but it will be in Italian.

http://www.tim.it/consumer/homepage.do

Sher

Thanks guys. I am satisfied with the translation of the text message I received. I really wanted to know if anyone could tell me how long the number would be valid.
I think I am safe with August if the SIM was purchased around March.
At any rate I will stop at the first TIM kiosk I see, hopefully in the Rome airport and get an opinion.

I will let you know.

Sher

St Cirq. I got another text message on the phone as follows:
TIMXSmartphone non puo'essere mantenuta attiva per credito residuo insufficiente. L"opzione sare 'riattivala alla prima ricaria. Info al 119

I am thinking the credit was all used up. I don't know if this was a special SIM for a Smartphone or just had that ability. But maybe the number is still useful.

Thanks if you can help.

StCirq

Seems your account can't be maintained in active status because you have insufficient credit left. Looks like you can reactivate it by "recharging." I assume that means buying more minutes. They want you to call 119 to get the details (but it'll be in Italian).

Sher

Gee thanks. Then when I go to Italy, I will just recharge it. Do you think that someone will be able to call me on the number, since incoming calls are free?
And if I do not recharge it, do you think that someone can still call me? I am saying someone from the US.

StCirq

No, I don't think you'll be able to get incoming calls until you've recharged the phone with more minutes. It's not "in active status" at the moment, which I take to mean it's unusable for any purpose (except to call them for information on exactly what to do on that 119 number). If you knew someone who speaks Italian you could have him/her call 119 and get the instructions (I am betting there is a way to recharge the phone right ON the phone with a credit or debit card - no matter where you are. I think I remember doing that in Italy when I was running out of minutes - call a number on the phone, text in my cc number, and recharge). Do you know anyone who speaks Italian?

Sher

I don't know anyone here that does. So I will have to wait until I arrive in Italy, which is shortly.
So the first thing when I get off the plane will be to recharge. I had better get instructions in English too, I think.
You have been a big help.

StCirq

Sher, if I recall correctly, you can get the folks at TIM to set your phone to English for text messages and the info/emergency numbers. A friend of mine did that, I'm quite sure, as she spoke no Italian. I like a language challenge, so I kept mine in Italian (not that I wasn't flummoxed a few times!).

jaimeenid

another option all together is to use Skype...low cost calls to land phones and zero cost to computers..of course you need access to a computer but there are lots of
internet cafes everywhere in europe

Andrew

Some sort of cell phone is still handy to have especially when driving in Europe. I got a SIM for my unlocked GSM phone in Italy in 2009. Very handy when I got down to Dubrovnik and could not find out where to return my car - so I just called them from the car. Having to run around and find WiFi or an internet cafe in that situation would have been a huge pain. Of course, it's nice to have a phone for emergency use, too.

Nadia

Once you get reactivated or buy a new SIM for 10 euro of which 5 euro is credit, you can register on Tim Italy with your phone number and easily recharge with a credit card. Also, I got TIM to change the voicemail and their info access #40916 to be in English.

Sher

Definitely going to go for the English.
I do have Skype but I like to have the cell phone too. I carry my netbook with me.
Well. Wish me luck.