I don't know whether this should be on the europe section or U.S.A. Section. My daughter is going from here (Ireland) to San Francisco for a trip in the summer. Will her mobile phone from here work over there so we can keep in touch? If not, can she buy a SIM card in U.S.A.and put it in her phone, and if so, how much do they cost? And do they have pay as you go phones over there that she can buy credit for?

This subject can be confusing for the best of us, but there is a wealth of information on this board. Search for "cell phone" and you will likely learn more than you ever wanted to know about the different frequencies, GSM v. non-GSM, locked v. unlocked phones, etc... If she has an unlocked quad band phone (some tri-bands may work), she's probably in good shape. If not, there's a lot of great advice here about the most economical ways to get one that is. Good luck!

There is an entire article devoted to international cell phonesin the most recent Town & Country Travel magazine. It talks about all the different providers, the countries they cover, the costs, etc.

Hi cod,

European phones operate at 900 and/or 1800 mhz.

US phones operate at 1900 mhz.

Her European phone will not get a signal in the US no matter what SIM card she has.

Have you considered buying an international calling card and using plain old-fashioned telephones?

They are available in the US.

My triband works in the US with no problems. I do have to change the band manually once I land in the US.

My husbands phone does this automatically.

Check with your service provider about service in the US, but it should work. I have Orange and it is fine.

I doesn't seem as though the US does pay as you go plan with cards that you buy at a kiosk etc. I have never seen it. Calling cards from a pay phone seem more popular.

Also, we found it to be quite expensive to call with our mobiles in the US, so we simply text.

Vodaphone will work too.
It's good advice to check with your provider.

Whether it will work will depend a couple of things. Firstly she has to have a tri-band model handset, then it will depend on what sort of contract she has. If she has Pay-As-You-Go, then it's unlikely that the provider will allow her to use the phone abroad. However if she has a monthly contract then she should be ok. She should probably check with her provider who will be able to give her a definitive answer.

I use a Sony Ericsson T610 and it automatically switches between the different bands when I arrive in the US.

Many thanks for all that. My daughter is only 16, and has a Nokia 6110 (I think) - fairly basic, and, needless to mention, it is a pay as you go, since she has no independent income! It looks like she will have to use phone cards. She is staying with a family, so I can't have her racking up phone bills. I will look into the possibility (with some trepidation) of giving her my phone, which, it seems, might work.

Phone cards will be cheaper than your phone.

If her phone is a tri or quad band phone and can be switched to 1900, her (or your) phone will work here in the US.

You can purchase fairly inexpensive pay as you go SIM chips on ebay. Try a T Mobile To Go one, Cingular/ATT also has a prepay product. Some of the other prepays (Verizon, Virgin, Tracphone) are not GSM/SIM chip technology. I was told you can purchase a TMobile prepay SIM at one of their stores for around $25. You can buy refill cards at a lot of stores, on the internet, or refill using a credit/debit card over the phone.

I got a TMobile To Go prepay SIM for my phone for $10 including shipping on ebay. It had $50 credit on it already. Just popped it into my Motorola and it works great.

GSM networks aren't as extensive here in the US as they are in Europe; most major cities/metro areas, major freeways do have it, and the SF bay area is well covered.

I hope your daughter enjoys her stay in SF.