Hi folks, I get the basic idea behind unlocked phones and SIM cards, but I'm wondering about the details.

Suppose I don't buy an unlocked phone and stick to a phone from my carrier. Actually I currently use Sprint, but I should switch to ATT or T-mobile.

1. Will they unlock my phone?

Most likely not. Which leads me to

2. If I use the phone overseas, what actually happens.

I understand there's roaming.

Does roaming apply to both incoming and outgoing calls?

3. What are sample calling rates for calls to USA and in Europe, say? Since I'll still have my US number, if I call the USA, is this regarded as a local call (except for roaming)? If I'm in Paris and I call a France number, what would the rate look like per minute?

Thanks!

In the end, we decided to go the lazy route, and took my mom's existing ATT phone. We turned on her international roaming plan, just for the month that we would be gone.

I believe it was $5.99 for the month, and then 99c per minute. We only used it one or two times for 2 minutes each, so it ended up costing a very small amount.

I called home three times, and called from Rome to Paris once on a calling card that I purchased at a tabac in Paris for 7,50E.

We emailed every day from internet cafes for our main communication, including confirming reservations for apartments, airport shuttles, etc.

I would use do it again this way in the future.

"If I use the phone overseas, what actually happens."

Your phone will not work unless you have the proper chip.

We purchased our own unlocked phone a few years ago. (you can purchase them on ebay for very little money).

Each year when we get to Italy we go to the TIM store and purchase a chip for 10euros. In Italy you then go to the tobacco store and purchase cards for minutes. The cost to call the US is about 50 cents a minute.

I have not know about Sprint, ATT or T-Mobile, but I've heard that Verizon has some sort of plan.

BTW, one thing that had me confused for a while was that I assumed that her phone would be considered an American #, so that when I was in Paris calling a # in Paris, I would really be calling internationally.

After several frustrating tries to make these "international calls," I dialed just the local number and it worked. (Same thing in Rome.)

Apparently, the phone was able to recognize that is was roaming in Paris (or Rome), and allowed me to dial locally. It didn't change phone numbers or anything. Just saved me from having to dial internationally.

Another thought. When we first started going to Italy and stayed where there was a phone. It was very inexpensive to purchase a phone card in America and use that.... rates were resonable.

Thanks.

Now shelly, do you recall if the rates from France to France and from to the US are the same?

Or does the roaming cover all the calling charges?

I'd tend to think that there's a per minute charge in addition to the roaming if you make phone calls. For incoming calls then presumably you're just charged roaming.

111op. Currently, it is my belief, that most Sprint phones to not have the correct bands to use in Europe. The Verizon phones do not either.

So, first of all you need to have a phone that can be used in Europe with the same frequencies that allow you to make calls in Europe.

I switched to T-Mobile recently and I can use my current phone in Europe but the rate is $1.99 per minute with their plan.

They will also unlock your GSM phone and when you arrive in Europe you can buy a SIM which you then place in your phone. The rate for the calls depends on the country you are visiting and the SIM you purchase.

Using your own GSM phone in Europe is the least expensive way to go.

It was my understanding that the 99c per minute rate was the rate for all calls, France to France, France to US, including roaming charges, because you are already paying the $5.99 to have the service.

Since it's my mom's plan, I dont have the info in front of me. My dad set the whole thing up over the phone, no problem. It might be worth a call to ATT to ask them. IIRC, I found a lot of this information on their website, as well.

Thanks. I'm currently a Sprint customer and I'm trying to decide whether to switch. I figured that asking someone here will be better than asking one of the customer reps, who are probably not the most helpful.

I tried looking at the websites but I wasn't able to understand whether there's a per minute charge on top of roaming.

I'm likely to think there is because they should distinguish between incoming and outcoming calls? As far I understand your incoming calls are charged roaming.

One advantage to using a SIM and unlocked phone from the country you are visiting is that all incoming calls are free.

Naturally, if someone calls you from the US, they are charged a normal fee but you are not charged any roaming or deducted minutes.

AT&T - $1.29 per minute without $5.99 bulk plan, 99¢ with it.

T-Mobile - <b>99&cent;</b>, no bulk plan requred.

All of the above require that International Roaming be activated; both GSM carriers do it free - T-Mobile is a little easier, since you can activate your account on line.

I know I'm beginning to sound like a broken record ... but do people know if the rates are different for incoming vs. outgoing calls? As far as I gather if you use your US phone overseas, all calls are charged roaming. I'm unclear whether there's a difference in rates afterwards.

I did a web search and I found some old info that T-mobile (or maybe it's another carrier) will unlock phones after you've been with them for 90 days. Since I'm leaving in 2 weeks, this won't help for this trip, but it will be helpful for future trips.

Of course if I can unlock my phone, a local SIM card is probably the best way to go if I make a lot of calls or take a lot of incoming calls. But well I'm not sure if that's the case either -- because I'm thinking of this more as an emergency measure. So if the SIM card expires, it probably works out to the same to making very few calls (and taking few calls) on a US phone.

I'll check T-mobile's website to see if their website is clearer. Thanks again!

I think T-mobile's website is pretty clear. It looks like the roaming is the only charge for both incoming and outgoing calls:

Will calls and voicemail I receive from home cost extra?

Both incoming and outgoing calls are billed at the international roaming rate for the country you're in. Voicemail is also billed at the same rate....

1. Will they unlock my phone - maybe, maybe not. T-Mobile is better about this than AT&amp;T.

1. If I use the phone overseas what actually happens?
-If you just use your US phone (having activated international roaming) you pay through the nose for every minute of usage, whether incoming or outgoing. All calls are billed at international roaming rates. Even though you dial numbers in the city you are visiting as if they are local, you still pay international rates for every minute you are on the phone.
- If you sign up for AT&amp;T international plan you pay 5.99/month and bring down the cost from 1.29 to .99 per minutes. Still pay for every minute, incoming or outgoing. You can cancel the 5.99 month service when you return home.

3. Sample rates - using your US phone without a discount plan rates vary but hover about 1-1.50/minute in Western Europe. Same rate whether you are calling US or within Europe - every minute is charged at the international rate. Think of it this way - despite your geographic location your phone service is still US based as long as you have the US SIM in it.

Using a local SIM is usually cheaper for two reasons - per minute costs are lower than what you would pay to your US carrier, and incoming calls are usually free. The downside is having a new number on the local exchange, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. It prevents people from calling you unless you specifically give them your temporary number. If you get your SIM (and thus your new number) prior to departure you can give it to the people you want to be able to call you. There are ways to have calls to your US # automatically forwarded to your phone with the new SIM if that is important to you. Check out www.callineurope.com

Great, thanks. It's a lot clearer now. I think that for the kind of phone usage I'm thinking of, these options are more or less equivalent. I don't plan to make more than 10-20 minutes of phone calls -- it's more of an emergency measure.

Of course if I can unlock my phone and get a SIM card, then I may change my mind about using my phone more.

Regarding the &quot;CallinEurope&quot; website, do people know if the phones they sell are unlocked? They seem to focus on France. So for example, can I buy a phone from them and buy an Italian SIM card instead? They probably do that too, but their website uses France as an example. Thanks!

Sorry, I'm having trouble with the CallinEurope website. If I buy pay that one time fee of $29 + $19 for the cheapest phone I can use in Europe, that's a total of $48. What do I get from that? Will my calls be deducted from the $29 or is it pay-as-you-go afterwards? I can't seem to see how the billing starts and stops.

Thanks!

Well I guess I'm answering my own questions. I contacted their online help. Basically the $48 doesn't give you any credits -- it gives you a phone. You are billed per month after usage.

The line is kept open for 12 months and renewed for another 12 months if you spend at least $60. If not, renewal is offered at the option of paying the difference. Else the line is canceled.

The cheapest Motorola you pay for (say the $19 phone) is locked in this case.

111op, look at Roam Simple, also. They have a lower fee to 'renew' the SIM/number. Rates are comparable.
www.roamsimple.com

I'm still just using the Mobal phone for now - $49 for the phone (probably locked), then the calls are billed to my credit card (roughly $1.50-2.00/minute). That is a high rate however we've only used for very brief communication, and incurred a maximum of $20/trip so far.

You travel much more often, so the Roam Simple might work ok, or the unlocked phone+local SIM, if you are going to use it often.

Thanks Travelnut.

When I first did the web search, Telestial was mentioned as reliable and there are a lot of testimonials on their website. But what I can't figure out is why their SIM card seems to be so much more expensive?

Right now the France SIM Card is $65 but it's out of stock:

http://www.telestial.com/view_produc...T_ID=LSIM-FR01

However places like Roam Simple are offering a France card for $19? There must be some difference. Is it because the Telestial one doesn't expire?

How easy is it to buy local SIM cards? I mean, maybe the solution is to buy a phone from Telestial (supposedly all their phones are unlocked) and then buy a SIM card when I get there? Of course there's a potential language barrier -- not to mention the need to find a store -- but apart from that, is that easy to do and how much would it cost?

The cheapest Telestial standalone phone seems to be at $99. But they offer a package for $39 -- I wonder if this phone is unlocked (they claim somewhere in their FAQ that all phones are unlocked):

http://www.telestial.com/promo/packlite.php

Thanks again!

Without having researched anything, perhaps the price differences in a country-SIM relate to the amount of call credit that is included?