phones in USA.

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Nigel Laverick
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Joined: 6 Nov 2013, 7:01pm

phones in USA.

Post by Nigel Laverick »

This will sound a bit daft to some. I'm off to the USA to ride the Transam and need a cheap/bog standard phone which will allow me to send texts home and make calls in the USA. I don't want internet access etc. I am totally confused by technical details.
Does anyone know such a phone ? Would I be better waiting till I get there to buy one ? ( I 'll be passing through a few biggish towns on the way to the transam)
Thanks .
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al_yrpal
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by al_yrpal »

Just get a Three 321 payg simm here, then get a 321 'add on' for a tenner or whatever. Then you will be able to call home for 3p a minute, text for 2p a time and get internet access at 1p a Mb in the USA. Its the best and cheapest deal out there. If you havent got a mobile I would recommend the £99 Moto E which lasts for 5 days without recharging. Put free Open street maps on it (Osmand app) and you have got a cost free gps.

Al
Reuse, recycle, thus do your bit to save the planet.... Get stuff at auctions, Dump, Charity Shops, Facebook Marketplace, Ebay, Car Boots. Choose an Old House, and a Banger ..... And cycle as often as you can......
robing
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by robing »

Yep, any phone on the 3 network. USA is one of their feel at home countries which means it will cost the same as at home. So any texts, calls and Internet will come out of your monthly allowance.
Nigel Laverick
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by Nigel Laverick »

Thanks , I'll investigate these.
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hujev
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by hujev »

Maybe you know this already ... remember that the US doesn't use GSM 900, so a phone from 'Ausland' won't work here unless it had the GSM 850/1900 bands.

I use this cheap and good basic phone (since my old flipphone went thru the laundry): http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss? ... =Nokia+106

It takes a standard sim card, so you ought to be able to use your 'local' one. Plus, the battery lasts over a week! small and great for velo-use.
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al_yrpal
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by al_yrpal »

If you do use a local US Simm card calls to the UK will cost a bomb, and that phone won't do emails easily, that's why we are recommending Three - 3p a minute to call the UK!

Al
Reuse, recycle, thus do your bit to save the planet.... Get stuff at auctions, Dump, Charity Shops, Facebook Marketplace, Ebay, Car Boots. Choose an Old House, and a Banger ..... And cycle as often as you can......
willem jongman
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by willem jongman »

I am temporarily living in the US. A smartphone is attractive even if you do not use your phone plan to use the internet. Many shops and food places have free wifi. Even if that is not necessarily very safe, it is worth considering. And mind you, even in the pretty connected place where I live, phone reception for text messages is only intermittent. So an extra option is well worth it.
Vorpal
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by Vorpal »

What I would do is buy a phone in the USA. You can buy a phone for about $10 and a pay-as-you-go card for $20 or $30 to go with it. I usually use a company called Tracfone, as they use other providers for coverage & therefore get coverage pretty much anyplace there is any. You can initialize it at your start. Some phones there are compatible on this side of the pond and vice versa. If you are worried about it, ask when you buy your phone. But you might have to pay more if you want to bring it back and use it in the UK.

Most department stores (Target, Kmart, etc.) will carry such things, and you can often find them in supermarkets, as well.

p.s. look for an international prepaid card; Tracfone calls theirs 'Global' That will make your calls and texts cheaper. Make sure the information about prices to the UK is clear. Some companies will advertise .10 cents per minutes for international calls, but then the teeny tiny print tells you that's only for Mexico & Cananda.

edited to add http://www.tracfoneild.com/
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
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TonyR
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by TonyR »

Vorpal wrote:What I would do is buy a phone in the USA. You can buy a phone for about $10 and a pay-as-you-go card for $20 or $30 to go with it. I usually use a company called Tracfone, as they use other providers for coverage & therefore get coverage pretty much anyplace there is any. You can initialize it at your start. Some phones there are compatible on this side of the pond and vice versa. If you are worried about it, ask when you buy your phone. But you might have to pay more if you want to bring it back and use it in the UK.

Most department stores (Target, Kmart, etc.) will carry such things, and you can often find them in supermarkets, as well.

p.s. look for an international prepaid card; Tracfone calls theirs 'Global' That will make your calls and texts cheaper. Make sure the information about prices to the UK is clear. Some companies will advertise .10 cents per minutes for international calls, but then the teeny tiny print tells you that's only for Mexico & Cananda.

edited to add http://www.tracfoneild.com/


Maybe things have changed but when I tried to do what you suggest for a colleague you needed a US address and ID for even a PAYG phone with most companies. We did find one (Virgin I think) that didn't but they would only allow 2G voice and no data.
Vorpal
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Re: phones in USA.

Post by Vorpal »

I think I've only needed a US zip code. I use the one wehere I'm staying, or a friend's. You only need the zip code or address to initiate the phone. Once that's done, you can buy the prepaid cards anywhere.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
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