i use alltel here because i almost never go out of the country...however, i will be in europe for about two months comes this summer, and as i'm no longer on contract with alltel, i'm debating getting a used GSM phone on the cheap and using it while i'm over there

as i've never done this before, what's the procedure? i know some of you travel, and for all i know, some of you might have actually done business with european GSM providers...would it be cheaper/better/easier to sign up for service over there, or is that actually my only option? i pay about $40/month right now as it is, and i'd LIKE to keep it that low

also, part of the reason i'm even debating getting a phone for over there is that i'll still need to call into work a couple of times a week...would it be more beneficial to keep my USA number (1-919) or get a temporary european number?

thanks for the help

2/6/2007 12:48:15 PM

I noticed in another thread that you will be in Stockholm (for at least part of the time) and since I am currently living in sweden I can chime in. Before I came here I bought an unlocked gsm phone to bring with me (it must be unlocked or it will not work on networks that it is not locked to). You can buy start up packs everywhere here, in any tobacco shop or convenient store. Basically you can just buy the card, put it in the phone, and voila. These are basically pay as you go plans and probably your best option since you will only be here for two months. I would suggest the Comviq Amigos plan since you will have to be calling the U.S. regularly. Calls to the U.S. on this plan cost 1 swedish kroner per minute (right now ~7kroners = $1) which is cheaper than calling swedish mobiles that are not on the comviq network. You can buy extra credits for your account everywhere as well for 200 kroner. If you have any other questions or I didnt make something clear, just let me know.

2/6/2007 1:03:16 PM

^ well, i won't be in stockholm very long...we'll be heading up to kiruna, above the arctic circle, for about a month...do you have any idea how far their network spans? the previous month, i will be traveling through the rest of europe (not sure where, quite yet)...is it something that i can take all over with me? or do they just cover sweden? i appreciate the help, btw

if i can't take the phone with me everywhere for relatively cheap, i'll probably just do the calling card thing...the month we'll be up by kiruna, we'll have broadband, so i can just use skype

[Edited on February 6, 2007 at 1:39 PM. Reason : .]

2/6/2007 1:38:34 PM

^^i bought a vodophone locked phone in Germany over 1 1/2 years ago that i was using as my main phone with cingular. it worked fine. Of course I sold that and bought an unlocked phone now...but it still worked is my point.

2/6/2007 1:42:11 PM

you know, come to think of it, i think i'll probably just go the skype route...in MOST cases, i'll have this capability...so now my question is:

any suggestions for decent skype-compatible phones? some of these WIFI voip phones (specifically the netgear SPH101NA) would be kinda cool to use, i think, but i don't want to drop $200 on them...i guess i'd at least like it to be cordless

2/6/2007 2:37:17 PM

Buy an unlocked phone and get a prepaid sim card.

2/6/2007 4:40:02 PM

^ probably requires ~$100+ plus actual service...getting a little higher than i'd like to spend for two months

2/6/2007 7:55:16 PM

As far as the swedish sims go, yes they work outside of sweden but i dont know how youd get it before you got here. Once in sweden, all of the plans will work just fine. A no frills gsm phone can be found on craigslist or even on TWW for VERY cheap and the 'starter pack' should run you about $10. I dont know where you will be prior to sweden but it should be roughly the same. However, the skype route is not a bad option either.

2/6/2007 8:47:14 PM

Yea, hell you could probably find one to borrow from a friend if you tried that hard. I was under the impression "locked" only meant you had to use a SIM from a particular carrier, not necessarily that you can't roam on to other networks when a cingular one, for example, isn't available. I took my phone (that isn't unlocked) to europe last summer and with cingular phone i connected thru the vodophone (spelling?) network and I believe tmobile without any problems. Just a little info for you.

[Edited on February 7, 2007 at 12:02 AM. Reason : a]

2/7/2007 12:01:33 AM