Pre-paid sim for international calls/sms in Ireland
 

Hi,

I'm going to travel in Ireland next month, and want to buy a pre-paid sim card, just for incoming/outgoing calls and sms.
After looking at this table - PrePaidGSM: Ireland (EIRE)
I have some questions.

1. Is it possible to bring my own phone and just buy the sim card from one of these providers, or do I have to buy a phone with the sim?

2. When I bought a sim card in Italy, I had to get my self a - "codice fiscale". Are there any preperations I need to make to buy a sim card in Ireland, or is it enough to just have my Passport?

3. Is there any activation procedure I need to follow, or am I good to go just after buying the sim?

4. Do I understand the table correctly - buying the sim from all the providers is 10euro, and then I can top it with the amount of money I want?

Any other remarks or tips are welcome,
Thank you

I'm in the UK, so not the most authoritative answer, however:

You should be able to get just a SIM from any of the networks. They will post them out free of charge on request, to an Irish address, so I imagine getting one from a shop should be easy enough.

No ID requirement, I believe. I have a couple of Irish SIMs, one posted to me by a member here, and bought on eBay Ireland. The networks don't have my passport or any other ID details. One doesn't even know my name. My SIMs were active when they came, but I don't know whether the persons sending had done something or maybe no requirement.

Great, thank you for the quick reply.
I hope it is realy as simple and smooth as it sounds.

Andy is right...I bought one for €10 with €10 worth of credit at an O2-IE store.

It doesn't seem, however, unless things have changed recently that cheap international calls are available as is the case with British and some other sims, at least I seem to have missed it; I use mine mostly to receive and a quick call to somebody asking them to call me back. With inter0eu calls going down even further, I wonder just how necessary it is now to have all that many local sim cards while within the eu.

Thanks for confirming the details.
I will also use the sim mostly for incoming calls, and some SMSing, so I'll be good with the current deals.
Cheers.

Just to confirm that it is really easy to get SIMs in Ireland - no need for passport or ID. Some of the operators - eg Meteor - offer free SIMs, and you add a top up using credit card, on-line etc. Minimum top up is usually €10, so the SIM with top up is still likely to cost you €10. The Meteor SIM is interesting because they now offer free incoming calls in any European country if you are roaming elsewhere in Europe after you leave Ireland. This is unusual amongst European operators - who usually charge for incoming calls when you are roaming.

No activation code is generally needed with Irish SIMs for the default tariff plans. In some cases (eg Meteor free Internet add-on) you have to send a text message to opt into an add-on.

Thank you for this info.

You may want to carefully check Meteor's coverage map before buying. I was there several years ago and got Meteor based on their better rates but poor coverage became an issue in the West. I understand that they now roam on other carriers where their coverage is lacking.

Tesco is the Way to Go
 

If data is not a consideration (the OP did not mention data), then Tesco is the way to go. They are an MVNO or O2.

There effective rates are 10 cents per minute for national calls (due to a top-up bonus), and even cheaper for many international destinations. For example the US is 2 cents a minute, while Hong Kong is 3 cents per minute.

See: Tesco Mobile :: International Call Charges

You can buy the SIM in any Tesco in Ireland, the card is fee with a 10 EUR topup.