PrePaidGSM.net Forum (Archived) - View Single Post

Schlips1 · 10-08-2010, 18:46

Something else:
To 1: Except of the new Apple stuff mentioned almost all GSM-phones are using the same kind of Sim-cards. So these Sims fit in all phones. So there is almost never a problem. But you have to check which bands are needed in the country / in the countries you want to visit. Most networks are using the 900 MHz band and the 1800 MHz band (Europe, Australia, Asia, Africa) but in the Americas you will find (almost only) 850 MHz and 1900 MHz band networks. And there are a few UMTS-networks like "3" (UK, At, Dk, Se, Au..) and "Melita" (Mt) which do not use GSM but UMTS. The best thing is to have a quad-band phone (850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 1900 MHz band) which will work almost everywhere.
To 2: As mentioned, usually you top up your account with a value of money. "Time" does not matter, because in most countries you do not pay for incoming calls while being on your home network. Because calls to mobiles are more expensive then to landlines, in most countries the terminating fee is higher on mobiles ("Calling party pays").
To 3: Not every provider is allowing roaming for prepaid customers, or only limited (T-Mobile US prepaid does not roam in an other T-Mobile country!). To keep your number alive, you should have the possibility to use the Sim!

	(#8)
Schlips1 (Offline) Member Advanced Member Posts: 64 Join Date: 20 Sep 2009 Country:	10-08-2010, 18:46 Something else: To 1: Except of the new Apple stuff mentioned almost all GSM-phones are using the same kind of Sim-cards. So these Sims fit in all phones. So there is almost never a problem. But you have to check which bands are needed in the country / in the countries you want to visit. Most networks are using the 900 MHz band and the 1800 MHz band (Europe, Australia, Asia, Africa) but in the Americas you will find (almost only) 850 MHz and 1900 MHz band networks. And there are a few UMTS-networks like "3" (UK, At, Dk, Se, Au..) and "Melita" (Mt) which do not use GSM but UMTS. The best thing is to have a quad-band phone (850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 1900 MHz band) which will work almost everywhere. To 2: As mentioned, usually you top up your account with a value of money. "Time" does not matter, because in most countries you do not pay for incoming calls while being on your home network. Because calls to mobiles are more expensive then to landlines, in most countries the terminating fee is higher on mobiles ("Calling party pays"). To 3: Not every provider is allowing roaming for prepaid customers, or only limited (T-Mobile US prepaid does not roam in an other T-Mobile country!). To keep your number alive, you should have the possibility to use the Sim!