US Pre pay sims, Costs and roaming?

Motel75 · 18-02-2007, 10:52

Something to remember about Tracfone (yeah, it's not true GSM) is that you can get 120 minutes when you register if someone "recommends" you. You can find someone to do this on eBay (for one cent, usually). It makes it an OK offer for someone who's just visiting for a short time and doesn't have a US-capable phone (as they are available at the likes of Wal-Mart for $20).

However, I still generally recommend T-Mobile, with the suggestion that the user go to Gold Rewards status immediately. You can get a $100 topup on cheapphonecards.com for around $90-95 (enter the coupon code "cheap" unless you have a better one). Of course, they also sell topups for Cingular and the others. One thing non-US users often forget is that in many jurisdictions you have to pay sales tax on a topup (usually 5-10 percent), which you generally do not have to pay online, so there can be additional savings in topping up this way.

Yazcedric · 20-02-2007, 05:00

Hello, folks,

I'd like to add my vote to T-mobile prepaid. You can find a good deal on eBay (for SIM card).
As Motel75 mentions, you can purchase a discounted airtime topup online, too.
I sometimes do not get good signal strength when my cellphone is located inside the building, but overall, I am satisfied with its coverage.
The SIM cards I bought had California area code, but it was very easy to change it to your local area code by contacting customer service. Representatives are very helpful.

BTW, I would NOT recommend Tracfone although its prepaid starter packages are sold at many supermarkets.
As Motel75 mentions, it is not true GSM; it looks like the firmware is locked to Tracfone even though it uses SIM card.
I put SIM unlocking code and saw that restriction is "off" on the screen, but it still did not accept other company's SIM card.
In addition, I don't recommend Tracfone due to my personal bad experience.
I used to be a customer of Tracfone simply because it was easy to purchase its package.
However, on one day, my airtime credit was suddenly "dropped" (nearly ~900 minutes' worth) without any usage (actually within 1hr!) and my term was still valid (i.e. the credit was not "expired"). Ouch!
After talking with several representatives at their customer service (well, I waited for more than an 1hr to reach a human being), they just confirmed that my credit disappeared without any explanation.
They could locate when I made last purchase of my airtime, but they could not tell me why it suddenly disappeared.

Well, I learned a hard lesson from this, but fortunately, found this PrepaidGSM website while I was looking for a prepaid US carrier.
Maybe I should thank Tracfone for increasing my knowledge...

Malkav · 20-02-2007, 17:17

ok looks like tmobile is the one for me! thanks for the help guys!

out of interest how much is a new tmobile pack (bought from a tmobile shop)?

also a lot of ebay sellers who sell tmobile sim packs will not ship outside of the us!

GadgetKen · 20-02-2007, 20:39

On the US ebay.com there are some sellers that will sell T-mobile USA prepaid sim cards internationally but shipping charges are higher (saw US$4.95 to US vs. US$8.85 to UK) plus any customs charges and duties are payable upon delivery. Also the sim will expire with 1-2 months of purchase on most cards that are shipped with a live phone number unless you add airtime (which will extend it up to a year as some others have mentioned). Suggest purchase shortly before travel.

Activating service at a T-Mobile store will cost about $50 with a sim card.

Details on T-Mobile USA sim card purchase and activation:

http://wiki.howardforums.com/index.php/Activation

Malkav · 20-02-2007, 22:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by GadgetKen

On the US ebay.com there are some sellers that will sell T-mobile USA prepaid sim cards internationally but shipping charges are higher (saw US$4.95 to US vs. US$8.85 to UK) plus any customs charges and duties are payable upon delivery. Also the sim will expire with 1-2 months of purchase on most cards that are shipped with a live phone number unless you add airtime (which will extend it up to a year as some others have mentioned). Suggest purchase shortly before travel.

Activating service at a T-Mobile store will cost about $50 with a sim card.

Details on T-Mobile USA sim card purchase and activation:

http://wiki.howardforums.com/index.php/Activation

ok ta for all that just one more question (i promise!), how much does a new cingular pre pay sim cost? (brand new)

	(#1)
Motel75 (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Pioneer Posts: 573 Join Date: 15 Jun 2006 Location: Berlin Country:	18-02-2007, 10:52 Something to remember about Tracfone (yeah, it's not true GSM) is that you can get 120 minutes when you register if someone "recommends" you. You can find someone to do this on eBay (for one cent, usually). It makes it an OK offer for someone who's just visiting for a short time and doesn't have a US-capable phone (as they are available at the likes of Wal-Mart for $20). However, I still generally recommend T-Mobile, with the suggestion that the user go to Gold Rewards status immediately. You can get a $100 topup on cheapphonecards.com for around $90-95 (enter the coupon code "cheap" unless you have a better one). Of course, they also sell topups for Cingular and the others. One thing non-US users often forget is that in many jurisdictions you have to pay sales tax on a topup (usually 5-10 percent), which you generally do not have to pay online, so there can be additional savings in topping up this way. Current DE: Vodafone, Netzklub; PL: Klucz, Virgin; UK: Giffgaff, Vodafone; US: T-Mobile; CA: 7-Eleven; IT: Vodafone; UA: Kyivstar; FR: Bouygues; GR: Vodafone Former DE: Vodafone, T-Mobile, O2, Blauworld, 01051mobile, Solomo, Lycamobile, Simyo, Congstar, Fonic, Edeka Mobile, Lidl Mobile; PL: Heyah, Era, Virgin, Sami Swoi, Orange, POP, iPlus, Carrefour Mova, Telepin Mobi, Play, Lycamobile, T-Mobile; UK: Vodafone, T-Mobile, Virgin; US: T-Mobile, AT&T, Lycamobile; CZ: Vodafone, Oskar; ES: Lebara; GR: Vodafone, Wind; UA: Vodafone; IL: Orange; TR: Turkcell

	(#2)
Yazcedric (Offline) Junior Member Amateur Member Posts: 15 Join Date: 29 Jan 2007 Location: Michigan, USA Country:	20-02-2007, 05:00 Hello, folks, I'd like to add my vote to T-mobile prepaid. You can find a good deal on eBay (for SIM card). As Motel75 mentions, you can purchase a discounted airtime topup online, too. I sometimes do not get good signal strength when my cellphone is located inside the building, but overall, I am satisfied with its coverage. The SIM cards I bought had California area code, but it was very easy to change it to your local area code by contacting customer service. Representatives are very helpful. BTW, I would NOT recommend Tracfone although its prepaid starter packages are sold at many supermarkets. As Motel75 mentions, it is not true GSM; it looks like the firmware is locked to Tracfone even though it uses SIM card. I put SIM unlocking code and saw that restriction is "off" on the screen, but it still did not accept other company's SIM card. In addition, I don't recommend Tracfone due to my personal bad experience. I used to be a customer of Tracfone simply because it was easy to purchase its package. However, on one day, my airtime credit was suddenly "dropped" (nearly ~900 minutes' worth) without any usage (actually within 1hr!) and my term was still valid (i.e. the credit was not "expired"). Ouch! After talking with several representatives at their customer service (well, I waited for more than an 1hr to reach a human being), they just confirmed that my credit disappeared without any explanation. They could locate when I made last purchase of my airtime, but they could not tell me why it suddenly disappeared. Well, I learned a hard lesson from this, but fortunately, found this PrepaidGSM website while I was looking for a prepaid US carrier. Maybe I should thank Tracfone for increasing my knowledge... Yazcedric Cellphones: Nokia E70 (unlocked), Nokia 6010 (unlocked), Nokia 6030 (T-mobile USA) Prepaid SIM: T-mobile USA, Smartone-Vodafone HK, Yackiemobile, O2 UK Expired SIM: Orange France (prepaid) Unknown status: MeSim (most likely expired) Prepaid phone: Softbank Sharp 201SH VoIP: Voxalot, voipcheap, Tpad.com, Freedigits.com, Globe7, Gizmo project, voicestick Mobile VoIP: Truphone, Fring

	(#3)
Malkav (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Expert Posts: 267 Join Date: 09 Jun 2006 Location: Malkavian University Country:	20-02-2007, 17:17 ok looks like tmobile is the one for me! thanks for the help guys! out of interest how much is a new tmobile pack (bought from a tmobile shop)? also a lot of ebay sellers who sell tmobile sim packs will not ship outside of the us! Current networks: Orange 3g UK, 3 pay monthly, Virgin pay as you go UK, 3UK payg, Tesco payg, Asda mobile Active phones: Blackberry Torch (02), Google Nexus one (Vodafone) Inactive Sims: Oskar Czech R, BT Genie Pay as you go UK. Spare (unused phones) NEC 616, Ericsson t68/i, Nokia 3310, Sendo m550, Mototorola v66i, Motorola a1000.lg u880, Sony Ericsson t230. Orange spv m5000, Samsung z400, Motorola SLVR (Red)!, lobster tv700, spv m700, prada phone, motorola l7e, Skype phone, siemens sl65, blackberry 8810, Nokia 6500 slide X2.

	(#4)
GadgetKen (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Expert Posts: 342 Join Date: 14 Dec 2004 Location: Connecticut, USA Country:	20-02-2007, 20:39 On the US ebay.com there are some sellers that will sell T-mobile USA prepaid sim cards internationally but shipping charges are higher (saw US$4.95 to US vs. US$8.85 to UK) plus any customs charges and duties are payable upon delivery. Also the sim will expire with 1-2 months of purchase on most cards that are shipped with a live phone number unless you add airtime (which will extend it up to a year as some others have mentioned). Suggest purchase shortly before travel. Activating service at a T-Mobile store will cost about $50 with a sim card. Details on T-Mobile USA sim card purchase and activation: http://wiki.howardforums.com/index.php/Activation Phones/Wireless Devices: Doogee S90, Isatphone Pro, Amazon Kindle 3G, SkyRoam MiFi device, Karma MiFi device, AT&T Liberate MiFi device Sim Cards: T-Mobile (Mint), AT&T (Mifi device or Kindle), Koko Satphone: InMarSat Broadband US Wireless Data: AT&T postpaid, Sprint (Karma Mobility prepaid) Broadband International Data: SkyRoam VOIP: Skype