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General discussion

need help selecting gsm phone

Jun 8, 2005 1:17PM PDT

This is kind of long- but any help is appreciated. Thanks Happy

I will be moving to Europe in a few months for a short (six month)internship. I won't have a landline telephone, so a cellphone will be essential.

I currently have a really old nokia phone that i was given under an AT&T family plan (since converted to cingular) - it operates on the 1900 network. I thought about upgrading the phone, but the service conversion, the fact that the phone is one out of several under the plan, and that the contract is in my parents' name makes that complicated. The other problem is the international rates and roaming fees are absolutely insane.

I know that the phone will need to be GSM (900/1800). I would prefer to get a tri- or quad-band phone so that I can use it when I return.

I know that the phone should be "unlocked" so that I can get a SIM card with the best rates for the country I will be in. And I can use it as a "pay-as-you-go" phone.

The features that matter most are: unlocked, tri- or quadband gsm, strong signal, good call quality, and good battery life. A camera would be nice but is not essential.

As a student, I don't have a lot of money, I'm hoping to find something under $120. I know a SIM will cost another $50-80. I've been looking around at ebay, but I don't know alot about the different brands, and was hoping for some advice and/or suggestions on which phones to consider, and places to look for a good price.

Thanks.

Discussion is locked

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Suggestion
Jun 8, 2005 11:31PM PDT

For that price range I don't think you will get any quad-band phone unless it is used. Most tri-bands work fine. I have 2 unlocked tri-band phones, Motorola v66 and SE T610 and they work fine.
You may get the best prices on eBay but be careful. Shop well. Do not assume the prices on eBay are always cheaper, compare. I have seen people bidding up the price of a used phone higher than a brand new one from a store.

Check Amazon.com and search for unlocked cell phones. Also do a google search for stores selling unlocked cell phones. Now that you have an idea what they will cost new from reputable dealers, search eBay but do not get into a bidding war, there are thousands of phones out there.

Who is your carrier in USA? Do you want to continue with them when you return? If it is Cingular, your phone has to have the 850 band also. Most tri-bands for international use are 900/1800/1900 even though I have used 850/1800/1900 bands and they worked just fine.

A local SIM card in Europe should cost you about 15-25 US Dollars with some starter minutes. That is the way to go while abroad. Do not pay US carriers' high roaming prices. Also in Europe all incoming calls are free, so you only pay for outgoing calls.

As far as the phone is concerned, I cannot suggest anything as it is personal preferences, but usually the basic ones work best, less chance of things going wrong.

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current phone/carrier , a few i'm considering, and SIM?
Jun 9, 2005 5:00AM PDT

Right now I have a Nokia 5190. It's GSM 1900 only (no 850, but it might have analog). Which is why I can't just unlock this one, but need a new phone. I am on Cingular now, and it works on this band (in the Bay Area - to Reno, and L.A.). Not the greatest signal or sound quality, but I never upgraded because it's pretty much for emergencies and arranging meetings only, it's pretty indestructable, and absolutely noone is going to steal it.

I've looked at the motorola mpx200 (there seems to be lots of them on ebay), or a sony ericson T616. Other motorola models like the v300 or v400 look good feature-wise, but are somewhat above my price range.

Looks aren't that important, but I was leaning toward finding a clamshell design because it seems like it would protect the screen, and keep the phone from randomly being turned on and dialing, when it gets bumped around in a backpack.

As for the SIM: do you suggest waiting to get to Europe to buy a SIM? is that a cheaper option? or is it best to get one for the country I will be in before leaving, so I can check out the phone's function?

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GSM
Jun 9, 2005 9:27AM PDT

If you are with cingular and want to use the phone back in USA you will need 850/1800/1900 tri-band phone. Within Europe it might work in most places but you may encounter some problems in certain areas. Here again the best would be to get a quad-band but they are more expensive. Maybe you can find a slightly used unlocked Motorola V551 or V600 for your budget.
Yes the SIM cards will be much cheaper to buy in the country you are going to. They usually cost $15-20 with some minutes included. The ones you buy here will run you $50+