OT Re: Cell phone opinions/options

[mark at buttery.org (Mark J. Dulcey)]

Rich Braun wrote:
> 
> You get the idea.  It's not just a matter of unlocking a GSM phone.  You have
> to  have a super-duper quad-band phone (850-900-1800-1900 MHz, all four
> frequencies, only 2 of which are used in the USA) and choose your travel
> destinations carefully.

A tri-band phone (900/1800/1900) will do if you're using T-Mobile here 
in the US. That's not the most common band setup you'll get here; most 
likely, you'll have to buy a phone like that while you're traveling, or 
spring for a quad-band phone. You'll need quad-band for Cingular, since 
they also have 850 MHz service. I don't know if there is any 850 MHz GSM 
anywhere but the US, though in theory it could appear in Canada, and in 
Central and South America.

That will cover you in most of the world. And in most places, you can 
indeed get inexpensive prepaid SIM cards, though outside of Europe you 
may have to get off the tourist paths to find them. (The shops in the 
airports usually only offer ridiculously overpriced cellphone rental -- 
more expensive than BUYING a prepaid phone and service!)

Nothing from anywhere else will work in Japan. They have their own cell 
phone technologies that are unique to their country.