i am a frequent traveler to italy and this time i want to take a cell phone. i do not want to use my verizon cell because of the expense of the calls. i have been advised to buy an unlocked gsm quad band phone and then purchase an italian sim card when i arrive. i would appreciate some recommendations on what and where to purchase. thanks in advance,
rbciao
If your existing phone is a gsm phone, you can get that unlocked and then buy the sim card when you are there... at least that will save the expense of purchasing a new phone.
Ralph,
To begin with, your Verizon phone won't work in Italy unless it's one of the "dual technology" models. Verizon & Sprint use CDMA technology, which is not compatible with the GSM used by 85% of the rest of the world.
Two methods you might consider. There are always LOTS of unlocked quad-band GSM phones available on E-Bay (and as with anything on E-Bay, keep in mind "caveat emptor"). You'd probably be fine with just a basic model such as one of the Motorola "flips" or a Nokia (depending on whether you prefer the flip style or bar style).
When you arrive in Italy, purchase a PAYG SIM card, insert it in the phone and you're ready to go. I've seen a few posts here indicating that a Codice Fiscale is required to purchase a SIM card in Italy, but I don't have any specific information on that. Hopefully someone else can clarify that?
You could also just stop at the nearest Cell phone shop (perhaps at the airport?) when you arrive in Italy, and buy a basic PAYG phone. The phone will probably be configured with Menu choices in Italian, but the "sales associate" should be able to assist you in changing that.
They may encourage you to buy a phone with Web or E-mail capabilities. You'll have to decide whether you want to pay for that. You might want to check the web sites for TIM or WIND to see what kind of price plans they offer. Unfortunatelly the sites will probably only be shown in Italian.
Good luck and happy travels!
Since you are a customer, Verizon has a Global Travel Program that will loan you a phone that will work in Italy for $9.99(to cover shipping both ways) plus the cost of calls (.99/minute) and text (.50/each). I did this last year and it was very convenient. When you activate the new phone, it has the same phone number as your current phone. The Global travel program # is 800 711-8300
