Related Travel Telecom Topics
Duet Dual SIM Phone from National Geographic
National Geographic International Roaming SIM Card
International Calling Cards and Follow-me Toll Free 800 Numbers
Pros and Cons and Best Uses for International Cell Phones
Rent or Buy an International Cell Phone or Roam Abroad with a U.S. Cell Phone
There are three choices for international cell phone service when traveling outside the United States
1.) Use a GSM phone and prepaid SIM card to access local overseas cell phone service (below)
2.) Roam with your U.S. cell phone (below)
3.) Rent a post-paid cell phone with post-trip billing (charges accrue to a credit card) (below)
Rent or Buy a GSM Phone and Use a Prepaid SIM Card
To Rent or Buy a GSM Cell Phone and SIM Card?
A rule of thumb in deciding whether to rent or buy a GSM phone is, if you use it twice it is cheaper to buy. However some people prefer to rent a phone initially in order to try the prepaid service before deciding whether to buy a GSM phone.
Most International Cell Phone Customers Use Pay-as-you-go
The biggest difference between cell phones in the U.S. and those in othear countries is not the technology but the way we pay for them. In the majority of countries people don’t have monthly contracts with fixed amounts of minutes, instead they preload their cell phones with credit (money) and charges are deducted from their balance as they make outgoing calls. Cell phones users in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and most of Asia use this pre-pay system. (Note: Japan and S. Korea do not use GSM technology.)
Local Service = Local Rates
Renting or buying an “unlocked” phone (unlocked means the phone works with any company SIM), and purchasing a prepaid SIM card from a local overseas cell phone company gives travelers access to the same rates that the locals pay.
Add Credit As Needed
With a prepaid cell phone there is no worry about coming home to a big phone bill because you can add credit as needed. Recharge vouchers are sold in different denominations and you simply enter the PIN from the voucher into an automated system to apply the credit. They are sold at magazine stands, tobacco kiosks, convenience stores, gas stations, grocery stores, etc. Because this is this system used by the locals to recharge their cell phones the vouchers are widely available.
All Incoming Calls Free
Also, in most countries incoming calls are free to receive on the cell phone, even on calls from the United States. The prepaid system, and free incoming calls from anywhere (even when out of credit), make a pre-paid SIM card and GSM phone a perfect solution for budget travelers and for students backpacking or studying abroad. The SIM will have a local overseas phone number.
Click here for more information about GSM rentals and sales from Cellular Abroad.
OUR FEATURED PRODUCTS
Dual SIM GSM Phone with International Roaming SIM Card
Communication HQ sells a complete overseas GSM/SIM package from National Geographic that contains the Duet GSM dual-SIM phone and a National Geographic multi-national SIM card.
This complete package includes a dual-SIM phone (can use two SIMs simultaneously), international SIM card, 30 minutes talk time (in 60 countries), international charger, extra battery, hands-free earpiece and USB cable for $199. The National Geographic international roaming SIM card is also sold separately.
Click here for more information about the National Geographic phone and SIM Card or call us at 1-800-383-9545.
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC International Roaming SIM Card for Multi-county Travel
For travel to more than one country an international SIM provides one phone number and low rates across many countries. The National Geographic Society has a GSM phone and international roaming SIM card with a United Kingdom (UK) phone number and offers free incoming calls and the outgoing pre-minute rate is $0.95 cents a minute to the U.S. from Europe and many other countries. Click here for information about the National Geographic Roaming SIM for $49.
Rent a GSM Phone and Country Specific SIM from Cellular Abroad
To rent a GSM cell phone or buy a SIM card from dozens of countries, we recommend Cellular Abroad. Cellular Abroad is one of the original companies that introduced GSM phones and country specific SIM cards to the U.S. market. Prior to Cellular Abroad importing SIMs and GSM phones, travelers were mostly limited to very expensive per-minute options because Americans were unfamiliar with the prepaid cell phone system.
Phone Number and English Instructions before Departure 
While it might be possible to buy a SIM while you are overseas (some countries have residency requirements, but with a little legwork they can be overcome), the drawbacks are that you won’t know your phone number until after you arrive and locate a SIM, and the operating instructions such as how to check voice mail, add credit, check balance, etc, won’t be in English.
It’s often more convenient to buy the National Geographic phone and SIM Card from Communication HQ and have phone number and operating instructions before departure or to rent a phone with phone number and English operating instructions from Cellular Abroad prior to your trip. Whether renting or buying, we will ship the phone, phone number, SIM and operating instructions in plenty of time before you leave, and for rental phones Cellular Abroad will provide a pre-paid shipping label for a free and easy return.
Click here for information on the National Geographic dual-SIM phone and International SIM.
Click here to learn how to rent a cell phone or buy a country-specific SIM card from Cellular Abroad. When ordering by phone, be sure to use Promo Code CD661 to see if your order qualifies for a discount!
Call Communication HQ at 1-800-383-9545 with questions about the GSM purchases or rentals.
International Calling Cards
For low rates for people from the U.S. to call an overseas cell phone, click here to compare rates on calling cards that can be used from any phone.
Follow-Me Toll Free 800 Numbers
Follow-me Toll Free 800 numbers provide a toll free that rings to any phone designated. Easily alter ring-to numbers and setting via a simple website. The rate is only $2 a month and a seven cents a minute, and the service has many additional features such as voicemail, and time and location routing options.
Click here to compare rates and plans for two programmable toll-free numbers.
International Roaming with a U.S. Cell Phone
Cell phone technology in the U.S. differs from the technology used in most of the world. Most countries have adopted GSM technology to power their cell phone service (exceptions are Japan and S. Korea). In the U.S. AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM technology but Sprint and Verizon are powered by CDMA. While AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM, AT&T and T-Mobile phones operate on the 850/1900 MHz GSM frequencies countries outside the U.S. use the 900/1800 MHz frequencies. Also, GSM phones use SIM cards which are small removable plastic chips that remain in the back of the phone. When roaming internationally with a U.S. carrier, the SIM card from the U.S. cell phone company remains in the phone.
Requires Quadband GSM Handset
AT&T and T-Mobile customers will want to check if their handsets are “quad-band” phones, this means they operate on all four GSM frequencies, 850/900/1800/1900 MHz. Quad bands phones are equipped to work on any GSM network in the world as long as their service plan allows for international roaming. Often you will be able to maintain your U.S. cell phone number, but there may be situations where this is not possible. Call your carrier for hardware compatibility, service, rate and phone number details.
Verizon and Sprint customers, and AT&T and T-Mobile customers without quadband handsets, will first need to acquire the correct hardware before using their U.S. cell phone overseas. In most cases the carrier will ship them the correct GSM handset before their trip. There may be shipping and/or handset rental charges for this service. Be sure to check with your carrier about handset rental and shipping and return shipping costs.
Availability and Rates
After hardware compatibility comes the question of international roaming availability and rates. U.S. cell phone customers should first ask their carrier if their plan allows for international roaming and what the per-minute international roaming charges are when making and receiving calls overseas. In some cases the international roaming rates are quite reasonable, as low as about a dollar a minute in Europe for incoming and outgoing calls. However rates will vary depending on the customer’s service plan and the country visited.
Billing and Other Considerations
Normally international roaming charges are billed to the regular U.S. cell phone bill. Since users probably won’t see their bills and the actual minutes used until after the trip, it’s a good idea to be careful about usage to avoid coming home to a big cell phone bill at the end of an international vacation. Also keep in mind that if you keep your U.S. cell phone number, you’ll also receive all your normal incoming calls, now at international roaming rates, and callers who don’t know you are away might call at awkward times due to time differences.
Click here to read a summary of pros and cons and best uses of international cell phone options
International Calling Cards
For low rates for people from the U.S. to call an overseas cell phone, click here to compare rates on calling cards that can be used from any phone.
Follow-Me Toll Free 800 Numbers
Follow-me Toll Free 800 numbers provide a toll free that rings to any phone designated. Easily alter ring-to numbers and setting via a simple website. The rate is only $2 a month and a seven cents a minute, and the service has many additional features such as voicemail, and time and location routing options.
Post-paid International Cell Phone Rentals
Receive Handset Before Trip, Watch for High Per-minute Rates
Another option for international cell phone service are cell phone rental companies that send a handset before the trip and charge the per-minute rates for incoming and outgoing calls to a credit card. The rates for this service have historically been very high (sometimes $2 a minute or more). While some service providers have lowered their rates to be more competitive, users should shop carefully and consider per-minute rates, minimum usage requirements and other service charges.
Phone Numbers Vary
Similar to roaming with a U.S. carrier, it may or may not be possible to maintain a U.S. phone number when traveling outside the U.S. Some of these types of rental companies give you a U.S. number and some provide a European-based phone number. Again, having a U.S. phone number can be a mixed blessing because international roaming charges will be charged for receiving everyday calls, and some calls might come in at inconvenient times because callers are not aware they’re calling a different time zone. Of course the upside is that the caller can use a U.S. number.
Watch Usage to Avoid Post Vacation Surprise
As is the case in roaming with a U.S. cell phone, it’s a good idea to keep a close eye on usage because the bill will probably not come due until the credit card statement arrives at the end of a trip. Sometimes the cell phone rental and international roaming charges can appear on more than one month’s credit card bill. This happens when the credit card’s billing period ends during the trip and then new charges begin to accrue on the following month’s bills. There is nothing underhanded about this, but it can catch users by surprise if they think they have paid off all their roaming charges on their previous credit card statement.
Since there many companies offering this type of cell phone rental service, a good way to narrow the selection is to seek referrals from family and friends, ask for recommendations from a travel club or travel agency or by calling your U.S. carrier for a referral (if they do not offer international service of their own).
Click here to read a summary of pros and cons and best uses of international cell phone options
International Calling Cards
For low rates for people from the U.S. to call an overseas cell phone, click here to compare rates on calling cards that can be used from any phone.
Follow-Me Toll Free 800 Numbers
Follow-me Toll Free 800 numbers provide a toll free that rings to any phone designated. Easily alter ring-to numbers and setting via a simple website. The rate is only $2 a month and a seven cents a minute, and the service has many additional features such as voicemail, and time and location routing options.
Call Communication HQ at 1-800-383-9545 with questions about the GSM purchases or rentals.