European mobile system? - Printable Version

European mobile system? - Printable Version

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European mobile system? by wacky on 06-20-2010 at 07:14 PM

So, like some others, I'll be visiting parts of Europe. I just have a little problem and I figured some of you might know how to help me.

My cellphone (or mobile, if you rather) will not work in Europe because the company I am with is kind of garbage.. but I don't pay much for it every month so I don't want to change.

My question is: what are my possibilities once in Europe?

Since I've never been to Europe, I have no idea how the system works. I will be visiting the Netherlands, Belgium, and Switzerland. One guy told me I could get a phone there with some sort of deal for a month and then just throw it out when I leave.
I think it's important for me to have a phone because I will need to contact a few people and it could be useful in case of emergency.

Also, will the phone work in all three countries I will be visiting? Is there some sort of European deal?

AHHHH! [Image: zippyah.gif]

Please help me :happy:

RE: European mobile system? by Chrissy on 06-20-2010 at 09:20 PM

Well you could get a phone sim for once country and ask for international tariffs. It would cost a lot though and isn't worth the hassle.

Your better off getting an international sim card and using it all over Europe.

http://www.gosim.com/ is perfect and my brother has use this before. As long as your mobile is unlocked it will work perfectly.

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-20-2010 at 09:48 PM

I can't use Sim Cards.. that's what I meant by having a crappy mobile company :chrongue:

RE: European mobile system? by Chrissy on 06-20-2010 at 09:51 PM

Well buy a cell phone that uses them, they are as cheap as £10 here in the UK.

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-20-2010 at 09:53 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Chrissy
Well buy a cell phone that uses them, they are as cheap as £10 here in the UK.

that's kind of what I'm trying to figure out. If I should get a phone once in Europe, get a Sim Card (I guess), and buy some minutes. I just don't want to end up paying 100 euros when I'll only be in Europe about 2 weeks

RE: European mobile system? by Chris4 on 06-20-2010 at 10:00 PM

I'm in a similar situation. I'm going to various contrinues in Europe for 2 weeks. I've been looking at sim cards, but most of them seem rip-offs, especially the one Chrissy posted - £10 for a sim card with no credit, so like £20-£30 minimum for 2 weeks, just not worth it.

This one http://www.free2roamsim.com/ is £10 and you get £10 credit with it - the downside is that delivery is £5 for some reason...

So I'll keep looking for a better deal.

What cellphone/mobile do you have (Nokia/Samsung/Sony Ericsson/etc.)? Doesn't matter which network provider you're with at the moment, if your mobile is unlocked (doesn't cost much) [edit] and is dual-band compatible you can put any sim card in it, including these European throw-away-after sims.

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-20-2010 at 10:09 PM

I have to change my phone. I'm almost certain I'll be getting an LG Banter. I don't think it's possible to put a sim card in it

RE: European mobile system? by Chrissy on 06-20-2010 at 10:14 PM

quote:
Originally posted by wacky

quote:
Originally posted by Chrissy
Well buy a cell phone that uses them, they are as cheap as £10 here in the UK.
that's kind of what I'm trying to figure out. If I should get a phone once in Europe, get a Sim Card (I guess), and buy some minutes. I just don't want to end up paying 100 euros when I'll only be in Europe about 2 weeks

If you buy one here it must be Dual Band at least. You wont need more than 3 frequencies in Europe.

Also, I'm sorry when I looked up google maps it says your country is just above me, and is in Europe

RE: European mobile system? by djdannyp on 06-20-2010 at 10:15 PM

Haha, Wacky's from Canada, not actually the Faroe Islands

Also, just a note for anyone here on a contract, texting abroad is included in your tarrif (on O2 anyway), so any messages you sent will just come out of your normal allowance. There are charges for making/receiving calls......but if you keep it largely just to texting then you're okay without needing to worry about sim deals and stuff

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-20-2010 at 10:24 PM

quote:
Originally posted by djdannyp
Haha, Wacky's from Canada, not actually the Faroe Islands

I don't think anyone from the Faroe Islands will ever be visiting these forums lol

hmm that's the thing. I kind of only want to be texting but I don't know if my phone will work at all in Europe. I was in the US last month and I got my bill this week and they charged me a lot for roaming and I wasn't even gone for a week

so if it does work in Europe, I'm sure it's gonna charge me a lot more just for roaming and I don't want that kind of bill when I get back

RE: European mobile system? by Chrissy on 06-20-2010 at 10:25 PM

quote:
Originally posted by djdannyp
Haha, Wacky's from Canada, not actually the Faroe Islands

Also, just a note for anyone here on a contract, texting abroad is included in your tarrif (on O2 anyway), so any messages you sent will just come out of your normal allowance. There are charges for making/receiving calls......but if you keep it largely just to texting then you're okay without needing to worry about sim deals and stuff

Well that sucks

http://shop.o2.co.uk/tariffs/simplicity/12_months

I only get UK

RE: European mobile system? by Chris4 on 06-21-2010 at 12:21 AM

Lol @ rebelfone.com free sim card, $45 delivery.

£15 + £5 per week: http://www.cellhire.co.uk/products/international/simcards/europe

T-Mobile has OK deals: http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/services/going-abroad/

Otherwise not having much luck.

I think I'll phone O2 and see if any of my Pay As You Go mins/texts "bolt-ons" work in Europe.

RE: European mobile system? by Chrissy on 06-21-2010 at 12:32 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Chris4
Lol @ rebelfone.com free sim card, $45 delivery.

£15 + £5 per week: http://www.cellhire.co.uk/products/international/simcards/europe

T-Mobile has OK deals: http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/services/going-abroad/

Otherwise not having much luck.

I think I'll phone O2 and see if any of my Pay As You Go mins/texts "bolt-ons" work in Europe.

If you have a smart phone DISABLE all data. You're like £6 per MB!

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-21-2010 at 01:11 AM

I like the idea of being able to rent a phone in europe. If I rent it in one country, can I drop it off in another? *-)

RE: European mobile system? by CookieRevised on 06-21-2010 at 02:32 AM

Note that the phone must be at least dual-band. Most network operators in Europe don't support single band anymore.

Dunno what the cheapest phones costs. I guess it would still be around €50 or something. Unless you buy one like those very very cheap things (which might still be like €30), but then again, you wouldn't be able to properly use them; from what I've heared some only support text messaging, or very limited calls, etc, and you would have a hard time finding them (I've never seen one, yet I know they exist).

Another alternative is asking somebody to lend or give you a second hand phone? I know we had some old phones lying around here, but I'm not sure if we still have them (dunno if they are dual-band either). But I can ask. Maybe Sunshine/Menthix, or whoever you gonna see first can look around too...

As for sim cards. You can get prepaid sim cards almost everywhere in Europe, in most convenient stores, small supermarkets, etc. Of course, roaming will cost a bit more, but if you indeed stick to text messaging mostly, it wont be that much more. The number would of course be a number from the country where you buy the sim card though.

I never heared of renting a phone though.

RE: European mobile system? by Adeptus on 06-21-2010 at 04:42 AM

I live in the US, but I am from Europe and go back there fairly often. Basically, there are two issues for people traveling from North America and trying to use their phones:

1) US and Canadian carriers use several different mobile phone systems, Europe only uses one (GSM). If your phone doesn't have a SIM card, it is not a GSM phone. Non-GSM phones are bricks in Europe; the other networks (CDMA, TDMA, iDEN) simply don't exist there.

2) If you have a GSM phone purchased from your carrier in North America, it will be carrier locked -- meaning that locally purchased low cost European SIM cards won't work in it. It is possible to "unlock" a phone using various hacks or paying someone to do it for you, or sometimes asking the carrier for an unlock code (though most of them are assholes about it and I only know of one US carrier that actually might give you one and then only if you are at least 3 months into your contract). An alternative is to purchase an already unlocked (or never locked) phone from a third party; just Google "unlocked GSM phone".

So, what you need is an unlocked GSM phone. If you want to keep your current non-GSM carrier in Canada and just have a phone for your trip, you could buy a very cheap basic phone. If you are not opposed to switching your Canadian carrier, you could buy a nice phone of your choice and use it both at home and abroad. I believe Rogers does GSM in Canada.

You could also try to buy an unlocked GSM phone in Europe, where you can probably pick one up at a local shop instead of having to mail order, but I have not tried this and can't speak about the pricing, etc. In general, electronic devices are more expensive in Europe, but unlocked phones are a specialty item here, so the opposite may be true.

Once you get to Europe and have your unlocked GSM phone in hand, buy a prepaid SIM card. These are typically sold at any news stand and similar places. Your card will come with a local number for that country, which you may want to communicate to your friends and family so they can call you. Incoming calls are free. Calls initiated by you will be very reasonably priced, even calls to other countries and back home to Canada. Just remember you have to dial your numbers with international country codes (e.g. +1 prefix if calling US or Canada). Generally, the prepaid cards will still work at the same or slightly higher rates if you go to another country. It's very easy and you really can't go wrong.

Most prepaid cards are also good for data service if you want to tether your phone to your laptop, and they can be recharged, although I have ran into situations where normal credit card payments were not accepted for the recharge and the only option was transfer through local banks. In that situation, hopefully you will know someone in the country you can give some cash to and have them do it for you.

RE: European mobile system? by toddy on 06-21-2010 at 06:18 AM

don't know about the rest of europe, but in the uk you can get pay as you go phones with £10 credit for as little as £20. so mite work out cheapest just to buy a phone in each country, use what you need, then sell the phones on ebay on your return.

RE: European mobile system? by Adeptus on 06-21-2010 at 03:22 PM

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
Note that the phone must be at least dual-band. Most network operators in Europe don't support single band anymore.

Good point I forgot to mention. If she purchases a phone in Canada, that means a tri- or quad-band phone (the two North American GSM bands are different from the European ones).

RE: European mobile system? by John Anderton on 06-21-2010 at 06:00 PM

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
I can't use Sim Cards.. that's what I meant by having a crappy mobile company

Are we on CDMA?

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-21-2010 at 07:53 PM

quote:
Originally posted by John Anderton

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
I can't use Sim Cards.. that's what I meant by having a crappy mobile company
Are we on CDMA?

ya I'm pretty sure

quote:
Originally posted by Adeptus
So, what you need is an unlocked GSM phone. If you want to keep your current non-GSM carrier in Canada and just have a phone for your trip, you could buy a very cheap basic phone. If you are not opposed to switching your Canadian carrier, you could buy a nice phone of your choice and use it both at home and abroad. I believe Rogers does GSM in Canada.

I know Rogers would work but I checked to see how much they charge and it's way over what I pay every month so I don't think they're a possibility for me

quote:
Originally posted by Adeptus

Once you get to Europe and have your unlocked GSM phone in hand, buy a prepaid SIM card. These are typically sold at any news stand and similar places. Your card will come with a local number for that country, which you may want to communicate to your friends and family so they can call you. Incoming calls are free. Calls initiated by you will be very reasonably priced, even calls to other countries and back home to Canada. Just remember you have to dial your numbers with international country codes (e.g. +1 prefix if calling US or Canada). Generally, the prepaid cards will still work at the same or slightly higher rates if you go to another country. It's very easy and you really can't go wrong.

thanks, this is great information :happy:

quote:
Originally posted by toddy
don't know about the rest of europe, but in the uk you can get pay as you go phones with £10 credit for as little as £20. so mite work out cheapest just to buy a phone in each country, use what you need, then sell the phones on ebay on your return.

from what I seem to have understood, the UK does have some great deals but the rest of Europe not so much.. and I won't be visiting the UK so the great deals don't apply :sad:

quote:
Originally posted by Adeptus

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
Note that the phone must be at least dual-band. Most network operators in Europe don't support single band anymore.
Good point I forgot to mention. If she purchases a phone in Canada, that means a tri- or quad-band phone (the two North American GSM bands are different from the European ones).

I think I'll be purchasing my phone once in Europe

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
As for sim cards. You can get prepaid sim cards almost everywhere in Europe, in most convenient stores, small supermarkets, etc. Of course, roaming will cost a bit more, but if you indeed stick to text messaging mostly, it wont be that much more. The number would of course be a number from the country where you buy the sim card though.

roaming will cost me if my phone is bought in Europe? or did you mean if I bring a phone from Canada? cuz I'll be getting it in Europe, most likely

btw, thanks everyone for the help. I greatly appreciate it :happy:

it'll be a great first time in Europe

RE: European mobile system? by Lou on 06-21-2010 at 10:33 PM

Which Canadian phone company are you with?

RE: European mobile system? by Menthix on 06-21-2010 at 10:46 PM

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
roaming will cost me if my phone is bought in Europe? or did you mean if I bring a phone from Canada? cuz I'll be getting it in Europe, most likely

Yes, you pay higher rates if the phone is bought within Europe too.

Most likely you'll buy a cheap prepaid phone (which most of the time comes with anywhere between 10 an 30 euro of credits). That phone will be tied to a network provider from the country you buy it in. So if you use that phone in another country (even within Europe) you will pay higher rates. But as long as you don't have endless conversations you'll probably be fine. In the case of text messages sending a text messages from/to other European countries is close to the normal price for me.

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
from what I seem to have understood, the UK does have some great deals but the rest of Europe not so much.. and I won't be visiting the UK so the great deals don't apply

Just looked at the first Dutch store that happened to came to mind: For 20 euro you can get a very basic phone with 15 euro of credits to call with.

The only things that you may have to look out for:
* It says the phone is dualband, but it doesn't say which actual frequencies. CookieRevised/Adeptus, will it work in all of Europe? I haven't had anything other than quadband in a while so forgot which one we actually use

.
* It says "maximum of 15 euro credits"... It could be you only get a part of those "free" credits after registering (which will be nearly impossible to do for you). But you can buy more credits without registering in a lot of stores. Just make sure you have enough credits when you leave the country where you bought the phone, you won't find credits for one European country's provider in another European country... or at least not easily.

EDIT:
To give you an idea of the rates you would be paying... if you bought the phone linked above which is on the Dutch T-Mobile network:

When you use it in the Netherlands...
Calling within the Netherlands: 0.35 Euro/Minute
Being called: free
Sending SMS: 0.23 Euro/Message
Receiving SMS: free
Calling to Canada: 1.00 Euro/Minute

When you use the Dutch phone in other European countries (including Belgium and Switzerland)...
Calling within Europe: 0.51 Euro/minute
Being called: 0.23 Euro/Minute (which is why you want to make sure you have enough credits with you)
Sending SMS: 0.13 Euro/Message (yes, sending SMS when you are abroard is acutally cheaper... yay EU forcing maximum rates)
Receiving SMS: free
Calling to Canada: 1.25 Euro/Minute

So yeah, because it is prepaid you will already be paying higher rated than a contract and using it in other countries adds even more to it. But I guess it's not much worse than using a Canadian phone in Europe would be. Although if you buy the phone in Belgium or Switzerland rates will be different, but probably not too much.

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-21-2010 at 11:20 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Lou
Which Canadian phone company are you with?

Koodo

Thanks Menthness ( :chrongue:

)
I think that's what I'll do. I was actually looking at something similar but with Belgian providers. When I tried to look at the ones found in the Netherlands, I got discouraged because it was only in Dutch

depending how many days I spend in the Netherlands, I may simply get one once I arrive in Belgium.

At least now I know what my possibilities are :happy:

edit: just saw your edit.. thank you very very much for the info. Much more than I could have asked for! :happy:

RE: European mobile system? by prashker on 06-21-2010 at 11:38 PM

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
Koodo

Telus*

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-21-2010 at 11:46 PM

quote:
Originally posted by SonicSam

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
Koodo
Telus*

I'm aware.. :chrongue:

I don't understand why Telus doesn't give better deals simply as Telus :dodgy:

RE: European mobile system? by CookieRevised on 06-22-2010 at 12:06 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Menthix
* It says the phone is dualband, but it doesn't say which actual frequencies. CookieRevised/Adeptus, will it work in all of Europe? I haven't had anything other than quadband in a while so forgot which one we actually use .

Yes, as long as you stay in Europe you can't go wrong with a dual band. In Europe there is only one 'dual band' so to speak: 900/1800 Mhz. US uses two different GSM bands though: 850/1900 MHz. You wont find 'US dual band' GSMs here.

The four GSM bands are (there are more though, but you only need to know about these ones):
- 850 MHz (824.2 - 848.8 MHz Tx; 869.2 - 893.8 MHz Rx)
- 900 MHz (880-2 - 914.8 MHz Tx; 925.2 - 959.8 MHz Rx)
- 1800 MHz (1710.2 - 1784.8 MHz Tx; 1805.2 - 1879.8 MHz Rx)
- 1900 MHz (1850.2 - 1909.8 MHz Tx; 1930.2 - 1989.8 MHz Rx)

The two main types of tri band phone's are:
900/1800/1900 MHz: Excellent for international use, good for US
850/1800/1900 MHz: Excellent for US, not very good intl.

http://thetravelinsider.info/roadwarriorcontent/quadbandphones.htm
(contains a nice graphic table, although old (2007), it is a good indication)

---------------

As for prices for prepaid in Belgium:

Unfortunatly, in general, the prices in Belgium for telecom are rather steep compared to other EU countries (twice as high, or more, than the cheapest formula in Europe). This said, the prices for roaming are decreasing quite a lot, but still, it can be cheaper.

In general, if you buy a prepaid in Belgium from a major provider, imho your best bet would be a prepaid card from Base (the other two major providers are Proximus and Mobistar). There are other, smaller providers, but you wont find them as much as the major ones. The most widespread is Proximus, but this is certainly not the cheapest. And although the smaller providers might offer a lot cheaper prices, their roaming prices might be more expensive than the major ones....

It's hard to compare prices in Belgium for this though. Because the prices depend on quite a lot of things. Eg: when you call (not only the hours, but also on certain days/weekends/etc), to what provider your call, how long you call, even in some cases to what number you call (you sometimes can get cheaper prices if you opt in to certain promotions involving your "friends' numbers" etc). It also depends on what kind of (sub)formula you get. In some prepaid formulas you get a certain amount of free sms's and calling minutes, etc. Then it also often depends to what country you call or sms (even in Europe), etc... Most providers also give you a lot of free sms's and calling minutes to call to numbers of that same provider. But personally and generally speaking, I always found Base the cheapest, incl. for roaming (I also have a prepaid Base card btw).

The prices given by Menthix are a good indication for the prices in Belgium too. Eventhough I said the prices here are a lot more than in other EU countries, they aren't that much more than what Menthix showed. In fact, when I looked at a comparisson table (this table didn't involve roaming though) the prices are a lot cheaper... But again, it isn't that transparant in Belgium and there are quite a lot exceptions and special formulas. The benefit is that you can almost pick and choose what's best for you. The downside is that there are so many different formulas that it is very hard to compare them all. Even for people in Belgium it is very hard to pick the best formula.

Either way, you can't go really wrong with whatever you choose though. Yes you might be paying a few cents more compared to another, better formula. But the confusion and time spending in picking one isn't worth the hastle tbh. Especially not when you're only going to use it for a few weeks. As long as you don't overdo it of course and only use your cell phone for basic communication and stick to texting.

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-24-2010 at 06:44 PM

Thank you cookie, I'll keep that in mind :happy: I don't think I'll be using it that much. Maybe I'll be sending a lot of text messages, but I'll stay conscious of how I am using it.

I think I may be lucky enough because my friend let me have his phone that he had in Australia. I'm just not sure if it would work in Europe.
Operating Frequency:
* Dual band GSM 850/1900 MHz
* Dual band EGSM 900/1800 MHz

I'm not sure what EGSM is (I really don't know much about all this.. :sad: )
And my other problem is that the charger fits in an Australian outlet (I can't charge it here or in Europe) so I need to find a place were I can get a converter. I Don't know how easily I can find one here that would convert Australian to European, but I'll try to find one anyway if the phone should be supposed to work in Europe.

RE: European mobile system? by prashker on 06-24-2010 at 06:59 PM

I'm sure there's wifi you can steal. Use that + Skype with a month of Worldwide (like $10 or something)

https://buy.skype.com/paymonthly/?currency=CAD&so...llSubscriptionsTab

Unlimited World

C$ 13.99/month2

RE: European mobile system? by Menthix on 06-24-2010 at 07:15 PM

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
Operating Frequency:
* Dual band GSM 850/1900 MHz
* Dual band EGSM 900/1800 MHz

If that is all one phone you're talking about it should be good almost anywhere, as it is a quad band.

So you have a SIM card to use with it? Or, if you are planning to buy a SIM card for it here.... is it unlocked so it will accept a SIM from any provider?

RE: European mobile system? by CookieRevised on 06-24-2010 at 08:26 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Menthix
...as it is a quad band.

I'm not 100% sure if E-GSM is the same as GSM though, it might be, but don't take my word for it (eventhough the frequencies are the same).

It might be a phone which supports two different types of cellphone networks both with with dual band frequencies. It might be that, in lamens terms, this is 'quad band', but personally I'm not sure about that, because:

For the Dutchies amung us:

http://www.gsmhelpdesk.nl/helpdesk/helpdesk.php?id=11
...where they make a distinction between GSM 900Mhz/1800Mhz networks and E-GSM networks.

And according to http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/GSM_(communicatie)
E-GSM (900Mhz) is an extention on GSM (900Mhz). So it might be that a phone which supports only GSM 900Mhz will not work on a E-GSM 900Mhz network and vice versa.

In The Netherlands only Orange, Telfort, and maybe T-Mobile support E-GSM (900Mhz), In Belgium, all three major providers support it though.

And Since Orange (The Netherlands) and Base (Belgium) have deals with eachother in regards to roaming, I think if you take an Orange/Base sim card you're good in both countries.

------------------------------

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
I think I may be lucky enough because my friend let me have his phone that he had in Australia. I'm just not sure if it would work in Europe.

What exact type of phone is it?

Normally, you can find power adapters for almost any phone here though.

------------------------------

Also, Be carefull with using just a plug converter! For many devices (might also be your phone) it isn't enough to simply convert the plug!

The electrical grid in Europe is 220/240V and works on 50Hz, in US/Canada it is 100/120V working on 60Hz.

Plugging in a device which doesn't support the European voltage and frequency and you'll damage your device permanently.

On each device (eg: your cell phone power adapter, or laptop power adapter) the supported voltages and frequencies should be listed in small print.

If it supports both the US/Canadian and the European power grid you should see something like: "Input: 110/220V - 50/60Hz".
note: 110V can also be 100V or 120V, and 220V can also be 230V or 240V
Laptop power adapters usually (but not always!) support both power grids.

If it is not listed, or if it only lists "110V - 60Hz", then you also need to buy a "power converter" (also called "transformer" or "voltage converter"). This is usually a brick-like block and is relative heavy.
eg: http://www.voltageconverters.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=PB1650

some reading materials:
http://users.telenet.be/worldstandards/electricity.htm
http://www.enjoy-europe.com/hte/chap11/electric.htm
http://www.enjoy-europe.com/hte/chap06/packing.htm

------------------------------

As for plugs:
Belgium, The Netherlands and Switzerland all have different kind of sockets.

Though, if you have a plug type C (without the earth), you can use it both in Belgium as in The Netherlands. The only difference between Belgium and The Netherlands is that in The Netherlands the earth is located on the side of the plug/socket, while in Belgium it is with a thick pin off-center in the middle.

If you do need earthing, make sure your plug supports both side and center earthing (commonly found in Belgium -almost all plugs have it-, a bit less common in The Netherlands), aka plug type E.

Switzerland uses a total different plug/socket (type J), which is incompatible with the ones use in Belgium or The Netherlands. Although, it might be that a plug type C also fits a socket type F J, but that depends on its subtype (I suggest you don't try it though unless you know what you're doing - never force a plug into a socket).

A travel plug adapter can commonly be found in most hardware shops. You could also buy them in the Airport, though they would be a bit expensive.
(Plus, I have a whole bunch of them also, which came with other adapters. I have no use for them since they change a US/Canadian plug type to Belgium/Netherlands type... so I suppose you can have them).

RE: European mobile system? by Menthix on 06-24-2010 at 09:12 PM

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
I'm not 100% sure if E-GSM is the same as GSM though, it might be, but don't take my word for it

It's an extension to regular GSM900 as you said, but it is backwards compatible:

quote:
Originally posted by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-GSM#E-GSM
Phones described as having "EGSM" or "EGSM 900" support both the original GSM 900 band and the extended band. Older phones with "GSM 900" may not support EGSM. Most newer phones with "GSM 900" do support EGSM, it is just not listed that way since it is assumed that newer phones support it.

RE: European mobile system? by CookieRevised on 06-24-2010 at 09:19 PM

Ah, good to know... thx

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-24-2010 at 11:09 PM

quote:
Originally posted by SonicSam
I'm sure there's wifi you can steal. Use that + Skype with a month of Worldwide (like $10 or something)

https://buy.skype.com/paymonthly/?currency=CAD&so...llSubscriptionsTab

Unlimited World

C$ 13.99/month2

hmm, I'm not sure I understand how that works

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
And Since Orange (The Netherlands) and Base (Belgium) have deals with eachother in regards to roaming, I think if you take an Orange/Base sim card you're good in both countries.

thanks

I'll go for Orange when I get to the Netherlands

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
What exact type of phone is it?

it's a Nokia 2600 classic
http://www.nokia.com.au/find-products/all-phones/...sic/specifications

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
Also, Be carefull with using just a plug converter! For many devices (might also be your phone) it isn't enough to simply convert the plug!

The electrical grid in Europe is 220/240V and works on 50Hz, in US/Canada it is 100/120V working on 60Hz.

Plugging in a device which doesn't support the European voltage and frequency and you'll damage your device permanently.

yes, I know :happy:

I found a converter that will work with the Australian charger and can fit in the European outlet. It's supposed to convert 220v to 120v

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
As for plugs:
Belgium, The Netherlands and Switzerland all have different kind of sockets.

Though, if you have a plug type C (without the earth), you can use it both in Belgium as in The Netherlands. The only difference between Belgium and The Netherlands is that in The Netherlands the earth is located on the side of the plug/socket, while in Belgium it is with a thick pin off-center in the middle.

If you do need earthing, make sure your plug supports both side and center earthing (commonly found in Belgium -almost all plugs have it-, a bit less common in The Netherlands), aka plug type E.

Switzerland uses a total different plug/socket (type J), which is incompatible with the ones use in Belgium or The Netherlands. Although, it might be that a plug type C also fits a socket type F, but I'm not sure about that (I suggest you don't try it though unless you know what you're doing).

A travel plug adapter can commonly be found in most hardware shops. You could also buy them in the Airport, though they would be a bit expensive.
(Plus, I have a whole bunch of them also, which came with other adapters. I have no use for them since they change a US/Canadian plug type to Belgium/Netherlands type... so I suppose you can have them).

Eep!! ok, I think I'll be alright for the Netherlands and Belgium but I'm not sure about Switzerland. I'll ask my Swiss friend. Here is a photo of the converter:
[Image: img000111.jpg]

quote:
Originally posted by Menthix

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
I'm not 100% sure if E-GSM is the same as GSM though, it might be, but don't take my word for it
It's an extension to regular GSM900 as you said, but it is backwards compatible:
quote:
Originally posted by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-GSM#E-GSM
Phones described as having "EGSM" or "EGSM 900" support both the original GSM 900 band and the extended band. Older phones with "GSM 900" may not support EGSM. Most newer phones with "GSM 900" do support EGSM, it is just not listed that way since it is assumed that newer phones support it.

RE: European mobile system? by prashker on 06-24-2010 at 11:10 PM

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
hmm, I'm not sure I understand how that works

Pay the 13.99 for 1 month, open up Skype....dial a number and talk to them? It seems like a better idea for cost, and for the purpose. Ofcourse you'll need a laptop and internet connecton to run Skype

(and a microphone).

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-24-2010 at 11:12 PM

quote:
Originally posted by SonicSam

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
hmm, I'm not sure I understand how that works
Pay the 13.99 for 1 month, open up Skype....dial a number and talk to them? It seems like a better idea for cost, and for the purpose. Ofcourse you'll need a laptop and internet connecton to run Skype (and a microphone).

ohhh ok sorry, I was thinking something way different. Well, that's the thing. I won't have a laptop and the only time I'll have internet is when I go to a net-café (and that might not even happen) :-/

thanks for the idea though!

RE: European mobile system? by Menthix on 06-24-2010 at 11:17 PM

quote:
Originally posted by wacky

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
And Since Orange (The Netherlands) and Base (Belgium) have deals with eachother in regards to roaming, I think if you take an Orange/Base sim card you're good in both countries.
thanks I'll go for Orange when I get to the Netherlands

Orange doesn't exist in the Netherlands anymore though. They have been taken over by T-Mobile in 2007.

RE: RE: European mobile system? by CookieRevised on 06-24-2010 at 11:41 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Menthix
Orange doesn't exist in the Netherlands anymore though. They have been taken over by T-Mobile in 2007.

Ah... yeah... I should have know that (I used to had Orange, until it was taken over by Base in belgium, and whenever I'm in The Netherlands my network changes to T-Mobile).

---------

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
Eep!! ok, I think I'll be alright for the Netherlands and Belgium but I'm not sure about Switzerland. I'll ask my Swiss friend. Here is a photo of the converter:

That looks like it is a type C plug.

If it is also a so-called 'Europlug' (technical name CEE7/16) then it will fit a Swiss type J socket too.

If it is a French/German C plug (CEE7/17) then it might not fit the Swiss type J sockets, because the pins are thicker (5mm IIRC) than the holes of a type J socket (4mm IIRC).

RE: European mobile system? by Chrissy on 06-24-2010 at 11:46 PM

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised

quote:
Originally posted by wacky
Eep!! ok, I think I'll be alright for the Netherlands and Belgium but I'm not sure about Switzerland. I'll ask my Swiss friend. Here is a photo of the converter:

That looks like it is a type C plug.

If it is also a so-called 'Europlug' (technical name CEE7/16) than it will fit a Swiss type J socket too.

If it is a French/German C plug (CEE7/17) it might not fit the Swiss type J sockets, because the pins are thicker (5mm IIRC) than the holes of a type J socket (4mm IIRC).

is there anything you dont know (A)

RE: European mobile system? by CookieRevised on 06-24-2010 at 11:51 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Chrissy
is there anything you dont know

Sure...
I don't know what the weather will be like in August in Belgium (and The Netherlands).... It can be as hot as 30°C during the summer or very very rainy and only like 15°C....

RE: European mobile system? by wacky on 06-24-2010 at 11:56 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Menthix
Orange doesn't exist in the Netherlands anymore though. They have been taken over by T-Mobile in 2007

ok well I'll go for T-Mobile

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
That looks like it is a type C plug.

If it is also a so-called 'Europlug' (technical name CEE7/16) than it will fit a Swiss type J socket too.

If it is a French/German C plug (CEE7/17) it might not fit the Swiss type J sockets, because the pins are thicker (5mm IIRC) than the holes of a type J socket (4mm IIRC).

hmmm I guess I'll measure it later :cheesy:

quote:
Originally posted by Chrissy
is there anything you dont know

that's why Cookie is the best! :gfdrin:

quote:
Originally posted by CookieRevised
Sure...
I don't know what the weather will be like in August in Belgium (and The Netherlands).... It can be as hot as 30°C during the summer or very very rainy and only like 15°C....

kind of like Montreal summer weather (except August is generally dry). Lets hope it'll be around 20-25 degrees with partly cloudy but mainly sunny skies!