pay as you go in the states

[will78]

A few quick questions i'm hoping that are easy to answer

I have a tri-band, pay as you go (prepaid), vodafone here in Australia

1. When i get to Los Angeles on friday can i walk into a vodafone shop and buy a US pay as you go SIM card?
2. Will it work in my phone or do i need to get it unlocked?
3. If anyone is familar with LA are there any vodafone shops near hollywood blvd?
4. If there are no vodafone stores will an AT&T prepaid SIM card work in my phone?

Cheers,

Will

[gmav]

Hello

1. No because there is no vodafone in america
2. Yes, you need to get it unlocked
3. See number 1
4. There is no more AT&T...Cingular bought them out. But yes, it should work if you go to a Cingular or T-Mobile store and get a pre paid SIM card, but im not sure...

Hope that helps

[carcomptoy]

Actually, it's a lot easier to buy a prepaid kit...one that includes the cellphone. Won't hurt you to have another one, plus I hear it's cheaper than buying the SIM alone. We don't have SIM-only packs here in the US, since most people don't understand the concept of switching phones independent of the carrier...I tried inquiring once about getting PAYG SIM-only and it was more than a prepaid kit, so might as well. If you have a Nokia (other than 6630 & 6680) it'll be easy to unlock...if not then go to your local phone shop to get it unlocked...if not just use the phone in the prepaid kit:D

[xc]

We don't have SIM-only packs here in the US, since most people don't understand the concept of switching phones independent of the carrier...I tried inquiring once about getting PAYG SIM-only and it was more than a prepaid kit, so might as well.

Every time I go to the states (which is about every 1 1/2 to 2 years) I go to either a Cingular T-Mobile or At&T shop and get a prepaid SIM to use while I am there and it works like a charm.

So Carcomptoy are you saying someone can not do that? :confused:

[carcomptoy]

Which part do you not understand? I meant that most people here don't know about being able to switch phones instantly with just switching your SIM card, thus SIM-only packs aren't that popular. In my own experience, trying to get a prepaid SIM w/o a phone has been more expensive than getting a prepaid kit that includes SIM and phone! I didn't say getting a prepaid SIM wouldn't work...of course it works!

[carcomptoy]

Have been surfing the web, and have come across this:

http://www.myworldphone.com/prepaidsim.html

I doubt you can get the same pricing at the actual store, but who knows? Perhaps your friends or relatives can order this for you ahead of time...?

[Michael]

I use Cingular's service for some of my battery life testing. I have two phones on the plan where it costs $1/day to activate but then you have unlimited minutes to any Cingular customer that day and $.10/min for any other number. Works well for my situation. Otherwise, you'd pay $.25/minute without the $1/day fee.

And you might as well get it with a phone. I paid $30 for a Samsung C207, which I find to be a very nice and light phone.

[carcomptoy]

That seems cheap, but if you think about it, you might as well get a low-priced plan with mobile2mobile and still pay less than that $1...

Just some comparison info...just FYI:

http://www.t-mobile.com/plans/default.asp?tab=payasyougo
http://www.net10.com/home_page.jsp?b=n&flash=YES&p=W&task=home_page