Anon E Mouse

Hi all,

We have a couple of Nokia 3310's on Orange pay as you go and were wondering about taking these with us. I guess they'll need "unlocking" at about £30 each and then we'll need to buy a SIM when we get to Oz. But is there a cheaper/better way?

Mouse

chana

Better bring those phones as mobiles aren't cheap in Australia... unless you sign on some plan.

col

mouse
asked a similar question not long back about 8210. Can get a sim for about $40 with £40 worth of calls. but the call charges are dear. it was suggested to shop around. where abouts do you live? unlocking a phone can be done for about £10 £15.

Col

sophia

Hi guys

Not sure if this helps or not but anyway...when we were in Australia last year I took my Cellnet mobile with me (not expecting it to work of course, but in case our lift didn't turn up when we got back to Manchester!!)..I switched it on and it picked up a Telstra signal then switched to Vodafone.

I'm assuming that it had something to do with the fact contract phones usually let you have access to international roaming when abroad, but I'm WAY not an expert in these matters, just thought it'd be worth mentioning as I think it'd probably be ok to take your phones with you, especially as the ones I saw out there were quite expensive.

love sophia xx

shaun/lor

whats this unlocking bussiness i have heard the term but assumed it was like car radios the only people that need it doing is the ones that have stolen phones and dont know the passwords or pin number?
if you need your phones unlocking it may be worth trying the local computer fairs, i have been to a few in recent months and there is usually 1 or 2 people offering this service.
shaun

col

Shaun
A locked phone is when a service provider such as orange lock the phone so as only their network can be used e.g. "locking" you in to them and them only.

Col

Anon E Mouse

Looks like telstra BYO is the cheapest so far - but how many networks are there to choose from (I found virgin (complete rip off), orange and telstra)

Also, I cant seem to find any decent coverage maps and comparison charts.

Unlocking - problem solved - ebay! There are tons of cables and software for sale (for about £15) and then I can always re-sell on ebay after!

Mouse

Andrew

Anon E Mouse <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
    > Looks like telstra BYO is the cheapest so far - but how many networks are there to
    > choose from (I found virgin (complete rip off), orange and telstra)

Hi Anon E Mouse,

I'm interested to know why you think Virgin Mobile (Australia) is a rip-off. I have 2
phones originally with Orange GSM (which was taken over by Optus). I bought 2 Virgin
cards - transferred my 2 phones onto a single account and after 5 months (I'm a low
usage customer), I'm still in credit so I haven't had to pay a single $ yet!

    > Also, I cant seem to find any decent coverage maps and comparison charts.

Telstra http://www.telstra.com.au/mobilenet/network/maps.cfm

Optus http://production.vodaecom.atwww.com/coverage_maps/

Virgin http://www.virginmobile.com.au/its_a...erage_map.html

Vodaphone http://production.vodaecom.atwww.com/coverage_maps/

Regards, Andrew

Claire

Hi

A bit off track I know, but I brough my old BT Cellnet pay-as-you go mobile just to see what would happen (the kids were going to play with it if it didn't work) and when I switched it on in Perth I was surprised to see a Telstra signal and heaps of texts from my mates! I just use it to send and receive text now.

Claire
xx

Jaj

Virgin have become a lot less competitive since they re-introduced expiry on their
pre-pay vouchers and top-ups in April this year. Now they slug you for A$15 minimum
per month.

Jeremy

    >On 9 Jul 2002 17:57:42 -0700, [email protected] (Andrew) wrote: Anon E Mouse
    ><[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
    >> Looks like telstra BYO is the cheapest so far - but how many networks are there to
    >> choose from (I found virgin (complete rip off), orange and telstra)
    >
    >Hi Anon E Mouse,
    >
    >I'm interested to know why you think Virgin Mobile (Australia) is a rip-off. I have
    >2 phones originally with Orange GSM (which was taken over by Optus). I bought 2
    >Virgin cards - transferred my 2 phones onto a single account and after 5 months (I'm
    >a low usage customer), I'm still in credit so I haven't had to pay a single $ yet!

Mark

    > Virgin have become a lot less competitive since they re-introduced expiry on their
    > pre-pay vouchers and top-ups in April this year. Now they slug you for A$15 minimum
    > per month.
But aren't they one of the few that operates on a non-contract basis?
i.e. if you don't like them you're not tied in to a 12 or 24 month contract?

Anon E Mouse

Its funny the way Oz seems to be a few years behind the UK in some areas. Mobile phones and bank charges are just two.

Voucher expiry is a thing of the past, as is per min billing and high call charges, min spend per month etc but all the Oz networks seem to employ a pricing structure similar to the UK in the mid 90s.

I guess the costs are higher and the market smaller.

Helena

"Mark" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > > Virgin have become a lot less competitive since they re-introduced expiry on
    > > their pre-pay vouchers and top-ups in April this year. Now they slug you for A$15
    > > minimum per month.
    > But aren't they one of the few that operates on a non-contract basis?
    > i.e. if you don't like them you're not tied in to a 12 or 24 month contract?

Maybe they were at one time & others saw that it was a good idea. I'm with Vodaphone
and have just switched to a no-contract basis with them. I'm no mobile-phone expert.
I'll see how it goes with them with this new plan. Hopefully I won't regret it

Good luck,

Helena

Andrew

Oh I see. I was obviousy lucky to join Virgin when I did. I will just have to see who
will be offering the cheapest service when the free period runs out!

Thanks for clearing that up. AndyH

[email protected] (JAJ) wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
    > Virgin have become a lot less competitive since they re-introduced expiry on their
    > pre-pay vouchers and top-ups in April this year. Now they slug you for A$15 minimum
    > per month.
    >
    > Jeremy

Sm

Yvonne....low population, weak aussie dollar. Expensive infrastructure...high costs.

As for the banks...too few people...too few banks...not enough
competition...ambitious market...pressure to make big profit...big customer rort.

--
For replies, edit the e-mail. "Anon E Mouse" <[email protected]> wrote in
message news:[email protected]...
    > Its funny the way Oz seems to be a few years behind the UK in some areas. Mobile
    > phones and bank charges are just two.
    >
    > Voucher expiry is a thing of the past, as is per min billing and high call charges,
    > min spend per month etc but all the Oz networks seem to employ a pricing structure
    > similar to the UK in the mid 90s.
    >
    > I guess the costs are higher and the market smaller.
    >
    >
    >
    > --
    > Yvonne
    >
    > Yvonne
    >
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com