Mobal Phone service

[chloes nana]

I am looking at possibly getting a Mobal Phones international SIM card phone for our trip to the Mediterranean this month. I like the $99 option they have on their website, as the $49 won't work on cruise ships or in Canada, it says. Can anyone give me any feedback on these phones either pro or con?? Would love some feedback before I purchase one. thanks:D

[agathasmum]

We have used one the last couple of years and it's OK. Haven't had any problems with it, but the simcard does have a UK number so people calling you from the USA will pay an international rate.

 

This time we also took a verizon cellphone. If you are a Verizon Wireless customer, VW will loan you a cellphone that will work in Europe for a trip of less than 21 days and they will activate roaming on it. There was a $9.99 charge for shipping and calls to European countries and Australia were 99c a minute. We mainly communicated by text with our son in Australia and it was 50c per text sent and 5c to receive one.

 

To further complicate matters, we rented an Australia compatible phone from Cellhire for our son. That was $50 rental plus call charges.

 

I think the best value was international roaming and loaner phone from Verizon Wireless.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Susan

[dandro]

When you are on the ship, you will have the ship's cellular service as the provider, not your own provider. The charges are different than those of your provider.

[chloes nana]

I don't necessarily need it when on the ship per se, but maybe for calling our different limo services in case they do not show up, calling the hotel for a shuttle, etc. I doubt I would call home on the ship unless we were in port. I have my netbook along for email, the phone is for emergencies and using locally and maybe calling home a couple times and saying hi to the grandkids. Also will give my DD piece of mind knowing she can reach us if she needs to. We are gone for a total of 27 days so Verizon is not a long enough option and our "plan" doesn't have international service..

[dandro]

Just make sure when you use the phone you are going to purchase, that it displays YOUR cellular provider, and not the ship's cellular provider.

 

Use it in port, make sure your contract includes international roaming.

[YXU AC*SE]

It would likely be cheaper for you to buy a [throwaway] unlocked GSM phone on eBay / craigslist (or borrow one from your kids) and buy a pre-paid sim card in country. They are widely available -- sold at newstands / dépanneurs / convenience stores and on street corners.

 

Scott.

[surfgram]

I've use a Call in Europe phone for 2 trips and it works great and is a lot cheaper than Mobal.

 

check it out http://www.callineurope.com/

[bandlady74]

I bought a Mobal phone through their website for our trip to Rome last year. Ended up using it a lot due to an emergency with my son back at college in the States (nothing serious, thank goodness). The phone worked very well, but, yes, you'll have a UK phone number, so it's not cheap. But I was very impressed with the reception - far better than most of what I get on my Verizon phone here in NY state!:)

Amy

[chloes nana]

are there any other options out there or other users of the Mobal phone?

[surfgram]

if you search "cell phone" in the Europe forum, there are a lot of threads discussing every option available.

[pspercy]

I bought the $49 version phone for UK trips necessary for family reasons a few years ago. It worked just fine and no trouble with billing. See their website for rates etc in various places, both incoming and outgoing.

[scottjeanne]

Do you have a cellular phone now? Most have GSM capability that can be used in other countries. I just add international roaming ($5.99 per month) for the time I will be out of the country and cancel it when I return. It allows me to make or recieve calls for about .99 while out of the country. The ship has cellular at sea, which charges $2.99 per minute. You cannot use "your" provider if you are at sea as there are no towers within range.

[jcrandle]

The first thing to consider is whether you currently have a GSM cell phone that will work on the frequencies supported in the countries that you will be visiting. If so, contact your wireless network supplier and find out what the rate will be in the countries your will visit. If the rates and planned usage are suitable, you should probably use your current phone, though you may have to activate international service.

 

If the service and rates are not available or acceptable, you will have to look at other options. The $49 mobal phone may well be a good choice. The phone is inexpensive, the usage rates are mid-priced. If you are planning to use the phone for emergencies, incidental usage, etc. it could well be the best option. We bought the Mobal $49 phone and have used it on several trips. Most of the trips it was an emergency contact phone, or limited usage to check on hotel reservations. This proved to be a good value for us. On our last trip, DDs cats got lost, and a neighbor who was looking after them sent several text messages, and we had several text replies plus some voice calls from UK to US for a total of $45 US or so. Still, we felt like it was a reasonable price/performance.

 

If, however, you anticipate making multiple calls daily from overseas, either within the country, or back to your home country, with calls lasting more than a couple of minutes, you would probably be better served with purchasing an unlocked phone (that is, one that you can affiliate with any cell provider by purchasing a SIM card that works with them). The considerations that I understand are that the SIM card (and prepaid minutes) are tied to the particular cell service provider that you chose. If you buy your SIM in the UK for O2 minutes, but you will be traveling on the continent, you need to understand how the 100 or so minutes you've paid for will convert to the providers in the countries you will be uising them. I have no guidance on this, as each provider's plans will differ with their partners (just as in the US our roaming partners will determine if we are in network or not).

 

Your mileage may vary, some assembly required, and design models were shown in all photographs.

 

Good luck, and may the force be with you.

[chloes nana]

thanks Jim! I do not have a cell phone, we are retired and really have no use for one. This will be just for emergencies and for messages from home should something come up.:)

[yaletownboy]

Where in Rome can you buy a SIM card & time?

 

We have an unlocked phone from Canada and arrive at Rome's Fiumicino Airport.

 

Mainly using it for emergencies so a small plan is ok. We're only there for a total of 4 days but would be nice to be able to call the hotel if we get lost.

[heathriel]

I have a GeoSim Dual SIM.

 

http://www.globalsimcard.co.uk/

 

You can have a USA number for people to call you on, as well as a UK number. It has very reasonable rates, and works on a "call back" system to keep rates low. Most countries have free incoming calls on your UK number, and very low through your US.

 

Forward your SkypeIN number to the UK number and have people call that, and you'll have free incoming calls in Europe.

 

You use it on an unlocked GSM phone.

[PCruzer]

I am looking at possibly getting a Mobal Phones international SIM card phone for our trip to the Mediterranean this month. I like the $99 option they have on their website, as the $49 won't work on cruise ships or in Canada, it says. Can anyone give me any feedback on these phones either pro or con?? Would love some feedback before I purchase one. thanks:D

I bought a Mobal phone 2 years ago just for overseas travel. At the time the cost was $99, and they gave you $99 worth of free calls! So I felt it was a great deal. The rates are expensive, depending on where you are calling from. The reception is great, and I have not had any dropped calls.