I am going to BA in about a month and I want to have a cell phone. Should I buy the phone and sim card in the U. S. Or should I wait until I get to BA?
I will be in BA for about 20 days
I am going to BA in about a month and I want to have a cell phone. Should I buy the phone and sim card in the U. S. Or should I wait until I get to BA?
I will be in BA for about 20 days
[QUOTE=Snap Man]I am going to BA in about a month and I want to have a cell phone. Should I buy the phone and sim card in the U. S. Or should I wait until I get to BA?
I will be in BA for about 20 days[/QUOTE]You can get a cheap 80-100 pesos gsm phone in Buenos with some airtime included.
Most phone companies sell blocked cell phones meaning you can only use their gsm cards. You can always unblock it somewhere else at a small cost.
Triband or even quad band means that you can use them elsewhere around the world. Allways unblocked of course if you have to use local companies gsm chip.
If you so wish get a tri or quad motorolla phone at the states and get a gsm card in Buenos.
Band mostly used in Argentina, if not mistaken, is 850Mhz secondary is 1900Mhz.
In Europe 1200 or 1800Mhz.
El Greco
[QUOTE=El Greco]You can get a cheap 80-100 pesos gsm phone in Buenos with some airtime included.
Most phone companies sell blocked cell phones meaning you can only use their gsm cards. You can always unblock it somewhere else at a small cost.
Triband or even quad band means that you can use them elsewhere around the world. Allways unblocked of course if you have to use local companies gsm chip.
If you so wish get a tri or quad motorolla phone at the states and get a gsm card in Buenos.
Band mostly used in Argentina, if not mistaken, is 850Mhz secondary is 1900Mhz.
In Europe 1200 or 1800Mhz.
El Greco[/QUOTE]Thanks EL Greco. Any recomendations on where I should get the phone and airtime in BA? Do they sell them unlocked?
I read that some people have problems getting a phone because they are not from BA
[QUOTE=Snap Man]Thanks EL Greco. Any recomendations on where I should get the phone and airtime in BA? Do they sell them unlocked?
I read that some people have problems getting a phone because they are not from BA[/QUOTE]Almost everywhere. Try Florida street for a start. You wiil need a copy of your passport.
You only have to choose which company you want to use and then buy from them.
Same people might unblock it for you for a small fee of 20-30 pesos but you don't need to do it if it is a mono band or if you are only to use it in Argentina.
Check their web sites for models and prices. Eg Personal.
[url]http://www.personal.com.ar/personas/telefonos/equipos.htm?mark=8&mod=1[/url]
This is a color model. No color ones are cheaper.
El Greco
I was wandering around Santa Fe near Plaza Italia looking for a SIM for Personal (they call it a chip here) Asked in a locutorio and a fellow there lead me to a coffee shop nearby where the manager sold chips. While I was waiting for him to enable the chip, I ordered some chicken and salad to take away and commented how great it to get chip and food at the same time. He smilingly agreed that he offered "servisio completo"! Didn't ask him to bend over - only a 1. The total tab for both came to 23 pesos - I think it was 15 & 8. The phone didn't send or receive until I charged it but then worked fine. And I had to call him back to get the number.
Count
[QUOTE=Count Chocula]I was wandering around Santa Fe near Plaza Italia looking for a SIM for Personal (they call it a chip here) Asked in a locutorio and a fellow there lead me to a coffee shop nearby where the manager sold chips. While I was waiting for him to enable the chip, I ordered some chicken and salad to take away and commented how great it to get chip and food at the same time. He smilingly agreed that he offered "servisio completo"! Didn't ask him to bend over - only a 1. The total tab for both came to 23 pesos - I think it was 15 & 8. The phone didn't send or receive until I charged it but then worked fine. And I had to call him back to get the number.
Count[/QUOTE]Hi Count,
So what did you get for the 15 pesos (how many min's) Did you get the phone in BA? Do they sell phones too?
[QUOTE=Snap Man]Hi Count,
So what did you get for the 15 pesos (how many min's) Did you get the phone in BA? Do they sell phones too?[/QUOTE]Jesus man! If they don't sell phones why someone should buy airtime? How the hell argentinos are talking to each other? With drums? Or maybe smoke?
For god's shake let us be reasonable and do some reading before you ask.
El Greco
That's funny Greco! Smoke and drums.
I am going to call my Verizon rep. Though they are generally not very helpful at the 800# level, the local reps generally want to understand what I am trying to understand.
I bought a fancy $200 quad band phone camera, etc. Through eBay last year. Stuck in a side (web material) pocket of my back pack and went walking through Old town Cartegena, Colombia. I think I could have possibly made it easier by just wearing a sign in Spanish with an arrow pointing at it that said, "free phone in this pocket, please reach in and take"!
And that was just after I had loaded it with a sim card and lot's of minutes. I was mad as hell about that for a few days, when I got to Medellin I finally broke down and bought another phone (cheap one).
[QUOTE=El Greco]Jesus man! If they don't sell phones why someone should buy airtime? How the hell argentinos are talking to each other? With drums? Or maybe smoke?
For god's shake let us be reasonable and do some reading before you ask.
El Greco[/QUOTE]Relax man, I wanted to know if the place he bought the sim card and food sells phones or if he got the phone some place else (in BA or out) I would prefer to go to this place and get all 3 (card, phone, food) which is why I wanted to get more info on it. I have heard many people say and spoke to one person who told me that issues came up when trying to get a phone and card (ie: not allowing it, having to prove where you live, charging extra fees) so if someone knows a specific place that they used I would prefer that over some random place.
Sorry if you mis-understood my question.
Personal is conveniently located across the street from the Sheraton Convention Center. They make you sign some forms about being a prepaid account. They need your passport and in an hour I was set up. Costs around 6 pesos to get the chip. You then have to go to a pharmacy or grocery store and get a 10 or 20 pesos card. Make sure your phone is GSM and unlocked.
This is a GSM phine and has a sim card. Would this phone work with a new sim card?
Sorry if I posted a dumb question that has already been answered.
You must get the phone unlocked though before you will be able to use it with a different carrier. You can get your phone unlocked at a local store, if available or through ebay.
I didn't believe this, but it does work. Cingular will give you the unlock code just by asking. I just did two Razrs. Then just buy any sim chip and away you go.
The phone card Hablemas appears to be magic. I have used a 10 peso card since Friday and called the US at least twice daily.
I have a Verizon Global Phone but I'm not happy with my availability in South America. Is Cingular any better?
Cingular will not add international roaming to your service unless you have been with them for 3 months and I got a mixed response about getting an unlocked razor.
Is it worth being without an international cell phone for 3 months just to join the cinugular network?
Thanks
There was a FTC law passed that all cell phone carriers have to unlock phones. This is only about a month old.
I have a Cingular Razr. I went to a store while xmas shopping and told them I was going to Argentina soon and would like to be able to change sim cards and be on the AR cell network. They told me no problem, and gave me a number to call. It is 1-800-335-4685. Just call them and say you are about to travel. Took about 5 minutes. They did ask me how long I has the phone, I told them a year. I don't know if there is any restrictions, if they give you a hard time I would look up the FTC ruling. I don't have it handy.
Also your phone must support the correct network, I. E. Gsm, 3g, etc.
From what I have figured out, if you are on cingluar or t-mobile with a gsm phone you should be ok in AR.
Ill find out in Feburary and report back.
Go to [url]www.tigerdirect.com[/url] and look at the offerings for un-blocked 4 band phones in both reconditioned and new, in all there must be about 100 different choices. Then when you get to BA you go to a "Personal" phone store and ask them for a sim card. They charged me ten pesos for this and included installation.
Also when the phone came to my office it didn't look even remotely reconditioned, it looked brand new.
Only problem was that when I turned on my phone down there for the first time it asked me for some security code which I didn't have. No problem, they told me to visit a certain Peruvian guy a few blocks away who for 30 pesos hooked my phone up to some device that unlocked it completely in about 30 seconds. I was off and on my way with my first Argentinian cell phone. Only trouble was the phone I had gotten was either defective or had some configuration problem since I could hear everything people said to me but they couldn't hear me. I'll return this phone to [url]www.tigerdirect.com[/url] and see how they custome service is and how well they stand behind their product.
Hello,
I am new to this forum and I have found really interesting info as I navigated through this. But to congratulate the forum is not the intention of this message.
I have a Personal GSM chip which I didn't use after my last trip in May last year. Some argie friends told me that I had to reacharge four months after the last use, and I had like $ 4 as a left over. I had the chance to recharge it some months after, but I was really busy and I didn't want to overload my credit card. The last time I tried to recharge it, at the beginning of December, the link to the recharging page didn't work and I didn't check the Personal site. As of today, Jan. 2nd, the page is unavailable.
If I want to reactivate my number. Should I try recharging from the site when it's available? What are the procedures of reactivate a number? Do I have to buy another GSM card again? I have plans to go there in February or April and somewhere in the 2nd part of the year.
Well, I look forward to answers!
Greet.
Mozzy
[QUOTE=Mozzy]Hello,
If I want to reactivate my number. Should I try recharging from the site when it's available? What are the procedures of reactivate a number? Do I have to buy another GSM card again? I have plans to go there in February or April and somewhere in the 2nd part of the year.
Well, I look forward to answers!
Greet.
Mozzy[/QUOTE]I don't know about recharging, but I just got a CTI Movil gsm card and charged it. It cost like 10 or 20 pesos for the actual charge and you load it up from there. It seemed that for the pay as you go the ctimovil plan was the cheapest. Could be wrong but it was nice. I didnt have my passport or anything. Just wrote down some nonsensical numbers in the slot for the passport number. It said something about a dni but the lady was more interested in selling me somethign than asking for ID. God bless argentina. This was at a citimovil stand near the Grand Tortoni Café on Avenida de Mayo, on that side of the street.
I don't think you need to worry about 4 bucks. Although its an oxymoron since exon just flamed me for complaining about a $us 18 fuck. Heh.
I have been to BA 5 times but have never managed to master just getting a SIM card 'pay-as-you-go' style, to use on my existing GSM mobile. When I asked before a year or so ago I was told I had to buy a contract, is this no longer the case? I have managed to just buy SIM cards and reload them in other countries in Europe, but never in Argentina.
In order to make calls to Chica's, I find myself buying phone cards where I have to enter 5 different access codes before making a call from my rented appartment, or otherwise being getting embarassed in a cabina, just when I ask the most awkward question, some middle age lady steps into the cabin beside me! Know the feeling?
So, from what I understand having read back a few pages, this is now possible. Whats the best company? And do you need to be a resident etc / are there any places you experts can recommend which are hassle free in this respect. Would appreciate any advice from you experts! My phone is a new Nokia Quadband, unlocked, so I guess I should not have any problems from this respect, right ?
[QUOTE=Coupe66]I have been to BA 5 times but have never managed to master just getting a SIM card 'pay-as-you-go' style, to use on my existing GSM mobile. When I asked before a year or so ago I was told I had to buy a contract, is this no longer the case? I have managed to just buy SIM cards and reload them in other countries in Europe, but never in Argentina.
In order to make calls to Chica's, I find myself buying phone cards where I have to enter 5 different access codes before making a call from my rented appartment, or otherwise being getting embarassed in a cabina, just when I ask the most awkward question, some middle age lady steps into the cabin beside me! Know the feeling?
So, from what I understand having read back a few pages, this is now possible. Whats the best company? And do you need to be a resident etc / are there any places you experts can recommend which are hassle free in this respect. Would appreciate any advice from you experts! My phone is a new Nokia Quadband, unlocked, so I guess I should not have any problems from this respect, right?[/QUOTE]Since you visit here just go to one of the little phone stores and buy a cheap cell phone for around 30-40 bucks US. It will come with 50p of credit and no need for all the trouble. Simple solution to an ongoing problem. When you leave give it to Roxanna or Ana Luna so they can offer it to Apt. Clients or tour clients. They make a little money and because somebody is using it the number stays active.
[QUOTE=Coupe66]I have been to BA 5 times but have never managed to master just getting a SIM card 'pay-as-you-go' style, to use on my existing GSM mobile. When I asked before a year or so ago I was told I had to buy a contract, is this no longer the case? I have managed to just buy SIM cards and reload them in other countries in Europe, but never in Argentina. QUOTE]CTImovil company used to sell only contracts. I think this is not the case any more.
Yes you can get a SIM card for only 5p and some airtime starting from 10p and you can use it on your 4band phone with its data and camera or buy cheap blocked local phone. Up to you.
Sim card will be alive for 8 months after the last recharge then the number is cancelled. That is for "Personal", the company that I use.
Argentina prepaid SIM cards can be had in the US before you leave (assuming you're US based) Google 'Argentina SIM card' for multiple retailers.
[QUOTE=Hound]Argentina prepaid SIM cards can be had in the US before you leave (assuming you're US based) Google 'Argentina SIM card' for multiple retailers.[/QUOTE]Hound chimes in!
Some guy on the airplane told me about this company. Sounds good.
[url]www.mobal.com[/url]
My wingman and I both bought Argentina Phone Number Sims Cards on ebay before coming down here last year. This way we already had our Cell Phone numbers before leaving the states and were well prepared for passing the number out to whomever we wanted, once we arrived.
Coach
I am coming to BsAs soon and I am bringing my unlocked GSM phone from Canada. From what I understand, I need to buy a sim card and top it up with credits whenever I run out of time. Is that right?
Who has the best reception / service and the best prices?
What is the best place to buy a SIM card without the DNI?
SM
[QUOTE=SexMachine]Who has the best reception / service and the best prices? What is the best place to buy a SIM card without the DNI? SM[/QUOTE]Hi SM,
I think if your cell phone is unlocked AND works on their system here then you should be ok. I know different cellphones sometimes work on different networks such as GSM and so on. So double check that.
And yes you can just buy a sim card at almost any corner kiosk store or any cell phone outlet, they cost around 40-50 pesos depending on the company you choose. Something like 15 dollars US. Then you buy recharge cards that sell for 10-20 pesos and some companies have larger denominations, though most kiosks have 10-20 Peso cards.
The best, I am not sure, though I have CTI, and they are about 70% of the time good, though the other 30% of the time they suck. I have heard the best are MoviStar and Personal, they have the largest networks and so their reception should be better. I have been told Personal is the best, though I can't confirm since I don't have it, but all the chicas swear by it.
Hope that was helpful,
Bad
Best place to get a SIM Prepago (Prepaid SIM) is any of the phone places on Corrientes. My gang and I prefer CTI Movil be / c we can also call back to the US pretty reasonable. You can also send and received US txt messages. The last SIM I had in Nov. 06 cost 50 pesos and I got about 25 minutes. Under normal+ usages I noticed that in ten days one can go through about $120 pesos in phone calls.
Desperado999
[QUOTE=Coupe66]I have been to BA 5 times but have never managed to master just getting a SIM card 'pay-as-you-go' style, to use on my existing GSM mobile. When I asked before a year or so ago I was told I had to buy a contract, is this no longer the case? I have managed to just buy SIM cards and reload them in other countries in Europe, but never in Argentina.
In order to make calls to Chica's, I find myself buying phone cards where I have to enter 5 different access codes before making a call from my rented appartment, or otherwise being getting embarassed in a cabina, just when I ask the most awkward question, some middle age lady steps into the cabin beside me! Know the feeling?
So, from what I understand having read back a few pages, this is now possible. Whats the best company? And do you need to be a resident etc / are there any places you experts can recommend which are hassle free in this respect. Would appreciate any advice from you experts! My phone is a new Nokia Quadband, unlocked, so I guess I should not have any problems from this respect, right?[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=SexMachine]I am coming to BsAs soon and I am bringing my unlocked GSM phone from Canada. From what I understand, I need to buy a sim card and top it up with credits whenever I run out of time. Is that right?
Who has the best reception / service and the best prices?
What is the best place to buy a SIM card without the DNI?
SM[/QUOTE]The "gotcha" with GSM is that there are four GSM frequencies (850/900/1800/1900) that can be used but each country / carrier usually uses only one or two of them. A "world phone" is quad band and will work anywhere but many phones are only dual band.
CTI Móvil and Personal Lite both use 1900 which appears to be the frequency used in Canada. But you should check the specs on your phone to be sure.
Also, the cost per minute depends on the price of the card. 10p cards are much more expensive per minute than 20p or larger cards.
[QUOTE=SexMachine]I am coming to BsAs soon and I am bringing my unlocked GSM phone from Canada. From what I understand, I need to buy a sim card and top it up with credits whenever I run out of time. Is that right?
Who has the best reception / service and the best prices?
What is the best place to buy a SIM card without the DNI?
SM[/QUOTE]SM,
I got my SIM card at the CTI main store on Paraguay and Florida back in SEP 05. It cost 10 pesos with 10 pesos air time included. I had to provide an ID to register the SIM card. Driver license from home would do.
Pre-pay air credit on CTI is only good for two months without recharging. And the remaining credit does not come back even when you recharge it after two months, unlike other providers such as Personal and Movistar.
I always buy recharge card on the second floor of the main store and have the Help Desk on the ground floor to activate it for me. And the last two times the cashier recharged my phone directly online without having to enter any code from my phone. The best value I found there is the 20 pesos card which provides 28 pesos worth of air credit.
Hope this help,
Sportsman
[QUOTE=SexMachine]I am coming to BsAs soon and I am bringing my unlocked GSM phone from Canada. From what I understand, I need to buy a sim card and top it up with credits whenever I run out of time. Is that right?
Who has the best reception / service and the best prices?
What is the best place to buy a SIM card without the DNI?
SM[/QUOTE]SM, Literally every 10th storefront in BA sells phone, sims, tarjetas. This is the least of your worries. I use CTi, but would not necessarily recommend them - they are the cheapest, but also have the most computer outages and delayed message deliveries. Additionally, their recently changed policy to not "roll over" credit if you do not recharge before airtime window expiration really annoys me! Signal strength has never been a problem for me.
I was recently shopping for a sim chip for my friend - Personal in particular. The first price I got was 29p with 5p free air time. I then found a card for 5p with 30p worth of free sms text messages. Needless to say I stopped looking and bought it. In BA, it is a must to shop around to find the best prices (not exclusive to phones!) No ID required - only required to verbally give a passport number.
Guys, if you are coming to BA and you want to use your cell phone - you only need to ask yourself two questions:
1. Is my cell phone "Unlocked"? If you don't know what this means - check the internet.
2. Is my cell phone capable of using GSM band 1900 (I. E. Virtually all North American phones use 1900, exception being Nextel - however they also have multiple band phones capable of GSM roaming, but not capable of using another company's GSM chip - let's not get bogged down on that one)
Alan23 got it spot on. Buying SIM cards no longer requires you to present identification. However, this only holds true for prepaid cards, enrolling in monthly plans is another story.
Loading credits in prepaid SIM cards is as easy as buying candy from a kiosco. In fact even RapiPago and PagoFacil has dipped into the action as they now do virtual loading. All you need to do is give them your cell no. And they will instruct the cellular phone networks to transmit credits to your SIM. This method is advisable if you have maxed out your credits or if your SIM has been inactive for quite awhile. The waiting time is shorter as compared to loading them phone cards where you scratch the back portion to get a series of numbers.
I now have enough info to buy a sim card and get my phone activated.
I will post my experience and prices as soon as I get to BsAs next week.
SM
After reading everyone's comments, I decided to go with Personal and visited their main office on Corrientes. Half hour and 6.78 Pesos later, I was happy to have my Motorola phone from Canada working fine. The guy even tested it to make sure it is unlocked and will work on their network before I actually bought thr SIM. Very nice and friendly staff. Even with my limited spanish skills, it was no problem.
After that, I visited a locutorio to purchase a 20 peso Prepaid card and I asked them to put the nos. In the phone to get the credit which they happily did.
I could not find any prepaid card worth more than 20 pesos anywhere.
Does anybody have any idea where to buy a personal Prepaid card worth 50 or 100 pesos?
Again. I was immensely helped by the replies from everybody.
Keep reading for my other reports. I will be posting a lot this time.
SM
PS - Sorry Guys. I posted it in the wrong thread. It should not be in the Cell phone rentals. Stupid me.
SexMachine,.
I'm curious, is the card you buy for a cell phone the same card that you buy for land line use (e. G. Hablemás) The highest value card I could find for land line use was a $15 peso card from Farmacity.
Thanks, Bob
[QUOTE=AllIWantisLove]SexMachine,
I'm curious, is the card you buy for a cell phone the same card that you buy for land line use (e. G. Hablemás) The highest value card I could find for land line use was a $15 peso card from Farmacity.
Thanks, Bob[/QUOTE]No Bob.
They are different cards. For cell phones, you will buy the card for the cell phone company you are using. e.g. Personal for me.
For landline, you will need a different prepaid card to make the long distance calls and to call the cell phones.
SexMachine
I purchased a small Motorola with 20 pesos credit for 60 pesos.
They asked my name and passport number, but did not need a copy of passport. I suppose you could give any name / number.
The girl working behind the counter told me they have daily specials on whatever phones they have in excess inventory and that different locations have different specials. I went to location at Santa Fe 3000, but there are others all over the city. Haven't had a dropped call yet, much better than my Sprint service at home.
DMCA Exemptions Allow You to Unlock Cell Phones.
11.28.06
By Bryan Gardiner.
Unlocking your cell phone is now fully legal here in the U. S.—at least for the next three years.
ADVERTISEMENT Last week, the Register of Copyrights released the latest list of exemptions to 1998's Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and along with it, some welcome news for cell phone users.
Of the six proposed exemptions (the largest number to date) the one that arguably affects U. S. Consumers the most is number five on the list, which covers:
"Computer programs in the form of firmware that enable wireless telephone handsets to connect to a wireless telephone communication network, when circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of lawfully connecting to a wireless telephone communication network."
Cell Phones.
Cell Phones That Rock.
In other words, it is now permissible for anyone to "unlock" a phone tied to one network and use it with another; as long as they own the phone.
If your cell phone is locked and GSM, call your provider and get the subsidy unlock code. Before this ruling, the carriers would not provide it. Then you can use any prepaid card in Argentina
The link below has some good info on how to use your cell phone, with a Personal Sim card. They sell the Sim cards online but they are much cheaper in BsAs. The only reason I can think of to buy the Sim online is if you need to know your phone number before you go.
[url]http://www.cellularabroad.com/argentinaSIMop.php[/url]