sherpaj-ga:
Since we are starting with the phone, first here's the bit on technology:
From the FAQ for Voq: "The Voq Professional Phone is a ?tri-band?
phone that supports GSM/GPRS networks internationally. It operates on
networks in the 900, 1800, and 1900 MHz bands in Europe, or 850, 1800
and 1900 MHz bands in North America." [Note: 850MHz and 900MHz are
considered the same "band"].
Plans and coverage:
The US GSM carriers and coverage are at:
http://www.gsmworld.com/roaming/gsminfo/cou_us.shtml
The biggest of those are ATT Wireless, Cingular Wireless and T-Mobile.
They all have coverage in the Los Angeles area. Check their
individual coverage maps and rate plans. The above URL also has links
to their websites. Check the companies' websites for the latest
coverage maps.
For Canadian coverage, see
http://www.cellular-news.com/coverage/canada.shtml (since you'll have
a GSM phone, check GSM coverage only).
For GSM coverage in UK, see http://www.gsmcoverage.co.uk/coverage.html
At least one network (T-Mobile) has coverage in Hawaii.
Other Issues:
GSM is a bit different in that your phone needs what is called a SIM
card (subscriber identity module). You MUST have a SIM card from a
provider for your phone to work. If that provider has agreements with
other GSM carriers (which they normally do, at least within the US,
and some cross border), then you can roam on the other carriers'
networks. Some providers "lock" the phone with the SIM card, so ti
can only be used on their networks. If you buy a phone make sure it
comes unlocked (most 3rd parties cell unlocked phones). Different
carriers have different policies on use of unlocked phones. From what
I understand, ATT will lock the GSM phones they sell, for use on their
network only (but if you buy your own phone, you'd have to check their
policy to see if that's true). Cingular will let you unlock it after
3 months or so. T-Mobile seems more flexible with unlocking the
phones. Some places will have GSM voice coverage, but not GPRS/Data
coverage. GSM coverage is spreading the US, but more mature in
Europe/other parts of the world.
If you use it in another country, either use international roaming (if
you are going there for a very short time), or get a local SIM card
(remove your SIM card and put in the new one - and don't lose your
original card, because you'll need it when you are back home) if you
are staying a few days/weeks or get an account with a local GSM
provider if you are staying longer.
Pricing plans vary quite a bit - your domestic plan may permit you to
call all of US for a certain number of minutes at a flat rate (say for
example, 1000 minutes for $40). International roaming varies from
expensive to very expensive (I have seen a few dollars per minute, in
some cases), hence the comment about prepaid/local SIM cards above.
As you can see, there are several things to consider that are specific
to your needs. Plan on spending an hour to two hours searching the
net with your needs in mind and find the best plan.
--
I am not an official GA researcher. |
