Mobile (cell) phones - to rent or buy?

This query is probably more for the non-Americans...

My family and are visiting the USA (from Australia) for 11 weeks starting
26/3. We want to have a cell phone during our trip, which covers many
different parts of the country.

I've been researching this online, and there are clearly a few different
options for getting a phone when we arrive. I'm starting to think that for a
stay of 11 weeks it may well be better to buy rather than rent. Can anyone
tell me whether one can buy or rent a handset or SIM card in LA airport? If
so, would these stores tend to charge more for the same thing than could be
obtained elsewhere in the city?

Thanks,

Dom

"Dominic Kelly" <dominic_kelly@velocitynet.com.au> wrote in message
news:40487423$1@news.comindico.com.au...
> This query is probably more for the non-Americans...
>
> My family and are visiting the USA (from Australia) for 11 weeks starting
> 26/3. We want to have a cell phone during our trip, which covers many
> different parts of the country.
>
> I've been researching this online, and there are clearly a few different
> options for getting a phone when we arrive. I'm starting to think that for
a
> stay of 11 weeks it may well be better to buy rather than rent. Can
anyone
> tell me whether one can buy or rent a handset or SIM card in LA airport?
If
> so, would these stores tend to charge more for the same thing than could
be
> obtained elsewhere in the city?

The airport would not be the best place to buy it. If you have a tri-band
phone it may work here in the US. You may want to check out some electronic
stores to see what your options are. There are mobile phone booths at every
shopping mall. Also check electronic stores such as Best Buy.

>
> Thanks,
>
> Dom
>
>
>
>

"Dominic Kelly" <dominic_kelly@velocitynet.com.au> crawled to the
nearest keyboard and summoned the courage to write:

>This query is probably more for the non-Americans...
>
>My family and are visiting the USA (from Australia) for 11 weeks starting
>26/3. We want to have a cell phone during our trip, which covers many
>different parts of the country.
>
>I've been researching this online, and there are clearly a few different
>options for getting a phone when we arrive. I'm starting to think that for a
>stay of 11 weeks it may well be better to buy rather than rent. Can anyone
>tell me whether one can buy or rent a handset or SIM card in LA airport? If
>so, would these stores tend to charge more for the same thing than could be
>obtained elsewhere in the city?

GSM is not the dominant cell phone technology in the US, so your
tri-band phone will have some gaps in its coverage. Furthermore SIM
packs are not as commonly available as in many other countries.

Probably your best bet is to buy a Virgin Mobile phone. Virgin Mobile
is a reseller of the Sprint PCS network. Coverage is good in cities
and along major highways but spotty elsewhere.

Sorry, I don't know if prepaid phones are available at LAX but they
are widely available from the major discount chains (WalMart, Target,
KMart, and so on).



--
Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make
you mad. (Aldous Huxley)

B Vaughan<me@> crawled to the nearest keyboard and summoned
the courage to write:

>>Probably your best bet is to buy a Virgin Mobile phone. Virgin Mobile
>>is a reseller of the Sprint PCS network. Coverage is good in cities
>>and along major highways but spotty elsewhere.
>>
>>Sorry, I don't know if prepaid phones are available at LAX but they
>>are widely available from the major discount chains (WalMart, Target,
>>KMart, and so on).
>
>Do you have any idea how much one of these would cost? And the
>approximate cost of calls? I remember that the 60 dollars worth of
>calls I had on my T-Mobile SIM card got used up in less than a week,
>although that would last me months at home in Italy. Partly it was the
>cost of overseas calls, partly the fact that I had to pay for incoming
>as well as outgoing calls.

Yes, we have a Virgin Mobile phone for the kids so are well aware of
the costs. The cheapest model presently available is $69 although
occasionally there are special deals. If you're really looking to cut
costs there are used ones availabale on Ebay for $20 or so. You don't
have to re-register to a local number since there are no roaming
charges on VM.

Domestic per minute charges are $0.25 for the first 10 minutes on any
day then $0.10/minute thereafter for calls on the same day (the day
starts at 0500 in the locale where the phone is registered).
International calls are $0.75/minute with no "bulk discount". As with
almost all US mobile phones you are charged for incoming calls -- only
recently are plans beginning to become available that allow free
incoming calls. Service is valid for 90 days from the date of your
most recent top-up.

I have a T-Mobile contract phone and really like it, but you are
correct that their prepaid service is not a good value.


--
Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make
you mad. (Aldous Huxley)

AT&T is heavily promoting their "GOPhone", a prepaid cellular, available
in many stores and possibly online. I believe they can be found at
attwireless.com.