Mobile phone in UK

[billseymour]

I shall be visiting the UK for a couple of weeks next month, and I shall need a mobile phone while I am there.

I shall need to be able to make and receive local calls, and receive international calls -- no need to make international calls.

Can anyone recommend the best way to approach this. Can I rent a phone? Can I get a temporary SIM card for my Thai mobile phone?

Your advice would be much appreciated.

[MartinJ]

When will you be here, and where will you being going. ALL the UK next work now cover most of the UK

You can do all you ask

Yes you can rent a phone, but I would not do this too costly. This can be done at the airport when you arrive.

You can buy a cheap sim for £10.00 this would give you a pay as you go option with £10.00 credit to make calls. But not sure if this would work in a Thai phone.

You can buy these from the local stores or car phone warehouse stores
We have them all over the place so finding one is going to be easy

http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/

Orange/O2/Vodafone/T-mobile/fresh/virgin
All about the same

Top up is easy once the credit runs, from almost anywhere including ATMs, it called e-top up you cant miss the signs

If you here for some time and think you may make a lot of calls buying a top up for 50.00 from the car phone warehouse would give you a free phone too with 50.00 credit. This phone will then also work when you get back home to Thailand
If u go for the mobile world option, call charges are 15 per min to any UK number and 10p to Thailand land lines and 15p to Thailand mobiles if you want to call, it free to receive any call. I have use this loads and had no problems. I have a few old ones to that still would work if you want on. You just need to add credit.

I think you get loads of help on this, but if you need more. Please ask.
_________________
Bond: "Who are you?"
Pussy: "My name is Pussy Galore."
Bond: (pause) "I must be dreaming..."

[billseymour]

Thanks MartinJ for the speedy reply.

To answer your questions, I shall be there from June 13 to 27, and mostly in the West country -- Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, etc.

[Wanderlust]

bill,
When i was back in the Uk a couple of years ago i bought an Orange sim card for my Thai mobile phone (?10), in the local market at a stall selling a variety of them. It seemed slightly dodgy at the time, i think because for a long time UK mobile phones didn't have access to the sim card but I think that has changed. Anyway I have been back a couple of times since (and one of those times I was in Cornwall where it worked no problem) and as MartinJ says it is easy to top up credit, and also the remaining credit I had from before was still there, much to my amazement (it was a year between trips). It will also work in Thailand incidentally - when I arrive in Thailand I always get a message telling me so, although call charges are higher than my Thai sim card.

[MartinJ]

What Wanderlust tells you is correct, the older Orange sim retain their credit for longer unfortunately the newer ones only retain it for 60 days now.

And yes orange UK works on the Orange Thai signal, I know this and have received calls in Thailand on orange a sim, but it cost me lots.

The orange Sim pack you can buy now comes with a top up cards which makes top up so much easier. Cost £10.00 which has £10.00 credit.

But so does O2 which is a better network,

Both change no more 20p per call to landlines but more to another network (40p+) phone which you can’t tell any more until u find you run out of credit.

T-mobile is doing a deal now buy a sim for £10.00 and get £20.00 of calls free

Available at all good phone shops. and are noranl active with in 12hours but normaly just after 2 hours.

You can buy these online cheaper but as you want one as soon as u land that no good to you.


I be in Hua Hin on the 12th June but be in Thailand from the 2nd June.
_________________
Bond: "Who are you?"
Pussy: "My name is Pussy Galore."
Bond: (pause) "I must be dreaming..."

[Jaime]

I think cheapest standard rates for pay as you go is Virgin mobile.

I am pretty certain that credit is retained indefinitely.

Check out the web site (type virgin mobile into google!).
_________________
"The man who never made a mistake never did bugger all" - Old Welsh proverb

"Why limit yourself to the death of a crummy celery stalk when you can eat a giraffe?" - PWEETA

[MartinJ]

Sorry Jaime

Not quite true about credit remaining indefinitely, once more yes if you got one of the older sim when virgin 1st started on pay as you go, your line remains active allowing you to still receive call for what seems like forever.

If you join now with pay monthly or pay as you go your credit will roll for 60 days and then you need to top up again,
If you not using the phone much but want to keep a number doing for 5pounds on DD works

If you don’t use the credit within 60 days it is lost

Also they do state in there terms and conditions that if you not use your phone for over 180 day you may lose the line/number.

Virgin use the T-mobile network to carry there signals but do offer a clear / better service to call charges.

The fresh network from the car phone warehouse is a match for the call cost (15p)

Virgin drop cost to 5p after the first 5 mins (15p before)

Virgin calls to other network phones 35p

Hope I not giving to much information here
_________________
Bond: "Who are you?"
Pussy: "My name is Pussy Galore."
Bond: (pause) "I must be dreaming..."

[billseymour]

Many thanks to MartinJ, Wanderlust and Jaime for your helpful and speedy responses, and especially to MartinJ for your private messages.

It seems my problem is solved.