Orange UK diamond in USA?

[sgiannis]

I have 3 quick questions please.
1) I have a UK Diamond from Orange. I am going to the US next month. Will I be able to use my phone with an American SIM card?
2) and if so, which one? My phone is unlocked.
3) any good tarrifs to recommend? (on pay as you go, as I'm only staying for 2 weeks).
Thanks a lot.

[peterc10]

I am going to bump this because I have exactly the same set up and want to know the answer please for when I visit New Jersey in the new year

[e3esxt02]

as long as it's unlocked it should work.

att charges 25 cents a minute on a pay as you go plan. And i think t-mobile is around the same.

[peterc10]

Thanks for that info - that is a lot cheaper than using a UK SIM card on roaming in the USA. How much does it cost to buy a pay as you go SIM and are they easy to find?

[sgiannis]

as long as it's unlocked it should work.

att charges 25 cents a minute on a pay as you go plan. And i think t-mobile is around the same.

thanks a lot...

[sgiannis]

Thanks for that info - that is a lot cheaper than using a UK SIM card on roaming in the USA. How much does it cost to buy a pay as you go SIM and are they easy to find?

they should be easy to find... However, you (and I) have to consider that in the US you pay to receive calls as well.. (right? correct me if I'm wrong)

[peterc10]

You have to pay to receive calls when roaming, i.e. using a UK SIM in the USA. I do not know if you have to pay to receive calls when using a US SIM in the USA. Can someone living in the USA answer that please?

Can you only buy these SIMs in phone shops in the US. Or do supermarkets and other general stores sell them , as they do in the Uk and many other countries? And how much does the SIM itself cost please?

[tzour]

Yes, you pay as much when receiving calls in the US by the use of US Sim. More details on AT&T Pay-As-You-Go can be found at http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-phone-service/go-phones/pyg-plans-phones.jsp?_requestid=16571. Similar can be found at T-Mobile website, at http://www.t-mobile.com/shop/plans/Cell-Phone-Plans.aspx?catgroup=prepaid-cell-phone-plan, where the rate depends on the number of minutes you purchase. The difference lies in the charge per minute as well as the period that you can keep/roll-over the unused minutes. For short-term visit, obviously, the charge per minute is more important. You can find the various phone cards (including AT&T's) in most grocery stores, such as food stores, Wal-Mart, Sears, etc. You chose the minutes, insert the sim with included minutes, and you call a number to activate the number.

There are international roaming SIMs that are tailored to the country (including the US of course) you will be visiting with the calling-back-home plan at a much cheper rate. Calling from China back home to the US, for example, the rate is $0.38/min as compared to 1.89/min on AT&T International Roaming. Type "International SIM" on google search to find all these deals.

Welcome and have a nice trip to the US :)