On Jun 5, 12:14*am, "Todd Allcock" <eleccon...@AnoOspamL.com> wrote:
> "New iPhones next week..." <vic.hea...@gmail.com> wrote in messagenews:e2a95986-0a48-4790-ac44-69dcb92dbf9d@n19g2000vba.googlegroups.com...
>
> > Question for you...
>
> > Do you have a T-Mobile G1 phone? *if so - how have you enjoyed it?
> > If you don't is there any phone that has world access capabilities
> > that your recommend?
>
> > We may be able to get a pretty good deal on a Blackberry Storm -
> > reviews are balanced across the board - we believe we can live with
> > the quirks - but we have also been offered somewhat of a deal on the
> > G1 and want to compare.
>
> > Thanks much!
>
> You didn't think you could post this without somebody asking "why not just
> use your iPhone?" did you? *The iPhone obviously wil work fine in Germany,
> and the iPhone's roaming data disable function actually works, unlike that
> function on first software version of the G1 which still managed to talk to
> Google's servers over cellular even if you disabled roaming data!
> (Apparently that's been long-since fixed, however.)
>
> In case you're new to international travel with GSM, here's a few basic
> pointers: whatever phone you use, to reduce roaming charges, remember to
> forward your cellular number straight to voicemail or to a domestic number
> (home phone, VoIP, etc.) BEFORE leaving the states, unless it's vital yoube
> able to receive calls "live" in Germany.
>
> Since GSM's roaming system locates you and attempts to deliver a call to you
> prior to rolling to voicemail, users will be charged for a one-minute
> roaming call for unanswered calls or even for calls when your phone is
> turned off, since the call is passed to the roaming operator you last
> registered on, then "forwarded" from them back to your home carrier if
> unanswered, resulting in a one-minute "call" charge being generated.
>
> Only by forwarding all incoming calls unconditionally to somewhere BEFORE
> registering on a foreign system can you prevent these "phantom" roaming
> charges. *Since international incoming SMS is cheaper than a minute of
> roaming, it might be better to forward to a service like YouMail and have
> them send an SMS notifying you of missed calls and new voicemails as wellas
> who they were from, and then you can decide whether it's urgent enough to
> return the calls immediately on your cell or wait until you can get to WiFi
> to use VoIP, or use a calling card from a landline. *You might even buy
> YouMail's transcription service for a month- that way they'll even text you
> a text transcription of the message a caller left your voicemail box saving
> you from having to retrieve it via phone call or email (YouMail, to simulate
> the iPhone's Visual Voicemail, emails an audio file of your voicemail to the
> email of your choice, typically a push email account on your phone.
> Presumably you'd have automatic email retrieval shut off on the phone when
> roaming and wouldn't get any email until you had access to Wifi, so SMS
> voicemail/missed call notification is probably more practical when roaming.)
>
> My wife and I got along pretty well on a trip to Mexico with our phones last
> winter, me with my WinMo Tilt and her with her iPhone, both forwarded to
> YouMail prior to leaving. *The hotel had free WiFi in the lobby and we
> checked email (including missed calls and voicemail notifications from
> YouMail) when returning from our daily excursions and then returned any
> necessary calls via VoIP clients on our respective phones for $0.02/minute
> instead of T-Mobile's $1.49.
>
> Conventional wisdom always says "get a local SIM and stick it in an unlocked
> phone," but I suspect that depends on how long you intend to be there and
> how much calling you need to do. *The cost of the local SIM is often enough
> to have paid for a handful of roaming minutes, and the rare times when my
> wife and I did split up, we got along fine communicating via SMS. *Spending
> $10 or $20 each plus airtime on local SIMs for a short trip probably just
> isn't worth it, unless the locals offer a much better deal on 3G data than
> your hotel does for WiFi.

Thanks Todd