Which portable?

[JohnRoss]

I want a portable telephone to have in the car only for emergency use. Tried Orange with Mobicarte but the card has a very short life once keyed in wether you use it or not and the allocated portable telephone number is lost if not used within a set period and expensive to replace. So any suggestions? Don't want one to use at home as signal strengths for portables here are negligible...............................JR

[Cat]

Leclerc seems to be quite popular http://www.completefrance.com/cs/forums/1265351/ShowPost.aspx

[JohnRoss]

Many thanks for the info. Looks like there is no equivalent to the Orange system we had in the UK where there was no time limit on the credit and no monthly charge, mind you that was 8 years ago so it may not exist now! Never been back there!.............JR

[Pierre ZFP]

I believe there is still no time limit on UK phone credit but you have to make or receive 1 call every 6 months to keep the number 'live'

The Le Clerc option is not free, it leaks (I think) €1.50 a month from your credit for the priviledge of having the SIM but I think it's still probably the cheapest low-use option in France at the moment

[JohnRoss]

Now that is interesting. I rang the portable from the house phone this morning and it worked despite not having keyed in the Mobicarte. Does that mean the life of the number of the portable has been extended by another 6 months (i.e. the same as British Orange) or do you have to make a call from it in which case I would have to load up some credit first?......................JR

[Pierre ZFP]

Hmm not sure.  If you really want to keep the number you might have to load up some credit and make a call. 

Thinks, is there not a free number you can make from your mobile? e.g. the number to check how much credit you have remaining 

[cooperlola]

If the cheapest French mobile option costs 1.50 a month and this phone really is just for emergencies then you could well find (as I do) that it's cheaper to have a UK mobile instead.   I bung £10 on my Tesco phone once a year and that covers all my mobile phone use and I often have loads of credit left after 12 months. May be an option for you even though the calls are more expensive (80p a minute outside UK).

[JohnRoss]

Yes there is a free number for finding out remaining credit but I have not found one for finding out how much life is  remaining in the allocation of the number. I take the point about the UK portable but I have no reason to go to the UK but it might, I suppose, be possible to get one on line. Will look into it. I could just load up the minimum of 10 euros worth of credit, lasts 2weeks, every 6 months and make one call, maybe that is the cheapest option! The Mobicartes seem to have an infinite life until they are keyed in. Could always carry an unused one for emergencies though would have to be keyed in first......................JR

[Pierre ZFP]

I was really meaning that by making any old call, even if it is a free one, that it would reset the time limit of the number for another 6 months and being free, you wouldn't need to top up the credit

[Mr Coeur de Lion]

I have an orange pay as you go and fill up twice a year. Normally putting €60 or so on and that lasts about 6 months and most of the time I do end up using it all up. I found it a better option of just putting €10 on a month as I found one month I'd use non of it and the next I'd need to use €20, so paying €60 twice a year gives greater flexibility and uses most, if not all of the credit.

R.

[Âme]

I came to the same conclusion as Cooperlola and also keep a Tesco mobile for the rare occasions when I need one. Credit can be added instantly on line (from France).

[Cat]

One thing worth remembering, if your phone is for real emergencies only, is that 112 calls to emergency services in France are free, and also not network dependant.

This means that, even with no credit and in a reception black-spot for your service provider, you should still be able to call 112 (the European emergency services number, which will connect you to the most appropriate emergency service). 

[AnOther]

Good point Cat but I think having to call 112 would be classed as a dire emergency for most people, not your average day to day affair [blink] [kiss]

We use a worldwide SIM from Oneroam which, once you have bought it, lasts forever and you only pay for what you use. It also has the advantage that incoming calls are free so people can text or call you all day long from anywhere in the world if they so choose.

[Benjamin]

[quote user="cooperlola"]If the cheapest French mobile option costs 1.50 a month and this phone really is just for emergencies then you could well find (as I do) that it's cheaper to have a UK mobile instead.   I bung £10 on my Tesco phone once a year and that covers all my mobile phone use and I often have loads of credit left after 12 months. May be an option for you even though the calls are more expensive (80p a minute outside UK).[/quote]

We can endorse this as last year, on cooperlola's advice, we also bought a Tesco sim card. Cost £10 with free postage to our friend's UK address. The best bit was that it came with..............wait for it......................£21 worth of calls.  [:D]. It also gives us a 'phone to use on UK visits without spongeing off friends.

I note that JohnRoss doesn't go anywhere near the UK but surely this one has to be a no-brainer even without the free calls.

[Chancer]

I am still guarding the remaining illimité credit on my NRJ mobile, I had €40 on it when they withdrew the tariff and I still have €27 even after several real emergencies when I have been carted away by the paramedics.

What amuses me is both the text and oral messages for remaining credit say that it will run out on the 31st December 1930 [:)]

You have to be very disciplined to guard the credit for emergencies only, I do make a few textos when I have no other choice but usually ask to borrow a friends phone (if they have frre calls or free minutes) but of course they look very sceptical when I look up the number on my own one!

When mine finally runs out I will get a Tesco one or the equivalent or maybe the French providers may by then have joined this millenium?

[Ecossais]

There are a couple of benefits of using a British mobile abroad:

You don’t loose your credit (although you do have to make a quick call every 3 – 6 months (according to network) to keep the number active.

The mobile will be constantly seeking out the strongest signal – so in a weak coverage area you could get a better signal than someone with a French mobile network with poor coverage in a particular area.

Calls aren’t really that much more expensive than with a French PAYG, but do remember you will pay to receive a call in France (TescoMobile charge 15p per minute to receive and 35 p per minute to make a call).  And also someone in France phoning a British mobile (even if it is in France) will be making an international call.

In the end, it comes down to how much you will really use it, and who is going to phone you…..

 

[JohnRoss]

Thanks to all for the info and will consider..........................JR

[Lehaut]

We have a completely free option which we use.  Neuf offered a free Sim card with 10 free minutes per month as part of their package (8mb broadband, 9GB on line storeage, free telephone calls etc).  If you go over the limit then you pay their normal charges.  We ordered the card, fitted it in an old portable our neigbour gave us and have used it without problems for the last year or so.  We got a new 06 number with it and can consult the bills on line.

We have a "normal" SFR card phone with lots of credit on it so ringing the other mobile is never a problem.  The most we have gone over the 10 mins limit is 1euro 50 cents.  Once the card is activated there is no monthly charge or revalidation involved.

You have to be with Neuf (now SFR) to get it if they still do the offer.  Mind you, reading some of the other posts, some might think the downside of certain ISP's make this an risky "free" option!!