Chrissie Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 Sorry if this has been covered before - I've tried searching without any joy.Am going to the UK for a few days and wondered if I could use my SFR mobile phone there, preferably without it costing a fortune! We pay as we go with 60 day cards (usually the problem is to use up the credit as we don't use the phone much.)Any ideas?TIAChrissie (81) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baz Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 Provided your card allows roaming, it will work in the UK. However, the call charges will be expensive. Why not buy a cheap call phone card from a newsagent or anyone selling them in the UK and use a normal telephone line from Private premises, hotels, phone boxes etc. call charges will only be a few pence per minute.Baz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mpprh Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 HiI use my SFR phone in UK. I think I had to ask them to enable use outside France, and it costs about Euro 2.50 / month.True roaming uses the SFR nominated local suppliers. Your charges should be UK mobil to mobil charges + a surcharge. So, you don't need to dial 0044 . If you search through the terms & conditions you can find out about the surcharge.Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baz Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 Peter, sorry to disagree with you regarding charges. If you use a SFR sim card in the UK all your calls will be charged at international rates whether phoning an UK or French number. Also be aware anyone who rings you will only be charge their normal rate and you will pay the international charge for their call. It really can be very expensive, in Europe I pay anything upto 85pence per minute using a UK sim card.The best way round this problem is to have your mobile unlocked and when in the UK purchase a UK pay as you go sim card which do not have time limits. This way you use a French card in France and an UK card in the UK.Baz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maddie Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 Hi there. I just did the same thing with my SFR Carte phone. You can register with SFR Monde on the SFR website - it was free for me. Easy to do. Calls not cheap though so I would stick to using mobile for emergencies and if you need to make calls buy a UK Vodafone PAYG sim card (you may not need to get your phone unlocked as Vodafone and SFR are linked in some way - same company/partners perhaps - not sure - but I didn't have to get my UK vodafone unlocked to use SFR sim card) or buy a BT phone card. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lecabine Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 Hi ChrissieGet your phone unlocked and then buy a sim card in the UK, everywhere sells them now and it wont cost you much. If you want to buy online try www.expansys.com they also sell non contract unlocked phones and are very very reliable.Or, if you are feeling brave, try eBay, there are loads for sale for just a few pounds. Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ecossais Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 I cannot comment on SFR “roaming” charges, however you will pay to receive as well as make calls on your French mobile whenever you are out of the country. It could be pretty expensive. When you’re in the UK, are you mainly going to use your mobile to call UK numbers (and receive calls from UK numbers)? If so, and your mobile is “unlocked” (it will work with any network SIM) you’d be best buying a UK pay as you go SIM card when you get to the UK. To check if your mobile is unlocked, try a different network SIM (eg Orange France) in the phone. If it works, then you’ll be OK – simply buy a UK network pay as you go SIM card from eg The Link or Carphone Warehouse when you get back. The Virgin network probably offers the best value – SIM cards are £10 and include £5 worth of calls. You are charged 15p per minute for the first 5 minutes of calls to landline numbers and other Virgin mobiles in any day and 5ppm for further calls in the same day. Calls to other UK mobiles are 35ppm. Calling back to France is 40ppm. If your mobile is locked to SFR, you could get it “unlocked” by an independent / back street phone shop (it costs £10 - £20 in the UK) or consider buying a UK pay as you go phone when you get back. Pay as you go phones are currently available for £29.99, so it might work out cheaper to buy a UK PAYG mobile and use it when you’re visiting the UK. Note that with UK mobiles, there is no need to buy credit every month (other than with the “3” network.) You only need to make a chargeable call once every 3 months to keep the SIM active (maybe leave the SIM with a friend or make a quick call from France just to keep it working so you can use it the next time you visit the UK?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jc Posted November 11, 2004 Share Posted November 11, 2004 This is the other way round;when I used to use my UK mobile in France I could dial French numbers direct,just dial the eight numbers with no international code,much cheaper;now I have to use the 0044 code and it becomes an international call with big charges-no problem-I got a landline. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissie Posted November 11, 2004 Author Share Posted November 11, 2004 Thanks for all the suggestions - I only really want the mobile for phoning home (France) when staying in a London B&B. Looked at the SFR Monde option on their website. Seems a bit dear. Think TOH will have to survive without daily updates from me! Phonecard option would be good for emergencies though.Chrissie(81) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.