Get the correct mobile

[Smiler]

Happy Labour Weekend Everyone

Does anyone recent experience of purchasing NZ mobile?

We got a NZ one for G when we arrived and I kept mine with its stack of txt credit for 'talking' to my little boy in UK.

It seems I've been paying £1.00 or so a txt and he hasn't received most of them and now is the time to top it up or get a NZ mobile.

I've read previous threads on here and looked at the multitude of NZ mobile phone sites (TWO) and I'm still a bit confused. I need to txt the UK which I understand now can only be received and returned by certain UK companies, and talk to other nz mobiles without selling a kidney.

Can anyone make it a bit clearer for me please? Which company are you with and which plan do you have? Does it work for you?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Deborah

[jubjub]

We have just got Vodafone pay as you go cards (put them in our unlocked UK mobiles), what kind of phone have you got, as unlocking it would be way cheaper than getting a new phone, and then you just get a sim card.

I think we get texts through OK, but only know folks that are on Orange in UK.

[kiwidebs]

Hi Deborah

My mum has her phone with Telecom NZ and I can receive her texts but she doesn't get mine back, my Auntie and my brother both text me and they're both with Vodaphone (I think) and I can text back no problems.

Hope this helps
Debs

[Miffy]

I'm with vodaphone here. (did as Jub jub did used UK phone got it unlocked and use vodaphone pay as you go)
Al my calls and texts have got throught to UK mobiles, even to UK mobiles, on a UK network, here in NZ!

Most of the deals you see advertised are for contracts. Apparently alot of the savvy teenagers have 2 mobiles one with telecom and one with vodaphone. They use the telecome during the week ($10 text etc) and then Vodaphone over the weekend (free calls between vodaphone mobiles) and pay hardly anything for their calls / texts.
But thats a bit compleicated for the likes of me! and there is a limited amount of people I know to call / text in NZ at the mo

[Smiler]

Miffy, Sal & Debs

I wish Scott was here. He could sell mobiles to well, telecom! I'm just getting

My T68 ericsson I'm pretty much sure is unlocked and if not would be easy to do so. (I guess) I don't have anyone to txt in NZ ( only his nibs) and only him to ring (so far) and he has a telecom mobi. All the rellies in Uk are on O2 or T mobile. Does vodafone work with the txting to Uk for all companies there or only certain ones?

Debs what company are you with in the UK?

Befuddled of Wellington.

[Timbo]

I havent tried it out internationaly Deborah, but if you have MSN messenger on your puter, you can send sms texts to mobies from it.

[Avalon]

Smiler,

If you have an erricson - it may mean you cant use Telecom as the technology is different. I have a bit of a bee in my bonnet about Telecom anyway - but I have to say - Vodaphone have been very helpful. I too used a UK phone and have gone onto pay as you go (only they call it pre-paid here which confuses me no end!)

One thing to bear in mind with your choice is that calling or txting between Vodaphone and Telecom phones IN NZ is more expensive that between the same company. I Know that doesnt help with your UK problem (I have no experience to offer im sorry) but its worth thinking about for your calls here.

[kiwidebs]

Sorry Deborah, I can't help as I get sooo confuzzled about the whole thing myself. I'm with Orange here in the UK. The only person from NZ that I can't text is my Mum and she's with Telecom, the rest are with Vodaphone and I haven't had any problems.

Hope this helps
Debs

[Park City Partner]

Hi Folks. Not to be a dumb American or anything but what do you mean when you say "unlock"? My partner and I have one Verizon phone and one T-mobile. When we went to NZ earlier this year T-Mobile said my phone would work (brought it but never used it because of the expense) but of course they never mentioned buying a NZ sim card...not sure we would get a straight answer if we asked...

[StevieD]

Park City - when a phone is "locked", it is coded to only accept the SIM card for a particular network, in your case Verizon (Vodafone!). If you put another network SIM in it just won't work. To have it unlocked means that you can use the phone on any compatible network by using the SIM card for that network. This has to be done by software/SMS remote programming. It costs unfortunately.
The reason networks lock phones is that they want to claw back their investment in you, the customer. When they offer all the cheap deals, e.g. "look at the super phone from xxxxxxx we can give you" type of thing, they heavily subsidise the cost of the phone. This is why you can get the latest all singing/dancing gizmo for a few dollars instead of the hundreds that they really cost. Hope that helps!

I suspect, but don't quote me on this, that Telecom NZ is on a different type of system than Vodafone. I will have to look this one up. Await further info regarding the texting problems you are all experiencing. It may be due to the SMS platform being used by one or both companies not being set up to accept SMS from the other company. Will have a dig around.

Steve