In Reply to: Wrong.....regarding 3 phones posted by Tuberose on Monday, 10. December 2007 at 08:20 Bali Time:
Yes Tuberose, you are right about the LG phones that the 3 network sell. They told me that they cannot be unlocked hence wont work with another SIM. Luckily, over the years we have accumulated a Nokia and two Sony Ericssons (all 3 network, 3G phones). I had two of these unlocked by Three yesterday.
Given that the consensus is that a second generation SIM card will work in an unlocked third generation phone, we should be right! If not, you'll all hear about it!
As to IvarBiggen's question below re 'why'. I think he has a good point - holidays are a great chance to leave the worries of home behind - and being uncontactable might be nive. However, Murphy's law dictates that it would be then that something bad might happen - though the intl. roaming might be sufficient for such situations. This was our thinking last time - the emergencies only idea didn't last long and we racked up a huge bill (we were in Bali last on our honeymoon, and our little one was staying with his grandparents - we missed him immensely - even though he couldn't talk, we still wanted to talk to hime).
The second reason - convenience. This might seem silly to some, but we are planning to load two old phones with Bali sims. One for my wife and one for me. We think that it will be useful if we become separated - or do different things for the morning and need to contact the other. We are taking our toddler, which (I think) makes contactability even more important.
It will also be useful to be able to cheaply and easily call local restaurants, etc. (we are there for 3 weeks, so will probably make a fair few local calls)
Perhaps the most important reason (to have at least one) is to be able to call AU at a reasonable rate. I have a few calls that I will need to make (e.g. dietitian consultations - I can't escape, even whilst on holidays). Also, being able to receive calls from others without racking up costly roaming incoming call fees will be good!
I will try to remember to make a note in our JBR as to whether we thought that the two Bali SIMs were useful.
All of your feedback is appreciated. Thanks