Cell phone choice for canadian students in USA

[jdmsource]

My brother is going to school in Montana and we are just trying to figure out the best option for a cell phone while he is there for school. he is going to Montana Tech in Butte Montana. i havent really looked into it but according to him AT&T wants a $500 deposit even if he is going month to month and the plans are pretty expensive and the other choice he says is Verizon but you have to buy a phone out with them. what my question is, what would be the best option for him? signing a contract there? going pay as you go? or taking his current phone and using it there?

Thanks in advance for any insight and advice

[nismodrifter]

While studying/working in the USA I was able to get a phone + plan with Verizon without any issues. The process took about 30 minutes as they had to call their office/whatever to do a Canadian credit check, but that was about it. No deposit or anything required. My good friend had a phone through T-Mobile and the process was the same. I can't recall if any of my CDN classmates were rockin AT&T....maybe someone on here can provide some info about that.

I paid like $40 before taxes for a decent plan through Verizon, no data or anything but I don't use that shit. I got some POS Samsung phone for free on a 2-year contract. I used to use Google Voice on my PC or Skype to call home. If you have a smart phone with internet you could use Google Voice straight from your phone to call home for free.

[jdmsource]

thanks nismo, if they offer a 2 year contract then i think that would be the best option as he is there for 2 years anyways

[pheoxs]

Just get an unlocked phone here (or if he already has one), go down, buy a SIM card and use that month to month. Then whenever he is home (Summers, after school etc) he can just grab a SIM card from Rogers/Telus/Bell, pop that in and use the same phone.

[broken_legs]

02 pay as you go.

calls to Canada are 5c/min

[Little Dragon]

If he has a blackberry currently I can unlock it for him. (free) Could save some money.

[jdmsource]

Originally posted by Little Dragon
If he has a blackberry currently I can unlock it for him. (free) Could save some money.
awesome! thanks for the offer bud, if we go that route i will def contact you.:thumbsup:

[sexualbanana]

Burner phones aren't a bad option, but I guess it also depends on how much your brother plans on using it. Usually when I go to the US now, I bring my burner phone from Verizon and get it re-activated.

[FraserB]

My sister was down in the US for a few years for school. She had a Verizon phone, apparently little or no issues for a Canadian to get one either pay as you go or on a plan.

[Guillermo]

LOL, I can't see why this is such a big deal, just tell your brother go into a store and get a phone... he shouldn't have to put a giant payment down, as long as he has a US address all he should have to do is sign the contract. if they are unwilling to do it, jsut go to another store and try again. :dunno:

i've been an international student before too, and never had a problem getting anything like cell phone, cable, land line, etc. etc. etc.

[jdmsource]

Originally posted by Guillermo
LOL, I can't see why this is such a big deal, just tell your brother go into a store and get a phone... he shouldn't have to put a giant payment down, as long as he has a US address all he should have to do is sign the contract. if they are unwilling to do it, jsut go to another store and try again. :dunno:

i've been an international student before too, and never had a problem getting anything like cell phone, cable, land line, etc. etc. etc.
:confused: read the 1st post again about the $500 deposit part. is there a rule that a thread cant be made to ask opinions or advice from others that are or have been students?

[Guillermo]

Originally posted by jdmsource

:confused: read the 1st post again about the $500 deposit part.

perhaps you should read my post again



Originally posted by jdmsource

is there a rule that a thread cant be made to ask opinions or advice from others that are or have been students?

interesting, since you're the one asking for advice. (Actually, you said "Thanks in advance for any insight and advice.") Since i've dealt with this situation myself, several times, i thought i would try and help, so i'm not sure why you're jumping on my back about it. at any rate, good luck finding a phone... I don't think i've ever heard of someone not being able to figure out how to get a phone, and so they enlist the help of their brother who also can't figure it out, and thus has to go online asking for help (and then STILL can't seem to figure it out). :rofl: :banghead:

[Godfuader]

Check at your school. Probably have a couple ads in the hallways...call em up and they will hook you up in minutes. Be very careful with discount providers (MetroPCS, Boost, Virgin) as their service levels may decline significantly if you leave a city. AT&T has a great prepaid deal for $50 unlimited talk, text and web. You can buy AT&T phones for $12 at Wal Mart (sim included) or bring any unlocked GSM.

[jdmsource]

Originally posted by Godfuader
Check at your school. Probably have a couple ads in the hallways...call em up and they will hook you up in minutes. Be very careful with discount providers (MetroPCS, Boost, Virgin) as their service levels may decline significantly if you leave a city. AT&T has a great prepaid deal for $50 unlimited talk, text and web. You can buy AT&T phones for $12 at Wal Mart (sim included) or bring any unlocked GSM.
Thanks! That $50 plan sounds pretty good, will look into that

[Zephyr]

MetroPCS, Boost and Virgin I believe use mostly Sprint towers. But I would double check their coverage maps for reference. The plans are super cheap $50 for unlimited everything and includes an Android phone.

Coverage maps:

T-Mobile (maybe soon to be AT&T) GSM:
http://www.t-mobile.com/coverage/pcc.aspx

Verizon CDMA:
http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/CoverageLocatorController?requesttype=NEWREQUEST&coveragetype=datacoverage4g

AT&T GSM:
http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/?wtSlotClick=1-0061J2-0-6#?type=voice

Sprint CDMA:
http://coverage.sprintpcs.com/IMPACT.jsp?INTNAV=ATG:HE:Cov

I have AT&T, it isn't the cheapest, and I've used pay as you go before, not that great either especially if you dont pay attention to the fine print about expiration dates. Coverage for AT&T is spotty (iPhone user). Sprint has been the best service I have seen. Verizon has gotten spotty too. Hope this helps.

[soupey]

i used tmobile flex prepaid monthly with my bb9700@ $80/month,

unlimited data that also works in canada thru rogers without roaming costs, and texts are considered local across north america. no deposit required as there is no contract, just need your own device. you can also connect to wifi anywhere (globally) and make calls like they are local using bb's UMA feature.

i could actually sell my old bb and sim if you are interested, just need to reactivate the plan and change billing info...let me know if youre interested.

[thetransporter]

Verizon can do a credit check on Canadians with CDN credit file.