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motoged
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6481
Registered: 7-31-2006
Location: Kamloops, BC
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Mood: Gettin' Better
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Baja Cell phone
I will be in Baja for a month and would like to know how my options for getting a "throw-away" cell phone for occasional use there.
Thanks for any info/advice. 
Don't believe everything you think....
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shari
Select Nomad
Posts: 13048
Registered: 3-10-2006
Location: bahia asuncion, baja sur
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Mood: there is no reality except the one contained within us "Herman Hesse"
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go to a telcel place and get a cheapo phone...we like the Nokia 400 peso phone as it had a great battery...then just get recargas when you need them.
Good to get the phone in the area code you will be in most...or you can just get a new chip in the area code where you are for 100 pesos.
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motoged
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6481
Registered: 7-31-2006
Location: Kamloops, BC
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Mood: Gettin' Better
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Shari,
Gracias....
How many area codes in Baja? I think I want it for south of GN...
....will be in your 'hood sometime around Jan. 15th...mas o menos.
Don't believe everything you think....
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Floatflyer
Nomad
Posts: 311
Registered: 2-15-2009
Location: Whidbey Island, WA
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Mood: Wet & Cold
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A month ago we went into the Oxxo store in Los Barriles. We paid 289 pesos for a phone, no id or anything else required. With the phone we got 100
pesos of air time included.
Later we saw phones for sale at the El Rey store in La Ribera. There is no need to go into a TelCel store unless you want to based on our recent
experience.
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dasubergeek
Senior Nomad
Posts: 694
Registered: 8-17-2013
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If you stop in Tijuana, they sell a 301-peso phone at Sanborns that comes with 300 pesos of credit. When you're low on credit, you just go into any
Oxxo, 7-Eleven, Ley, grocery store, etc. and ask for a recarga.
There are seven "claves LADA" in Baja California (technically eight, but one is just the bridge offices on the toll road to Sonora) and four in Baja
California Sur. From northeast to southwest:
Los Algodones and Cuervos: 658
Mexicali and San Felipe: 686
Tecate: 665
Tijuana: 664
Rosarito: 661
Ensenada and the Valle de Guadalupe: 646
San Quintín and south to the state line: 616
Bahía de los Ángeles (satellite phones): 200
Guerrero Negro to Mulegé: 615
Comondú, Loreto, C. Constitución: 613
La Paz, Todos Santos, El Pescadero: 612
Los Cabos: 624
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motoged
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6481
Registered: 7-31-2006
Location: Kamloops, BC
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Mood: Gettin' Better
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Thank you, folks.
Very helpful 
Don't believe everything you think....
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mcnut
Nomad
Posts: 177
Registered: 12-9-2013
Location: Dammeron Valley, UT
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Well everyone has to have a 1st post, got to start somewhere, may as well be here!
I wanted to bump this and add to the question from motoged. I'm in a similar fix, looking for a low cost option to call home (USA) while on an annual
2 week trip to Baja.
As far as American contract carriers I understand that Verizon is best, AT&T less so and Sprint almost nonexistent. Guess which we have? Even with
international calling turned on our Sprint phones only worked in 3 or 4 of the largest metro areas in Baja.
Will the suggestion to buy a no-contract prepaid phone in MX work for international calling to the US? If so how are the international charges
billed/paid for? Other options?
Bruce
[Edited on 12-13-2013 by mcnut]
[Edited on 12-13-2013 by mcnut]
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msteve1014
Senior Nomad
Posts: 947
Registered: 12-2-2006
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Welcome aboard. The many voices here have voted ATT as the best U.S. carrier. So, you could buy a cheap ATT go-phone and be good for 2 weeks, Or buy
a cheap telcell phone here, and be good for 2 weeks. Both phones are prepay per minute. Both phones will make local and international calls.
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jbcoug
Senior Nomad
Posts: 709
Registered: 9-24-2006
Location: Vancouver, WA
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Mood: Needing Baja!
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I have Verizon at home and am very satisfied with it. I took it to Baja for three weeks in August and got reception for one call in La Paz. The rest
of the time nothing. I wouldn't want to depend on Verizon in Baja.
\"The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.\" Andy Rooney
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mcnut
Nomad
Posts: 177
Registered: 12-9-2013
Location: Dammeron Valley, UT
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Thanks for the quick reply & input!
It has been frustrating to see locals in places like Vizcanio, San Ignacio and Mulege chatting when we have no signal.
Perhaps the AT&T prepay will work, I called Verizon about same and was told we would need a post pay account and that requires 6 months of service
to establish. I assumed this was a means to bill the international charges.
I will look into the AT&T option.
Bruce
[Edited on 12-13-2013 by mcnut]
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KaceyJ
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Posts: 391
Registered: 10-7-2011
Location: there
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AT&T and T-mobile use GSM technology.
Sprint and Verison use CDMA.
Mexico Uses GSM
I think the best option is to buy an unlocked GSM phone and stick a Sim card in for where you are traveling.
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Bajaboy
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4375
Registered: 10-9-2003
Location: Bahia Asuncion, BCS, Mexico
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| Quote: | Originally posted by mcnut
Thanks for the quick reply & input!
It has been frustrating to see locals in places like Vizcanio, San Ignacio and Mulege chatting when we have no signal.
Perhaps the AT&T prepay will work, I called Verizon about same and was told we would need a post pay account and that requires 6 months of service
to establish. I assumed this was a means to bill the international charges.
I will look into the AT&T option.
Bruce
[Edited on 12-13-2013 by mcnut] |
We call the US for free using Google Voice over wifi. If you just want to check in, finding wfi is easy nowadays. Just another option.
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mcnut
Nomad
Posts: 177
Registered: 12-9-2013
Location: Dammeron Valley, UT
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Thanks to all going to do some more research on AT&T and may test the Google voice.
Bruce
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dasubergeek
Senior Nomad
Posts: 694
Registered: 8-17-2013
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AT&T is absolutely the US way to go; Verizon doesn't allow GSM roaming even when CDMA (Verizon and Sprint's technologies) are not available,
assuming your phone can handle both, like an iPhone.
Calling back to the US is pretty cheap on the Telcel prepaid plan. Look around (I'm not on a real computer right now) for the post where I listed the
tariffs. Within the last month for sure. I talk all the time on the phone and I never seem to run out of credit.
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mcnut
Nomad
Posts: 177
Registered: 12-9-2013
Location: Dammeron Valley, UT
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Well I decided to order a $15 AT&T GoPhone and take it to the locale AT&T store to fire up and load with $. In the US it's $.10/min and in MX
$0.25 a minute. So for $40 I have a phone and 100 minutes of MX air time.
My cell service is with Sprint and only spend a couple weeks a year in Baja so I wasn't interested in a contract or even a monthly plan so I opted for
the pay as you go option.
Many suggested doing this in MX and I'm sure that would be cheaper but I didn't want to spend vacation time in MX to buy and setup a phone. Also most
all calls will be international going from MX to the US. I thought it would be nice to have a US number and for the phone to work well in the US when
not in MX. Perhaps a Telcel phone would have done the same but this seemed simpler.
Thanks to all how have contributed their thoughts on the subject.
Bruce
[Edited on 12-18-2013 by mcnut]
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dasubergeek
Senior Nomad
Posts: 694
Registered: 8-17-2013
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| Quote: | Originally posted by mcnut
Well I decided to order a $15 AT&T GoPhone and take it to the locale AT&T store to fire up and load with $. In the US it's $.10/min and in MX
$0.25 a minute. So for $40 I have a phone and 100 minutes of MX air time.
My cell service is with Sprint and only spend a couple weeks a year in Baja so I wasn't interested in a contract or even a monthly plan so I opted for
the pay as you go option.
Many suggested doing this in MX and I'm sure that would be cheaper but I didn't want to spend vacation time in MX to buy and setup a phone. Also most
all calls will be international going from MX to the US. I thought it would be nice to have a US number and for the phone to work well in the US when
not in MX. Perhaps a Telcel phone would have done the same but this seemed simpler.
Thanks to all how have contributed their thoughts on the subject.
Bruce
[Edited on 12-18-2013 by mcnut] |
Sounds good Bruce. Make sure you check when your minutes expire so you don't lose your investment.
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pauldavidmena
Super Nomad
Posts: 1715
Registered: 5-23-2013
Location: Centerville, MA, USA
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| Quote: | Originally posted by KaceyJ
AT&T and T-mobile use GSM technology.
Sprint and Verison use CDMA.
Mexico Uses GSM
I think the best option is to buy an unlocked GSM phone and stick a Sim card in for where you are traveling. |
I did exactly this - bought an unlocked HTC One and a pre-paid Telcel SIM card - and had no problems during my last trip to Baja. Based upon my
experience, I'll do the same when I return next month. 
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mcnut
Nomad
Posts: 177
Registered: 12-9-2013
Location: Dammeron Valley, UT
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One negative with going into the AT&T store was that my sales person while very nice and gave maximum effort was not fully up to speed on using a
GoPhone (prepay) in MX. Seems they are more interested in selling iphones so I had to press the issue a little, we got there but it took a while. Also
being a week before Christmas didn't help.
Bruce
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willyAirstream
Super Nomad
Posts: 1786
Registered: 1-1-2010
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Google voice is free from anywhere in the country where you start your account, so set it up in the usa before you leave. Calls within mex are cheaper
than telcel, but getting a telcel burner is good to have with you while travelling.
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dasubergeek
Senior Nomad
Posts: 694
Registered: 8-17-2013
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The nice thing about having a Telcel is that if I need to have someone in MX call me (let's say they're going to be my proxy at the fish market and
get me some uni), it's nice to have a local number rather than asking them to make an international call.
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