Prepaid mobile phone in India - a starter's guide! (roaming, SIM cards, networks...)

cullepm3

This is what it cost for me to get started:

Nokia 1112 - 1700 Rs
Sim - 99 Rs
Airtel Prepaid Minutes - 500 Rs

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Re: Proof of Address, I am not sure a foreign address will work anymore. I finally got the hotel where I am staying to provide a letter declaring proof of local residency, but even after that the first couple places I went claimed to be out of cards. I don't think they wanted to deal with the hassle. The place that finally sold me one called the Hotel and the Airtel office to make sure everything was legit.

anorak

I got a SIM at Delhi airport last time from the Airtel booth (passport photo required, but the girl in the booth had a digital camera for people without photos), it was RS500 with RS300 call time (I think).
Topping up with cards is a rip off, but if you topped up with "easy charge" (ie. the bloke in the shop texted airtel on his phone) for ammounts like RS333, 555, 777 etc. you got the full ammount credited to your phone. The confirmation text came immediately and before handing over any money.
It was only valid for 6 months, texts to other Indian mobiles was RS1.5 and about RS5-10 to foreign phones.

steven_ber

I've a good knowledge of most threads on indiamike, but I've never read one about mobile phones, sim cards and charges, so please understand if all this has been discussed before.

A few questions: -

(I will be in India for about 37 days, starting in Delhi)

1, If I buy an Airtel sim (with call time as mentioned by anorak) at Delhi airport, will it be compatible with a UK mobile phone, will it fit?

2, Will my phone then be able to receive calls & texts from the UK?

3, Will I be charged (or loose 'call time') for calls (& texts) I receive from the UK?

4, Will I be able to make calls (and texts) from anywhere in India? (and to anywhere in India?)

5, Will I be able to call or text someone in the UK? and what would be the cost?

6, What is the coverage like in India? would a city with less than 200,000 people have good coverage? Does this depend on the company I buy the sim card from?

Sorry for all the questions, but I'm sure there are many tourists wondering the same.

Thanks for any info.

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patti123

1 If your mobile is unlocked yes the sim will work
2 Yes
3 No
4 yes
5 Yes about 2rs a text and 16rs a min a call
6 i dont seem to get a signal in Hampi with Airtel but that was a few years ago

Another thing is when you go travelling you pay a lot more for calls as you seem to go on " roaming " .
If i buy my sim in Goa and then go to Mumbai i pay to receive a call .
Last year when you got back to Uk we could all use our 1 year sims to still text any where in India for just over 1 rs a text, but the have wised up to that now .

capt_mahajan

My opinion

1. same as patti
2. calls sure, texts I dont know for sure; some international texting seems to be linked to arrangements between service providers.
3. no, except when roaming (using the sim card outside the area you bought it in, in this case Delhi. You will pay charges from Delhi to wherever you are)
4. Yes
5. Yes, though I thought costs were closer to 7/9 rupees a minute for calls.
6. MTNL in Delhi (or BSNL elsewhere) has wider coverage. Airtel has better coverage in bigger cities. Small cities and even rural areas are much better covered by MTNL/BSNL. Larger cities no problem with Airtel.

It is cheapest (use wise) to buy the simcard in the area it is going to be used the most (because of roaming charges), but if you land in Delhi and want a phone on arrival, then you have to buy in Delhi.

Finally, Airtel can be recharged from most big cities (all?) and presumably some smaller ones too. Maybe MTNL can too, but am not sure. Airtel recharging will be much easier and more convenient vs MTNL, overall.

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patti123

It was 1 and half rs a text to text anyone in India and 5 rs a text to text anyone in the Uk ,that was May this year. I think they have put the price up slightly since i got back.
It will cost your friends 20-24p a text from their mobiles in Uk if they text you back. But if they use something like 18185 they can text you for 1p and call you for 6p a min. You dont pay any incoming call charges .
Oh and Vodaphone are out there now but linked up with another provider, i think its Hutch

When you buy a sim card there is a lot of paper work to fill out, they photocopy your passport and you have to tell them where you are staying. All the paper work goes to some head office . If the paper work takes to long to get sent your Sim wont work ! Takes for ever to get it back working .So buy your sim at a big shop that sells a lot of sims as they will send of quicker.

And if you buy a sim at the right time you wont get clobbered with tax ! if i top up with 1200rs i sometimes loose 400rs in tax ,but they always seem to have some offers on where you can top up and get all that cash you have paid and not lose a lot to tax.

That Nokia they sell in India for 1600rs imo is rubbish. If your mobile is locked to a network in the uk go to a market in the uk and get it unlocked for about £5.In India they take the phone away to do it, i had 1 mobile unlocked there but was told to put my name on the battery incase the battery gets changed.
Go to the £1 shop and get the travel plugs 4 for a £1. I have got a Belkin 4 way plug i take as the electric in India can fry your mobile. But you can always plug it in to that "space ship" thingy thats sometimes on top of a fridge that keeps the electric stable to stop the fridge blowing up.
Rambilng on a bit now !!

ingelalex

Is "Airtel" good for South Goa (Agonda)? And for Kerala- would it work there also?
Can we buy it from the airport when we land in Bombay or maybe even at Goa's airport?

Ingela & Alex

patti123

ingelalex I used mine in Agonda. I sometimes didnt get a signal in Ashuvm and walking the cliffs to sweet lake at Arambol no one gets a signal there. I dont get one at Terricol or does any other mobile but they were putting up a new mast there so maybe you can now.
Not sure about Kerala.

I not sure about buying at Airport , i got mine in Konica shop in Calangute a few years ago as its a life time sim.

burbujasdeamor

Hi all!

I will be landing at the Mumbai airport, but not staying in Mumbai at all. I'll be roaming all over India, spending only 2-5 days in each place. So, where should I buy the SIM card.

I have an Asian phone (got it in Taiwan), I intend to make calls to Indian destinations only (for hotel reservations, flight confirmations, etc.). Any suggestion is appreciated by this first timer

Cheers!

steven_ber

Finally, time to get back to this thread.

Thanks for all the great info.

I've not had time to get my phone unlocked as I've been too bust and couldn't find a market, all the shops charge £10 and I'm too mean to pay that.

So I'll get it unlocked in India and get the sim card at the same time, do I need to leave the battery in the phone when I get it unlocked? (I just wrote my name on the battery )

I've got a plug adaptor (cheap one I got in India) that I normally use for other things, I'm hoping it will be OK for the mobile phone, should I try something different? (never use a mobile in India before)

I'll go for a BSNL sim as coverage is a big concern, I'm not too worried about prices or recharging, the main reason for having the phone will be for my Girlfriend to be able to contact me, she'd be completely lost if she couldn't nag me on a daily basis.

Thanks again for all the great info.

shashank.aggarwal

Hey Steven, not sure if these guys can unlock each and every phone..you sure can try that..moreover you can easily get a phone for around Rs.1000 these days...

I would strongly recommend Airtel as the service provider if cost is not the concern and you are looking for Quality..it would be very to find a place where Airtel doesn't work !!

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capt_mahajan

Airtel will not work in some rural or hilly areas where MTNL/BSNL work.

Agree Airtel is a better service provider in cities in terms of signal strength. Recharging will also be easier (as mentioned before)

Don't know where all Steven is planning to go, but for eg, coverage can be checked http://www.india-cellular.com/ click on coverage, and see alphabetical list

(Disclaimer: No idea about accuracy of the site, just found it)

yeshekathy

Where can you buy Airtel sim cards - can we get them for instance at Bombay airport when we arrive? We go straight to Agonda Beach in Goa then and I suspect they might not have them available there.
I just need to be able to txt within India and to Australia once we are there and texting was so cheap last time (dec 2006) I never worried about the cost.

Rogue Two

Do internet cafes India charge extra for Skype? I can't remember from my last visit, but I do know this often happens in Thailand (where I am now).

In front of me is a sign saying:

"EXTRA CHARGE 10 B / PER HRS FOR USE HEAD PHONE OR WEBCAM
****************************** ***************************
IN CASE YOU BROCKEN HEAD PHONE WILL HAVE TO PAY 200 B"

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yeshekathy

ok I know this is probably an ignorant question, please excuse me, but... do you carry the skype programme on the usb drive and then install it onto an internet cafe's computer or can you open it from your usb drive? If so just what do you put on the usb drive and how do you use it... answer in really easy non-techno terms please...