Cell Phones ...

Can I buy a new or used cell phone from the US and bring it to use in the UK?

Ok, so one thing I know, is that it has to be a phone that uses a SIM card...

But does it NEED to be unlocked or not?

Are there any Verizon phones that would fit the bill?  I dont need it to be verizon, but I could use it here as well if it did as family has verizon and extra line would be just $10/mo...

I could even buy a new Verizon phone with 2yr contract and get it at a discounts, then keeping the line for 24mos would be $240, so as long as discount is more than $240 it would work?

If not verizon, any other phones recommended.  Who else has done this?

Can I find an unlocked iPhone and bring it over for use in UK?
Which companies sell/use iPhones on their networks, and where do I find price of phone/plan for it?
Thankyou!!!

Hiya NY Stacey,

There's a few posts here about this subject but basically, yes you can bring a phone from the USA and use it with a UK SIM card. There are caveats and some you already know about.

1. The handset you choose must be Tri-band at least - Quad band preferable. I currently forget the exact frequency specifications regarding the GSM bands here (GSM800/900 and GSM1800 I think) - but nowadays all the modern quad band phones cover the frequencies in the US and UK

2. Yes, the handset you buy MUST be unlocked - that will enable you to stick in a UK SIM card and begin to use it (Pay as you go SIM means you can use it immediately)

3. You could get an 'unlocked' iphone - but seeing as the UK and USA don't 'officially' sell unlocked iphones and you have to use those 'unofficial' or as Apple would say 'illegal' jailbreak versions - you run the risk of damaging or 'bricking' the handset as it involves loading the handset with that software in the correct way - if your competant with using 'unofficial' tweaks this way - then go ahead. Another way is to buy an Iphone from France I think it is, which bans the 'locking' of phones to networks - then you can just stick in the UK SIM card of your choice.

4. I'd suggest buying a phone off Ebay (from a well known power seller) if you're a confident ebay user, or finding a phone inthe classifieds like Craigslist etc. Phones in the UK are cheaply available - so it'd have to be a specific high end handset to have the price savings you're looking for.

5.Plans in the UK - pay monthly you'll need to pass the credit check etc - so depending on your credit rating you can get a pay monthly deal or not - as you'll be newly arrived (I presume) then maybe a Pay as you Go SIM would be best whilst you build up credit. Drop into the Carphone Warehouse online or in the many shops they have in every town/city in the UK and talk over the options with them (plan features, minutes, texts, web access etc etc) and they can advise accordingly.

I'd personally forgo getting a handset on a plan in the usa just to bring it here, unless it's a Vertu or something!

Hope the above helps!

Cheers! DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Hi Stacey.

My Dad looked into getting a Verizon phone with SIM when we were back in the states in Aug / Sept.  There're only one or two handsets that they offer with SIM cards and they're rather expensive ($100+ and that's with a renewal package).   

Also, with Verizon they do offer a call international package (I believe it covers international texts as well), but it reduces the cost of calls to the UK.  You can cancel or add the package at any time.  However, if you want to use your Verizon phone here in the UK you'll be paying an extortionate amount.  I believe it was $1.50+/min as its international roaming.

If you didn't already know Verizon charge 25c to send & 20c to receive international texts, however you can send Verizon customers texts through their website.   

In all honesty you're totally better off just buying a UK SIM.

As for handsets themselves as long as its unlocked, but then you may encounter frequency issues (handsets operate on a multitude of frequencies) and I'm not a phone techie, so won't really get into it.     You can get a variety of handsets here in the UK though, but it really depends on what you're looking for in a phone, as to which country would be better to buy from.


I used to be with Verizon and I gave my contract to my Dad when I left and he ended up letting that one run out.  When we first went back to the states I just took the old handset back into Verizon and reinstated it (paying $50+ top ups) and again gave it to my dad who let it lapse.  Second time we went back to the states we just used my dad's phone (he ended up getting a new contract) and this last time we went back to the states I got a T-Mobile sim card.  You pay $100 top up and it keeps the SIM valid for 1 year and in all honesty you'd be hard pressed to use up all that in a 2 week visit unless you were on the phone non-stop or texting non-stop.  We intend to keep that SIM and just recharge it every year so that way we have the same number for family & friends to contact us on each time we go back.     Only thing is the T-Mobile sim will not work here in the UK.  Oh well.     Saves having to pay a reconnection fee every year and going through that hassle.

Good luck with your decision!

Also, if you've had your US phone awhile, and it's already a Tri-Band, you might want to call your provider and request it to be unlocked. Some providers will do it, no problem once they've bled you to death recouped their investment.

My wife and I have a Verizon plan with some of her sisters.  We don't really use in the UK except for dire emergencies (normally it sits in a drawer on off).  It's a really nice slide phone (the globalphone Z3, I believe).  We keep it for two reasons: my wife has had the number for around 10 years now (and doesn't want to give it up because of a few years in the UK) and we can use when we go home.  Her sisters pay for the family plan that works best for them and we pitch in once a year to cover the extra phone charge.  We also have a PAYG phone here (hopefully two whenever she starts working).  It is a highly exorbitant fee to use the Verizon phone here under any circumstance, but it's nice for when we go back home.

The handset you choose must be Tri-band at least - Quad band preferable. I currently forget the exact frequency specifications regarding the GSM bands here (GSM800/900 and GSM1800 I think)

U.S. bands are 850 & 1900 MHz.
U.K. bands are 900 & 1800 MHz.

An American-specification dual-band phone will thus be 850 & 1900, while a tri-band phone may add either 900 or 1800.

Of the British GSM networks, all use 1800 MHz to some extent, while only the two oldest -- Vodafone and Telefonica/O2 (originally BT Cellnet) -- also use 900 MHz.   Thus a U.S. tri-band phone on which the third band is 900 MHz will not be usable on some U.K. networks at all, while a tri-band phone with 1800 MHz as its third band will work on all networks but won't have full coverage on Vodafone or O2.

There's a more detailed explanation in the Technical Issues thread, at reply #10:
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=12567.0;all

U.S. bands are 850 & 1900 MHz.
U.K. bands are 900 & 1800 MHz.

An American-specification dual-band phone will thus be 850 & 1900, while a tri-band phone may add either 900 or 1800.

Of the British GSM networks, all use 1800 MHz to some extent, while only the two oldest -- Vodafone and Telefonica/O2 (originally BT Cellnet) -- also use 900 MHz.   Thus a U.S. tri-band phone on which the third band is 900 MHz will not be usable on some U.K. networks at all, while a tri-band phone with 1800 MHz as its third band will work on all networks but won't have full coverage on Vodafone or O2.

There's a more detailed explanation in the Technical Issues thread, at reply #10:
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=12567.0;all

Paul, I am sure others have said this before but after reading your above link, I think it needs to be said again, you are brilliant, thank you for giving such a detailed explanation and with pictures!  THANK YOU!

Cheers!

We brought over our US T-Mobile Dash and Moto RAZR.  T-Mobile gave us unlock codes, and we were able to put in UK pay monthly SIM cards and were good to go.  You can also get phones unlocked at most any electronics store for £10 or so.