Cell phone in Russia?

[lynne debenedette]

If you buy a phone here that works on the frequencies used there (a tri-band
phone, for example), you should be able to switch out the SIM card when you
get there IF you have an "unlocked" phone; most US cell providers "lock"
their phones precisely so that you cannot take their phone and use it with a
different provider. If you've had the phone and the US cell contract more
than 6 months or a year I think the company will unlock the phone; you can
also buy unlocked phones on ebay and other places, and there are websites
for services that offer unlocking for a small fee. You'll have a different
phone number, of course, with the new SIM card.  Last fall in Russia I used
a Megafon card with my US-purchased Ericsson phone and (in Petersburg) was
able not only to call, but also, via a Bluetooth connection to my laptop,
use the Megafon account to access email via GPRS.


-- 
Lynne deBenedette
Sr. Lecturer in Russian
Dept. of Slavic Languages
Brown University
Providence RI 02912
email: lynne_debenedette-at-brown.edu (replace -at- with @)

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