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  • Cell phones

    Staying in touch has become easier. No sense bringing your international cell phone with you, unless you've got a shitload of numbers stored away, and too many people expect to be able to call you. You can rent a cell phone, with a sim card and your own private number, very cheaply now in China, at just about any cell phone store. Oh, and the cell phone stores are everywhere, just like the internet cafes. As for prices, I don't remember, but, I do remember that they are terribly inexpensive.

    Sounds like a good option to be able to stay in touch with friends and family back home.
    Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

    "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

    (more comments in my User Profile)
    russbo.com



  • #2
    One of those details I wouldn't share with my friends if/when I go....

    Man, I had to walk six miles to get to this phone... you know I'm in the middle of nowhere in the mountains of China
    practice wu de

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    • #3
      Talking about being in the middle of nowhere, you'd be amazed at how well the cell system is set up in China. These phones generally work everywhere, and usually work fairly well. I have found that my Siemens international phone gets better reception than some of the Chinese models though. Quality is most definitely different.
      Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

      "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

      (more comments in my User Profile)
      russbo.com


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      • #4
        Cell phones

        There are basically 2 cell phone service providers that are the most popular. China Mobile (Yidong) and China Unicom (Liantong). General consensus is China Mobile has better call quality and China Unicom is cheaper. Dengfeng is currently offering calling plans that are significantly cheaper than the typical national rate. I have a China Mobile shanjin (mispelled) card, and while in Dengfeng, calls I make cost 2 jiao (1/10 of a yuan) per minute. Calls I receive from anyone, anywhere in China are free. That's awesome. If you buy a typical national China Mobile card, calling and receiving will cost you 6 jiao/minute, which can get expensive real quick. With the new plans, I spend less than 100 yuan/month, as opposed to 400-500 yuan previously using the national plan. Only problem with this card, is you can only recharge the chip with a recharge card ONLY available in Henan. If staying in China longterm, I would recommend buying a 2nd card that is national, where you can buy recharge cards anywhere. This way when travelling, you're not stuck with a nonworking card when your Henan card runs out of $. Also, when calling #'s outside of Dengfeng, try dialing 17951 before the #. 17951 is an IP code that saves you $ each time you call. Seems pretty ridiculous that just dialing a code before every number will save you $, but that's what my friends tell me.

        As for cell phones, in general electronics of all kinds are cheaper in price and of better quality in the US. I would definitely recommend bringing a world phone before coming to China, or buying one if you plan to buy one while in China. Buy the phone, I've never heard about a rental program, if it exists it's not popular. The reason cell phones in the US are especially cheap is that we get special discounts on phones, as US service providers make mucho bucks when we sign for 1-2 year contracts. Just be careful not to sign up for a 2 year contract right before you leave for China just to get a cheap phone (what I did :-p) Also when buying a phone, buy from a big, reputable store in Zhengzhou or Beijing. Don't buy from Dengfeng stores as many times they will switch internal, parts, batteries, etc. which allows them to sell it so cheap. Remember, you get what you pay for, especially when it comes to electronics.

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