Can US phone used in Laos?
Gen McFishy
I have this piece of puzzle that keep forgetting to ask.
Late last year when I was in Laos. While in Vientiane, out of
curiosity, I turned my cell phone (AT&T) on, I found it connected to a
local service called "Tango Lao" or 'Lao Tango" (forgot the order)
with a very strong signal. I assumed I could use it to call anywhere
especially locally. Of course, the only way to find out was to try it.
But I did not, for fear that I would be charged a premium rate.
I have heard of conflicting stories: in similar situation, one said he
was charged over $1 per minute while the other said he was charged at
a local rate when he called locally. Does anyone of you know anything
about this?
Thanks in advance.
McFishy
ທ້າວໄຂ່ມືດ
Can't answer you on the rates, but yes they do work. Often times our
friends or family members goes home, we sometimes give them our old
cellphones with the package that they come in and all accessories (yes
we keep them just for this reason). They sell them their to buyers of
second hand phones.
cwjmem
local Lao shop.
The Chosen One
Yes, any GSM phone like of ATT works in Laos. But you gotta call your
carrier first that you wanna have your phone worked oversea otherwise
you will not be able to call out even though you have a signal. You
don't need a new SIM or anything unless you have a CDMA world phone
like of Verizon. I paid $2.99/min. a couple of years ago. I do not
know what the rate is now.
Jerry
Gen McFishy
can be used just like local phones over there.
In order for the local SIM card to work, your phone MUST BE unlocked.
All phones that you obtain in the US through subscription are locked.
You can also buy unlocked phones from a store or online in the US,
with no discount of course. In the US, it is illegal to unlock a
locked phone. In Laos, when asked, the store appeared very reluactant
to unlock my phone for me. Instead, they advised me to purchase a new
phone which I did.
From my experience, our phones with US subscriptions - AT&T, Sprints,
etc. - can also be used directly in Laos. When you turn it on in
Vientiane for example, it switches to a local service ("Lao Tango" in
my case) automatically. My question is: what's the rate? Are they
gonna charge me as if it is a local phone or with a different rate?
McFishy
Gen McFishy
>
> - Show quoted text -
Jerry,
Is the $2.99/min charge for a call back to the US or locally in Laos?
McFishy
Nty
> On Jun 24, 10:15 pm, The Chosen One <siengr1...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> > On Jun 24, 8:19 pm, Gen McFishy <GenMcFi...@Yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> > > Folks,
>
> > > I have this piece of puzzle that keep forgetting to ask.
>
> > > Late last year when I was in Laos. While in Vientiane, out of
> > > curiosity, I turned my cell phone (AT&T) on, I found it connected to a
> > > local service called "Tango Lao" or 'Lao Tango" (forgot the order)
> > > with a very strong signal. I assumed I could use it to call anywhere
> > > especially locally. Of course, the only way to find out was to try it.
> > > But I did not, for fear that I would be charged a premium rate.
>
> > > I have heard of conflicting stories: in similar situation, one said he
> > > was charged over $1 per minute while the other said he was charged at
> > > a local rate when he called locally. Does anyone of you know anything
> > > about this?
>
> > > Thanks in advance.
> > > McFishy
>
> > Yes, any GSM phone like of ATT works in Laos. But you gotta call your
> > carrier first that you wanna have your phone worked oversea otherwise
local Sim card, you will be charged local rate for calling. Most
telephone sets can be unlocked in Laos and Thailand and online, with
cost of course.
nty
None
require 900 mhz band. However, some of the AT&T phones sold in the US
have only 850 mhz band instead of 900 mhz. Therefore, they may be
useless over there even if they are unlocked.
To unlock AT&T phones, just call their customer service and inform
them that you are traveling Laos not Thailand and you need to unlock
your phone. They will give you the unlock code. It is FREE and legal.
I unlocked a couple phones that way.
Hope this helps.
The Chosen One
>
> - Show quoted text -
Mr. McFishy,
I remembered using it to make some local calls and a few calls to
other countries as well from there and it was the same rate.
Jerry
Gen McFishy
This is truly remarkable. I have learned a lot from you. Thank you
very much for your responses. I have been so uninformed about cell
phones that I know next to nothing beyond regular usage. I need to do
more research and study on the subject matter.
Thanks again. Have a wonderful weekend.
McFishy
Gen McFishy
local phone with local SIM cards (or bring your unlocked phone with
you).
I am still not sure that "Lao Tango" showed up on my phone was a
signal of international roaming they were talking about?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for contacting AT&T. This is -----. and I would be happy to
assist you with your inquiry regarding roaming in Laos.
When you are roaming internationally, there are two different ways to
determine the per minute cost. One is with the basic capability to
roam internationally but no monthly charge; the other is with the
World Traveler feature for $5.99 per month per line. When determining
how you want your line set up, you need to factor in that any
voicemails left to you once you?ve powered your phone on in another
country will be billed per minute. Voicemails will continue to bill
you per minute until your phone has reconnected to an AT&T tower in
the United States.
Messaging costs while roaming internationally are $0.50 per text
message sent and $1.30 per picture message sent. We have a package
that for $10.00 per month you can get 50 international messages. Each
message in excess of those 50 messages would be billed at just $0.40
per message over. Any message you receive is billed at the domestic
rate. For example, if someone with a 200 message package roams
internationally, any message they receive would count against their
200 messages. These packages and our data packages (detailed below)
are not eligible for all countries, so please refer to
http://wireless.att.com/dataconnectglobal to verify if the country you
are roaming in is eligible.
Data is billed at $0.0195 per kilobyte ($0.015 in Canada). If you are
going to one of the countries listed at the web address
http://wireless.att.com/dataconnectglobal as eligible, you can also
add a data plan to keep your costs predictable. If the country you are
going to is eligible, you can get 20MB for $24.99, 50MB for $59.99,
100MB for $119.99 and 200MB for $199.99.
If you are eligible for international features, you can add or remove
any of these features directly from your myWireless account by
clicking the Manage Features link under My Services. I would strongly
recommend backdating the messaging and data features, as if they are
added mid-cycle, you will not get the full benefit of the feature for
that bill cycle.
The per minute rate for Laos is $3.49. If you have additional
questions about international roaming, you can visit our website at
http://wireless.att.com/international for additional information.
If you need to contact us while you are roaming internationally,
please be aware that dialing 611 will not connect you with AT&T. You
will need to dial +1-916-843-4685, which is a free call from your
wireless device even while you are out of the country.
I hope this information has been helpful in resolving your concerns. I
encourage you to visit us at www.att.com/wireless often to view your
monthly account statements, make payments and shop for new products
and services. We know you have a choice in the wireless industry and
we thank you for choosing AT&T. Should you have additional concerns or
questions about this issue please reply to this email. If you need to
contact us again regarding a new issue please send us another email
via the contact link through your online account.
Nty
cards to make calls, provided that your phone can be used there. It
is not economical to use roaming call. Using Thai international sim
card would cost you only 0.90 bahts to 1 baht per minute for calling
USA and many countries. $1.00 = 32 bahts right now.
nty
> are not eligible for all countries, so please refer tohttp://wireless.att.com/dataconnectglobalto verify if the country you
> are roaming in is eligible.
>
> Data is billed at $0.0195 per kilobyte ($0.015 in Canada). If you are
> going to one of the countries listed at the web addresshttp://wireless.att.com/dataconnectglobalas eligible, you can also
> add a data plan to keep your costs predictable. If the country you are
> going to is eligible, you can get 20MB for $24.99, 50MB for $59.99,
> 100MB for $119.99 and 200MB for $199.99.
>
> If you are eligible for international features, you can add or remove
> any of these features directly from your myWireless account by
> clicking the Manage Features link under My Services. I would strongly
> recommend backdating the messaging and data features, as if they are
> added mid-cycle, you will not get the full benefit of the feature for
> that bill cycle.
>
> The per minute rate for Laos is $3.49. If you have additional
> questions about international roaming, you can visit our website athttp://wireless.att.com/internationalfor additional information.
>
> If you need to contact us while you are roaming internationally,
> please be aware that dialing 611 will not connect you with AT&T. You
> will need to dial +1-916-843-4685, which is a free call from your
> wireless device even while you are out of the country.
>
> I hope this information has been helpful in resolving your concerns. I
> encourage you to visit us atwww.att.com/wirelessoften to view your