CELL PHONE in TAIPEI

I want to get a cell phone as soon as I arrive so that I can make all my calls and receive them too. I am going on interviews so it will be helpfull, since I will be residing in a roach infested hostle. Please give me some advice on the situation of cell phones in Taipei and the surrounding area because I will try to get an apt. in Tienmu or some other suburb. I have no idea what the rates and obligations and features are. I’m in NY now. Thanks Everybody !

I would go and get a prepaid phone card. I heard you can get those at 7/11. Those are reasonable priced. Since you are in the Taipei area, you should not have any problems with the reception of any provider. Chunghwa is the govermental service, and has supposedly the best coverage. As far as cell phones go, if you have an unlocked cell phone from the US (one that you can change the SIM card) bring that along, and you can just put the local SIM in. I don’t know about minute prices for prepaid cards, since no company seems to post them anywhere.

Thank you, that helped.

[Phone dealers who speak English

Thanks for the link Loretta Darling. Unfortunately it mentioned FareasTone but that was the only recommendation on getting a cell phone in Taipei. I will be using it to set up interviews and receive the “HIRED” calls. I realized a phonecard isn’t going to help me receive calls. I took me a while, but I did realize it.

[quote=“ENGLISHTART”]I realized a phonecard isn’t going to help me receive calls. I took me a while, but I did realize it.[/quote]How are you going to recieve calls without a SIM card in your phone?

As other posters have suggested, a prepaid one is probably the quickest and easiest way to get set up, although of course they’re much more expensive than contract ones for dialing out.

ENGLISHTART wrote:
I realized a phonecard isn’t going to help me receive calls.

It is dear, it is.

How are you going to recieve calls without a SIM card in your phone?

I’m buying a cell phone in Taipei: Hence the inquiry into who to buy from!

As other posters have suggested, a prepaid one is probably the quickest and easiest way to get set up, although of course they’re much more expensive than contract ones for dialing out.[/quote]

I would most likely go with a long term plan.

[quote=“ENGLISHTART”]I would most likely go with a long term plan.[/quote]You mean a contract? So you’ll either need to get one from Loretta, or you’ll need to find yourself a local guarantor.

[quote=“ENGLISHTART”]I’m buying a cell phone in Taipei: Hence the inquiry into who to buy from![/quote]Whether you’re going for prepaid or contract, I suggest the best place to sort it out is at an office of one of the cellphone service providers themselves. Sorry, I don’t have the addresses; perhaps someone else can help, or you could do a search.

If you go for prepaid, you can buy a phone anywhere you like. The phone companies sell them but so do lots of other shops. If you go for a contract, you can also use any phone, but you could get a locked one cheaper together with the contract.

Tarty, Taiwan is like most of the rest of the world in that the GSM system is commonly used. You buy a phone, and you insert a SIM card into the back that identifies you to the phone company.

Don’t like your phone? Just buy a new one and switch the SIM, that way you get to keep your number.

Don’t like your phone company? Buy a new SIM and put it into the phone you have.

Of course, it’s never that simple.

Most companies will ask you to sign a two-year contract, and ‘give’ you a discounted phone. You pay for the phone over two years, and if you cancel the contract you have to pay a penalty.

If you’re leaving the country before your contract ends then it’s hard for them to get their money back from you, so they make it hard for foreigners to get a contract. You will need a Taiwanese person to guarantee your phone account for you, if you choose to go that way. If you have a local who will do that for you then he/she can take you shopping for a phone and you don’t need any advice from anyone here.

The alternative is to buy a phone without signing a contract, which makes them more expensive but there’s nothing you can do about that. Then you need a SIM card.

The usual option is to buy a pre-paid card from F.E.T., which is an insanely expensive proposition and usually results in you running out of credit halfway through the most important call of the week.

An alternative is the new service that I’m trying to start. (Just waiting for the finance department of a major corp to get their acts together and stamp the deal that every other department has stamped over the last three months.) You have to pay a deposit, for obvious reasons, but you get that back when you close your account and it’s a whole lot cheaper for calls. I’m sure I posted the rates in the thread I linked to for you. They’re comparable to what I pay with my (guaranteed) post-paid account.

PS You don’t pay for incoming calls in Taiwan. If you’re only going to be receiving calls from people hiring you then it’s cheaper to get the IF card because there’s no minimum spend with them. Personally I think you’ll be on the phone all the time, and $30 a month is not a lot to spend.

but you could get a locked one cheaper together with the contract.[/quote]

what’s a locked one ?

PS You don’t pay for incoming calls in Taiwan. If you’re only going to be receiving calls from people hiring you then it’s cheaper to get the IF card because there’s no minimum spend with them. Personally I think you’ll be on the phone all the time, and $30 a month is not a lot to spend.[/quote]

Loretta Darling,
What’s an IF card and where’s the $30 come from? A phone card or a celly-cell with you?

Don’t treat me like I’m a smart tart, I’m not used to it !

[quote=“ENGLISHTART”]what’s a locked one ?[/quote]A phone you can only use with a particular SIM card, meaning that you are “locked” into that card’s contract for a period of time.