International travel is a great excuse for an upgrade!

February 7, 2013 4:14 AM

What fast Android phone can I use in the US and Costa Rica?

My Droid Bionic is good enough, but it occasionally suffers from slowdowns. I'm an Android addict and am considering getting something faster. (Faster meaning more responsive; the data speeds are fine. Also, I don't want iOS, no iOS derails please)

Also, I'm travelling to Costa Rica for a week and a half in June. While I would be okay renting a feature phone while I'm there to keep for emergencies, it might be nice to bring a smartphone and just buy a (prepaid?) SIM with a data plan for my vacation. So it would be nice to kill 2 birds with one stone: buy a faster phone, and use it in Costa Rica with a SIM I buy there (or that I buy before I arrive). I would probably buy the phone outright and use it as a Wi-Fi device or with US prepaid SIMs, though I'm open to other options.

So I really have 2 questions. 1) What phone should I buy that is probably more responsive than a Bionic and works in Costa Rica? 2) How do I get a Costa Rican SIM with a data plan for it?

posted by Tehhund to technology (8 answers total)

Any phone should work in Costa Rica, just go to any phone store in San Jose and they can set it up for you with a local prepaid plan.
posted by empath at 4:49 AM on February 7

Also, be careful walking around anywhere in Central America with a smart phone, they're a popular target for thieves.
posted by empath at 4:50 AM on February 7

Unfortunately, that's not really the case. First off, you will need a GSM phone, but it sounds like you already have that part figured out. And it needs to be unlocked. (They will probably, but not certainly, be able to do that for you there.)

For good data speed, you will want a phone that can use 2100 and/or 850. See here: http://news.co.cr/cell-phone-frequency-bands-costa-rica/1501/

For responsiveness, I really like the HTC One x.
posted by Nothing at 5:09 AM on February 7 [1 favorite]

The Nexus 4 is incredible, reasonably priced, and unlocked.
posted by kdar at 5:43 AM on February 7 [1 favorite]

Will the Nexus 4 definitely work in Costa Rica? I haven't been able to find any definite answers on that. If the 4 will definitely work there, then we're done and I'm buying a Nexus 4! (which is what I've wanted to do all along anyway)
posted by Tehhund at 6:01 AM on February 7

The Nexus 4 is a GSM phone that reportedly supports both 850 and 2100 MHz, so it should work in Costa Rica.
posted by Betelgeuse at 6:42 AM on February 7 [1 favorite]

Nexus 4 works in Canada on Rogers, Bell, Fido, Mobilicity, and Wind networks. I believe that these companies comprise any and all GSM network options. Unless there's another GSM network I don't know about (which is certainly possible) -- and it's in Costa Rica -- the N4 should work there.

I have one and it's awesome.
posted by dobbs at 8:35 AM on February 7

GSMArena has a list of frequencies used by providers in different countries. They indicate that providers in Costa Rica use the 850 & 1800 bands for 2G/GSM and 850, 1800 & 2100 bands for 3G/UMTS.

On the Nexus 4 specs page, Google indicates that the Nexus 4 is compatible with the 850, 900, 1800 & 1900 bands for 2G/GSM and the 850, 900, 1700, 1900 & 2100 bands for 3G/UMTS.

That means that the Nexus 4 is indeed compatible with all of the spectrum used by Costa Rican cell providers - and more. I have a Nexus 4 myself, and it's a really, really great phone both for international compatibility and for a speedy Android experience with inexpensive prepaid providers. Highly recommended.
posted by eschatfische at 9:00 AM on February 7