Renting a cellphone in Boston

June 6, 2007 8:59 AM

Where I can rent a cell phone with international capabilities on short notice?

I'm about to travel to Morocco and just discovered that my cell phone doesn't have international roaming activated. Because my cell provider (Sprint) recently merged with Nextel, they can't make any changes to my account before I leave.

So it looks like I need to rent a phone.

Is there anywhere I can rent one in the Boston area just by going into a store?

Failing that, can anyone recommend an online renter? I've found a bunch by just googling, but don't have anyway of comparing them other than by price.

posted by justkevin to Technology (14 answers total)

Most of the major US cell carriers (last time I checked, anyway) have "world phone" programs where you can rent a quadband phone.

...they're not really cost-effective, but if you just need something from someone vaguely-reputable, it may work. Check Verizon, perhaps.

Failing that, how long will you be in Morocco? It may be cheaper to just buy a craptastic phone there & pop a local SIM card in.
posted by aramaic at 9:04 AM on June 6, 2007

You may just want to get a cheap GSM phone off of eBay and as aramaic says, pop a local SIM pay as you go card in.
posted by k8t at 9:05 AM on June 6, 2007

Response by poster: I'm going to be gone about 10 days. I'd really like to have the phone before I leave, so I can give out the # and I have some way of communicating while in transit.
posted by justkevin at 9:08 AM on June 6, 2007

Response by poster: Btw, I'm leaving in 48 hours so I need to have the phone in hand and working in that time.
posted by justkevin at 9:09 AM on June 6, 2007

Check the Verizon link then, they'll get the phone to you next day.
posted by aramaic at 9:10 AM on June 6, 2007

Also make sure the phone supports the GSM frequency band(s) used in the area where you'll be. This link looks useful in general for bands used around the world, as does this list. Seems that Morocco uses the 900 band.
posted by exogenous at 9:18 AM on June 6, 2007

The last time someone asked a similar question
posted by grouse at 9:20 AM on June 6, 2007

Just buy one when you get there. Verizon's rent-a-phone service is something like $4 a day, and the minutes ain't cheap either (over $1 a min I think) - unless you're in desperate need to tell someone that you're halfway to Morocco, it's a lot easier and cheaper to buy one when you get there. If Morocco's like Europe, pretty much every corner shop will have cheap phones and SIM cards for sale.
posted by pdb at 9:45 AM on June 6, 2007

Not Boston, but AutoEurope up here in Portland, ME rents cellphones.

Conversely, there are plenty of phones available for sale on Craigslist. Of course, you'd have to make sure the phone's unlocked and deal with buying the appropriate SIM when you get there, and not having a number to give out until you do.
posted by SteveInMaine at 9:46 AM on June 6, 2007

If you know anyone who travels a lot, they may have an extra/old GSM phone. T-mobile and Cingular/AT&T are the 2 primary US GSM carriers. You'll need to get it unlocked though. I got mine unlocked at a sketch place in Chinatown in London for a few pounds.

And with pay-as-you-go SIM cards, no you won't know the number.

Maybe you could get the card there, e-mail the people who really need to know and tell them the number?
posted by k8t at 9:49 AM on June 6, 2007

PS, looks like there are 3 mobile (cell) companies in Morocco.

Wana (owned by UK's Wanadoo) is the only one with an English language page. Bayn seems to be its mobile phone service.

I can't find any pay-as-you-go services, but I bet once you get there you'll find places to buy SIM cards in all tourist-y areas.
posted by k8t at 9:56 AM on June 6, 2007

Response by poster: It turns out I actually have an unused quad band GSM phone from my old carrier, a Motorola v551.

So now I just need an international SIM and figure out how to unlock the phone. Any suggestions?

(Thanks for the suggestions that I buy one once I get there, but I'd really like to be able to use the phone while in transit. I'm meeting up with a friend who is also traveling and we'll need to get in touch with each other in case of lost luggage, missed connections, etc.)
posted by justkevin at 10:35 AM on June 6, 2007

When do you leave? You could probably get one on ebay or craigslist, but the time frame is a problem. Googling International SIM card got many results.

You should be able to pick up a SIM for that country at the airport. As soon as you get the SIM, call your friend's home phone & leave a message w/ your #, and vice versa. As soon as you get your SIM, check messages for your friend's #. Or use a mutual friend as contact.
posted by theora55 at 10:48 AM on June 6, 2007

You could try this company.
posted by BrotherCaine at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2007