Red Pocket USA pay as you go mobile phone SIM card (with $10 credit)

We searched for the best value pay-as-you-go mobile phone SIM cards for travellers visiting the United States and found that the Red Pocket and T-Mobile SIM cards are the best deal.

Red Pocket is a great deal for travelling in the United States with simple and easy-to-understand call charges that vary from USD 10¢ to 15¢ (6p to 9p) per minute (depending on how much you last top up was) and very low international call charges.

The call (airtime) charge varies from USD 10¢ (6p) to USD 15¢ (9p) per minute depending on how much your last top up was.

This call charge is the same for receiving all calls plus making calls to landline and mobile phones within the United States as well as for international calls to Canada, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan.

International calls to most other countries are just a few cents per minute on top of the cost of a national call. Calls to landlines in the UK cost just 1¢ per minute plus the cost of a national call and calls to a UK mobile phone cost USD 17¢ (10p) plus the cost a national call. In other words if you last topped up with USD $10, a call to a UK landline would cost USD 16¢ (USD 15¢+1¢ or 10p) per minute, but if your last top up was USD $100 it would cost you USD 11¢ (USD 10¢+1¢ or 7p) per minute. Check the Red Pocket website for details of international rates to other countries.

The Red Pocket Mobile pay-as-you-go SIM card offers:

• Simple, easy-to-understand, call charges. USD 10-15¢ (6-9p) per minute for calls to USA local, national and mobile phones and to some international destinations.
• SMS text messages cost USD 10¢ (6p) each to send and receive. This includes international text messages.
• No connection charge/flagfall – other networks in the USA charge USD $1 per day on top of the per minute call charges.
• Cheap international calls – international calls to most countries are just a few cents on top of the airtime charge. For instance calls to landlines in the UK cost just one cent (plus the USA airtime charge), calls to UK mobiles are USD 17¢ (10p) plus the cost of a USA national call.
• Includes USD $10 (£6.11) credit so you can use your phone as soon as you arrive in the United States
• It is cheap for your friends and family to call you since calls to mobile phones in the United States cost the same as calls to landlines. In many cases it will be cheaper for your friends and family in the UK to call you on your USA mobile that it currently costs them to call your UK mobile.
• Red Pocket Mobile uses the AT&T GSM network, which has the best coverage of the United States’ GSM mobile networks

Coverage

Red Pocket uses the AT&T GSM mobile network, which offers the best coverage of the two national GSM networks in the United States. Coverage includes most areas of the United States including Alaska, Hawaii and even Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

The AT&T network uses the 850 Mhz and 1900 Mhz frequencies so coverage will be best if your mobile is a quad-band phone that supports both these frequencies. If you have a tri-band phone (most tri-band phones support 1900 Mhz) then you should be able to get coverage in larger cities, but not in smaller towns.

Topping up your account

You can buy recharge vouchers for USD $10, USD $25, USD $50 and USD $100. You can buy recharge vouchers online through the Red Pocket Mobile website or by calling Red Pocket Mobile’s customer service line.

The Red Pocket Mobile service is promoted heavily to the Chinese communities in the USA and recharge vouchers are available from thousands of locations throughout the United States including convenience stores in Chinatown neighbourhoods and in many Asian grocery shops.

What’s different about mobile phones in the USA?

American mobiles phones operate differently to mobiles elsewhere in the world. These are some of the key differences:

Mobile networks in the USA have been slow to adopt the GSM standard and although there is a good choice of competing mobile phone networks in the States, only two – AT&T and T-Mobile – operate nationwide GSM networks. Furthermore, the GSM networks in the States use the 850 Mhz and 1900 Mhz frequencies as opposed to the 900 Mhz and 1800 Mhz frequencies used elsewhere in the world. To use a US SIM card you will need to have a tri-band phone that works on the 1900 Mhz frequency or preferably a quad-band phone that works on the 850 Mhz and 1900 Mhz frequencies. Many newer mobile phones will work in the United States but it is best to double-check with your phone manufacturer.

Americans pay for both incoming and outgoing calls. That’s right, all American mobile networks charge you to receive as well as make calls. The rate for incoming calls is the same as the national call rate. However the price per minute on a pay-as-you-go plan is relatively low so you generally still pay less with a pay-as-you-go phone in the States compared with most other countries.

The cost of calling an American mobile phone is exactly the same as calling an American landline. This makes it very cheap if you divert your home phone to your US phone and friends can call your mobile in the US without worrying about call costs. In most costs it will be cheaper for your friends and family to call your US mobile phone than to call the mobile you normally use at home.

American mobile phones have the same area codes as regular landlines. This means that your phone number is indistinguishable from a regular American phone number.

Five reasons why you should buy a USA SIM card before you leave home

1. You can give everyone your American number before you leave home. If you wait until you get to the United States you can easily spend $10-20 in credit phoning friends and family to tell them your new number.
2. You can divert your home phone to your USA mobile before you travel so you don’t miss a call.
3. You can print your USA mobile phone number on stationery – essential if you’re travelling on business.
4. You can put your USA mobile phone number on your CV so you can start looking for work before you arrive in USA.
5. If you have friends meeting you at the airport, if you give them your American number in advance they can phone you if they have trouble finding you at the airport.

FAQ

Will the SIM card work in my mobile phone?

The Red Pocket Mobile SIM card will work in any unlocked GSM mobile phone that operates at the 850Mhz and 1900Mhz bands. This includes all quad-band mobile phones from Europe and the UK.
How do I know if my phone is locked?

Before you travel put any other SIM that’s not from your regular mobile network into your phone and turn it on. If your phone shows a network name it is unlocked, if it says something like “Network locked” or “SIM locked” then your phone is locked into your home network.

How can I unlock my phone?

If you’re still in the UK it is relatively easy to unlock your phone. If you are on a contract you can simply call up your regular mobile network’s customer service and ask them to unlock your phone. This will usually involve them giving you a code, which you enter into your phone to unlock it and make it compatible with SIM cards from all networks. Many networks will do this free of charge if you are a good customer, but some networks may charge you for this service. Alternatively you can go to a small independent mobile phone shop and pay them around £10 to get your phone unlocked (larger mobile phone shops may not offer this service but most small independent shops will).

It is more difficult if you are already in the United States, as many American mobile phone shops don’t know how to unlock phones, especially phones on a foreign network. However there are several websites where you can generate codes to unlock your phone. These sites include Trycktill and Unlock it Free. If you are in the United States you can also try making an international call to your home mobile company to get an unlocking code, but occasionally you need to be calling from within that network’s coverage area (depending on your mobile network at home).

You can read more about unlocking your mobile phone here.

Do I need to activate my SIM card?

Yes. We send you your SIM card unactivated, but you get detailed instructions on how to activate your SIM card before you travel. Activating your SIM is easy and only takes five minutes on the internet.

We used to activate SIMs for our customers, but we found that most customers preferred to choose when they activate their SIM as once it is activated you need to top up the credit within 30 days to keep it active. It is best to activate the SIM around a week before going to the United States, but if you want to activate it earlier, you can top up the credit directly with Red Pocket Mobile before you travel.

You won’t have your US phone number until the SIM is activated.

Which is the best of the two USA SIM cards that you sell? Red Pocket or T-Mobile?

It depends on several factors such as the coverage you need, if you are travelling alone or with a group, the amount of international calls you will make and if you intend to make most of your calls during the evening.

Red Pocket use the AT&T network, which gives much better coverage than T-Mobile’s network (but only if you have a quad-band phone, with a tri-band phone you may be better off with T-Mobile). If coverage is your main concern (and you have a quad-band phone), then Red Pocket is your best option.

T-Mobile lets you call other T-Mobile customers for free, which makes it a great deal if you’re a group of friends or family travelling together with several SIM cards.

Red Pocket have very low international call charges. If you need to make lots of international calls, then Red Pocket is your best deal. However if all your international calls are to just a few numbers, then T-Mobile may be cost effective when combined with Rebtel (especially you call in the evening). Because T-Mobile’s international call charges are very high and you’ll need to set up an account with Rebtel to handle the international portion of the call before you travel.

If most of your calls are in the evening, then T-Mobile may be a better deal. T-Mobile gives you free calls between 7pm and 7am, which means free incoming calls and free calls to mobiles and landlines within the United States. If you have family that will regularly call during these hours, then T-Mobile will be a better deal.

How long will it take to get my SIM card?

If we have SIM cards in stock we can usually post your SIM card the same day we receive your order (except on weekends, bank holidays or if we get your order in the evening after the post office has closed), if we are out of stock it may take up to a week longer before we can ship your SIM Card. We usually have Red Pocket SIM cards in stock.

The SIM cards are posted from Australia. Australia Post quotes delivery times to the UK of around one week, but we have had reports that delivery has taken up to two weeks.

Does this SIM card let me use the internet?

No. The Red Pocket SIM only supports voice calls and text messages.

How much will it cost people to call me?

The cost of calling depends on your phone company’s rate to the United States. For calls from the UK, BT charge 11.2p to 17p per minute plus an 8p call connection charge (standard BT rate). Other phone companies may be cheaper and you can reduce the cost by using a service like Rebtel (1p per minute plus the cost of a local call) or by using Skype (1.4p per minute) or Vonage (2p per minute).