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Moving from the US to Belgium for a few years

E

Ekim Gram

Member
I'm looking for some advice in regards to my phone. I'm on a family plan and I'll be moving to Belgium in September for a few years. I would like to keep my phone since it doesn't get much better than the Droid RAZR right now but I'm not sure what to do about service. Would it be too expensive to have an international Verizon plan so I can communicate with people from the US and people in Belgium?
 
In all honesty, you should probably check with Verizon. The problem lies with the fact that your phone uses CDMA technology and most of Europe uses GSM, so your phone probably wouldn't work. And the type of LTE VZW uses is different than the 4G used on other networks and in Europe as well. And even if you could get a regular LTE signal Verizon doesn't get much of a break on data overseas either.

Talk to VZW and see what your options are.

good luck
 
Ekim Gram said:
I'm looking for some advice in regards to my phone. I'm on a family plan and I'll be moving to Belgium in September for a few years. I would like to keep my phone since it doesn't get much better than the Droid RAZR right now but I'm not sure what to do about service. Would it be too expensive to have an international Verizon plan so I can communicate with people from the US and people in Belgium?
Click to expand...

You could purchase a Belgian SIM card and use it with your RAZR. You wouldn't have an American number though so when you call back to the US whoever accepts the call will incur charges.
 
teddyearp said:
In all honesty, you should probably check with Verizon. The problem lies with the fact that your phone uses CDMA technology and most of Europe uses GSM, so your phone probably wouldn't work. And the type of LTE VZW uses is different than the 4G used on other networks and in Europe as well. And even if you could get a regular LTE signal Verizon doesn't get much of a break on data overseas either.

Talk to VZW and see what your options are.

good luck
Click to expand...

I'm sorry but this information is incorrect. The droid razr came with gsm support and was enabled in ics. Check out this article for confirmation. teddyearp is correct, you should contact Verizon first. You will have to contact Verizon to get the phone unlocked and get information on Verizon international roaming plans. International roaming is very expensive, so I would suggest getting a SIM card from a local cell provider in Belgium and paying local rates to keep the cost down.

Sometimes Verizon can be a pain to get your phone unlocked, so be courteous and if the customer support representative will not unlock the phone, ask to speak to a supervisor or you can call back and a get a different csr who may be more receptive in getting your phone unlocked.

Have a good time in Europe, I have fond memories of the time spent there in the military...
 
zoxxo said:
I'm sorry but this information is incorrect. The droid razr came with gsm support and was enabled in ics. Check out this article for confirmation. teddyearp is correct, you should contact Verizon first. You will have to contact Verizon to get the phone unlocked and get information on Verizon international roaming plans. International roaming is very expensive, so I would suggest getting a SIM card from a local cell provider in Belgium and paying local rates to keep the cost down.

Sometimes Verizon can be a pain to get your phone unlocked, so be courteous and if the customer support representative will not unlock the phone, ask to speak to a supervisor or you can call back and a get a different csr who may be more receptive in getting your phone unlocked.

Have a good time in Europe, I have fond memories of the time spent there in the military...
Click to expand...

Also, there's a $25 fee to unlock the phone.
 
xTye said:
Also, there's a $25 fee to unlock the phone.
Click to expand...

Sometimes, if you're lucky, and if you get a really nice CSR, you can wiggle out of that unlock fee. It also helps if you've been with Verizon for a very long time... :)
 
zoxxo, I stand corrected. I thought I did a quick search and only found CDMa stuff, but now I see that with the Droid Razr VZW threw us another global phone bone.

With some earlier Motorola phones, we had tools to find out the SPC; wonder if they still work . . . . . .
 
teddyearp said:
zoxxo, I stand corrected. I thought I did a quick search and only found CDMa stuff, but now I see that with the Droid Razr VZW threw us another global phone bone.

With some earlier Motorola phones, we had tools to find out the SPC; wonder if they still work . . . . . .
Click to expand...

Not sure what you mean by SPC, can you elaborate? I know that the DRM has GSM, but I've heard of people having problems making it work. I'm hoping to get the opportunity to try it some day... ;)
 
teddyearp said:
zoxxo, I stand corrected. I thought I did a quick search and only found CDMa stuff, but now I see that with the Droid Razr VZW threw us another global phone bone.

With some earlier Motorola phones, we had tools to find out the SPC; wonder if they still work . . . . . .
Click to expand...

Another surprise is that there is actually an NFC chip in the RAZR, but for some reason Motorola chose to not implement NFC in the RAZR. Sad that we have the equipment, but it's not useable...
 
zoxxo said:
Not sure what you mean by SPC, can you elaborate? I know that the DRM has GSM, but I've heard of people having problems making it work. I'm hoping to get the opportunity to try it some day... ;)
Click to expand...

The SPC is the Service Programming Code, however upon further reflection it is probably not the same as the SIM unlock code.

But the OP can try 00000000 or 12345678.
 
zoxxo said:
I'm sorry but this information is incorrect. The droid razr came with gsm support and was enabled in ics. Check out this article for confirmation. teddyearp is correct, you should contact Verizon first. You will have to contact Verizon to get the phone unlocked and get information on Verizon international roaming plans. International roaming is very expensive, so I would suggest getting a SIM card from a local cell provider in Belgium and paying local rates to keep the cost down.

Sometimes Verizon can be a pain to get your phone unlocked, so be courteous and if the customer support representative will not unlock the phone, ask to speak to a supervisor or you can call back and a get a different csr who may be more receptive in getting your phone unlocked.

Have a good time in Europe, I have fond memories of the time spent there in the military...
Click to expand...

AFAIK, all Verizon RAZR MAXX phones are already unlocked. I asked about this at two different VZW stores; my phone was (and is) unlocked. Further, again twice, I was told all RAZR MAXX phones are unlocked out of the box. Of course, it can't hurt to check this personally.

These phones do use GSM as well as CDMA. No worries there.

I agree with the idea of buying a SIM from a local provider (e.g., Vodaphone). There is a plan that allows use in Europe without killer roaming fees: International Data Plan. I wouldn't use it for long term support, though.

I've used my phone in Europe (mainly Germany) without a problem. I just signed up for the VZW International Data Plan and powered up the phone as soon the cabin crew said it's OK to turn on phones. Easy peasy.

I also used the phone in the Bahamas. There a BTC (Batelco) SIM and data plan (pre-paid [ $30 for 30 days or 1 Gb - whichever runs out first] or post-paid [long term subscription] plan) are required. Note, too, the file build.prop must be modified to remove support for fast dormancy. Check the XDA site for the how-to (adds three definitions at the end of build.prop). You must root the phone and use the app Build Prop Editor to modify the file.
 
I have to say that even though I am not headed overseas any time soon, I am glad I subscribed to this thread. I'm learning much more and I think there is a lot of useful information here...
 
I agree. Makes me want to look at good used Razr Maxx's in about a year or so when I start planning my next trip overseas. Of course I've got my trusty Motorola Napoleon, but it is sooo slow and outdated (WinMo 6.1).
 
It should work ok. I'm not sure if the SGS4 is unlocked, so you would need to verify with Verizon...
 
zoxxo said:
It should work ok. I'm not sure if the SGS4 is unlocked, so you would need to verify with Verizon...
Click to expand...

I can't find anything that confirms it. Especially concerning data, which isn't a HUGE deal for me on this trip.

I'll just have to talk to them about it. Thanks for your help :)
 
Well I bought the S4 on Friday, and the guy at Best Buy told me it'd work. He said that the Sammy phones have been unlocked for a while now. He said he personally has done a new SIM in a Verizon Galaxy 3 and it worked. So I feel confident about the S4
 
Nick The Great said:
Well I bought the S4 on Friday, and the guy at Best Buy told me it'd work. He said that the Sammy phones have been unlocked for a while now. He said he personally has done a new SIM in a Verizon Galaxy 3 and it worked. So I feel confident about the S4
Click to expand...
Good to know!

Now I know that if I need to, I can leave the country in a hurry... ;-)
 
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