[firefly2327]

Hi fellow expats
When I move to Nancy next month I'll need to get a mobile phone ASAP. When I moved to the UK from Ireland I encountered difficulties there getting a contract for a phone, as I was not a citizen and living there less than three years.

Can anyone tell me please if there are similar difficulties that I need to be aware of in France? What documentation will I need in order to get a contract? Also, I expect to use my phone daily to phone home to Ireland so any advice on operators that offer good deals on international calls would be very much appreciated.
Thanks all.

 

[Bevdeforges]

You definitely want to look into the Free.fr deal - unlimited calls to France and to fixed phones in a number of countries, including Ireland. You can sign up for the service online (once you have a bank account from which they can debit your subscription and fees).

The one caveat is that they seem to be having some "teething pains" with the number of people signing up for the deal. People are reporting a high call drop rate in the larger cities during prime calling time (i.e. evening hours).

But, there are other interesting offers - even from La Poste and a number of banks (CIC is the one that advertises most prominently). Some folks have reported getting better deals if they mention that they're considering the Free offer.
Cheers,
Bev

 

[RayRay]

Once you have WiFi available, you might consider using Skype if you have a SmartPhone or a computer / headset.

I turn off the telephone function on my US iPhone and turn on WiFi only, then I use Skype on my iPhone to call certain US phones from France that can't be reached using MagicJack (typically the free conference lines). Rates are inexpensive and call quality is high.

Good luck!

Ray

 

[jamesOK]

I pay Skype £4.99 a month to make free landline calls in Europe. They also have an unlimited calls to Ireland subscription at £3.99 a month: Skype ? Pay Monthly
However, the free.fr deal looks like it is completely changing the mobile phone market in France.

 

[Gobelet]

Or try B&YOU, they have the same deal as Free but on a better network.

 

[firefly2327]

thanks everyone, that's all really helpful

 

[firefly2327]

folks, if I can ask two final related questions.
Both the free forfait and the b&you deals look excellent, so I'll be going with one of those. My query is whether either of these 'networks' are represented by actual stores where I may visit? I'd also like to know whether anyone has any experience/knowledge of the ability of either to deal with an English speaker (who will gladly try her best with French but at the moment is quite limited!)

 

[Gobelet]

That's the catch, both don't have stores. Free Mobile is slated to open a few of them in the future. B&YOU is on the Bouygues Télécom network but don't expect any help from them... All the assistance is online, and most of it is handled by the community for the common questions you might have, at least for B&YOU.

 

[firefly2327]

That's the catch, both don't have stores. Free Mobile is slated to open a few of them in the future. B&YOU is on the Bouygues Télécom network but don't expect any help from them... All the assistance is online, and most of it is handled by the community for the common questions you might have, at least for B&YOU.

Gosh, makes things more interesting!
So if I opt for one of these where do I actually get the mobile phone & SIM card if I don't want to use ones from the websites?
At this point I'd opt for Skype, if I had internet access, which I don't....
Thanks

 

[Gobelet]

You can order their SIM cards on their respective websites. You can use any unlocked GSM phone with the service, or you can buy anything you like at any phone store provided it's unlocked.

 

[firefly2327]

You can order their SIM cards on their respective websites. You can use any unlocked GSM phone with the service, or you can buy anything you like at any phone store provided it's unlocked.

Great, thanks for that. I'm relieved to know it's that easy.

 

[Bevdeforges]

As Gobelet says, you just sign up on the Free website (I assume this works for BandYou, too) and they mail you the sim card. If you don't have an unlocked mobile phone handy, you can order one from their site - AFTER you have signed up for the sim card and "activated" the card upon receipt.

Activating the card is easy - once you receive it, you just go to the website and click on the button that says activate the card (albeit in French).

The sim took about 4 days to arrive (I ordered it Friday, had it in Tuesday's mail). The phone I ordered took about 4 or 5 days to arrive after that.

Free has a few phone stores, but it's probably less complicated to just work your way through the website.
Cheers,
Bev