I'm going to England, Scotland, etc. What would be the best cell phone to buy/rent for short time there?

Hello Jack,

I would suggest that you purchase a very cheap pay as you go phone, when you get to England, you can pick them up for 10 pounds and up 10 poundsGBP is about $20

The major networks in the UK are British telecom also known as o2 for mobile use, Vodaphone has excellent coverage and so does Virgin, which is also linked with Tmobile.

A pay as you go phone, will not have any free calls, but you only pay to make calls, to receive text message is free, and generally speaking, most pay as you go plans work out pretty much the same.

Tmobile used to charge 25 pence a min for the first 3 minutes per day, then the rest of the calls made would be at a rate of 5 pence a minute.

Most local newspaper and grocery stores will stock top up cards for the network, so you do not have to worry too much.

These rates were of four years ago, and prior to me leaving England, all networks were coming out with different offers.

The cell phone industry in England is fantastic, we have been using them for many years and the price and service just gets better all the time.

You can purchase phones from all of the major retailers, supermarkets etc, or you could even buy one at a second hand store for next to nothing.

If you intend to call the US whilst in England, you should check on line, to see which calling card to purchase will offer you the best value, all cell networks charge a lot to make international calls.

I hope this information shall be of benefit to you, and enjoy the trip.

Paul M

Get yourself to one of the following.... Asda, Tesco, Woolworths, Argos.... and buy the cheapest phone you can find. My Dad has a £20 Nokia and it does the trick and is a reliable brand.

If they don't come with a sim then go to an O2, Orange, or general Mobile phone shop and buy a Pay as you Go sim where you get free texts (normally around 300-500) when you top up around £10 a month.

Ask for advice on topping up etc whilst in the mobile store because they are salespeople and so will be really helpfull.

P.S. O2 and Orange have debateably the best signal strength in the UK. Or vodaphone. Avoid the network 3 (by the advice of my mates)

P.P.S. I don't even know if we rent them in the UK but it won't be worth it!

Buy a cheap pay as you go when you arrive.