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Kenya cell phone type
February 10, 2009
11:56 pm
newbie
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I want to use a cell phone in Kenya and western europe. Would a gsm unlocked quadband work? Any suggestions for a good source besides ebay? Can i easily buy sim cards in Kenya?

February 11, 2009
12:44 am
Big Ang
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1. Do a google search on what GSM frequencies Kenya uses. If they use one or more of the ones a quadband phone has, then yes if should work.

2. My preference is ebay, but you can try factorydirect.ca, tigerdirect.ca, and I think puremobile.ca (or something) has been mentioned here before.

3. Did you try a google search on Kenya GSM? I found a couple of companies. Email a couple of them and ask them. Actually, do that first and make sure that the company that you go with uses one or more of the frequencies of the phone you're going to buy.

February 11, 2009
8:15 am
bylo
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1. According to this in Kenya you will need a phone that supports at least 900MHz and possibly 1800Hz. The same applies in Europe. I would get a quadband just to be sure.

2. http://www.puremobile.ca/ is my preferred source although sometimes you can get good deals at FD or TD. I'm leery of eBay for a variety of reasons.

3. See this for info on prepaid plans and coverage worldwide, e.g. Kenya. Another option may be an Internatioal SIM like Mobal. Airtime is expensive but you (and your callers) have the convenience to use the same phone number all the time.

February 11, 2009
5:21 pm
iamdrumming
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An unlocked quadband phone will work in Kenya. Sim cards are available too. If you are flying into Nairobi, you can buy them at the kiosks right in the airport, although they are very expensive there. Many shops around town also sell prepaid sims for much cheaper. At the stores in Nairobi, you can get a sim for 100 Kenyan shillings (about $1.60 Canadian)
Another option is to buy a phone (with sim) when you get to Kenya. They come out to around $30 Canadian.