Hello!

This is my first time getting a smartphone (or any kind of cell phone for that matter), so I odn't know much on the subject. I am going to be a graduate student in September and I'm moving from Quebec with my girlfriend. We both want phones so we're looking for some cheap kind of family package, and we will both be students. We want an iPhone. We will use it occasionally during the day to call each other, or we'll text each other, etc. We'll also want to call home once in awhile, but I think you can get long distance cards? Maybe this would be cheaper. Can you use Skype to do long distance with no charge? As long as we're on campus (which is where I'll make most of the phone calls) I can use Skype to make the phone calls, no? So I don't need that many minutes. But once the contract is signed, is it possible for me to modify it? ie. i wanted 100 minutes a month, but find I'm only using 50, can I modify my contract then?

I don't know what kind of data plan I'd want, but I probably wouldn't use it for more than checking and writing emails, downloading apps, checking for information...So I'm thinking 200 MB or something would be fine for the month? I'm unsure how the data plan works, but I suspect that it's the amount of stuff you download per month...anymore to it?

Can I get the phone here in Quebec and just let them know I'll be moving to ontario? Or should I wait and do my shopping in Hamilton? From the reading I've done it seems that Rogers and Virgin and excellent providers for the Hamilton area, yes?

Thanks!!

You can unlock the cellphone and use it with any provider

I'm sure that you can get a cell phone w/ hamilton number from quebec.

I'm using rogers, and so far so good

oh, also

if you are going to stay on campus most of time, you won't need data plans. Get a smartphone w/ wifi, and use school wifi to save money.

I asked the same question recently (I'm also a first year MA student, going to Carleton) and decided on the Blackberry Bold 9700.

The reasons I decided to get a BB: I hate touch screens; BB is made for email and business; no professor at McMaster I knew had an iPhone, all had BB; I know a ton of ppl with BB so I'll be using BBM a lot; most of the apps have no appeal to me; and the whole iPhone 4 debacle had totally sullied my opinions of Apple.

I'm with Virgin (or, rather, I'm continuing my service with them), and I'm on their $50 a month plan which includes $500mg of data,150 talking minutes, free unlimited texting, free caller ID and call transfer, and free local evenings and weekends (starting at 7pm). That also includes no system access fees (which Bell, Rogers and Telus all have).

With some companies, once you sign up with a plan you're not free to modify it. With Virgin you can change to any of their plans (higher or lower) once a month for free.

As for using Skype, I'm not sure. Depending on how it works for mobiles, you may have to pay to use it to call. Otherwise, yes, long distance calling cards work.

I'm not sure how purchasing a phone/package would work for other provinces. For some companies they offer different plans in different provinces, and/or certain plans aren't available in certain provinces. You'll have to research that further.