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Old 01-12-2009, 11:17   #1
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Cell Phones in Bahamas

We are leaving for the Bahamas in January. I have to return my cell phone to my former employer. We have elderly parents and children so I want them to be able to reach me quickly and I want to call them.

I checked with Verizon and it just seems expensive especially since I don't have first hand knowledge that it will even work in the in the Exumas ( where we will probably be most of the 6 months we are gone.


Advice from anyone with recent first hand experience would be greatly appreciated. We will have e-mail capability but some of my family refuses to join the 21st century

Thanks

Linda
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Old 01-12-2009, 11:43   #2
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I wonder if something like skype could help in this situation? It is free computer to computer but does have a small cost if computer to cell phone.
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Old 01-12-2009, 11:45   #3
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You can rent or buy cell phones in the Bahamas. GSM. Works well in GT and much of the Bahamas. Batelco is letting their pay phones go all to hell so many of these phones don't work. Cruisers used to buy Batelco cards but fewer and fewer use these now as it's hard to find a working pay phone, not cheap either, used to be a buck a minute but now only 50 cents a minute. Batelco blocks dial around and 800 numbers and even collect calls in some places. Thats the benefit of a government run telecom system. They're concentrating on the cell business. Many use Skype too. If you're in GT you can get good wifi service. And wifi is available in a few spots in the Exumas. We just use Skype. Quite a few of the cruisers whose anchors seem to be stuck fast to the bottom in GT have local cell phones. Buy a GSM phone and get a chip in the Bahamas.
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Old 02-12-2009, 04:17   #4
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I have just heard about a product called 'Magic Jack' that, as I understand, connects to your computer and with wifi you can make telephone calls.
Is anyone familar with that product or something similar that would work in the Bahamas?
If this works, we could communicate with our mothers that do not have computers.

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Old 02-12-2009, 04:24   #5
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Originally Posted by Wmiii View Post
I have just heard about a product called 'Magic Jack' that, as I understand, connects to your computer and with wifi you can make telephone calls.
Is anyone familar with that product or something similar that would work in the Bahamas?
If this works, we could communicate with our mothers that do not have computers.

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You can use Skype. No need for Magic Jack. You can call any phone with Skype (as long as there's wifi) for a couple of cents a minute.
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Old 02-12-2009, 04:32   #6
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Thanks, Good information.
I thought the caller needed skype as well.

Wm
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Old 02-12-2009, 04:50   #7
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Vasco is correct. Batelco has a stranglehold. If you have stateside ATT cell phone it will work in the bahamas but $$$$. Verizon will not. not sure about the others.

Skype works well. We use it regularly. There is good wifi in most populated areas. You might think about a good wifi antenna for the boat or hang out in bars and coffee shops.
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Old 02-12-2009, 05:10   #8
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You can use your cell phone from most carriers but it's expensive. If you have an unlocked GSM phone you can buy a SIM card from Batelco and buy time by the minute. Last time I did this the card cost $50 and air time was $.50 per minute. There are cell towers on most islands and coverage is good (for the Bahamas). Technically, Skype is illegal but everyone uses it. Internet coverage is not bad in general. Lots of Starbucks and lots of businesses like gas stations have wireless and don't bother with security. The Green Parrot on Nassau is a popular gathering spot for cruisers and has free WiFi. My experience is on Nassau and Bimini. No direct experience on other islands.

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Old 02-12-2009, 05:32   #9
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Download Skype to your laptop. Any where there is wifi. You are good to go. Most places in the Bahamas as wifi. Take a GSM cell and purchase a Batelco sim card, they are sold on most street corners. Do not us a US cell..Way too expensive. All of the above is good advice. I guess I am just repeating it..sorry. Have fun.
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Old 02-12-2009, 05:59   #10
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Anyone know about 3G services in the Exumas? If I rent a Batelco Blackberry, could I check my email out there? Or does 3G only work in Nassau and other big population centers?

We'll be in the Exumas mid-Feb to mid-April, and so far my communications plan is:
1) Borrow a friend's Iridium sat phone for daily e-mail check (with stripped-down datastream via MailASail) to keep my small business running.
2) Use Spot Messenger to send "OK" messages to friends and family once a day. Not going to do the "Tracking," though.
3) Pick up Wifi wherever available via our Yagi antenna to upload photos or other large files.

The email-via-Iridium thing is probably a critical bottleneck, and if I could get faster service over a rented Blackberry, I'd do that.

Sea Yawl Later -- hope to see you there!
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Old 03-12-2009, 07:54   #11
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I was in the Bahamas a few weeks ago, and tried to use Skype at the Old Bahama Marina at West End, Grand Bahama. I could not dial out to a landline in the US. Skype kept putting the Bahamas 242 area code in front of any number I tried to dial. Maybe I was doing something wrong, or maybe Batelco got to Skype somehow, I don't know.

That was the only time I tried to use it, and I didn't have an opportunity to try a Skype to Skype connection, which might have had a better chance of working.
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Old 03-12-2009, 08:18   #12
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I've used my Iphone (at&t) quite a bit, but that was in the Abacos. It's over $2/minute so not a good option for long conversations, but was a quick, easy option for verifying crew arrivals, the occasional local reservation, or emergency communications.
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Old 03-12-2009, 09:44   #13
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We have quad-band unlocked cell phones and buy local chips for anywhere we stay for any length of time. Worked in:
Mexico
Bahamas
Trinidad
Grenada
Grenadines
UK
France
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Old 03-12-2009, 09:55   #14
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We have quad-band unlocked cell phones and buy local chips for anywhere we stay for any length of time. Worked in:
Mexico
Bahamas
Trinidad
Grenada
Grenadines
UK
France
Cheapest, and best idea. The Batelco SIM card was something like $14, and the minutes were reasonable. I bought the unlocked phone off of ebay for less then $20.
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Old 03-12-2009, 10:00   #15
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Phil -- were you able to do e-mail over your phone in any of those areas?

I see there are some unlocked quadband 3G phones available on Ebay for about $55. That plus a local SIM chip would be cheap way to communicate.

But for me, voice isn't as important as e-mail. I had a funny episode with one of my cruising friends last summer on the Chesapeake. I kept trying to pick up WiFi from houses 1/2 mile away using my yagi -- pointing the antenna, squinting at the laptop screen, cursing, etc. He casually checked his e-mail all day, everywhere, on his iPhone.

If I could do that in the Exumas, I might never come back.
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