Phone wanted that will work EVERYwhere
 

Is there a phone out there that works not only on the 4 GSM bands, but in Japan and S. Korea as well?
I believe for Japan you need WCDMA 2100.
For S. Korea UMTS? 2100? or WCDMA?

If no such phone exists, which phones are quad GSM and WCDMA for Japan?
Which phones would be quad GSM for S. Korea?

Or is S. Korea WCDMA like Japan?

Thanks in advance for any enlightenment on this subject. Both ATT and T-Mobile USA have roaming in both those countries as do some of the prepaid cards mentioned here. I could find a WCDMA phone on either ATT or T-M's site.

...mike

WCDMA and UMTs 2100mhz are the same for voice purposes. On the data side UMTs, HSPDA, HSPUA, and HSPA all really deal with the data pipes and their speed.

ATT has a few phones (the new Blackjack II and the Tytn II a/k/a "the Tilt") which handle the US 3g standards and 2100mhz. The Nokia E61, E61i, and E65 all have 2100mhz. The Nokia n95 can either have 1900mhz or 2100mhz so be careful.

You should also be aware that ATT and TMobile will be using incompatible 3g standards. ATT will be on 1900/850mhz. TMobile will be on 1700mhz. In sum, there will be four frequencies for WCDMA worldwide. 3 for the US. 1 for the rest of the world.

I like the E series Nokias because they have built-in VOIP.

You can also add the Treo 750 to that list Stu. It has all 4 GSM bands and WCDMA 850 / WCDMA 1900 / WCDMA 2100

Canada's 3G is on 850/1900 and 1700 also.

Jim,

I know about the 850mhz/1900mhz 3g in Canada with Rogers, but who is doing the 1700mhz?

For the record, I think Canada is semi-compelled to follow US standards on radio. We share one of the longest borders in the world with tons of cross-border traffic. Even if Canada theoretically disagreed with a US standards choice in radio, they would probably comply rather than dealing with the interference and roaming problems. 2100mhz v. 1900mhz WCDMA is not akin to asylum laws, Iraqs, or pack & strap.

Poor us :confused:

AFAIK the only operator with active WCDMA 1700 towers is T-Mobile US. Rogers in Canada acquired the spectrum but doesn't operate any towers on that frequency.

VladS is right. 1700 is not yet deployed in Canada. In fact the spectrum isn't even up for auction until later this year, but the auction date has been announced.

Stu -
So, are you saying that phones like the e61 series, e65 and 2100 ver. of the e95 can be uses in both Japan and S. Korea? What is the diff. in systems between S. Korea and Japan? From what you say, can I stick a T-M SIM (or ATT or MaxRoam) SIM in one of these phones and roam there? They all claim to have roaming agreements there.

...mike

Yeah, both Japan and South Korea use W-CDMA 2100 (the supposed to be "World Standard" for W-CDMA, but our north-american friends decided to use strange frequencies like 1700, instead...), so you should have no problems using such a phone there (as in all Europe).
I'm going to Japan next week and I've an E65. I'll try to use Travelsim and Maxroam.