How do I buy a pre-paid phone( with card) in Florence
 

Help!!! I am completely clueless about mobile phones, but need to have one in Italy ( Florence) for 2 weeks. What is the best way of buying a phone ( no data required) for our time in Italy? Can I just buy a pre-paid simple "phone" at one of the big 3 suppliers? So far, this site has been very helpful...I have gone from no knowledge to at least some......:)

You need a SIM free (=unlocked) phone supporting the European bands - GSM 900/1800. For certain netoworks (e.g. "Three") you will need a 3G phone supporting the 2100 band.
Canadian networks use different frequency bands, and AFAIK Canadian mobile carriers sell SIM locked phones, which will not accept a "foreign" SIM card. On the other hand, any Italian shop will be happy to sell you a SIM free phone.

Thanks....very reassuring: amazing how difficult it is to actually find simple info from the sellers' website

any more info on price, best phones ( cheap), carrier, all appreciated

if you just want something cheap and cheerful for calls and SMS back to Canada, piranha mobile do a basic handset and Sim with £5.00 credit for £24.00. Looks like its free shipping to Canada, Piranha Mobile. There are many roaming sim companies but i cannot see any that do an all in one solution. I cannot be 100% sure on this, you will have to research:>).
gkeeper.

thanks for that...will investigate.....we actually just need it within Italy

I would second the motion of getting the Piranha phone/SIM. Price: $36.85 US$
You would have it before your trip so no hassle when it Italy. [=peace of mind and more time]. It is a flashlight also! It is a dualband phone so you will not be able to test it in Canada. But getting it before you leave will save a lot of potential grief.

You can get the Nokia 100 for about 30€ including 5€ of prepaid airtime at Wind store in Italy. And probably also at TIM and Vodafone, if you prefer. It's really cheap.

In many stores they have many basic cell phones, for like 30-40 euros in italy, and same as in canada we have Wind here in italy