Hey M,

I don't know the answer, but I will ask our partners at Orange, and will revert asap with the reply.

For more questions on mobile, check out this Guide to Mobile Phone in Switzerland that Orange helped us write.

Nir, glocals co-founder
Nir Ofek, Jun 27, 2009 @ 10:57

[quote][b]

Nir_ (27/06/2009)[/b]



For more questions on mobile, check out this Guide to Mobile Phone in Switzerland that Orange helped us write.

[/quote]



No need to read it, I'll summarise: buy an Orange phone.
hayes, Jun 27, 2009 @ 11:07

Wow Hayes, you're up early today! Anyway, this time you got one wrong...(-:

Check out the guide. Yes, it ofcourse has an Orange slant. But its focus on providing helpful info that's relevant to anyone thinking of using a mobile in CH (or around CH, for M's question), regarldess of what network you use.

3 quick examples of stuff that's in the guide:

• Can you use a foreign phone in CH
• Pros/cons of going for pre-pay or post-pay plans
• Tips for saving on roaming fees by doing a simple change to your phone settings

Nir
Nir Ofek, Jun 27, 2009 @ 11:18

[quote][b]

Nir_ (27/06/2009)[/b]

Anyway,this time you got one wrong...(-:

[/quote]



Wrong, you say? Do you have any idea how badly I react to the word wrong?





[quote][b]

Nir_ (27/06/2009)[/b]

Check out the guide. Yes, it ofcourse has an Orange slant.But its focus on providing helpful info that's relevant to anyone thinking of using amobile in CH (or around CH, for M's question), regarldess of what network you use.

[/quote]



Of course it has some general information. But check out the guide, you say? Alright then.

• Front page: two bullets. Either contact Orange for unbiased advice or mail Glocals. Call me a cynic, but I do have doubts about how unbiased the advice you get from Orange is going to be. If you assume that the Glocals advice posted on the forum comes from the same knowledge-base that that received by emailing Glocals, then you just get pumped back to the same document. So... it's either mail Glocals again or call Orange for free unbiased advice... You see what I'm getting at here?



• Mobiles page (I only bothered to look at mobiles). Getting a phone. 2nd bullet. The singular example is the Orange eShop. General advice does not mean single examples to one company.



• Third point. "Once you decide what you're going for, just go to any phone store, and make it happen ...You can also get it done online at Orange.ch"
  
  ---- Inaccurate. Once you have decided go to the phone store and make it happen, that's true. But if you had decided independently on a Swisscom phone, you sure as hell can NOT make it happen at orange.ch. Or? Can you?



• Curious. The Glocals-based statistic is that the majority of Glocals members use Orange. Can I ask where the data from that figure comes from? Was there some kind of survey that I missed? For someone that just reads the document, knowing nothing more, they likely to come away with the opinion that Orange, for some unknown reason, trumps the other operators. Maybe it genuinely is better, who knows? Or maybe it's just that loads of people get their work phones from Orange and are never even look at the documentation. Who knows.



• Then there is a nice section on subscription vs. pre-pay. The text is fine, but the links in the document point at the Glocals offers for Orange. I haven't looked at the details but IIRC, recent forum discussion concluded that those were just the same as any deal anyone can get, regardless of whether they are from Glocals or not. (I could be wrong here, but that's what was said recently.)



• Then there follow four bullet points that relate to your tariff, fine. But they are just questions. They are followed immediately by two huge Orange-plugs. They are written as "recommendations from Orange", for God's sake. Just what on earth else is Orange going to recommend?

[quote][b]

Nir_ (27/06/2009)[/b]



3 quick examples of stuff that's in the guide:

• Can you use a foreign phone in CH


[/quote]



If you mean this: "You can either use a mobile phone you bring with you from abroad (almost all phones work in CH), or get a new phone in CH." then yes, you are technically correct. The stating-the-obvious factor is rather high though.





[quote][b]

Nir_ (27/06/2009)[/b]




• Pros/cons of going for pre-pay or post-pay plans


[/quote]



Yes. With huge adverts for Orange under each one.





[quote][b]

Nir_ (27/06/2009)[/b]




• Tips for saving on roaming fees by doing a simple change to your phone settings

[/quote]



This is pretty nice! "Ensure your phone operates on the optimal setting. Because Switzerland is small, Swiss phones - especially around the lake of Geneva area - often switch automatically to French or German operators, meaning you pay more. To avoid this, block the automatic change of network in your handset settings".

---- I work on the Swiss French border and was pretty surprised to see my credit disappearing so quickly. It took me months to figure this out.







Really? Is it just an Orange slant? It looks like that document is pretty heavily laden with advertising to me. If that's what you want for your site, then fine. I just hope they paid you handsomely for it.
hayes, Jun 27, 2009 @ 12:01

M. Kleiner:

After checking around, seems Whovian's proposal is indeed the best route forward. This, as there is no confirmed map of which Swiss operator can be received where in France.

What is true is this:

• Swiss regulations force the local operators to do their best to ensure their signal is not received beyond CH.
• Some operators, on some days, are received outside the border. But exact locations / distances can't be confirmed.

To test phones, you can either get someone over who has a Swiss phone, or just buy pre-pay cards in CH and test them (the cost is a relatively low CHF 10). And if you do a BBQ at your place, I promise to come over with my phone to help you test it!  

Hayes:

Wow, you put a lot of time into that message! Seems saying the word 'wrong' to you was not a smart move by me! (-:

You asked where the data on which Swiss mobile provider glocals members use  comes from.  It comes from this survey that we conducted among nearly 1000 glocals members in May 08. The results quoted excludes people who said they got their phone from work.

Nir
Nir Ofek, Jun 29, 2009 @ 13:33

Coverage over the border into France is almost always the same for me as I know exactly when my phone will cut out and I usually warn the person that I'm speaking to that within 30 seconds my phone will revert to France. I have a Swiss signal almost to the toll booth on the Route Blanche and going the other way coming into Switzerland my French signal remains until the International School on Route de Chene. My phone is Orange and company purchased.. Note this also means I get no signal in the Pickwick Pub downstairs , or anywhere inside the Spring Brothers pub (That's my story and I'm sticking to it)
britabroad, Jun 29, 2009 @ 14:06

britabroad said: I get no signal in the Pickwick Pub downstairs , or anywhere inside the Spring Brothers pub (That's my story and I'm sticking to it)

-----------

Britabroad: maybe your wife buys that, but we don't! :)
Nir Ofek, Jun 29, 2009 @ 15:56

[quote]Does anybody know ifone can receive Swiss cell phone service across the border on the French side (maybe for a few miles behind the border)?



I live in Thoiry, France (maybe three miles from the border) but I work in Geneva. Now I am wondering if I should buy a cell phone plan in France or Switzerland. It would be perfect if I could still receive the Swiss service on the French side close to the border. Because then I could buy a Swiss plan and still only pay for local calls even when using the cell phone in France.



Is anybody in a similar situation and has made any experiences with this topic? What do you recommend?



Thanks![/quote]



I have been working in Geneva 10 months and living both in Thoiry (Allemogne) and Ferney-Voltaire. I have a Yallo prepaid; it worked in Thoiry but at times the signal was weak. It works OK in Ferney but my apartment, right in the center, is off the signal. I have witnessed Yallo work as far as Gex.



I have been thinking of switching to a French phone but then that should work in Geneva. Orange in France say that their coverage may or may not extend to the UN. Conclusion: I will keep my Swiss phone although might switch to a monthly subscription.
David S, Jul 4, 2009 @ 14:59