While you are visiting the world-famous Great Wall Beijing and marveling at the gorgeous and exquisite Summer Palace, you may also want to make sure that you are able to use your cell phone, should you experience an emergency or just eager to share your wonderful felling with your friends and family.

How to use cell phone is always asked by foreign tourists, and here you are on the right page and just follow our instructions, you would find using a cell phone in China is an easy feat.

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Correct Ways to Use your Mobile Phone in Beijing and China

1. Check with your mobile phone company what roaming arrangements do they have in China and the rates. You will probably be okay if you are on the GSM platform (AT&T Wireless, T-Mobile, Cingular, Cellular One and indigo wireless are all on the GSM platform)

2. As for the phone, you need a dual band (e.g. Sony Ericsson T28W) or triple band (e.g. Sony Ericsson T200/T300) because in North American, you use the 1900 frequency whereas in China and most of the rest of the world use 900/1800 frequencies. Your existing phone may already be capable of all three frequencies.

3. Lastly, check with your phone company to ensure that you are unlocked for international calling service.

4. Since you have had the right kind of cell phones that can be used in China, you can buy a SIM card, and the largest mobile service provider in China is China Mobile.

Where to Buy A SIM Card in Beijing?

SIM Card is sold everywhere in Beijing.

You can buy a SIM card right at the airport. Alternatively, they are available in dept stores, bookstores, post office, and sometimes on the street. As for haggling, they don't do that for SIM cards. The value of the card is stated clearly on the card, and that's how much they sell it for.

There are tons of tobacco shops around Beijing downtown where you can also get a SIM Card.

However, purchasing a MTM card in the airport is a little bit more expensive than that in downtown, over 200 RMB each, while in downtown, it generally cost 100RMB for pre-charged credit.

How much does a phone call cost in China?

You can buy prepaid cards for 50 and 100 RMB. China Mobile charged me 0.6 RMB per minute which works out to be 166 minutes on a RMB100 card. You pay the same rate (0.6 RMB/min) whether you make or receive a call. You can call long distance - 00 + country code - but the rates are very high - ask when you buy the SIM card if you want to know. Best to use a Long Distance Calling Card from a land line.

How to get a SIM Card working on your Cell?

If you can’t read or write Chinese, you can request the salesperson to insert the card for you and to make sure that it is working.

Or, you can find your Chinese friends to help you make your SIM Card working.

Go into a mobile phone shop – they are everywhere in Beijing – and say “Sim Ka” while pointing at your mobile phone. You will be shown a list of numbers usually quite variable in price depending on the numbers in it.

Eights are lucky and thus cause a phone number to be expensive. Any number ending in four is unlucky as the sound of four (Si) also sounds like the word for death. Cards vary from RMB 60 to RMB30 depending on how “good” the number.

SIM Card Companies

There are two companies in China for selling the SIM Card: China Mobile and China Unicom. China Mobile is said to be best for coverage all over China. If you will only be in Beijing then it may not be important, but if you are touring China then a China Mobile SIM Card may be the best choice.

Tips of Using a Phone in China

1. Keep in mind that the voltage of electricity in China (including Hong Kong) is 220. Make sure you’ll have right a right transformer/adaptor to charge your phone. Plug types in China “A,” “I” and “G” (you may also find other types). Hong Kong uses “M” and “G” plug types.

2. The way to save money on using your sell phone: 1) make your friend or family in your country call you back by emailing your phone number. 2) Texting them.