Smartphone usage in Chicali.
[QUOTE=Tempe Jon;1194710]Granjefe and I arrived in Mexicali and I used Google Maps on my Android phone with 2nd Chance's map of all the fun spots (thanks again 2nd Chance, it is very helpful) to find the Hotel Chinesca.[/QUOTE]Thanks for taking the time to post such a detailed TR. Were you paying roaming charges with your smartphone? I know you were very close to the border but I'm wondering if you disabled roaming on your phone and who you have your service with ie Verizon etc.
Anyone happen to know how far a U.S. signal extends into Mexicali?
Cell Phone Useage In Mexicali
[QUOTE=Reinaldo; 1195957]Thanks for taking the time to post such a detailed TR. Were you paying roaming charges with your smartphone? I know you were very close to the border but I'm wondering if you disabled roaming on your phone and who you have your service with ie Verizon etc.
Anyone happen to know how far a USA signal extends into Mexicali?[/QUOTE]I use AT&T wirelesss. Whenever I go to Mexicali I do not have any issues as long as I stay close to the border. One time I spent the night at the Hotel Lucerna and when I was there I was roaming but that is a ways into Mexicali. AT&T owns the Mexican cell Company Telcel so AT&T users are able to use Telcel towers without trouble. When I was in Los Algodone on this last trip it was a bit different. I did do a little bit of roaming but not a lot. I guess AT&T and Telcel must not be present in Los Algodones. The translator application that I was talking about in the post, a program called Jibbigo, does not use data to work. It is completely self contained. The programmers that made it actually designed it to work in third world countries for releif workers where there are no cell towers. I did use other apps on my Android Smartphone that required data though and in Mexicali they worked fine without roaming.
In order for a phone to work anywhere outside the United States it has to be a GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) carrier. AT&T and T- Mobile are the two GSM carriers in the United States. Sprint is a CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) carrier so Sprint will not work outside the United States. Verizon Wireless has historically been a CDMA carrier but as of earlier this year began the process of changing to GSM. They have a vew phones now that work off of GSM and therefore can be used in Mexico. Those phones are the Droid Bionic by Motorola, DROID CHARGE by Samsung, Revolution by LG, and the ThunderBoldt by HTC (basically all of the 4G LTE phones). So if you are on Verizon and you use any of those phones it will work in Mexico. Now sometimes if you have a Sprint Phone or a Verizon Phone that is not one of those phones you can still catch an American tower on the north side of the border as long as you keep close to the border. I have friends with a Verizon phone that is not any of those that have successfully used it in Mexicali. I was with them though and they never ventured more than 2 blocks in from the border. As you can probably tell, cellular phone communication is an obsession of mine. LOL. If you have further questions you may fee free to ask me.
El Establo has probably lost a long time customer
I was in Mexicali last night and had a very bad experience at El Establo. After spending thousands of dollars as a regular customer over the past 10 years at El Establo, they have probably lost me as a customer. I was in Mexicali last night and got to El Establo at about 2 AM. I chatted with a few of the regular gals and picked Rachel, a fairly new gal there. It was the worst experience of my life. I booked her for an hour and when we started to do our thing she fell aspleep. I kept waking her up and tried to get things going again but she kept falling asleep. I put my clothes on and left the room and asked to speak to the manager. I speak Spanish very very well so there was no language barrier at all. I waited for about 45 minutes while the manager kept ignoring me. Finally he talked to me and I explained the situation and demanded a refund of my money. He looked at his watch and told me that my hour has just run out and refused to return my money or give me another provider. El Establo is different than the other places where you negotiate the services directly with the muchacha. At El Establo, they have set prices including the price of the room that you pay directly to them. They pay the girl at the end of her shift for her services. I asked to speak to Pedrito (the owner's son who is usually on premises to oversee the operations). I was told that Pedrito had gone home. I knew this to be true as he usually leaves at about 3 AM. We have known each other for years. The next time I am in Mexicali, I will have a long talk with Pedrito to tell him that his pinche manager is not treating his customers correctly. He knows how much money that I have spent there over the years and if he does not square this deal. NO MORE EL ESTABLO FOR ME.
Have fun and be safe out there guys!
US Cell Phone Signals in Mexicali
[QUOTE=Reinaldo; 1195957]Thanks for taking the time to post such a detailed TR. Were you paying roaming charges with your smartphone? I know you were very close to the border but I'm wondering if you disabled roaming on your phone and who you have your service with ie Verizon etc.
Anyone happen to know how far a USA signal extends into Mexicali?[/QUOTE]The distance varies with time of day and temperature. I usually stay in Hotel Siesta Real on Justo Sierra and get a US Verizon signal most of the time and it is not really close to the border. When the temperature is hot and dry, a ducting effect occurs causing the signal to go further into Mexico through the "duct". There are a lot of variables and it is practically impossible to predict when and where the US signal can be used.
AT&T International Customer Service Rep Said AT&T Owns Telcel
[QUOTE=Bbond; 1195999]AT&T does NOT own Telcel, América Móvil (Carlos Slim) does. Carlos Slim, depending on where you read, is one of the two richest men in the world.
Until very recently I used AT&T, but whenever I went on roaming to Telcel my bills skyrocketed.[/QUOTE]All I can tell you is that when I called AT&T Wireless Internation Customer Service the customer service rep told me on the phone that AT&T owns Telcel. This is what I was going by when I said that. Maybe the AT&T International Customer Service Rep is full of sh*t???,,,,LOL
CDMA Carriers Will Work In Mexico - I Stand Corrected
[QUOTE=Joe Arturo;1195995]My Droid X with Verizon works perfect in Mexicali and it is a 3G not a 4G. I have been using Verizon cell phones in Mexicali for over 10 years with no problem. AT&T does not own Telcel. It is owned by Carlos Slim, a Mexican who is the richest man in the world. Telcel has mutual operating agreements with all of the American cell phone companies to roam on their cells in Mexico. And I guarantee you that Telcel is alive and well in Los Algadones. I have the Verizon plan known as Nationwide plus Mexico. I can call the US from Mexico or Mexico from the US with no long distance charges and I can roam on the Telcel system in Mexico with no roaming charges. This plan saves me at least $200 per month as I am in Mexico a lot and call the US from Mexico and Mexico from the US a lot. For my Smart Phone I have the Verizon International data plan which allows me to use my smart phone for data while roaming in Mexico. It is about $30 extra per month.[/QUOTE]I checked and found that you are right about the using of the 3G Verizon's in Mexico. I was basing my earlier statements on when I went to Europe and was told that only the United States used CDMA technology so CDMA phones won't work other places. I did some more research after your post and I found that Mexico does have a very small CDMA network that serves only the bigger major cities in Mexico which I would guess Mexicali would be included. I guess Mexico does have a little bit of CDMA coverage but not very much. From what I read the CDMA plans will only work in the bigger cities of Mexico so I would still say that if you plan on doing a lot of travelling in Mexico to many different Mexican cities that a GSM phone would be better as there would be a lot more coverage. And if you ever decide to monger in Europe you would need GSM anyway so I personally would go with either AT&T or T-Mobile or get one of the Verizon 4G phones so that way you can be prepared to monger anywhere in the world!
Cell Phone Roaming In Mexico
I found a good website that has all the major USA Carriers and their roaming capabilities in Mexico.
[url]http://www.roamingzone.com/mexico/[/url]
Thanks For This Information
[QUOTE=Joe Arturo; 1195997]I was in Mexicali last night and had a very bad experience at El Establo. After spending thousands of dollars as a regular customer over the past 10 years at El Establo, they have probably lost me as a customer. I was in Mexicali last night and got to El Establo at about 2 AM. I chatted with a few of the regular gals and picked Rachel, a fairly new gal there. It was the worst experience of my life. I booked her for an hour and when we started to do our thing she fell aspleep. I kept waking her up and tried to get things going again but she kept falling asleep. I put my clothes on and left the room and asked to speak to the manager. I speak Spanish very very well so there was no language barrier at all. I waited for about 45 minutes while the manager kept ignoring me. Finally he talked to me and I explained the situation and demanded a refund of my money. He looked at his watch and told me that my hour has just run out and refused to return my money or give me another provider. El Establo is different than the other places where you negotiate the services directly with the muchacha. At El Establo, they have set prices including the price of the room that you pay directly to them. They pay the girl at the end of her shift for her services. I asked to speak to Pedrito (the owner's son who is usually on premises to oversee the operations). I was told that Pedrito had gone home. I knew this to be true as he usually leaves at about 3 AM. We have known each other for years. The next time I am in Mexicali, I will have a long talk with Pedrito to tell him that his pinche manager is not treating his customers correctly. He knows how much money that I have spent there over the years and if he does not square this deal. NO MORE EL ESTABLO FOR ME.
Have fun and be safe out there guys![/QUOTE]I was actually thinking about going to El Establo the next time I go but now I will probably avoid it based on this report. I have never made it to Bar San Diego or El Establo because I do not drive in Mexicali. I park in the AA Parking on the American side and walk in. I do not like having to buy Mexican auto insurance and dealing with crooked Mexican cops that will see my car with my Arizona license plate and seeing me as a gringo to take advantage of (My car is a newer car and it is a sporty, flashy looking car, it has the word GRINGO written all over it. LOL). Also since I do not speak spanish I am afraid if there is some sign telling me to slow down or something I would not know and I could get in an accident or have instant policia problems. Also, since I do not speak Spanish I am afraid I would be able to get a cab to get me to El Establo or Bar San Diego but I would not be able to get one to take me back since I can not call the cab company to come pick me up. And from what I understand, cab drivers in Mexico are notorious for ripping you off and doing scams. In fact, if anyone knows of solutions to all my concerns I would be interested in knowing. I would like to go to BSD sometime if I can get beyond the transportation issue.