General Info

[Benzedrine]

1. Jailbreak it using redsnow (assuming you have the 3G and not 3GS)

Redsn0w works for every iPhone now. Source: I used Redsn0w 0.8 on my 3GS successfully.

[Manta Ray]

I will be moving to Manila for one year for my work from September 1st. I will most likely arrive with a 59 day tourist visa procured from the Tokyo Philippine Embassy, then renew my visa every two months for the year.

I have RTFF regarding opening a bank acct, but unfortunately the information seems to be a bit contradictory. Therefore if you have any good answers to the following questions, I'd be very appreciative:

1) Is it actually necessary to have a Phil based bank acct? In other words, for one year, is it feasible to just use an ATM (I am a Citibank customer), to withdraw money whenever I need it?

2) Is it possible to open a bank acct as a short-term visitor (with a 59 day tourist visa)?

3) If answer to number 2 above is 'Yes', any recommendations about which bank(s) would be best to open an account?

Many thanks!

[GoodEnough]

That last caveat should be underlined repeatedly. My Blackberry attracts all sorts of attention, and typically I keep it in my bag or in my pocket unless I'm using it. Cell phones are widespread marks of status here and make attractive targets for the more avaricious.

GE

[Gumby2004]

i would like to use my iphone there also for the texting speed and also you can now use yahoo chat on it. (i have not tried it yet)

i can use my iphone for wifi as stores/cafes, i hope i can use it in the wifi malls, becasue it is so handy and easier than a laptop.

as far as credit cards, i notified all of them before i left for manila, and still none of them worked on cebu pacific.

while the iphone is quad-band, it will need to be unlocked first if you bought it from a us carrier before you can sms and, of course, make local calls in pi. (there are factory unlocked iphones available, but be prepared to put out the big bucks. you're welcome to pm me for details.)

either way, you'll definitely find its wi-fi features, like ym and email, very handy. your iphone will also serve as a cool attention getter, since cell phones and other personal accessories are widely recognized status symbols. (my blackberry has started many conversations with potential honeykos.) with that being said, watch out for snatchers when showing off your gear.

[Geneva Guy]

i would like to use my iphone there also for the texting speed and also you can now use yahoo chat on it. (i have not tried it yet)

i can use my iphone for wifi as stores/cafes, i hope i can use it in the wifi malls, becasue it is so handy and easier than a laptop.

as far as credit cards, i notified all of them before i left for manila, and still none of them worked on cebu pacific.

bb

you need to do the following to your iphone to use it in phil

1. jailbreak it using redsnow (assuming you have the 3g and not 3gs)

2. unlock it (unlock the sim) using ultrasnow

if you are in another country that locks the sim, make you you do this before you leave and try another sim card (other than your own carrier) in it before you leave. if you use t-mobile, then turn off 3g before trying a tmobile sim.

you can look on line at www.thebigboss.org for lots of info on how to do this. i have done it, works fine.

oh, turn on your wifi after you try it, and you can use it with any network

gg

[Fast Eddie 48]

Cebu Pacific accept your credit card and the either deny the flight or make you pay more at check in. That is if they don't refuse you to fly, which they do if they are over booked.

Oh and by the way check you credit card for scams after you used it on CB.

Philippine Airlines are safer. They spotted scamed airline tickets and reported it to the Phili Police who arrested 4 Nigerians and have their sights on two more.

By the way, always pay cash in Thailand too. Airline ticket fraud and CC scams are common.

Ham yai,

I got scam in China once on a fake airline ticket, only deal with large travel agent or buy ticket in the airport even you paid more it is safer.

Fast Eddie 48

[Sammon]

i would like to use my iphone there also for the texting speed and also you can now use yahoo chat on it. (i have not tried it yet)

i can use my iphone for wifi as stores/cafes, i hope i can use it in the wifi malls, becasue it is so handy and easier than a laptop.

as far as credit cards, i notified all of them before i left for manila, and still none of them worked on cebu pacific.

it is very difficult to book on cebu pacific website with western credit cards. if you call them they say cheaper flights can only be booked at the website.
i have tried visa vierified cards and successfull in only half the time. the problem is i do not want to do multiple bookings and i do not know whether the booking has gone through. still end up calling them and frustrating to wait a long time to get in touch with them. they never send reply to your e mail.
i do not know why a so called major airline has not fixed their computer system to accept credit cards from all over the world. it is possible major banks have blacklisted them for inefficiency. forget about going to their reservation offices, wait will be close to 2 hours. for a fee many travel agents will book the ticket if you are already in phi. but i like to make plans and reservations from here in u.s. there was a time i used to make reservations for my girl friends as well and send them a copy. now i have to send them the money for them to book themselves. added money transfer charge.
for the many number of times i have travelled with them i am quite satisfied with the service and punctuality. maybe couple of times they were late but usually due to bad weather. it happens anywhere. for cheap fares and no frill service you cannot beat them.

[GoodEnough]

i would like to use my iphone there also for the texting speed and also you can now use yahoo chat on it. (i have not tried it yet)

i can use my iphone for wifi as stores/cafes, i hope i can use it in the wifi malls, becasue it is so handy and easier than a laptop.

as far as credit cards, i notified all of them before i left for manila, and still none of them worked on cebu pacific.

tribands will work fine as will dual bands, if there are really any dual bands left.

[Ham Yai]

Cebu Pacific accept your credit card and the either deny the flight or make you pay more at check in. That is if they don't refuse you to fly, which they do if they are over booked.

Oh and by the way check you credit card for scams after you used it on CB.

Philippine Airlines are safer. They spotted scamed airline tickets and reported it to the Phili Police who arrested 4 Nigerians and have their sights on two more.

By the way, always pay cash in Thailand too. Airline ticket fraud and CC scams are common.

[Bob Bowie]

a quad-band will always work in the phils.

a tri-band will more than likely work, although i have never tried.

i don't know about a dual-band phone.

before you try, make sure the phone is sim unlocked, to enable you to pop in a sim for another carrier. if you bought your phone from a us carrier, your phone is likely locked. if so, expect a hard time if you ask them for the unlock code. but there's plenty of alternatives, . you can even have it done in manila for a few bucks.

i carry an unlocked blackberry (quad-band) that i use both at home and the phils. the keyboard saves alot of time when dealing with the bombardment of messages we all get. i've never been patient enough to learn how to efficiently text with just nine keys.

i would like to use my iphone there also for the texting speed and also you can now use yahoo chat on it. (i have not tried it yet)

i can use my iphone for wifi as stores/cafes, i hope i can use it in the wifi malls, becasue it is so handy and easier than a laptop.

as far as credit cards, i notified all of them before i left for manila, and still none of them worked on cebu pacific.

[Gumby2004]

A quad-band will always work in the Phils.

A tri-band will more than likely work, although I have never tried.

I don't know about a dual-band phone.

Before you try, make sure the phone is SIM Unlocked, to enable you to pop in a SIM for another carrier. If you bought your phone from a US carrier, your phone is likely locked. If so, expect a hard time if you ask them for the unlock code. But there's plenty of alternatives, . You can even have it done in manila for a few bucks.

I carry an unlocked blackberry (quad-band) that I use both at home and the phils. The keyboard saves alot of time when dealing with the bombardment of messages we all get. I've never been patient enough to learn how to efficiently text with just nine keys.

PLanning a trip next month and want to bring a cell phone from the US to use while there. I'm planning on buying a Smart Sim online. Will a dual or triband phone from the US work down there? Anyone the frequency bands they use?
Thanks in advance.

[Azmodeus Fl]

I took an old 3G phone and had it unlocked. I purchased a smart buddy sim card in the US but found out later it was locked to text only. My suggestion is to purchase your sim card in the Philippines as it will be fully opened for text and calls.

PLanning a trip next month and want to bring a cell phone from the US to use while there. I'm planning on buying a Smart Sim online. Will a dual or triband phone from the US work down there? Anyone the frequency bands they use?

Thanks in advance.

[Sun Chaser]

Have recently made my first successful purchase of air tickets from CP, using a credit card. Amazing! It went like a dream.

I suspect that the reason it may have worked this time was because I used a card registered for the 'verified by visa' password safe security scheme.

Anyone else had similar results or was I just lucky this time.

3 weeks ago, I actually couldn't use it after 6 tries with 2 different cards. The next morning, my credit card companies (CapitalOne and CitiBank) called to verify it was me. And then I tried again with CapitalOne and I had no problems booking a trip from Macau to AC. A week later, I was still able to book a return trip from Manila to Macau with no problems. It looks like credit card companies might block it as a standard policy and only unblock when verified.

[Cunning Stunt]

Have recently made my first successful purchase of air tickets from CP, using a credit card. Amazing! It went like a dream.

I suspect that the reason it may have worked this time was because I used a card registered for the 'verified by visa' password safe security scheme.

Anyone else had similar results or was I just lucky this time:).

[Sprokit69]

PLanning a trip next month and want to bring a cell phone from the US to use while there. I'm planning on buying a Smart Sim online. Will a dual or triband phone from the US work down there? Anyone the frequency bands they use?
Thanks in advance.