Are there any web sites that can help me with buying a cell phone and also signing up for internet?　Id like to get fiber optic internet instead of yahoo BB. Or is it easier than I think; can I just go to a cell phone provider with my address and passport and have them take care of the rest?
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Japan GAFfers: Getting a cell phone and internet?
- Thread starter Lyte Edge
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Raoul Duke said:
Yeah. I finally got to my placement area after several boring and very tiring days of orientation crap and a ton of travel. Today is the first free day I`ve had in what seems like weeks but has only been days.
This is a pretty nice little city...not too big, but not too small either.
Red Scarlet
Member
Buy lots of neat stuff.
Ok Lyte.
Unless you have your own house, or live in building with more than 30 units, you have to get either ADSL or Cable. Cable has better upload speeds than Yahoo BB. Yahoo ~can~ have better down speeds. Depends on your distance as always.
As for getting a phone. Id recommend DoCoMo (the springloaded D901iS is awesome, and will be my next phone), however you will need some special papers. When you get your 外国人登録証明書 (Gaikokujintourokushoumeisho) you should ask them for a special paper that will prove you applied for the card. Consider it a temp. DoCoMo will require this for getting a phone.
If you ever do get down to Osaka, just give me a PM. I am really busy with projects at work, but I am always free to hang out in the evening.
P.S. Other Japan gaffers who didnt know... I will be in Tokyo next week on business if anyone is up for drinks!
EDIT: More phone advice that I forgot. If you are going to be a heavy internet user on your phone, get Pakehoudai (all you can use internet on the phone). I know quite a few Japan Gaffers use it and love it. Finally... you cant sign up for Yahoo BB without the Gaijin card (the application proof doesnt cut it) and it takes a month for it to all get installed. So get married to the idea of no internet for now. Lastly, if you can, try to get signed up for Yahoo BB at Yodobashi Camera. They are offering a PSP or a Slim PS2 for 7000 yen if you buy it when you sign up for Yahoo BB! Who knows what kinda special deals Yodobashi Multimedia Akiba will offer when it opens in September. (I hear it is an exact copy of the building in Umeda)
Finally, pick up Continue Magazine this month. It is a great little super hardcore magazine that has a shopping tour of Akiba along with an akiba photoshoot/interview it Chiaki Kuriyama (GoGo Yubari).
Unless you have your own house, or live in building with more than 30 units, you have to get either ADSL or Cable. Cable has better upload speeds than Yahoo BB. Yahoo ~can~ have better down speeds. Depends on your distance as always.
As for getting a phone. Id recommend DoCoMo (the springloaded D901iS is awesome, and will be my next phone), however you will need some special papers. When you get your 外国人登録証明書 (Gaikokujintourokushoumeisho) you should ask them for a special paper that will prove you applied for the card. Consider it a temp. DoCoMo will require this for getting a phone.
If you ever do get down to Osaka, just give me a PM. I am really busy with projects at work, but I am always free to hang out in the evening.
P.S. Other Japan gaffers who didnt know... I will be in Tokyo next week on business if anyone is up for drinks!
EDIT: More phone advice that I forgot. If you are going to be a heavy internet user on your phone, get Pakehoudai (all you can use internet on the phone). I know quite a few Japan Gaffers use it and love it. Finally... you cant sign up for Yahoo BB without the Gaijin card (the application proof doesnt cut it) and it takes a month for it to all get installed. So get married to the idea of no internet for now. Lastly, if you can, try to get signed up for Yahoo BB at Yodobashi Camera. They are offering a PSP or a Slim PS2 for 7000 yen if you buy it when you sign up for Yahoo BB! Who knows what kinda special deals Yodobashi Multimedia Akiba will offer when it opens in September. (I hear it is an exact copy of the building in Umeda)
Finally, pick up Continue Magazine this month. It is a great little super hardcore magazine that has a shopping tour of Akiba along with an akiba photoshoot/interview it Chiaki Kuriyama (GoGo Yubari).
Synth_floyd
Banned
I did a prepaid vodafone keitai. The "enjorno" phone was 4000 yen (you can buy it at a convini) and the cheapest card you could buy was 3000 yen which worked for 2 months. This is only if you want to do 90% e-mailing as talking used up the minutes pretty quickly but you can recieve calls for free still.
Welcome back to Japan
Internet: Rather than taking the DSL route... since you want fiber optics, I'd recommend Tepco hikari. Tepco is an electric company so they can setup fiber optics without having a land phone line. Also, Tepco will talk directly with the landlord about installing so no hassle on your end.
Phone: If you intend to stay longer than a year with the JET programme, I guess getting a regular keitai might be a better idea. If not, prepaid vodafone would work fine.
Internet: Rather than taking the DSL route... since you want fiber optics, I'd recommend Tepco hikari. Tepco is an electric company so they can setup fiber optics without having a land phone line. Also, Tepco will talk directly with the landlord about installing so no hassle on your end.
Phone: If you intend to stay longer than a year with the JET programme, I guess getting a regular keitai might be a better idea. If not, prepaid vodafone would work fine.
Pakehoudai is not really worth it unless you talk on the phone a ton -- you have to pay for the slightly more expensive package (around 6000 yen/month) and then get the pakehoudai on top of that. It's a lot of cash. I don't know many males who need that 6000-range package... we just don't talk that much. Plus, it's FOMA-only, and FOMA is already more expensive than MOVA (though it comes w/the benefit of having the best games available for it).
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