Indian Cellular Networks

Indian cellular networks work under the GSM900 and GSM1800 standards. GPRS is also widely available. If you have a dual band phone that works in Europe (GSM1800) and in the UK (predominantly GSM900), then your mobile phone will work all over India. Delhi and most of Northern India is on the GSM900 standard, though some northern states run on GSM1800. If your current phone is compatible with these networks, make sure you bring it with you.

Save on Exorbitant Roaming Charges

If you already have a cell phone that is compatible, we strongly advise you to rent a SIM card. You will save a fortune versus using your own. For just USD 17.68 you'll have a SIM card that gives you 187.80 minutes of cross-network local calls. That's about USD 0.05 a minute. Have you ever heard of roaming rates as low as that? Compare that to roaming charges with your current service provider. We reckon you would be lucky to get a price lower than $2 a minute. As an example, the tables below compare our charges to T-Mobile's roaming costs for its UK monthly contract customers.

Purchase or Rent a SIM Card?

If you would rather buy your own SIM card than rent one when you arrive in India, that is possible. SIM cards are widely available throughout Delhi and other cities, at shopping malls, markets and even at road stalls. However, there are certain factors to consider before buying a SIM card in India. To buy a SIM card in India, you must provide the following documentation:

1. One photograph
2. Proof of Address (eg electric or other utility bill)
3. A photo bearing ID card (eg passport)

Take these along to one of the many outlets from which you can buy cell phones and SIM cards, and they will sell you the card of your choice. This will of course mean that you are without a phone, or at least without access to cheap calls, until you go shopping for a SIM. It also means that you will have to leave copies of extremely sensitive personal information with the government bureaucracy of a third world country, as well as with an unknown shopkeeper who probably makes no more than $10 a day. In these days of phishing and identity theft, very few of our clients feel comfortable with this prospect.

When you rent a SIM card or cell phone from us, we'll hand it to you the moment you reach the arrivals area of IGI airport. Or we can bring it to you at your place of stay in Delhi. You'll be able to make cheap calls from the start of your stay in India, and you won't have to make any superfluous journeys. Most importantly, you won't need to hand over your passport or any other documents that could be used to siphon away your hard-earned cash. We'll already have registered the SIM card as one of our own, so you don't run risks or face the hassle of bureaucracy and tedious forms.

That's the advantage of hiring a SIM or cell phone from us. We have already taken care of registration of the SIM card so you will not need to go through the hassle of producing documents and completing tedious forms. All you need to do is insert the card and turn on your phone.

If you would like to hire a SIM card only, we charge the low price of USD 17.68. That's a flat rate, not per day, week or month. Just return the card when you've finished with our services.

To rent a cell phone (with SIM included), the cost is USD 42.94. This again is a flat rate**.

Please note, cellular equipment may only be hired when you rent a car from us, or when you opt for our two-way airport service. All equipment must be returned upon completion of service.

**A deposit of INR4000 per cell phone is required. This will be refunded: just give us the phone back in the same condition as we gave it to you :-)

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