Has anyone ever bought the italian sim cards from a company called valuesphere? How reliable are they? I'm considering them because for another $20 they sell a preactivated sim card (you don't need to send your passport number - which is a thing I still don't feel confortable doing not matter how much standard issue this is!)
I would be careful of dealing with a company that says they can get a SIM card without your passport number. The change in regulations a couple of years were instituted to preclude anonymous phone and internet use but criminals and terrorists. You are now even required to give your passport to use a computer at an Internet cafe in Italy.
Do you NEED to buy the SIM before you get to Italy? I have used Vodafone and TIM in Italy and Vodafone has a store on the second level of Terminal A at FCO where you could get a SIM before you leave the airport. (assuming you're flying into Rome) It will probably be a lot less money to buy it there than before you travel.
Yes, I will be flying into Rome. Do you have an idea of how much the card alone would cost me and how many euros of conversation they usually include? I don't mind showing the passport to buy it; what I do mind is sending personal info to someone somewhere.
If you scroll down to the bottom, you will see that the three main operators charge 10 euros and give you 5 euros of talk time.
Some of the "virtual" operators have better deals listed. I haven't tried any of those. It is extremely easy to add time in Italy once you have your card. You can do it in most Tabacchi by just giving your phone number and the proper amount of money for the time you want to add.
If you continue to scroll all the way down, you will find a section about the Codice Fiscale, which you should get and take with you.
Be sure that if you are using your phone from here that you call your provided for the subsidy unlock code so that you can use a sim other than the providers. I suspect the other providers will do the same--just maybe in a different way.
It is easy to do with ATT--just call them, tell what you want. They will ask why. Then they will e-mail you the code to unlock the phone. If you don't do this, and your phone is locked, your italian sim will not do you any good.
