The Grim State of Overseas Calling

Here is what you need to know for the major American wireless carriers: Knowledge and discipline is your only means of staying out of paying more for the cell phone than for your airfare.

Verizon

Verizon (VZ Quote) offers a few global-savvy phones, like the Motorola z6c, that start at about $179. It also has a Global Rental plan that starts at about $4 per day. The company sweetens the deal with 24/7 phone support -- as it should, considering what you are going to pay. Outgoing voice charges from Europe to America are around $1.29 per minute, with incoming rates in the 38-cent-per-minute range. Text messages run 65 cents each and data is a numbing 29 cents per 10 kb, enough for a just a few emails. Here is more on Verizon Wireless' plan.

Sprint

Sprint (S Quote) keeps it simpler than its bigger rival, but certainly not less expensive. Sprint relies on mostly rentals for its international customers, depending on whether you are a Sprint or Nextel user. Plans start at $45 dollars per week to rent a basic Nokia 3120, but rise fast: A Nokia 6630, for example, is a very pricey $70 a week. And usage is the same punishing $1.29 per minute average for Europe, though Sprint does have a decent value on data. It runs at a not-too-awful 16 cents per kb. But text messages are a frugal 15 cents each. So that may be an answer there. Check out Sprint Ahead.

Alltel

This mostly Western U.S. carrier partners with a worldwide cell phone rental company called WorldCell TravelComm. Weekly rentals run $40 for the first week, but usage costs, frankly, are brutal. We were quoted Italy-to-U.S. call rates in the $2.29 range but there are discounts for prepaid cards and discounts for Alltel customers, which I am not. Fifty minutes starts at $75 for Italian calling. But Alltel does have an interesting tiered plan for business users. If you pay $68 a week for a phone, usage rates drop to $1.89 per minute from Italy. There is a $30 shipping fee for the phone.

AT&T

AT&T (T Quote), with its more world-friendly phone infrastructure, offers relatively attractive international calling options. The AT&T World Traveler plan costs $5.99 per month and offers discounts on usage costs. Plus, many of the company's American phones work around the world without need for a rental unit. I found that a Samsung Blackjack I am testing will, in fact, work in Italy. But again, it won't be a bargain. I can expect to pay $1.29 per minute for international roaming, and a hefty 2 cents per kb for data. Now that may sound cheap but that's only enough data to barely load a Web page. Considering that you pay $50 a month for unlimited Internet access on a hard wire, costs add up fast. Text messages run 50 cents each, though my voice usage will drop to 99 cents if I opt for the monthly international roaming package. This is actually not a bad choice if you are an AT&T customer. For more, try AT&T Roaming.

T-Mobile

The friendliest overseas deals come from this much-maligned American operator. T-Mobile, like AT&T, supports a more world-savvy phone standard. Most of its phones will work abroad. The good news is there are no special charges I could find for international roaming for most devices. You do, however, still have to activate something called WorldClass Service by registering on the My-Mobile Web site.

Usage is almost not awful at 99 cents per minute on average for Europe. Data rates are also reasonable: 1 cent per kb. But texting is not super cheap at 35 cents per message.

Assuming you are an AT&T or T-Mobile customer, these are about the best deals out there. As ugly as that sounds, I'm afraid -- for this summer, at least -- it's about as good as it gets.