Cell Phone Service in Santiago, Chile

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Don't forget of course, The Economic Hour, which occurs after 9pm on M-F, 4pm on Sat and all day Sunday. A sick, orphaned child of "Nights and Weekends" plans offered in the United States. Not just the inhumane hours, but the complete absence of anything resembling a bargain. It comes out to the magnanimous savings of $0.09, bringing it to $.37/minute.

I just don't talk on the phone any more except in rare cases. The cell phone is not an integral part of my life like it used to be. Perhaps this has helped me become more Zen and de-stressed. Even if that were true, it's not an ideal disposition for a potential consumer. But I guess the cell-cos don't really care, they're busy robbing people blind...because they can.

But back before I realized the insanity of the situation, I thought I could make a killing (in savings) with the trick I learned in Spain, where cell phone rates aren't great either. The way to save money is to call somebody, let it ring once, hang up and wait for the person to call you back. Everybody did it, so it turned into a Western-style competition for who had the quickest draw.

I was prepared to hit the ground running in Chile. Unfortunately, all the fun was lost because, for starters, the cell phones don't really work. I call someone and the recorded voice says the phone's off (not true) and the same happens when people try to call me. When the phone service kinda works and I get shunted to voicemail. While charging close to 50 cents a minute, the company-provided voicemail greeting literally talks. This. Slow:

You...have...reached...cinco...cinco...cinco...uno...dos...tres...cuatro.

No! You can't DO that! That's the oldest trick in the book!

But they do do that.

So to anyone who wants to call a cell phone in Santiago, Chile, now you know: cell phone service in Santiago is pretty bad. It's overpriced, and calls don't go through. My advice: don't get a cell phone. So I've said it.

But if you need to MAKE a call to a cell phone in Chile, here's how. Most cell phone numbers start with a "9" or an "8". If you're calling from a regular old land line, dial "09" then the number. So if the number starts with "9" you'll be dialing "099...." and if it starts with "8" you'll be dialing "098...."

Just remember to keep it short and sweet because no matter where you're calling from, a local telco like Telefonica or an international long distance service, the Chilean cell phone companies will ram up the charges which will then get passed on to you.

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