Cellphones and Moving to Yokohama (Tokyo)
Hello everyone.
Short Version:
Moving to Yokohama with the US Navy (I'll be in port and out at sea in ~3 month intervals for a few years). I hope to take my cellphone from the US with me. Should I use a pocket Wi-fi device or a b-mobile/IIJmoi SIM cards? What are the best pocket Wi-fi options to use?
Longer Version:
I'm going to be moving to Yokohama sometime in August Protected content I'm doing a bit of pre-planning so that I don't show up and have no idea what I'm doing. I'll be working in Yokosuka for the Navy so I'll be in and out of Japan every few months, so getting a full plan might be a waste of money.
My hope is that I can bring my cellphone with me since Japanese phones are so expensive and are only for rent (it's a Samsung Galaxy S6 that I have through Verizon here in the US). I tried researching it online, but most of the sites are for people who are traveling for a couple of months, but in my situation, I'll be there for a couple of years minimum.
I've been looking at the different options, and it looks like I have to either get a pocket wi-fi device or a b-mobile/IIJmoi data SIM card (so no option for having a Japanese cellphone number). I was hoping that since I'd be staying so long, I could get a Japanese number, but some sites are saying that it's illegal to give foreigners a Japanese cellphone number.
I was wondering if that's all true, or if that's just for people with short term stays. I plan on getting my own apartment somewhere in Yokohama (that's foreigner friendly), so I will have a permanent residence if that's needed.
If it's too difficult, I'm definitely down for using a pocket wi-fi device as long as it's not ridiculously expensive or slow. Are their any recommendations for good long term services.
Also, i'm not worried about international calling because I'll just use a program like Wechat to call my parents over wi-fi (which is why I'm good with a pocket wi-fi). I'm also okay with using a VoIP as long as people can get a hold of me for work.
Sorry for such a long post