Re:Japan (Score 1)

The people I was staying with worked for a Telecom company so they set it up for me. Ended up costing $100 or $200 but it was well worth it for the opporunities it unlocked and the train timetable thingy :) Granted I did get stung a bit by the cancellation fee and some other stupid fees but, compared to a friend who brought a prepaid phone which barely did anything (I think you could make calls and send SMS) I think I did pretty well. Short term isn't so good, but if you are on a long(ish) term contract you don't get ripped off too much (and, as mentioned, it's definitely worth it for the social aspects etc it opens up)