870?
 

I do not think so. And I assume you mean dialing 870 from the UK profile while in North America. I tried it and that is how I activated one of the SIM cards.

IMSI are linked to CTNs (cellular telephone number). CTNs can be replaced by another one, but never be replaced once the IMSI is deemed canceled. Once you cancel your line, the IMSI is know as retired and can't be reused.

The only thing it could be, is they park your number, the IMSI is still attached to a CTN, but they put a block on it, so the minutes can be use among the other users in a pool. They can then charge you to reactivate. Probably you keep your CTN in this case. If they indeed change them, I don't see rhyme or reason why so.

Hi Stu,

Friends and colleagues rather have cheap outbound calls back home, and cheap local calls to the destination. Incoming is important also, but our case, calls are placed more frequently than received. The SCC sucks, but if it means cheaper calls, I can live with. More and more I found myself, like my colleagues leaning on using local SIMs, and once at destination, give the new CTN to whom we wish to reach us. often it's cheaper this way.

I buy local prepaids when: (a) I am in the country for more than a week; (b) where I regularly visit the country (even if less than a week); and/or, (c) where roaming SIMs charge a king's ransom, but local calls and SIMs are cheap (e.g. Russia, India, etc).

Every situation is unique and I research the situation and try to tailor my solution to the problem. I have an Asterisks box and my Blackberry gives me included data. That means that my solutions may not match other people's.

Well I just got back and either I have a glitchy SIM card or the service is not living up to my expectations.

eKit did not work well for me in: Czech Rep., Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia. I received a call back about 1 in 6 times in the Czech Rep....never in Austria/Slovenia and about 1 in 10 times in Croatia. I was too busy zipping through Slovakia, so I never bothered to check there. ALL incoming calls to the +44 number all went to voicemail (i.e. the phone never rang). Calls to the local +1 number came through fine (albeit with ~4sec lag in voice quality).

In one instance, I was asked for the PUK since it said I had incorrectly entered the PIN 3 times (which I hadn't). After turning the phone off/on it accepted my PIN fine. Unclear if this is carrier related since I attempted to manually search for networks when I was unable to place calls.

I'm going to have to pass on eKit...it's too bad since the rates were fairly reasonable. The headache with trying to make a simple call outweighs the decent rates.

-Ken

glhs509:

I am curious what type of phone you were using. I had ring back problems a year ago on one of my phones. I took 2 phones with me then. Seems on one phone I had to send a text message to get a ring back. The trick is to send an SMS with just the phone number you want to call in it to 1234. No charge for the SMS. The SIM worked fine in my other phone.

My main phone/PDA is an iMate K-Jam which has been solid for almost 5 yrs now. Ring backs have worked in the past on other SIMs, including most recently Yackie.
The eKit in USA mode (while in the USA) worked fine before leaving. I had also tried the eKit SIM on my wife's Nokia while abroad with similar results.

Unfortunately I had to make several calls in a jam (non-casual) and thus had to resort to my T-Mo USA SIM...waiting to pour myself a stiff drink before I look at the billings (although I'm on the grandfathered [pre-worldclass] and may not be so bad off)...

Very true that a lot of newer phones, especially smartphones tend to not work well with some of these callback sims. However, that does not explain why all incoming calls to the UK number went straight to VM.

Well, I gave up on Travel Sim UK as they aren't going to offer dual-sim to United Mobile customers and they no longer have free inbound in Brazil, which is 1 of the 3 countries I will be traveling to soon. I had considered Geo-Sim but their dual-sims aren't out yet and their rate for people calling the US number will be 35cents/min compared to Ekit's 19cents/min.

To add my data points:
1) My Ekit US area code is 508, a Massachusetts number. Would have liked a NY number as that is where I'm from, but it doesn't really matter.

2) All of my test calls have been working to and from US numbers.

3) The rate being charged is definitely 19cents/min with no 35cent connection.

4) I deactivated my voicemail and turned off my phone and tried to call the phone, and got that option to send SMS. But, I was not charged for this. Since I will only give my US number to people in the US, they will not be charged anything either. However, it would be nice to turn this option off and make it appear to ring, though the only reason I turned off voicemail is because I am using Google Voice for call forwarding to this phone and voicemail. When Ekit implements free voicemail access from the website, I will probably change my setup.

5) All of the quick 3 digit access numbers I tried worked without any *. Using * did not work, even though the Telestial website for the Passport card says to use *869* for disabling voicemail. Are the * necessary when abroad?

6) I have not tested calling abroad and will not.

I'm going to Paris and worried about Kupe's experience there. Kupe, you said you would go again in early July. Did you go? Did you have problems? =/

Free Voicemail retreval in USA/Canada with ekit's SIMple Calling SIMs
 

Ekit has two different SIMple Calling SIMs available on eBay. Both have free voicemail retreval in the US and Canada. The US and UK ekit eBay sellers have different SIMple Calling SIMs. They both have a US and UK number and the non US/Canada rates are each different but comparable to one of the other original UK [IOM] SIM plans. UPDATE: ekit has both SIMple calling SIMs on their website now. Just noticed seconds ago! EBay is the inexpensive place to get these.

*sigh* I saw this too late. And I am a little confused. Is it almost exactly the same as the Passport dual-sim but... better??? And for only $12 shipped? Why is the pricing so different? I just paid $34 for the Passport on Telestial =/

Haven't found the ekit dual sim on ebay as of yet...have I missed it somehow?

Just search for ekit and the ones called US SIMple are dual-sim.

They are all dual now.
 

All the ekit SIMs on eBay are dual. They sell under the names ekitmobile and ekitmobileusa.

Each seller has different SIMs so check them both out and all out. [Both the sellers: all of the SIMs.]

Each seller has a different SIMple Calling [the flag one=USA] SIM card.

I believe this is the one and, it's $23 shipped not $12 as quoted above. Still a good price though, since it comes with $10 credit.

International Prepaid Travel SIM card - Free Incoming! - eBay (item 140297379784 end time Jul-25-09 03:32:33 PDT)

Well, that's the one i bought from Telestial for $34, so still certainly a better price. However, the USA SIMple cards ARE $12. They have a slightly different pricing structure in the US I think, but are very similar.

You want ekit's SIMple calling SIMs
 

You want ekit's SIMple calling SIMs. There are two different ones on eBay. They have a usa flag in the picture. The US one is $9 +3 shipping=$12.

The UK ones are 10+1 UK Pounds. Check each's rates and features.

The US 'claims' to have a 50cent connection fee while in the USA. When I tried mine it was only 35 cents.

Voicemail in free to retrieve in the US and Canada.

Ah ha.......yup it does say that making or receiving calls in the USA include a 50¢ surcharge but here's what's unclear...

It says receiving calls say in the UK (or anywhere else in what they call zone 1 is free)...the question is does the call have to come in on the +44 number or is it free to receive in the UK if a call is made to the +1 number (it doesn't seem very clear) or do you pay the 9¢/minute to the +1 number with the 50¢ surcharge?

Don't you pay 19 cents a minute to receive calls on the +1 number whilst in Zone 1 when using the +44 number?

Just too much confusion regarding these Ekit sim cards. There has to be an easier way to clarify which is which and what the rates are.

I am pretty sure that outside of North America, you pay 19c/min surcharge to receive calls on your +1 number.

Well that I agree was clearly indicated on the original ekit passport dual sim card.....but in reading all the material on ebay regarding the US simple card which also has a +44 number, there is no indication of that, none whatsoever.

Go to ebay...put in a search for ekit sim card and click on any of the offers with the US flag on it.....read through all the material and please show me where it says there is a 19¢ charge to receive calls in the UK or any of the other countries in that first list...it clearly says callin gthe USA/Canada from these countries is $0.49...nothing about a surcharge and it says free to receive....it doesn't say anywhere it's only free to receive if the call is made to the +44 number...there is absolutely nothing about the 19¢, at least not that I can find....this is as opposed to the original ekit card from telestial which first came out two months ago where it clearly indicated a 19¢ surcharge.

Of course, I might be missing something......

I suppose I am not sure I would trust the the Ebay listing as is. This is the info from Ekit's page:
ekit, SIMple Calling Plus SIM card

It says Free to receive calls in over 50 countries ON YOUR GLOBAL NUMBER so that is the +44 number. And it does mention the 19c/min.

That seems the way it should be.......

The company would go bankrupt quickly if it allowed free inbound calls on the +1 number. The only way to make that profitable is to have a monthly fee to cover the airtime usage.

Why?......

So far, I am impressed with eKit. The US number seems to passes caller-id fairly well. The UK one doesn't seem to work as well.

Because I assume the physical number is overseas (+44?). It costs lots of money to terminate a call on a mobile number virtually anyway in the world outside US/Canada.
If Ekit is providing a U.S. physical number, then they would have to pay the carrier who handles the call in the country you are in overseas.
Of course I might be all wrong<G>

...mike

Most countries' mobile numbers have a higher termination rate (e.g. UK landlines ~2-3 cents Canadian for me to call; UK mobiles 17-50 cents for me to call). The caller is paying a higher rate because a large part of the rate difference goes to the mobile network provider to pay for the airtime. The mobile phone owner does not pay because the caller is paying.

On a US or Canadian number, the termination rate is the same as for a landline so there is no differential to pay to the mobile provider. The mobile phone owner pays because the caller is not paying.

Someone has to pay for incoming calls. In most countries in the world the caller pays. In Canada and the US, as well as a few other countries, the callee pays.

It seems like a very good service.
The thing I find most confusing are the differences between Passport, Passport Plus, SIMple, and SIMple Plus.

The other thing that's weird...
The prices on their Ebay site are very good, but their website prices are really expensive!

Anyone have more recent experiences using the ekit dual number sim in Europe -- specifically UK, France, Ireland or Germany? Seems like the reliability picture is somewhat mixed?

I notice the ekit website mentions coverage on some cruise ships....is this at the cruise line (sky-high) rates or is there some special deal? I couldn't find anything about these rates on the ekit site.

Thanks.

Cruise Ships are in zone 5.
ekit, Passport SIM card
ekit, Mobile Info

Thanks. What about incoming calls on cruise ships -- Are they free on the +44 number and 19 c/min on the U.S. number? Sorry if these are dumb questions-- I find the ekit rate info confusing.

Incoming calls on a cruise ship are $3.29 a minute. I have used a Passport SIM on a cruise ship. Depending on your route, I could often just get a land based carrier and make calls for a reduced rate even while on the cruise ship. On cruises to Greece and Italy I had service while we were at sea. You can tell when you roam on to the expensive ship system. Also, the ship turns off their system while docked in port.

I just tested mine in the US. I called the +44 number, and answered the call. I was charged for the incoming call. I thought that incoming calls on the +44 number were free in the US?

It depends on which SIM you have.
SIMple plus: 9cpm for receiving call on UK number in the US
ekit, SIMple Calling Plus SIM card

SIMple: 9cpm for receiving call on UK number in the US
ekit, SIMple Calling SIM card

Passport Plus: 29cpm for receiving call on UK number OR US number in the US (no surcharge on this product for calls received in the US made to the US number)
ekit, Passport Plus SIM card

Passport: no charge for receiving call on UK number in the US
ekit, Passport SIM card


Look at the cost for incoming calls in zone 5 for the type of SIM you have (rates range from $3.29 to $3.99). The best way to make sure you are looking at the right info is to log-in to your SIM account at ekit.com first.

I find the four different rate plans confusing. I decided that the Passport service was the best for my needs (due to free incoming in the US and Canada on calls made to Uk number).

my error<G>

Based on the remaining balance after I answered the call ($9.56), it appears I was charged 44 cents for the incoming call. Not quite sure how that was computed - e.g., the ebay page says there is a 50 cent charge for all calls sent or received, I obviously wasn't charged that. I have a SIMple calling SIM, the one that sells for $12 (incl. shipping) on ebay.

It sounds like you have SIMple calling Plus. There is a 35¢ connection fee, except for calls received when in free roaming countries.
ekit, SIMple Calling Plus SIM card

You can call ekit customer service. They're actually pretty helpful.

[I tried to go back and edit my original post for clarity...but since I can't edit any longer, I'll write it here:
SIMple Calling Plus, Passport, and Passport Plus each have a 35¢ connection fee for calls made or received in areas without free roaming on that plan. Effectively, that means that there is a 35¢ fee per call received in the US on SIMple calling plus and Passport Plus in addition to the per minute rate. Passport was my choice of SIM--available on ebay for $20+$3 shipping--and I think it's the best for users who want to use the card in the US/Canada.]