CelTrek - a new int'l SIM
 

DRN is his Asia report mentioned about a new international SIM he was testing there.

http://celtrek.com/FAQ.html

Q: Where can I view / check my bill?
A: Go to http://www.CelTrek.com/ - log in to your account for real time billing. Forget your password? Please contact our customer care center.

It seems that there's no balance check from the phone :(.

Q: When does the call charge start?
A: You charges start only when the service calls you back and connects you to the destination you are asking to reach.

It's not clear to me whether "the waiting time" is charged or no.

I hope that DRN will tell more....

CelTrek service is provided by Global Roaming Inc. who CEO is Florian Seroussi AKA Cizake (ex Yackiemobile man so helpful on this forum) - do you remember the guy:)?:
http://www.seroussi.com/gr2006/index-1.html
(Don't ask me why this site is partially in Latin :D)

Interesting! Just curious to test them! :)

PS: do you want the translation from latin? :P It's a 'little bit' strange thing for a TLC website :lol:

Vestibulum iaculis lacinia est
http://www.seroussi.com/gr2006/images/spacer.gif
Rus orci luctus trices posuere cubilia licitudin velit sed leo. Ut pharetra augue nec auguem elit agna, endrerit sit amet, tincidunt ac, viverra sed, nulla. Donec porta diam eu massa. Quisque diam lorem, interdum vitae, dapibus ac, scelerisq.

I can ask my wife - she is a Latin teacher :)

CelTrek appears to be a Yackie-like offering, based on a SIM from Israel with a US phone number. This means that it has the same problems roaming in countries that don't do business with Israel. Otherwise, I'm going to wait until I get a chance to use more of their features and read the detailed instructions before making any comments or recommendations. I can say that it worked everywhere they said it would work. They also have highly variable rates. It's very hard to have a "band 1", "band 2" description when every country seems to have different rates for incoming and outgoing calls or SMS.

I was invited to beta test (really it was a pre-beta) their SIM before their website came up. The test was supposed to be until Jan 7th and I wasn't supposed to say anything but was never told exactly what the non-disclosure restriction were. Since their website is now up and operating, don't think I'm violating any agreement by telling you about the product.

Well, I know very well latin language too :D

So tomorrow - now I'm really tired - I'll try my first translation from latin directly to ... english :D

I hope they can be happy to be in this forum :)

Update
 

Currently in Japan where I'm using the CelTrek SIM in preference to other options (I have only one WCDMA-2100 phone). While it seems to roam only on Vodafone-JP (a.k.a. J-Phone, SoftBank) the coverage is pretty good. Incoming calls are 24c/min, which gets pretty close to the about 19c/min to forward calls from the US to Iceland to use my 09 SIM and outgoing calls to the US are 34c/min. I took a brief call a couple of days ago and was charged only 12c. So, the billing is on some granularity less than one minute.

Their webpage allows me to download voicemail as an audio file and has very detailed call information. I haven't had much need to make a lot of calls since my room here has high-speed network access and I can make VOIP calls to the US for 2c/min.:D

I just keep thinking about those days when to make an international call when traveling, you had to go to the local telephone office, be assigned a phone booth, then return to the counter and pay. In many countries you couldn't make international calls from a regular public phone. Now we tote little phones on our belts that work just about anywhere and cost much less to use per minute than thoes calls I made in the 70s and 80s.

Please keep us up-to-date on your impressions, DRNewcomb. I like the idea of a Yackie-like offering, but without all the issues that Yackie has/had. One question I have, does CelTrek have an option to record your phone calls like Yackie does/did?

I believe they do. There seems to be one recorded call in my account but I have not played it. I've been traveling since Christmas and have not had much time to explore the finer points of the service. They have provisions for sending SMS from your online account page but it does not seem to work. There are a number of the finer points I'd like to understand better. They seem to have two prices associated with outgoing calls: The first to your mobile, the second to what ever number you are calling. So yesterday I made two calls in a single session. This was billed at $2.38 for a 6:55 callback to the mobile and two 15c calls to numbers in the USA. So there's an argument for using the speed-dial feautre.

Considering getting one of the CelTrek cards to supplement my United Mobile card. CelTrek rates look like they vary quite a bit from country to country. Interested in the low Bahamas rate. The CelTrek site also mentions in their FAQ's that data will be offered in 2q07. Data isn't offered on many prepaid international cards (off the top of my head I think Mobal and GT-Sim), so this would be a real plus if and when they offer it.

Some questions on their service when you have a chance:

Do they have reliable customer service (wouldn't want a Yackie like experience)?
Any additional charges for the US dial-in number that they don't mention on their website(is there a monthly or annual charge for it)?
Do incoming calls work reliably, and is the call quality good?
Are card refills relatively glitch-free?
If you use data once they offer it, can you let us know your impressions of ease of setup and use, and data rates?

Thanks!

So far, the customer service has been great.
I asked them about a local number in the 228 area code and was told that they didn't have any numbers in 228. So, I didn't ask any more about that. I can use my VoiceStick number to forward to the number they assigned in the Fla. Keys*.
I'm also very interested in their future data options.
All incoming calls have been very reliable, even when the earthquake right after Christmas disrupted communications all around the western Pacific. They worked in Singapore when T-Mobile didn't.
I have not topped the card up, so I can't comment on that.

*Having a number in the Keys bothers me a bit. After Hurricane Katrina our numbers in the impacted areas didn't work for a couple of weeks. The Keys are frequently visited by hurricanes and I'd hate to have the service shut down because of a storm.

Glad to hear CelTrek worked when other options did not. Maybe they will add additional local number areas as they expand and you can switch your phone number to avoid a potential storm service disruption with the Florida Keys inbound number.
Have a satphone (Iridium) that I've used in instances where I ran out of communication options, but call costs are fairly high, and best used outside for direct line of sight. Thinking of getting another international prepaid sim (other than my current United Mobile sim) to expand coverage, and add features (which is why I was curious about Celtrek's upcoming data offering). Probably won't need until the end of the year, so I'll see how CelTrek and their competitors work out before I decide on another sim.

My assumption was that the connection back to T-Mobile was via the Pacific undersea cables, which were cut, while the connection to CelTrek went back to Israel the other way. Had the earthquake been in the Indian ocean the results might have been different.
I had an Iridium account until they raised the monthly fee. In my case it was more of a toy than a tool. Only once (just after Huricane Katrina) did I wish I still had it.

That would make sense with the CelTrek card working because it didn't need the Pacific cable.
After some thought, my solution for another card may actually be a Digicel card. Travel to the Caribbean for pleasure, and their sim cards are good for inexpensive roaming across their the entire Caribbean network (can also roam on Cingular in the US for about a dollar a minute) plus I could refill over the web to keep the card alive between trips. Would also give me data if I signed up for it. Cable and Wireless bMobile service is another possibility but I've generally had better luck with Digicel for voice quality and call completion.
For travel to Canada (business) I have Fido, and for an aviation museum trip to the UK in the fall I can use the United Mobile card.
Still might consider CelTrek in the future if they offer data and United Mobile doesn't come up with an offer to compete.

DRN -
CelTrek, I assume, issues "virtual numbers" - something involving E-1 servers, SIP servers etc. The call does NOT pass thru a physical location in Florida, but wherever the E-1 server is. What little I could figure out about all this is here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-carrier
Also: http://www.answers.com/topic/virtual-phone-number-1
and: http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/788...ward_dial.html

This is all way beyond me<G>. Your only worry would be if the E-1 server would go out - and that can be located anywhere, as I understand it. It would seem that CelTrek, being a U.S. company, would want the server to be on this continent, rather than overseas, to avoid latency problems.
OTH, I could be wrong.<G>
I think all (or most all) of these outfits like voicestick, onesuite etc. use virtual numbers as well. And Vonage and all other VOIP carriers.
I assume if you are in France and dial a Vonage French number, the call would have to go to an E-1 server in the U.S. and the SIP server in the U.S. and back to France, causing some latency. I doubt Vonage would have servers in all the countries for which they have numbers.

STU - who seems to know more about this stuff here than almost anybody can probably explain this better!

...mike (Who hopes someone here can tell me what I just said<G>)

Update?
 

Its been over a month since the last posting. Just wondering how CelTrek is working out for the users? I have a UM card but would love to get something a bit cheaper or at least that has more reliable SMS. Thanks!

Now I see the rate...it's a very good sim.
But I don't understand some, for example in the rate calculator sms have a price, but if you see in the sms rate list (there are on their web site), they list another price....:o

Can anyone that's using this card confirm if it's like yackie that charges as soon as you answer the callback, regardless if the call connects or not.

Also, from their website it looks like you can check your balance from the phone(unlike yackie), Has anyone tried it?

It appears that the billing does start when you answer the callback. There appears to be two charges: one for the callback and another for the call forward.

Yes. You can check the balance via SMS. I think you send "credit" to 1111 and it replies with your balance.

I have been looking into Celtrek and found the information in the forum very helpful.
I will say that everyone should be very careful before choosing Celtrek, however.
I was ready to purchase a Celtrek sim (based on the info on thier website), but being the paranoid person that I am, I emailed them first to verify all info.
I am taking a trip to the Bahamas and (as you all know) most global sims don't work there.
The Celtrek site quotes .19/.29 for incoming/outgoing calls from/to the USA.
Celtrek informed me (via email) that due to a 'bug' in thier system, the rates on the site are wrong.
The rates are actually $1.30/$1.46 for Bahamas/USA calls.
I would have been really irate if I had purchased this sim based on the advertised rate with the actual rate being 6 x the advertised rate.
caveat emptor!

I agree, a lot of global sims do not work there. And, I was a litlle surprised when I saw they offered coverage at that rate too. BTW, UM just started to offer free incoming in the Bahamas. Of course, that's if you can actually get coverage. Also, sincce Celtrek is very similar to Yackie, and we should note that yackie offered very generous rates initially, and within a few months almost doubled their incoming rates in most of the countries, and increased their outgoing rates also. For now, Celtrek's rates look good. But, that does not mean it will not change.

Thanks for the info.
I just checked United Mobile's website and it does not indicate any coverage (or free incoming) in the Bahamas.
Are you sure about that?

It's here: http://www.united-mobile.com/downloa...tes_en_eur.pdf
and in the rate calculator, however not here:
http://www.united-mobile.com/cms/web...2&idcatside=38

BTW, what the hell does * mean at some countries in the UM roaming list - incoming calls only?

Thank you for the information.
Is UM one of the companies that charges a service charge or initiation fee for outgoing calls?
or is the per minute rate the only charge for calls?

Yes. UM charges a connection fee of $0.30 per call.

The free incoming in the Bahamas is just recent. Here is an email they sent to current customers.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
We are constantly expanding our coverage. We are happy announce that we can offer our services in the following three countries as of 1st May 07:

Receive now calls free of charge also in


Bahamas
Kyrgyzstan

From now on you can call with United Mobile also in

Ethiopia
Please find the current rate plan here.

Because they have recently added the 3 countries you can not find them there yet. But they are at the calculator. The star (*) means that service level varies.....Is not guaranted I assume

Celtrek vs. Travelsim
 

I am torn between purchasing the Celtrek SimCard and the Travelsim Card. It seems like it would be nice to have free incoming calls, but how annoyed will people in the US, especially if they are trying to call from a US cell number be if they have to call an Estonian number to reach me? I was going to purchase 2 cards as a bunch of us are traveling together to France (but we also travel to Germany, Italy, Mexico and the Caribeean frequently) and will want to keep in touch with one another throughout the day. Does anyone have some advice as to what card would be the best?

Tough one. You'lls notice that a lot of us here have more than one international sim. No one particular sim gives you the best deal in all countries. Some are better than the others ion certain countries obviously. As for me, I have 3 (yackie, freeGlobalsim, and UM), and just use the appropriate one depending on the situation. Planing on a Southern Carribean cruise for the summer, UM and probably yackie seem to provide the best deals in the countries I will be visiting, so I will likely be using those. When I traveled Europe and Nigeria late last year, my freeGlobalSim was the one I used extensively. So, it all depends.

Thanks for the info. But do you ever encounter issues with friends/family from the US not being able to contact you because they don't have a plan on their cellphone that allows them to dial an international number? My thought is that if we get the Celtrek card that will never be an issue, and the incoming call rates are not that bad for Europe. However, Travelsim says that they offer you the use of an 800 number as a way around the issue of people having to call an Estonian number, have you any experience with that? The Travelsim card seems like more of a tested card, the Celtrek seems a bit questionnable to me since it is newer with less info available out there.

Well, what I did was forward my voicestick (free US number) number to whatever sim I ma using in the foreign destination. you may want to check voicestick.com for more info. Specifically, I forwarded voicestick to my freeGlobalsim number. I only pay for the forwarded calls at $0.15/min.

Celtrek made some changes to their website and I no longer have access to all the settings I had before. Before I could set up my speed-dial, listen to voicemail, check activity and all sorts of other things. Now all I can do is add and check credit, change my address, etc. I'm not sure what's going on. I sent them an e-mail about this but have not heard back, yet. I'll post their response when I get it.

2 links
 

Make sure you are logging onto the right link - there are two of them now:

My Account - https://www.celtrek.com/login.php

and My Account - http://my.celtrek.com

The second one is where I log on to listen to messages. The first one just facilitates recharges and the like.

There's actually a third one for the CelTrek Pro login which gives the ability to manage a "fleet" of SIMs. This includes a nifty map that shows where (which country) a SIM was last registered in.

celtrek feature questions
 

hey guys, i have a couple newbie questions about celtrek features that someone who has used the sim could probably answer easily. i won't be using the sim for long periods in between trips, is there functionality to have calls to your celltrek number forwarded to another domestic number when you're not traveling? if so does it cost anything? also can you set up your account to send you email notification when you have voicemail? ordered the sim but it's not here just yet... thanks in advance.

-dave

You can be e-mailed the entire voicemail as an attachment. I don't know about forwarding. There are a couple of options on the setup that are strangely worded: "Service will call back this number" and "Service will ring to this number" I have not played with them to see what they do.

I was unable to get VMs to forward to my email "automatically", or upon receipt. But I was able to go into my.celtrek.com, and forward recorded/received VMs to my email very quickly.

I think you are right about that. I was probably confusing VoiceStick voicemail with Celtrek. I think you have to go to their website and download it.

Anyone try my.celtrek.com lately? When I type that address it just takes me to the other login page (account info). So I am not able to see the advanced features like forwarding vm's.

Thanks,
Chris

EDIT: There is a not so apparent icon at the top of the page that says MyCeltrek and that appears to be where some of the other features are. There are 3 options for account history. I still don't see anything for voicemail options. Also how much does it cost to send an SMS to the Celtrek sim? Is there a way to do this online?

I am disappointed with Celtrek
 

I bought their sim card, but they charge for the callback , much before the other party answered, this means a real rip off which nobody does. SO avoid this card.............

As far as I am concerned, they are thieves. Imagine they have the gall to charge for unanswered calls...absolutely asinine and absurd and a rip off....don't use them.