We'll be using Truphone in Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam

[snidely]

Last time we used it was 11 months ago. Thought they would have cut us off - for non-use. Phone still active w. some credit on it. Added some $.
Rates for incoming are 51 cents/min. in all 3 countries. Won't use it for outgoing, if we can help it. Outgoing is 1.25 in Vietnam, 1.66 Cambodia 2.50 Laos.
T-Mobile charges $6/min to roam in Vietnam.
For most phone stuff we'll use T-Mobiles free calling (UMA) over wifi feature calling back home as we usually do.
I like Truphone's feature of sending all VM to your email in a .wav file so you can avoid the cost of calling VM to pick messages.

I don't see much mention, lately, of Truphone.

[rfranzq]

[QUOTE=snidely;38668] Rates for incoming are 51 cents/min. in all 3 countries. Outgoing is 1.25 in Vietnam.... T-Mobile charges $6/min to roam in Vietnam.[QUOTE]

$1.25 looks pretty good compared to $6!

Originally Posted by snidely

I don't see much mention, lately, of Truphone.

They seem to be taking a few baby steps. When will Tru country #4 happen?
Ironicly, they make a good low use USA SIM. [They can be kept alive forever apparently by using it once every 90[?] days. With decent international functionality and rates. And the 17cents a MB data can be a useful thing for the right user. And then you have it handy for using away from North America.

[snidely]

We hadn't used our Truphone since end of March 2011. I was surprised it was still active w. my local U.S. number. It had about $8 in the acct. Nothing had been deducted. I hadn't physically touched the phone since last April.

[Stu]

My wife and I went to Cambodia in November. One of the carriers had super-cheap roaming in both Laos and Vietnam. I don't recall which one. We were only in one country and I bought a Bea SIM. It had great rates for the US, Austrlia, Canada, and Western European landlines. I put 20 dollars on it, bought a gig of data, and called the US (and a close friend in Oz) and talked for hours and didn't use it up.

In Cambodia, VOIP is not blocked and there was a surprising amount of free wifi (including the Siem Reap and Phnom Penh airports). My hotel in Siem Reap had free internet. We were booked into the Intercontinental for Phnom Penh who wanted $20 a day internet hence my prepaid SIM with 1 gig of data.

[davidtheprof]

I'm a (lukewarm) fan of Truphone, have two of their SIM cards (one for the wife). Have used them in the UK and Australia, with cheap call rates and data, and let visiting friends and family use one. I like having a US number on the SIM when I travel to the UK, so I can forward calls easily and inexpensively.

Used recently in Mexico as well, but they tried to charge me much higher than the advertised rates. There are a lot of "errors" in the rate pages, and then you have to fight to get reimbursement (which they eventually did). The SIM card would not work on an NCL cruise ship.

With the right package, I'd abandon my primary carrier (TMob in the US). But there have been endless delays for Truphone in rolling out new countries. Still beats Geosim and Maxroam in most places, and more convenient but more expensive than local sim cards in each country. With the EU bringing in more control over roaming costs, Truphone might face an uphill struggle.

[Stu]

Telna is starting to look real good. Not the cheapest game in town, but looking like a well funded operation with a nice feature set and reduced rates in a number of places. I wish they would get Mexico down.

Maxroam is turning me off. I liked true, but they just raised their US rates by changing the way they round minutes. 15 cents a minute by the second is often cheaper than 10 cents a minute rounded to the nearest minute.

[rfranzq]

Originally Posted by Stu

[TRU] just raised their US rates by changing the way they round minutes.
15 cents a minute by the second is often cheaper than 10 cents a minute rounded to the nearest minute.

Here is the announcement. US to US calls are 17 cents a minute. Half a minute or less was 9 cents.

I am writing to inform you of a change in the way calls on the Tru network are billed.
As of March 28 2012, all calls made from or received in the USA will be billed in increments of one minute.
There are no changes to your rates or service agreement with Tru, and no action is required of you.

Unfortunately, I valued the half minute pricing also.

[rfranzq]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Stu
[TRU] just raised their US rates by changing the way they round minutes.
15 cents a minute by the second is often cheaper than 10 cents a minute rounded to the nearest minute.
Here is the announcement. US to US calls are 17 cents a minute. Half a minute or less was 9 cents.

Quote from Tru email:
I am writing to inform you of a change in the way calls on the Tru network are billed.
As of March 28 2012, all calls made from or received in the USA will be billed in increments of one minute.
There are no changes to your rates or service agreement with Tru, and no action is required of you.
Unfortunately, I valued the half minute pricing also.

This never seemed to come about. Incoming call minimum times are one minute. Outgoing calls are 30 seconds. Without tax the calls would be 15 cents incoming, 7.5 cents outgoing and SMS 10 cents. With the tax 17 cents, 9 cents and 12 cents for SMS.

In order to keep the SIM alive every 90[?] days it is cheaper to place a short call than send an SMS.

[snidely]

Just got back. Wifi is free and available almost everywhere from lowish end eateries to mid-level hotels. (Someone above stayed in an ultra-deluxe place that wanted $20/day extra for wifi. Much wifi was open, a little more than half you had to ask for the security code.
Only used the Truphone for incoming calls. Had calls forwarded from my U.S. number to my Tru U.S. number.
Didn't get all that many calls. All were clear. Since there was wifi everywhere could make outgoing calls for free on regular BBerry and wife's Android.
One oddity I discovered w. Blackberry phone. I subscribe to a free music service called Pandora. It is only accessible from wifi connections in the U.S. We tried connecting via computer and the Android - got msg. saying service only available to U.S. locations because of copyright issues.
My BB DID connect to Pandora. Somehow their wifi connection goes thru RIM and/or TMobile servers so that Pandora thinks I am still in U.S.
Tru worked everywhere we were in the 3 countries except the signal on the carrier(s) they use in Laos dropped when we really got way up the Mekong River. Other carriers did provide signals to the BB.

[DRNewcomb]

Originally Posted by snidely

We tried connecting via computer and the Android - got msg. saying service only available to U.S. locations because of copyright issues.
My BB DID connect to Pandora. Somehow their wifi connection goes thru RIM and/or TMobile servers so that Pandora thinks I am still in U.S.

They lookup the network based on the IP address and make a guess as to where you are. If you had connected the Android or laptop to your home using VPN they probably would have thought you were at home.