Best practice international GSM setup

[MBK]

Keep in mind that I am talking about worldwide roaming (the subject of this thread), while you are talking about regional roaming.

But let's see:

Originally Posted by gkeeper

So you say its MUCH cheaper than any other card on the market or mentioned in this thread, i do a lot of traveling to US and Canada, so i have taken these 2 countries as examples.

Call cost back to UK from US using .
Tru $0.15 calling a landline $0.33 calling a mobile, SMS $0.15
Piranha $0.14 calling a landline $0.17 calling a mobile, SMS $0.15 Data $0.30 MB
OneSimcard $0.45 calling a landline $0.45 calling a mobile SMS $0.40 Data $1.00 MB

Onesimcard with callback (Single SIM - only onesimcard): US to UK

US Incoming: FREE
UK Landline: €0.07 incoming callback + FREE landline UK = €0.07 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
UK Mobile: €0.07 incoming callback + €0.005 mobile UK = €0.075 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
SMS UK using SIM menu: $0.15
SMS UK using Fishtext with WebSMS app on android: €0.03 (+ ~€0.03 data to send the SMS if not on WIFI)

Onesimcard with callback (dual-SIM - callback on 2nd local/regional SIM, showing +372 caller ID or any other caller ID): US to UK

US Incoming: FREE
UK Landline: FREE incoming callback + FREE landline UK = €0.00 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
UK Mobile: FREE incoming callback + €0.005 mobile UK = €0.005 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
SMS UK using SIM menu: $0.15
SMS UK using Fishtext with WebSMS app on android: €0.03 (+ ~€0.03 data to send the SMS if not on WIFI)


In any case, for data the best is a 2nd local SIM with local data bundles in the dual-sim phone (but if only to trigger the callbacks the Onesimcard is good enough).

Originally Posted by gkeeper

Call cost back to UK from Canada using.
Tru $0.54 calling a landline $0.54 calling a mobile, SMS $0.45
Piranha $0.23 calling landline $0.26 calling mobile, SMS $0.15 Data $0.38 MB
OneSimcard $1.25 calling a landline, $1.25 calling a mobile, SMS $0.40 Data $1.00 MB

Canada to UK: same rates as US above.

Originally Posted by gkeeper

cost of card.
Tru $30.00 with $15.00 credit
Piranha $18.00 with $7.50 credit
Onesimcard $30.00 no credit.

Airbaltic card is €10 with 0 credit if this is an issue (€35 with 30 credit and €50 with 50 credit).

(€ 15 for "Airbaltic American Dream" SIM if you want free incoming in US & Mexico)

Originally Posted by gkeeper

these are approximate costs so i maybe 1 or 2 cents out, but my maths says the most expensive card by far is Onesimcard. If i am missing something please feel free to correct and when Toggle launches it will be cheaper still.

Yes, Toggle Mobile already is my 2nd SIM in the dual-SIM phone for Europe.

[gkeeper]

Originally Posted by MBK

Keep in mind that I am talking about worldwide roaming (the subject of this thread), while you are talking about regional roaming.

But let's see:



Onesimcard with callback (Single SIM - only onesimcard): US to UK

US Incoming: FREE
UK Landline: €0.07 incoming callback + FREE landline UK = €0.07 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
UK Mobile: €0.07 incoming callback + €0.005 mobile UK = €0.075 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
SMS using SIM menu: $0.15
SMS using Fishtext with WebSMS on android: €0.03 (+ ~€0.03 data to send the SMS if not on WIFI)

Onesimcard with callback (dual-SIM - callback on 2nd local/regional SIM, showing +372 caller ID or any other caller ID): US to UK

US Incoming: FREE
UK Landline: FREE incoming callback + FREE landline UK = €0.00 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
UK Mobile: FREE incoming callback + €0.005 mobile UK = €0.005 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
SMS using SIM menu: $0.15
SMS using Fishtext with WebSMS on android: €0.03 (+ ~€0.03 data to send the SMS if not on WIFI)


In any case, for data the best is a 2nd local SIM with local data bundles in the dual-sim phone (but if only to trigger the callbacks the Onesimcard is good enough).



Canada to UK: same rates as US above.







Yes, Toggle Mobile already is my 2nd SIM in the dual-SIM phone for Europe.

so where do they advertise these rates, I have looked at Onesimcards website rates and i can only find the rates i published, as per there site, SIM Card - International cell phone rates

[HappyCamp]

Originally Posted by gkeeper

so where do they advertise these rates, I have looked at Onesimcards website rates and i can only find the rates i published, as per there site, SIM Card - International cell phone rates

+1

I can't see this rate or understand how this works.

[MBK]

Originally Posted by gkeeper

so where do they advertise these rates, I have looked at Onesimcards website rates and i can only find the rates i published, as per there site, SIM Card - International cell phone rates

Here for a comparison of all the betamax clones per country:

Call rates comparison table

(select the countries you want holding CTRL to filter for a clear view)

To use them conveniently you need the MobileVOIP iphone & android application (sends SMS extremely cheap too):

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...rea.MobileVoip


The good thing is that you can use this with any phone or SIM card (even Piranha if you prefer).

(you can use the MobileVOIP app, but you can also trigger callbacks via the web, or use local access numbers, or the windows application, or SIP - check the chosen provider's "ways to call" page)


edit: if you have WIFI or good 3G you can call directly without callback (saving the callback costs), but callback usuall gives the best call quality.

------------------------
------------------------

edit: I use this to trigger the callback as it uses less data than the MobileVOIP application (we are talking about 2 or 3 cents here ) :

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...x.internetcall

--------------------------

As I have also quoted the Fishtext.com SMS rates, this is optional for a cheap SMS alternative (the above mentioned MobileVOIP also send SMS for almost as cheap already, but Fishtext gives you SMS delivery reports):

For Fishtext SMS you need to install these 2: WebSMS + Fishtext connector on Android:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...android.websms
https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...ector.fishtext


SMSDroid allows full integration of WebSMS like the system SMS application:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...droid.smsdroid

[MBK]

The Betamax/Finarea/Dellmont group has been in business for a least 10 years. It has been working very well for me for the past 7 years (from home phones, Mobile, on the way using hotel phones, etc...).

To make it very simple here is the procedure to get going:

1. choose the provider that best fits your rates for the countries you need: Call rates comparison table
2. make an account on the provider's website (add .com to the name)
3. charge 10€ credit
4. install https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...rea.MobileVoip (or for iphone get it from the iphone market).

And start saving big while calling.



edit: call quality can be a little lower than a direct call from time to time depending on the countries. But with such rates I think there's nothing to complain about.

[gkeeper]

Originally Posted by MBK

The Betamax/Finarea/Dellmont group has been in business for a least 10 years. It has been working very well for me for the past 7 years (from home phones, Mobile, on the way using hotel phones, etc...).

To make it very simple here is the procedure to get going:

1. choose the provider that best fits your rates for the countries you need: Call rates comparison table
2. make an account on the provider's website (add .com to the name)
3. charge 10€ credit
4. install https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...rea.MobileVoip (or for iphone get it from the iphone market).

And start saving big while calling.



edit: call quality can be a little lower than a direct call from time to time depending on the countries. But with such rates I think there's nothing to complain about.

Are you saying: (please give me a straight answer this time):

That the rates you have been quoting do not exist on the OneSimcard site, unless you download a 3rd party VoIP app, sign up and pay $10.00 on top of the $30.00 plus credit lets says another $10.00 you just paid for the onesimcard, before you even start. Then down load another app for SMS, sign up to them pay another $xxx for credit. Tell all your friends family and work to do the same if they want to call you cheaply or sign up to some other callback service, and this is cheap and simple no thank you, when you started this thread i was under the impression that you were talking about onesimcard being so cheap and simple to use, this is clearly not the case and very misleading.

Someone please tell me i have the principle right, i am getting very confused by this thread.

[MBK]

Originally Posted by gkeeper

Are you saying: (please give me a straight answer this time):

That the rates you have been quoting do not exist on the OneSimcard site, unless you download a 3rd party VoIP app,

Yes.

Originally Posted by gkeeper

sign up and pay $10.00 on top of the $30.00 plus credit lets says another $10.00 you just paid for the onesimcard, before you even start.

Airbaltic card is €10 if the onesimcard is too expensive for you.

Originally Posted by gkeeper

Then down load another app for SMS, sign up to them pay another $xxx for credit.

No. You don't need this. This was just another option to send SMS even cheaper (1 or 2 cents cheaper than MobileVOIP).

(SMS is already in the 3rd party dialer I linked to - MobileVOIP - you pay 2 to 5 cent per SMS depending on the country you are sending to.)

Originally Posted by gkeeper

Tell all your friends family and work to do the same if they want to call you cheaply or sign up to some other callback service,

No. (But you can if you want).

I am paying for my calls, how much other people pay for their calls in not my concerns (friends/family I give my local dual-SIM number).

But as I said, if you don't want people to call you on +372 and don't have a dual-SIM phone, one option out of several is:

1. get a US landline number on Callcentric.com (Free) (or any other country)
2. forward the incoming calls to your +372 with hotvoip.com (€0.07/min)

So, this way your contacts can call you for free and it costs you €0.07/min to receive the call in 154 countries, which comes out cheaper for incoming calls than Piranha in most countries.

If you have a dual SIM phone even better, the forwarding can cost you as low as €0.005/min in many EU countries including UK (even Free in several countries like Thailand, US, China,...).

Furthermore, this incoming number stays with you for life, even if you move to another SIM card operator you just redirect the forwarding to the new number.

Originally Posted by gkeeper

and this is cheap

10€ to buy an Airbaltic card (if you don't need the other onesimcard functions)
10€ credit reload increments on hotvoip.com (or any other one from the list)

And with single SIM (callback on +372):
0.075€ to call the UK, France, Thailand, US, etc... (landline & mobile)

With dual-SIM (callback on local SIM):
0€ UK landline, US landline + mobile, Thailand landline+mobile, etc...
0.005€ UK, France, Germany, etc... mobile

SMS: ~ 2 to 5 cents depending on destination countries.


Very cheap, yes.

Originally Posted by gkeeper

and simple

If following these 3 simple points is too complicated for you (to be done only once, after this you are setup for life), then please pay for your expensive rates as no one can help you.

For calls & SMS:

1. choose the provider that best fits your rates for the countries you need: Call rates comparison table
2. make an account on the provider's website (add .com to the name) and load 10€ credit
3. install https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...rea.MobileVoip (or for iphone get it from the iphone market).

edit: this callback is the same thing most roaming SIMs do, but you are doing it yourself, much cheaper.

[gkeeper]

Originally Posted by MBK

Yes.



Airbaltic card is €10 if the onesimcard is too expensive for you.



No. You don't need this. This was just another option to send SMS even cheaper (1 or 2 cents cheaper than MobileVOIP).

(SMS is already in the 3rd party dialer I linked to - MobileVOIP - you pay 2 to 5 cent per SMS depending on the country you are sending to.)



No. (But you can if you want).

I am paying for my calls, how much other people pay for their calls in not my concerns (friends/family I give my local dual-SIM number).

But as I said, if you don't want people to call you on +372 and don't have a dual-SIM phone, one option out of several is:

1. get a US landline number on Callcentric.com (Free) (or any other country)
2. forward the incoming calls to your +372 with hotvoip.com (€0.07/min)

So, this way your contacts can call you for free and it costs you €0.07/min to receive the call in 154 countries, which comes out cheaper for incoming calls than Piranha in most countries.

If you have a dual SIM phone even better, the forwarding can cost you as low as €0.005/min in many EU countries including UK (even Free in several countries like Thailand, US, China,...).

Furthermore, this incoming number stays with you for life, even if you move to another SIM card operator you just redirect the forwarding to the new number.



10€ to buy an Airbaltic card (if you don't need the other onesimcard functions)
10€ credit reload increments on hotvoip.com (or any other one from the list)

And with single SIM (callback on +372):
0.075€ to call the UK, France, Thailand, US, etc... (landline & mobile)

With dual-SIM (callback on local SIM):
0€ UK landline, US landline + mobile, Thailand landline+mobile, etc...
0.005€ UK, France, Germany, etc... mobile

SMS: ~ 2 to 5 cents depending on destination countries.


Very cheap, yes.



If following these 3 simple points is too complicated for you (to be done only once, after this you are setup for life), then please pay for your expensive rates as no one can help you.

For calls & SMS:

1. choose the provider that best fits your rates for the countries you need: Call rates comparison table
2. make an account on the provider's website (add .com to the name) and load 10€ credit
3. install https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...rea.MobileVoip (or for iphone get it from the iphone market).

edit: this callback is the same thing most roaming SIMs do, but you are doing it yourself, much cheaper.

All very long winded for something that may or may not work, and the possibly of sacrificing call quality to save a few cents is not worth it.

I would like to add that there is no need to get all defense about it i.e then please pay for your expensive rates as no one can help you.

I like to deal in facts and the fact is you started a thread saying Onesimcard was best Roaming Sim Card on the planet and the cheapest, the facts do not show this, unless you go through many different operations and 3rd party apps, do you not agree. I know you are trying to help people but you have to bear in mind not all users of this website have smart phones or are technically minded, they are just looking for best deal which will save them money while roaming, without having to get to complicated.

[rfranzq]

Originally Posted by MBK

I am paying for my calls, how much other people pay for their calls in not my concerns (friends/family I give my local dual-SIM number).

I think this is where many of us differ. We do care about how much it cost other people to get a hold of us.

The many options and variants you have described are a valid addition to the knowledge base here.
In fact, I can think of no other place on this planet where these would be more useful and likely to be used by some of the users than here.

Thank you also for your research on the +371 using group of providers.

[meneedsleep]

[QUOTE=MBK;43754]Keep in mind that I am talking about worldwide roaming (the subject of this thread), while you are talking about regional roaming.

But let's see:



Onesimcard with callback (Single SIM - only onesimcard): US to UK

US Incoming: FREE
UK Landline: €0.07 incoming callback + FREE landline UK = €0.07 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
UK Mobile: €0.07 incoming callback + €0.005 mobile UK = €0.075 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)

How do you do this with a just 1 sim? I wanna learn.

Onesimcard with callback (dual-SIM - callback on 2nd local/regional SIM, showing +372 caller ID or any other caller ID): US to UK

US Incoming: FREE
UK Landline: FREE incoming callback + FREE landline UK = €0.00 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
UK Mobile: FREE incoming callback + €0.005 mobile UK = €0.005 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)

Oh! This will be easier but do I need an Android/iPhone for this one?

In any case, for data the best is a 2nd local SIM with local data bundles in the dual-sim phone (but if only to trigger the callbacks the Onesimcard is good enough).



Canada to UK: same rates as US above.




Hi MBK!


I'm a new member here. Pardon me for any ignorance of forum rules as I have encountered this thread while doing a research on the benefits of using onesimcard and I saw this information you have provided amist all the argument with another member about the international SIM card you were using and another regional SIM card that bloke was seemingly supportive of.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Onesimcard with callback (Single SIM - only onesimcard): US to UK

US Incoming: FREE
UK Landline: €0.07 incoming callback + FREE landline UK = €0.07 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
UK Mobile: €0.07 incoming callback + €0.005 mobile UK = €0.075 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
SMS UK using SIM menu: $0.15
SMS UK using Fishtext with WebSMS app on android: €0.03 (+ ~€0.03 data to send the SMS if not on WIFI)

Onesimcard with callback (dual-SIM - callback on 2nd local/regional SIM, showing +372 caller ID or any other caller ID): US to UK

US Incoming: FREE
UK Landline: FREE incoming callback + FREE landline UK = €0.00 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
UK Mobile: FREE incoming callback + €0.005 mobile UK = €0.005 (+ one time €0.01 data to trigger the callback if not on WIFI)
SMS UK using SIM menu: $0.15
SMS UK using Fishtext with WebSMS app on android: €0.03 (+ ~€0.03 data to send the SMS if not on WIFI)


In any case, for data the best is a 2nd local SIM with local data bundles in the dual-sim phone (but if only to trigger the callbacks the Onesimcard is good enough).


I intend to use onesimcard with a local callback card. I may also be considering using my current local prepaid card for data and receiving notifications of missed local calls to my international number, and this option could be useful at other countries.



How do I go about doing the above callback at €0.07 incoming callback and without €0.01 for data to trigger it?


Assuming I initiate a call to the recipient and I dialed the recipient's phone number with the country prefix together into the phone. Upon acknowledgement, the call will be hung up and I will be expecting a callback. However, whom would next call pan out and I am wondering whether I need 2 callback attempts to reach the recipient with my onesimcard and local callback card. How do I do this? Your help is greatly appreciated.

Another thing is about using INUM, google voice and ipkall/kall8/anveo (but without the monthly fees, just pay as you go). How do I set this up to link with my onesimcard number?



New Curious Member,

James