Are intl. pre-pay cards obsolete?

[squawk1200]

I am/was on the fence but with VZ's travel pass program announced this week I'm being pushed away from International SIMs... For basically the price I would pay for the international SIM usage, I can keep my own phone on my own plan... Hard to justify the (sometimes) frustration and experimentation of other SIMs while out of the country with the prices dropping to these levels...

[Bossman]

I agree. The international sims are becoming less useful to a lot of folks these days. Those verizon passes are not bad, especially for short trips, or short trips that span multiple countries. For me, I have local sims for the 2 countries that I visit the most, since I am usually there for at least 1 week.

[davidtheprof]

I've been using TMo's international roaming since it first came out, saves a lot of hassle. But:
- friends and family in UK, etc get upset when they reply and pay $2-3/min, because they are calling US number - so I'm looking for reasonable call forwarding so that I can give people a local number.

- if I'm on wifi calling abroad, I understand it looks like I'm on US network, which is fine for calling back to US, but for local calls to UK when I'm there, it costs me a fortune - right? had trouble getting a straight answer on this..

thanks

[rfranzq]

Originally Posted by davidtheprof

- friends and family in UK, etc get upset when they reply and pay $2-3/min, because they are calling US number - so I'm looking for reasonable call forwarding so that I can give people a local number.

Worldsim and Piranha have both UK and US phone numbers attached to one SIM.
Piranha Mobile has Call Forwarding and Call Offload.
Also comes with a UK number. [Is this number usable for receiving calls from locals? That is
it is seen as a normal UK number and not something that is charged extra?]

I think either of these would solve your UK number problem if the number is 'usable'.

Worldsim also has call forwarding. See below.

https://accounts.worldsim.com/selfse...egory=homeAway

How to set up Call Forwarding
To use the WorldSIM low cost Call Forwarding facility, you will need to forward your WorldSIM number to the number abroad that you wish to call. Then simply dial your WorldSIM number and you will be diverted to the number abroad.

To set up call forwarding, simply:
1.Log in to your account at www.WorldSIM.com.
2.When the ‘My Account’ home page appears, click on the button that displays your WorldSIM phone number.
3.Scroll down to the ‘Set Forwarding’ section and enter the number that you want to forward your calls to. Ensure that you input the number in international format excluding the 00/+ prefix (e.g 4412345689).
4. In the Call Back dropdown, select ‘Yes.’
5.Click on the ‘Submit’ button.


You will receive an on screen confirmation message that the new setting has been applied. However if you come out of this screen and return to it, the Set Forwarding section will appear as blank. In reality this is not the case. Call forwarding has been set up and applied on our system to the number you received a confirmation of. You can test the latest setting by dialling your WorldSIM number.

Please note that you can amend the number entered here to any other number of your choice. However to deactivate call forwarding, you will need to request this by contacting Customer Service.
Alternatively, you can also set up forwarding using your WorldSIM phone. Dial 102 (number) to set forwarding to ON. Dial 103 to turn forwarding OFF.

Home & Away product Call Forwarding rates are available via: http://www.WorldSIM.com/CFRate_HA.aspx.

Please note that rates are subject to change. If you are dialling your WorldSIM number from another network provider, the cost of calling the WorldSIM number will be charged at the other network provider's rates. Some network providers may allow you to utilise your free bundle minutes. Other network providers may not. WorldSIM is not responsible for any charges levied by other network providers.

[squawk1200]

Originally Posted by davidtheprof

- friends and family in UK, etc get upset when they reply and pay $2-3/min, because they are calling US number

Would it be possible to have them message you (text or WhatsApp, etc) when they are ready for a voice call? That would save the cost of dialing back to the US...???

[snidely]

Originally Posted by davidtheprof

I've been using TMo's international roaming since it first came out, saves a lot of hassle. But:
- friends and family in UK, etc get upset when they reply and pay $2-3/min, because they are calling US number - so I'm looking for reasonable call forwarding so that I can give people a local number.

- if I'm on wifi calling abroad, I understand it looks like I'm on US network, which is fine for calling back to US, but for local calls to UK when I'm there, it costs me a fortune - right? had trouble getting a straight answer on this..

thanks

I can't believe it costs UK phone users $2+/min to call the U.S.!!! When you are in the UK on cell tower - it costs 20 cents/min to call U.S., UK or any of the 120+ eligible countries. When on wifi U.S. is free. Other countries (incl. UK) would be expensive. I think if you are paying extra for an intl calling plan - you get free or reduced rates when on wifi. Many users have reported being able to use Skype and Hangouts (etc.) to make calls for free - using the unlimited free data you get when on cell tower.

[andy]

Originally Posted by snidely

I can't believe it costs UK phone users $2+/min to call the U.S.!!! When you are in the UK on cell tower - it costs 20 cents/min to call U.S., UK or any of the 120+ eligible countries. When on wifi U.S. is free. Other countries (incl. UK) would be expensive.

Nor can I.

Most UK brands have cheap int'l calls, albeit somerimes as a free add-on option, amd 20 cents looks a bit expensive to me.

My cheapest rates to USA on a SIM are pronably two pence a minute. But I can call for free using accrued points on some VoIP apps plus wifi or free 3g data.