Calling Cards

[snaimon]

The teltarif editorial today (2 April) about high European roaming and LD rates from mobile phones poo-poos calling cards as being clumsy (like entering all those #s, toll free dial in, PIN, destinaltion # and the possibility of errors).

So, do you agree?

Some US cards (MCI allow FREE PINLESS US dialing!) and some cards (Onesuite, Enjoyprepaid to name just a few) also offer pinless US dialing using the internet. CBW will recognize your # and call you back IF YOU REGISTER IT!? ATT will allow you pinless dialing FOR A FEE.

1. Why they don't allow this for your mobile? It cannot be a TECHNICAL matter, can it?

2. What MCI can do, the European calling card companies can do, too, true?

3. Seems to me people want CONVENIENCE over everything...... Like my darling wife dialing Australia DIRECTLY for $3 / minute (a one time $12 mistake) with our Verizon no-frills LD plan INSTEAD OF using one of our many dial-arounds. I even have speed dials programmed into our home phones (press memory, press 2, enter destination #) -- but NO, just dial directly! Naturally, from your mobile (thank goodness she hardly uses her mobile!), because you ALWAYS have it on and with you, even on the POT and in the shower?!

4. On my phone(s), I try to pre-program speed dial buttons to enter #s, passwords, pauses, etc. That works for DIRECT DIALS, but I am not sure how to just generate the tones say using Riiing + CBW.

End of rant.

Stan

[Przemolog]

Hmm, it seems to me that this topic might be interesting so why there's no discussion?
OK, I hope I'll say something later today :whistle:

[Przemolog]

Originally Posted by snaimon

The teltarif editorial today (2 April) about high European roaming and LD rates from mobile phones poo-poos calling cards as being clumsy (like entering all those #s, toll free dial in, PIN, destinaltion # and the possibility of errors).

So, do you agree?

Sure, I do!

Originally Posted by snaimon

Some US cards (MCI allow FREE PINLESS US dialing!) and some cards (Onesuite, Enjoyprepaid to name just a few) also offer pinless US dialing using the internet.

How the billing system recognizes the card without the PIN?

Originally Posted by snaimon

CBW will recognize your # and call you back IF YOU REGISTER IT!? ATT will allow you pinless dialing FOR A FEE.

Do you mean DID based callback?

Originally Posted by snaimon

1. Why they don't allow this for your mobile? It cannot be a TECHNICAL matter, can it?

What exactly? You can use CBW with a mobile phone...

Originally Posted by snaimon

2. What MCI can do, the European calling card companies can do, too, true?

Pinless dialing?

Originally Posted by snaimon

3. Seems to me people want CONVENIENCE over everything......

This is what I wanted to say about international sims being not so competetive to compare with the "regular" roaming: http://www.prepaidgsm.net/forum/index.php?...topic=1024&st=0

Originally Posted by snaimon

Like my darling wife dialing Australia DIRECTLY for $3 / minute (a one time $12 mistake) with our Verizon no-frills LD plan INSTEAD OF using one of our many dial-arounds. I even have speed dials programmed into our home phones (press memory, press 2, enter destination #) -- but NO, just dial directly! Naturally, from your mobile (thank goodness she hardly uses her mobile!), because you ALWAYS have it on and with you, even on the POT and in the shower?!

My wife had problems with remebering about peak hours and on-net/off-net (when and what numbers to call to mobile phones from a landline/a mobile). Happily the mobile rates have changed and now the rule is simple: mobile to mobile, landline to landline. Happily she doesn't need to call abroad but if she had, she has relatively low rates from her mobile...

Hmmm, wives and women in general :whistle: Their preference to convience over costs sometimes horrifies me... Oh, something politically incorrect is in the air .

Originally Posted by snaimon

4. On my phone(s), I try to pre-program speed dial buttons to enter #s, passwords, pauses, etc. That works for DIRECT DIALS, but I am not sure how to just generate the tones say using Riiing + CBW.

Do you want to program in the Riiing SIM, or the phone's memory a "single dial" entry like +1234YourCBWDID#something#+1567YourDestinationNumb er?
I'm afraid it's simply impossible with callback

[snaimon]

Yes, surprised there have been so few comments. Thanks. Further responses & clarifications.

"How the billing system recognizes the card without the PIN?"

Two methods:

1. You can dial in and choose to have the # remembered with a menu option
2. They have online forms where you enter #s you want to use

"Do you mean DID based callback?"

I believe this is it, but you must register your #, actually up to 3 numbers. Like method 2 above.

"What exactly? You can use CBW with a mobile phone..."

What I meant was that MCI, Enjoyprepaid, Onesuite, for instance, will not allow NON-US numbers to be registered for pinless dialing.

"Pinless dialing?"

Yes, pinless dialing.

As to my wife, she forgot. Not the first time, either, but I can forgive and understand that. I forget things, too..... my keys, my glasses, my credit card, etc.

"Do you want to program in the Riiing SIM, or the phone's memory a "single dial" entry like +1234YourCBWDID#something#+1567YourDestinationNumb er?
I'm afraid it's simply impossible with callback"

TRUE. I can program the single dial (CBW entry). I can't USE the entries in my phone book to dial the final destination # AFTER the callback. Think we need tone generators for that WITHOUT dialing.

[andy]

Originally Posted by snaimon

TRUE.? I can program the single dial (CBW entry).? I can't USE the entries in my phone book to dial the final destination # AFTER the callback.? Think we need tone generators for that WITHOUT dialing.

You can open the phonebook and send DTMF. Or I believe you can set up speed dials on the CBW or other accounts - I don't know if these are single or multi-digit eg home = 1 or 11


As for calling card and callthrough details ...... these can be saved as long multiple numbers. Most SIMs have space for only 2 or 3 at any length over 20 characters, but the phone memory will hold more and longer versions.

[DRNewcomb]

Originally Posted by snaimon

..... Like my darling wife dialing Australia DIRECTLY for $3 / minute (a one time $12 mistake) with our Verizon no-frills LD plan INSTEAD OF using one of our many dial-arounds.

Been there, done that. My darling made repeated calls to me when I was in Japan with her mobile at $2.50/min! Some people just can't bother clutter their lives with questions of what's the cheapest way to make a phone call. This is why when people ask about the "best" way to do something, I always ask the to define "best".

[snaimon]

Originally Posted by andy

You can open the phonebook and send DTMF. Or I believe you can set up speed dials on the CBW or other accounts - I don't know if these are single or multi-digit eg home = 1 or 11


As for calling card and callthrough details ...... these can be saved as long multiple numbers. Most SIMs have space for only 2 or 3 at any length over 20 characters, but the phone memory will hold more and longer versions.

Thanks, Andy.

I am not quite sure how to send the DTMF. I mainly wish to use my Treo. As an alternative I have serveral MOTOs. I'll look in the Treo manual for DTMF. When I dial or try speed dial on the callback or calling card connection, the Treo asks if I want to make another call and of course I don't want to put the open line on hold, I just want to send the DTMF string.

Yes, you are right about CBW. Problem is I believe there are limited numbers and for my voice mail I would still need to send additional tones.

Yes, for calling cards and callthrus, these work OK from the US. I usually re-program the destination number each time. That of course could be done for overseas but it can get hairy. Without callback: Local access, pause, PIN, pause, final destination #, possibly additional longer pause, voicemail access digits, pause, mailbox #, pause, mailbox password --

Example: 0211 XXX XXXXX Pause CALLING CARD PIN[123456] PAUSE PAUSE US VM destination [011 804 nnnnnnn] PAUSE PAUSE [VM pickup code] # pause [mailbox #] 4444 pause [VM PIN] 9999999999

I count > 40 space entries. A pain entering but a pain dialing, too.

Stan

[andy]

Instead of entering the numbers, press Options key in call, then look for DTMF - you can either enter numbers or search the phone book, then Send DTMF

[snaimon]

Originally Posted by andy

Instead of entering the numbers, press Options key in call, then look for DTMF - you can either enter numbers or search the phone book, then Send DTMF

Thanks for the tip. No ref to DTMF in the Treo manual that I have. The phone or dial pad menu does NOT have under OPTIONS a DTMF entry. I cannot use the phonebook for DTMF dialing at all during a call - when I try to dial an entry I am prompted DO YOU WANT TO DIAL ANOTHER CALL? If I answer yes it puts the first call on hold and tries to dial another line. There is no option for dial DTMF on the phonebook menu. if I answer NO, I am back to the call in progress without sending any tones. The Treo is an odd beast.

DTMF IS in the V-300 manual and only active during a call.

Stan

[Przemolog]

Originally Posted by andy

Instead of entering the numbers, press Options key in call, then look for DTMF - you can either enter numbers or search the phone book, then Send DTMF

I found the "Auto DTMF" options active during call in my Trium Eclipse - works for both incoming and autogoing calls. It allows to search the phone book. as you described.
But...
1) You must search the phone book quickly - callback/calling card/callthru operator will not wait too long before disconnecting
2) The format of the destination number - that might a problem! It's usually recommeded to store numbers in GSM phones in the international format (with leading +). But, of course, this won't work for services under consideration (what is a DTMF tone for + ?). It will be OK if the calling card service and direct dialling (in areas where you want dial directly, I mean mainly home country) both support the common format like 00CountryCodeNumber - you can use entries in this format. But what about e.g. CBW - they require numbers with _nothing_ preceding the country code.
E.g. I can store my home landline number +4881xxxxxxx to be usable with Orange Poland SIM in one of the following formats:
1. 81xxxxxxx
2. 081xxxxxxx
3. 004881xxxxxxx
4. +4881xxxxxxx.

The format 1 and 2 are valid when I call from Poland only, 3 should work also in roaming countries with 00 "international exit code", and 4 of course is valid anywhere.

But if needed the same number to be used with CBW, I would have make a duplicate entry 4881xxxxxxx (or perhaps 4881xxxxxxx#). No so nice, if some would have to duplicate dozens of contacts... Of course, if I dialed directly 4881xxxxxxx, I wouldn't be connected in roaming (I suppose) and in Poland, the operator would try me to connect with the number +484881xxxxxxx (Polish area code 48, of course such a number doesn't exist - too long ).