free calls while I'm overseas?

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Davegod75

Diamond Member
Jun 27, 2000
5,320
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So I have a trip to Geneva in a few weeks and I'm wondering how I can talk to my wife for free.

Will this work?

- We have Vonage unlimited plan (i.e. free calls to Germany, UK, France)
- I have quad band GSM phone
- Buy a T-mobile German pre-paid sim card
- Incoming calls are free on this sim card

So as long as my wife only calls me, this should work no??

Thanks
 
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tasmanian

Diamond Member
Dec 22, 2006
3,811
1
0
Dialing to overseas is sooo hard. Its like a 20 digit or more ph num. Plus the incoming call doesnt show the actual number.
 
K

kami333

Diamond Member
Dec 12, 2001
5,110
2
76
I would check with Vonage to see if your plan covers German cell phones. While receiving calls is free, it usually costs more (2-4x) to call a cell phone in Europe.

You might consider just taking the Vonage adapter with you, then she can dial the number for the Vonage and the international call will be treated the same as a domestic call.
 
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Davegod75

Diamond Member
Jun 27, 2000
5,320
0
0
I don't know if I will have internet access. Or if I do, how much it will cost me.
 
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compuwiz1

Admin Emeritus Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
27,111
926
126
Originally posted by: dug777
Cheap ass. Just call her on a normal phone and save yourself the hassle :p
Click to expand...

I don't think you understand the money involved here. Go back to your mommy's bed, kid. Sorry the storm woke you up. ;) :p

 
M

Mark R

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
8,513
16
81
In Europe, you are never charged for incoming cell phone calls (unless roaming in a different country). You only pay for outgoing calls.

However, this means that calls *to* cell phones are charged at different rates to call to landlines. There was a loophole a few years back, where international billing systems couldn't cope with this. This was widely abused, because the cell phone premium was so large that it was often cheaper for a UK resident to phone a service in the US, which then placed a call from the US to a UK cell phone, and linked the 2 calls.

This loophole has now been closed - If you call a Euro cell phone it will cost you a lot. Calling from the US to a Euro cell phone is usually about 3-4x the price of calling a Euro landline.
 
dug777

dug777

Lifer
Oct 13, 2004
24,778
4
0
Originally posted by: compuwiz1
Originally posted by: dug777
Cheap ass. Just call her on a normal phone and save yourself the hassle :p
Click to expand...

I don't think you understand the money involved here. Go back to your mommy's bed, kid. Sorry the storm woke you up. ;) :p
Click to expand...

I've called home from overseas plenty, it's not THAT much if you just want a quick chat (and i can't see why he'd need more than that if he's just going for a couple of weeks or less) ;)

Hell, he could email her for free from work i assume?

Unless of course he needs to talk to her every night, for half an hour, in which case i can understand this a little better ;)
 
Colt45

Colt45

Lifer
Apr 18, 2001
19,720
1
0
you'll have to have a swiss SIM.. the German one will be charged for incoming calls in Switzerland because it is roaming.
 
dug777

dug777

Lifer
Oct 13, 2004
24,778
4
0
OP, you could also look into call cards, they're very cheap for a lot of talk time, and they're no hassle.

Plenty of the international students used them at college quite happily.
 
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chcarnage

Golden Member
May 11, 2005
1,751
0
0
Yes, you can buy a Swiss SIM card. You can use an offer like this one even back home in the US. But this particular offer doesn't match your needs very well because it includes a phone and is already in the three-digit range.

The buying process in Switzerland is a bit less of a hassle than this page makes it out to be. The SIM card for prepaid offers usually costs about CHF 40. Also you'll need your US passport to registrate the number (ID cards or driver's license won't suffice)... post 9/11 law change.

The three "traditional" Swiss mobile phone service providers are:
Swisscom
Sunrise
Orange

Then there are three small budget offers but these companies don't have real service shops to keep their costs low. I also don't know if they charge for incoming calls but I think they don't: Yallo, Coop/Prix Garantie and Migros/M-Budget.

List of telecom shops in Geneva
 
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Davegod75

Diamond Member
Jun 27, 2000
5,320
0
0
thanks for all the info.

the roaming = no free incoming calls kills my idea.

I think I'll go for calling cards.

any good sites for those?
 
N

NuroMancer

Golden Member
Nov 8, 2004
1,684
1
76
http://www.helvatel.ch/index2.php

You need a translation of it, but you can call the states for like 7c a minute? I *think* that was the price. And maybe you need to be living there, can't remember.

Basically you call their number, punch in you account # and call the US for cheap.
 
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chcarnage

Golden Member
May 11, 2005
1,751
0
0
Roaming costs are avoidable if you stay in one European country and buy the SIM card there.

I don't know much about international prepaid phone cards. Some (at least the already named helvatel, according to their own FAQ) won't work in public phones. But the low costs are tempting for sure (helvatel lists 0.03-0.04 CHF/minute + fees).

With Mill's Swisscom SIM on the other hand, calling the US is at most 1.10 CHF/min and 0.20 CHF/SMS, but incoming calls and SMS are free. And your US telco probably has the tarif for calling Swiss cell phones somewhere on the web.

Edit: Swisscom probably shuts down a SIM card after 12-24 months of inactivity.
 
M

Mill

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
28,558
3
81
Originally posted by: chcarnage
Roaming costs are avoidable if you stay in one European country and buy the SIM card there.

I don't know much about international prepaid phone cards. Some (at least the already named helvatel, according to their own FAQ) won't work in public phones. But the low costs are tempting for sure (helvatel lists 0.03-0.04 CHF/minute + fees).

With Mill's Swisscom SIM on the other hand, calling the US is at most 1.10 CHF/min and 0.20 CHF/SMS, but incoming calls and SMS are free. And your US telco probably has the tarif for calling Swiss cell phones somewhere on the web.

Edit: Swisscom probably shuts down a SIM card after 12-24 months of inactivity.
Click to expand...

Sim Card is from October of 2005, so it could be shutdown.
 
aphex

aphex

Moderator<br>All Things Apple
Moderator
Jul 19, 2001
38,572
2
91
Im trying to find a sim to get free incoming in both Switzerland and Italy.... I may end up just doing one sim in each country...
 
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