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Google phone is typically only free if you are in the USA though. I still think Skype is the best option, but calling cards really aren't too bad depending on how often you are calling and where you are.
That's not true, Google voice, when you place a call via the internet, is free to any USA number, regardless of where you are.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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I use a really DUMB SIM phone (bought most anywhere overseas for $20 USED... most everyone else in the world has SIM smart phones).
SIM card ~ $10. There are usually CHEAP portal access number to call internationally. It usually costs ~ ~ $.10/min.
You run low,,, you top off.
USA is VERY painful to communicate with. (Only dial-up available at my USA home, yet 16 miles away from a 500,000 population center / no broadband due to terrain.) No Skype or Google-call is gonna happen on Dial-up.
The rest of the world is pretty well connected.
I spend about 3-5 hrs / week calling inbound to USA. (not for fun, or to check on the dog / plants)
when i was in Medellin, Colombia I was calling the US with magicjack as long as there was an internet connection. If internet is not an option, try using a prepaid locally and see what the rates to the US are.
Why not skype? It's free and you can call smart phones.
Many hotels and Internet cafes in foreign nations have bandwidth heavy sites like Skype and You Tube blocked.
The most reliable inexpensive way to call home is simply with an international calling card from a payphone or your hotel phone--keeping in mind that some hotels charge a connection fee and per minute price even for 800 numbers.
What's the need to be calling back? For most of us there is none. For times there is, paying the relatively inexpensive per minute call is palitable.
Many of us have family/home/work obligations which require us to be in touch on a regular basis. I called home every day for three weeks from Europe last summer--typically on had 1-2 minute conversations to make sure all was well. The $100 or so bill when I returned was worth the peace of mind.
Sorry for another dumb question but if it does I just buy a UK SIM card? Do the charges still occur through my US provider thus incur Intl charges?
If you buy a UK sim card and use it instead of your American sim card, then you will not incur charges via your US cellphone provider.
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