okay guys im travelling overseas very soon and i need to have my phone active while travelling (need to keep same number)
what is the most cost effective way to recieve calls while overseas. should i have skype constantly active or is there a cheap sim provider here for roaming?
Thanks pauly. I have the same issue. Being technology challenged this is a simple and cheap little solution!
i have two phones so im not worried about the internet factor as i will use that on one phone with my thai sim. i just need to only recieve calls on the aussie number. so far ive found optus is cheapest at $1 per minute on recieved calls which is still expensive i think. ill keep looking
interiordesigns, i am also heading to thailand (1st time).
Probably off topic but…does pretty much any phone work from here work over there? any other tips (electronic wise?). I will be going (hopefully) to more remote areas but occasionally in the cities. cheers
as long as your phone is unlocked any sim will work from thailand, by the way where are you heading and i hope you can avoid the flooding
This is what I did, worked out cheap and effective. Get a skype subscription that gives you unlimited mobile calls where you're going and skype in number. Redirect your aussie mobile to your skype number. It's all within Australia, so while you pay redirection it's much cheaper. Then, when overseas pick up a pre-paid SIM, stick it in your mobile. Redirect your skype service when you don't answer to your pre-paid overseas SIM. Tell all friends you'll be overseas, but give them you're skype in number. Skype in doesn't need voip so anyone can call you like a standard call.
Thanks bargainr, seems like a good and economical solution. cheers
so what your saying is they call the in number and it diverts to the thai number correct?
They can either call the in number or your mobile number. Makes no difference really.
Good suggestions. Now that you mention it, I remember doing something quite similar too, but not with skype.
I forwarded all my calls to my PennyTel DID, and forwarded that DID to the temporary mobile phone number in the visiting country I am in. The calls to my PennyTel DID were all free (included in monthly cap) and only ended up paying less than $2 to PennyTel for the couple of weeks that I was away :)
pauly you genius, i use pennytel why didnt i think of that. what was the call quality like
Despite the 1/2 second or so lag, call quality was quite clear. It was acceptable by my standards.
Also, don't forget to enable your PennyTel voicemail. Had once or twice where calls didn't come through as expected, but the caller left voicemails which were redirected to my email and accessed via the Internet connection from the local SIM.
This option will suit you only if you have someone overseas with a sim for you or you already have a overseas sim with you.
If you are on vodafone or three ( I dont know about other networks) and on a cap plan, you can divert your local no. to that overseas number. By doing so, you can utilise your cap money on calls auto forwarded to you ( which otherwise don't count on roaming). On a 29 dollar cap plan ( 150 dollars calling) If you receive like 3-4 calls per minutes a day overseas, you will not be spending a penny out of 29 dollars.
I've never had trouble buying a prepaid SIM overseas. And I just use an internet cafe to do the Skype setup.
Can I pick up a $2 Sim at supermarket in New Zealand, like the one in Australia? I am going in DEC.
Unfortunately the cheapest SIM is NZD$5 in New Zealand with 2 degrees mobile. Their data and voice rates for prepaid are also not as attractive as our Aussie telco plans. This was the best value for money among the three major telcos (Vodafone and Telecom NZ), but their reception can be a bit hit and miss depending on where you are. They are like our vodafone here.
As long as you receive calls from people dialing your Australian mobile number, you will be charged for voice roaming.
You can't receive calls on your Australian mobile number through Skype. Skype also uses data connection. Unless you have wifi available 24/7, note that data roaming charges are usually $20/MB for most Australian telcos. You may end up paying much more for using skype (data roaming) than making/receiving calls through voice roaming.
Personally, I would check out the rates for pre-paid mobile broadband data packs offered by a local telco in the country you're visiting. Quite often, this is actually cheaper than any roaming options. Then use that SIM in a device similar to the pocket wifi for internet connectivity.
That way, you can turn off all data roaming on your mobile and constantly connect to your pocket wifi. Then you should be able to use VoIP/Skype to make and receive (through your skype #) calls through wifi, at the same time being able to receive important calls on your Australian number.
Good luck.