Another mobile alternative...

Cheap International Mobile Phone Calls and Texts

Ok this isn't strictly related to web design or VOIP but I feel it worth mentioning since mobile phones are becoming increasingly geared to internet access and I can see a time when websites will need to be 'mobile friendly' as well as 'browser friendly'.

Anyway your mobile phone company will tell you that calls (and texts) are expensive because of things beyond their control.  They are lying!  The expense to claim they incur for the international part of a call (or text) is in reality all part of the same infrastructure and all the companies involved are part of a cartel or even the same company.

However from September 2007 new laws restricting the cost of mobile calls within the EU (not elsewhere) will ensure that prices will be capped to not more than 39p (€0.56) for an outgoing call and a cap of not more than 23p (€0.34) for incoming calls.  Even knowing that charges have been deemed unfair with legislation set in place to curb them, the big mobile companies continue to 'rip off' their customers by claiming that 'they' have reduced the cost of their calls, and dreaming up new plans that appear to offer 'more' such as 'unlimited' text messages, just to get you to pay more each month, especially with pre-pay phones.  What they like to skim over is the so-called 'fair use' condition that they can invoke if they deem you to be taking too much advantage of the facility.  Being somewhat cynical I am watching to see what other devious schemes they will come up with next to get around the new rules - and it's only a matter of time. 

If the big players in the mobile phone industry can't keep the costs down, explain how a company such as Oneroam can charge only 27p (€0.39) for an outgoing call (30% less than the EU recommendation) with no incoming call charges in 22 of the 27 EU countries and has done for years? 

Not only that Oneroam charge only 24p per international text from anywhere in the world, which is substantially cheaper than any of the others and there's no charge to receive them.

If you intend to go abroad at any time you should consider Oneroam as a matter of course but here's a brief description...

Oneroam is a prepaid mobile phone service that allows you to use your mobile phone when you are travelling abroad, without incurring roaming charges. Using the service will cut your mobile phone bill significantly. Simply swap to the Oneroam SIM card whenever you travel abroad and take advantage of calls for as little as 27p per minute and receive calls in many countries for free. When you move between countries, the SIM card will move seamlessly with you, picking up a new network as soon as you arrive at a new destination, enabling you to make calls the moment you step off the plane. The service works in over 145 countries. When your credit runs low, simply top up your account using the automated and instant top-up service, from anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day.

You can check your credit balance from anywhere in the world by dialling 099 or by going to the Oneroam menu and selecting Check balance. Either method will show your balance on the handset display within 5 seconds. The phone does not make a call and you do not have to wait for an SMS message. There is no charge for checking your balance. Your balance is also announced at the start of each call.  It is expressed in terms of the number of minutes of talk time you have left for the destination your are calling.

To use the service you have to buy a SIM card costing £12.99 plus VAT but unlike other mobile phones, there is no expiry date on the SIM card or any credit you add to it. This means you can top up ready to go on holiday this year and use any credit that is left, on your holiday next year.

Normally if you go to somewhere such as Spain you will use either Vodafone, Orange or Movistar which is part of Telefonica and allied to the O2 network, so there is absolutely no reason why a call should cost £1.50 a minute or a text cost at least 40 pence, and that doesn't take account of what they charge the recipient!  So how do we get around this?  Easy!  Check out

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Last Updated 06/08/2008