Using Your Mobile When Abroad: Roam For Less Article Discussion Area

redux

widow43 wrote:

Can anyone please help?? I have a contract with O2 but spend quite a bit of time in Austria. I use my mobile to ring my partner every day so it's a UK phone ringing a UK phone?? Would it be best for me to buy an Austrian sim card or what would be the cheapest way to make calls to Britain? Please help as i am now so confused!!

There are a few choices. First make sure your phone is registered for MyEurope, so if you do use O2 it would cost 35p a minute. But cheaper is possible by other methods.

Do you mean that you ring a UK landline or mobile? And does your partner sometimes call you, from either?

The global roaming SIMs mentioned in Martin's article and above have their own tariffs mainly around 30 pence a minute, though using them in combination with other callback operators can be cheaper, but a bit more complicated.

Here is info about Austrian SIMs, with network links (click logo)
http://www.prepaidgsm.net/en/austria.html

The virtual operators Yesss! and Tele2 have cheap calls to Austria at 8 or 9 cents per minute. You could use one of these via the local access number of a calling card to reach UK for a penny or two more.

With an Austrian SIM or one of the global roaming ones, your incoming calls would be free, and your partner could use cheap calls providers to reach you.

From a UK landline, see the MSE Callchecker for the best tariffs. For this, an Isle of Man SIM would be best for you, as they count it as a UK mobile, from 5p a minute (or 2p weekends with a call18185 account). From UK mobile, IoM SIMs come from inclusive minutes on some networks, including O2 and Orange (you could divert your O2 phone to it). To reach an Austrian mobile from UK mobile, 07744 callthrough providers like Planettalkfree and Yourcallworld can be used from Orange T-mobile and Virgin inclusive minutes.

So your choices would depend on which UK mobile network (if any) your partner is on, and other calls you'll receive, and whether you make more incoming or outgoing calls. If you have more than one phone, you might even get an Austrian SIM and one of the IoM roaming ones, the former mainly for outgoing calls; the latter to receive calls diverted from your O2.

Sorry it's heading for rather complicated; if you can give a bit more detail, I'll try and whittle it down a bit more in a couple of days (I'll be away abroad myself).

widow43

Thank you very much Redux! I can either phone a landline or a mobile but usually i call the mobile. My partner also has an O2 contract. We text mostly as we presume it's cheaper??! but still ring maybe once a day - i also ring my kids every couple of days but they all have different providers.

My partner also calls me probably about the same amount as i him.

I had thought of buying an Austrian sim but as you can tell i'm pretty thick about this subject!!

Thanks again for your help and hope you enjoy your trip abroad

flossy_splodge

Sorry to be a bit slow but help needed! Am going to France at the end of this week for about 10 days. Only means of contact will be through my Orange mobile . My phonwe is unlocked. Some of my calls may be to South Africa to mobiles as my daughters are away there at the same time. Please can someone advise my cheapest options for sending and'or receiving calls. I am signed up to 18185. 1899 and 18866. Many thanks.:eek:

blanik

fonesaver wrote:

Has anyone tried Story Telecom's SIM at https://www.storytelecom.com/roaming/ ??

It seems pretty good for £25 you actually get £25 calling credit unlike some SIMs that cost £30ish with a few Euros credit. It looks like a rebrand of the callkey SIM. IOM number, you can choose between auto or manual recharge.

Call charges are in US$ and are quoted per minute but charged for 30 seconds and 6 seconds thereafter. This must save a lot compared with whole minute billing.

SMS is 25cents approx 13p per text.

Hi Fonesave, we got 2 of the sim cards for the family. Very fast service. The intention was to divert the UK mobile to the Story mobile before leaving the UK so we could keep the same numbers and use our inclusive minutes for the divert but ran into a couple of problems with our current network operators ( not story ).

For t-mobile on flext diverted calls are not included in your monthly bundle ( acording to TM ) so you pay per minute for the divert to the IOM ( it looked about 15-20p/min ).

For Virgin on pay monthly you cannot divert calls to any number except your voicemail!!!!!

So it looks like the method is as suggested above to leave a voicemail message on your original phone advising callers of the story number whilst roaming.

Secondly it is very important to use a handset recomemded by Story, we tried an old nokia ( whick they listed as NOT recomended ) and couldn't get it to make calls although it received OK.

I have not received any bills so don't know how calls to story are being charged, perhaps others could list their mobile operator/tariff and if IOM mobile calls are included in their bundle or chargable?

P178

Sorry, I am new to this mobile thread and very pleased that I found it. I hope someone can help me here. I visit my family in India once a year and when I am there I like to use the indian sim in my UK phone.But when I put the indian sim into my Uk mobile it doesn't work in India. I would be really greatful if someone tell me what to do? And how to use the phone in India.Many Thanks.Prema

redux

P178, it sounds like you need to get the phone unlocked from its UK network.

There are pinned threads at the top of the board with advice on this. To precis: Nokias are easiest as just a code can be worked out for many of them (they'll do it for you on that thread for free). Other phones may need doing at a local independent dealer or market stall.

P178

Many Thanks redux I'll have a look. If its works then,you will have saved me 100 of pounds. Thanks again.

webkami

Anybody know a 0844/07744 number that can call an IoM sim?

Also does Orange or O2 include calls to IoM within inclusive minutes?

I tried from Three but it charged separately.

redux

webkami wrote:

Anybody know a 0844/07744 number that can call an IoM sim?

Also does Orange or O2 include calls to IoM within inclusive minutes?

I tried from Three but it charged separately.

both Orange and O2 at present (though their CS don't know it), and many 0844 providers and 18185 etc count it as a UK mobile; no 07744 that I've found

webkami

Thats great info.

I am about to setup a call forwarding on my Orange mobile to this IoM sim card and will take IoM sim with me abroad. Hope I dont run a big bill there.