3 Feel at home - calls between people abroad

ZhugeEX

kodys_angel wrote: »

Without being an existing customer I can't see how to purchase add-ons and how much they cost,

The website wasn't clear in my opinion (and obviously a few others in this thread too), hence why I thought I would contact Three directly to clarify. Most sensible people would take this approach! And yes, I do tend to rely on the information given to me by the company I'm dealing with when I have a query...

There is 100 Mins, 3000 texts and 500mb data for £10. Or 300 Mins, 3000 Texts and Unlimited data for £15.

Just buy the add on when you top up and you'll be able to use those allowances in the USA to call/text UK number and use data. If you plan on calling a local US number you'll need additional credit on the SIM for that.

Have a good trip

Zebrdee

What's the cost of calling a US 1-800 number whilst you're over there, for example making a hotel booking.

Frozen_up_north

Zebrdee wrote: »

What's the cost of calling a US 1-800 number whilst you're over there, for example making a hotel booking.

Three make life difficult when it comes to seeing call costs... As far as I can determine:

On pay as you go, using Feel at Home and the 424 short code, 3p per minute (assuming it works the same way under their Feel at Home). Ask them if the short code would work in the USA via their Blog: http://blog.three.co.uk/ The answers will be official ones, not based on the assumptions of shop staff, or call centre operatives.

Without a short code it looks like £1-02 a minute, if their calling the USA from the UK on PAYG info really means what it currently shows!

Assuming you can access data (either WiFi or via Feel at Home), and your phone has Skype -calling USA free phone numbers is free.

Remember the ABC rule:
Accept nothing, Believe no one and Check everything

d123

Zebrdee wrote: »

What's the cost of calling a US 1-800 number whilst you're over there, for example making a hotel booking.

The only calls included in the allowance are those calls that would be free if you were still in the UK.

This part of the Price Guide (page 19) would indicate 18.8p per minute.

Use your phone abroad at no extra cost with Feel At Home.


You can call and text back home and use your data at no extra cost. No worries.

Only on Three.

We offer all our customers Feel At Home, which lets you use your allowance to call and text the UK and use your data without paying a penny more. It’s also free to receive calls, texts, photo and video messages.

Feel At Home can be used in the following destinations:

Australia, Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Macau, Norway, Republic of Ireland, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Sweden and USA.

Check three.co.uk/feelathome for more information and the latest on which countries are included.

You can enjoy Feel At Home whether you’re on Pay Monthly or Pay As You Go, using a tablet, phone, mobile Wi-Fi or dongle.

If you’re a Pay As You Go customer, in order to fully enjoy Feel At Home, all you need to do is convert your Top- up credit into an Add-on. We recommend All in One to get an allowance of minutes, texts and data. You can then use the allowance in any Feel At Home destination to call and text the UK, and use the internet, just like you would back home.

If you’re in a Feel At Home destination and you come to the end of your allowance or want to make calls or send texts to non-UK numbers, you now get lower rates.

The following rates also apply if you’re on Pay As You Go and you don’t covert your Top-up credit into an Add-on:

Calls

Up to 18.8p a minute
Texts
Up to 5.9p a text
Internet data
10p a MB

spannerzone

What wasn't clear to me when I got my PAYG SIM was top up vs add on: you top up first, I did £15, with no further action this credit would remain available until you used it up as the 321 PAYG deal - but in this state it doesn't give the Feel at Home benefits.

For Feel at Home you convert your topped up credit (£15 in my case) into an 'add on' such as the £15: 300mins/AYCE data and then it'll work in the UK and a Feel at Home country at the same rates you'd experience in the UK eg 300mins and AYCE data* but the add on expires after 30 days (or sooner if you'd used up the add on's allowances)

*AYCE data is limited to 25GB in a feel at home country

Hope that helps other clueless people like me

Zebrdee

It looks like things have changed since my last visit. Back then I used to try to find a payphone to call Toll-Free numbers to make sure I wasn't charged a fortune. OK, it used to be that you couldn't call a US toll-free number from the UK and there was usually an alternative regular landline number to call from outside the US. This feel at home tariff costs may only be accurately answered by someone already there, I will post this on another forum to see I can get someone to try it. :money:

Add-ons only last a month but top-ups don't expire?

d123

Zebrdee wrote: »

Add-ons only last a month but top-ups don't expire?

That's correct, yes.

redux

Zebrdee wrote: »

What's the cost of calling a US 1-800 number whilst you're over there, for example making a hotel booking.

You could call an access number in UK, then compose the number you want.

For US toll-free numbers there is a way to do this even without any account.

Use Sipbroker, e.g. +442071006747 pause *1800...

Yes that is the star key.

For any ordinary US numbers again use a UK access number on an account you've set up with one of many VoIP providers

Roger1

kodys_angel wrote: »

Cheaper than getting a local SIM for my family to all keep in touch when we're on hols!

It depends on how you use your phone. Cheaper alternatives may be available.

Others have pointed out that you need to buy a time-limited add-on to enjoy 3-2-1 rates in a Feel at Home country. This would allow calls to the UK for 3p/minute. Local US calls would use much more.

If you also wanted to call the US (or up to a dozen countries), take a look at Toggle which charges 3p/minute for local US landlines and mobiles, with similar charges to the other countries. I have used mine in the US and elsewhere. Just follow the instructions at https://www.togglemobile.co.uk .

Zebrdee

Well the only reply on the other forum was just a guess so I'll not bother repeating it here.

Three's price guide to the US; http://www.three.co.uk/Support/Roaming_and_international/Mobile_roaming?content_aid=1214306357859