calling options to the UK

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  1. #1

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    Question calling options to the UK

    So my Three UK Like Home service came to an end today. I'm now looking at other options to call back to the UK.

    So far I have found the following potential options (all prices in HK$ to a UK landline, per minute, unless otherwise stated):

    - IDT1529: $0.18 (couldn't find rate for mobile)

    - IDD1597: $0.55 (mobile = $1.97)

    - Skype (Voip): $0.16 (mobile = $2.3), but connection fee of $0.45

    - Vyke (Voip): $0.40 (per hour) (mobile = $1.3)

    - Rebtel: free to $0.15 (mobile = $1.4). Rebtel however requires you to preset the numbers you wish to call. Its free if using their "smart call" method.

    - One of the Betamax providers (Voip): $0.06 - 0.18 (mobile = $0.60 - 2.30). The way these work is you deposit UK£10 and then you get "freecalls" to UK landlines for the first 120 days, after that the calling rate mentioned above applies, depending on the betamax provider you use. Therefore taking a rough rate of 1p a minute for landlines and 10p a minute for mobiles, after your "free days" you would have 1,000 minutes of landline calls or 100 minutes of calls to mobiles.

    Don't now which one to go with, but suspect its going to be a mix of the above.

    Anyone got any other suggestions that I may have missed?

    Last edited by pin; 30-06-2009 at 02:10 PM.

  2. #2

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    PCCW pay as you talk sim card

    $0.25 a min or something tiny like that.

    I use it to call the mum and family all over the place... Works out really cheap and very suitable.


  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by pin:
    - IDT1529: $0.18 (couldn't find rate for mobile)
    $1.98 to UK mobile on 1529.

  4. #4

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    I'm using New World Tel (009) at HKD1.48/min to UK mobiles.

    Your 1529 rate for land lines is pretty good at HKD0.18/min, I remember PCCW (0060) is cheap for land lines, need to check if that is cheaper then 1529?


  5. #5

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    PCCW is currently offering me $0.18 to UK landlines on 0060, but note that PCCW currently rounds up to the next minute and then to next 10 cents for each call. IDT1529 only rounds to the minute.


  6. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by PDLM:
    PCCW is currently offering me $0.18 to UK landlines on 0060, but note that PCCW currently rounds up to the next minute and then to next 10 cents for each call. IDT1529 only rounds to the minute.
    Is that on a contract or Pay as you talk?

    I've got PAYT but its slightly more expensive.. not massively though

  7. #7

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    Neither, 0060 is a simple monthly billed IDD service.


  8. #8

    anybody use the IDD 0088 service? it looks quite attractive at $56 for unlimited calls to uk landlines. how's the quality vs. 0060 or IDT1529?


  9. #9

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    I use 0080 from time to time (which is the same carrier, HGC) - the quality to UK landline is fine. The question is simply whether you will make the 310+ minutes of calls each month that mean you will do better on the fixed fee than on HK$0.18/min.


  10. #10

    that's good to know. my friend called me from the UK yesterday on her mobile and the quality was terrible! I'd have to pay 2 HKD a minute for that kind of quality?


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