is anyone using the Skypeout Service? what are the rates for STD calls within India? is there a way to buy Skypecards without using creditcards? I had checked the Skype website, but could not find much information in the Indian context.
On 3/29/09, Vikas Kapoor <[email protected]> wrote: > > Staying connected internationally, on the cheap > Posted: 2009-03-29 23:53:18+05:30 IST > Updated: Mar 29, 2009 at 2353 hrs IST > > > : Looking for a system that not only lets you make inexpensive local calls > but also allows friends and family back home to reach you cheaply. Here's a > way: > > . The first thing you'll need is an unlocked mobile phone - that is, a > phone that's not tied to one particular carrier. (In the US, some carriers > will unlock your phone if you ask; abroad, most phones come already > unlocked.) Then, whenever you arrive in a new country, you can buy a local > SIM card (the tiny, interchangeable chip inside the phone that actually lets > you connect to a particular carrier; they're sold at mobile phone stores and > kiosks for $2 to $25, depending on the country) and make phone calls and > send text messages without paying exorbitant international roaming fees. > > .Simple enough. But for folks back home to reach you, you'll need Skype. In > the last few years, Skype has revolutionised how global nomads keep in > touch. Install its software on your Mac or PC, and as long as you've got an > internet connection, you can make high-quality audio and video calls to > other Skype users almost anywhere on earth. (A few countries, like the UAE, > unfortunately block the service.) > > .Skype, however, also lets you call out to mobile phones and land lines (a > service called SkypeOut) and enables you to have your own phone number in > any of 23 countries, including the US, Hong Kong, France and Italy (this is > called SkypeIn). > > .Both SkypeOut and SkypeIn carry a relatively low fee. SkypeOut calls to > land lines can be as little as 2 cents a minute, while calls to mobile > phones are usually a bit more. A SkypeIn subscription, meanwhile, costs $60 > a year or $18 for three months. All you have to do before leaving home is to > set your American cellphone (an older-generation iPhone) to forward to your > SkypeIn number, and all you have to do when you arrive in a new country is > get a SIM card, go online and set the Skype software's preferences to > forward all calls to the new number. Here's how it works. The caller dials > your regular number which is forwarded to your SkypeIn number, which, in > turn, forwarded (via SkypeOut) to your international cellphone number. > > .Unfortunately, Skype does not exist for the iPhone. Instead, you can use a > free third-party application called Fring, which functions as a kind of > Skype-to-cellphone phone gateway, letting you access your Skype account > wherever you have a Wi-Fi signal. (Fring also works on many other > smartphones, and lets you connect to a host of other internet communications > services, like AIM, MSN Messenger, Twitter and Last.fm.) Just open a Fring > account, give Fring your Skype account details, and you're set to make > SkypeOut calls to anyone you wish. > > .Two weeks ago, Google announced a new service called Google Voice that > operates much like Skype - only cheaper! Google says the service will be > open at first only to users of GrandCentral (a startup Google bought almost > two years ago); it will be available to the general public in a few weeks. > > NY Times > > > http://www.financialexpress.com/news/staying-connected-internationally-on-the-cheap/440275/0 > > Vikas Kapoor, > MSN Id:[email protected] <id%[email protected]>, Yahoo&Skype Id: > dl_vikas, > Mobile: (+91) 9891098137. > > > To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] > the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, > please visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > -- Mahesh S. Panicker C123; Dayanand Colony; Lajpat Nagar4; New delhi india. To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
