The Many Uses Of Prepaid Phone Cards
Prepaid phone cards are very popular among college students, frequent travelers or simply by anyone who wants to save on their long distance and international calls. Rechargeable prepaid phone cards are especially economic because the minutes that are added after purchasing the card are often less expensive. For instance, an AT & T prepaid phone cards can be purchased at most Wal-Mart stores at a cost of approximately $.08 per minute. When recharged, the minutes average $.05 each.
There are a number of reasons why prepaid phone cards are so popular, including the need to sometimes dial into a long distance telephone number for internet connections. Rather than paying the higher charges with the phone company, the user can have their modem dial using the calling card and then connecting to the internet.
While on vacation, hotels charge significant rates for long distance calls, but prepaid phone cards allow the user to dial into a toll-free number before dialing out to a long distance line. This will save big bucks as it will eliminate any long distance charges on the hotel bill.
Some cellular phones, such as Tracfone, operate on a prepaid basis. For each local call, one minute of talk time is equal to one unit (or minute) of prepaid service. International calls, on the other hand, may be significantly more expensive. In an effort to minimize the cost, some cell phone owners opt for programming prepaid calling cards into their phone and dialing out using the toll-free number. International rates will be higher with prepaid phone cards, but will likely be less than that of a cellular or regular phone service. This process will work on either cellular phones or a regular landline connection.
Along that same line, prepaid phone cards are also helpful in sending faxes. The same rules apply with long distance fax numbers, which can be costly through local telephone companies. The use of prepaid phone cards can often reduce these costs.
Toll-free numbers are free at payphones, so if you find yourself having car trouble or needing to get in touch with someone and the only phone nearby is a payphone, don’t worry about having the right amount of coins or having to call collect. If you have a prepaid phone card with you, the call will be routed through the toll-free number at no additional cost to either you or the person whom you are calling.
In addition to the aforementioned advantages, prepaid phone cards are simple to use, easy to recharge from the store of original purchase, online through the prepaid phone cards customer service or via the toll-free number listed on the back of the card.
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VSNL offers web-based calling service
NEW YORK: Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL) will start offering from August 21 a new facility that will allow people of South Asian origin in the U.S. to make calls to their country, using its pre-paid service without obtaining the calling cards.
This new service will compete with several other providers, including Reliance Communications.
Launching the new service — Trueroots International Calling Service — at a function here on Thursday, its top officials said that their service would have the trademark of Tatas, a ‘brand name known for unflinching quality.’
Speaking on the occasion, Head of Corporate Affairs for VSNL, Sandeep Mathur, said the new service would provide superior voice quality and easy access and connectivity without any hidden fee or extra charges. The calls will be carried on VSNL’s extensive global fibre optic network. The new service can be purchased online through a web portal or by calling VSNL customer service directly.
The service offers advanced features. Other features include instant recognition of calling line ID for PIN-less dialling from up to five registered phone numbers. — PTI
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Phones collected for military families
FAYETTEVILLE -- Megan Rennhack is eight months pregnant. Her husband is a Marine who’s been deployed for the last five. They’ve spent about $1,000 on phone cards since he’s left, but it’s worth it to stay connected.
“All I need to hear is that he's okay,” Rennhack said. “It's worth a million dollars every time he calls."
Rennhack’s husband called for a brief 10-minute chat Saturday afternoon, but that call didn’t cost them anything because the couple signed up for Cell Phones for Soldiers. The non-profit recycling program was started by two Massachusetts teenagers and has quickly spread around the United States.
The program works by collecting old cell phones and accessories, then exchanging them for money to purchase phone cards. The phone cards are worth either 60 or 100 minutes for domestic calls, but calling to and from the Middle East costs much more, so the cards usually last for 15 or 30 minutes. An average cell phone can usually buy three or four calling cards.
Cell Phone for Soldiers has raised more than a million dollars in donations around the country and has passed out more than 10,000 cards in North Carolina alone.
"It is a way for us to subsidize and provide for our military families,” said Tristan Pan, who represents Cell Phones for Soldiers in the state. “These people are putting their lives on the line for our country."
Meanwhile, Rennhack is thankful for each minute she gets, so she’s spreading the word to other military spouses to be on the lookout for used cell phones.
"If you ever find one at a yard sale, pick it up for a quarter, throw it in the box, and you get a phone card back for it," she added.
By: Ilin Chen
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