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RICHARDH
Junior Nomad
Posts: 84
Registered: 11-15-2006
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Cheapest, most reliable method to call long-distance from Baja to US
I anticipate that I may need to call long-distance from Baja to the U.S. in three circumstances:
1) A few phone calls (hopefully one short one) to extend the dormant period on my U.S. cellular phone service for another 90-day period
2) A phone call to my US auto insurance company to reinstate my normal U.S. insurance coverage.
3) In the event that I have any vehicle mechanical problems that require parts to be shipped from the U.S.; I suppose this may require lots of phone
calls and perhaps waiting while on hold.
4) Perhaps a few personal calls if the rates are cheap enough
I have read in travel guides that buying a Ladatel calling card is the best deal. Is that still true? What about international calling cards
available via the Internet? Are those likely to be cheaper and just a reliable? Do Mexican phone companies or phone owners charge a fee over and
above the fees that the calling card companies charge? I recall one online advertisement that seems to say that the calling card company sets the
phone-owner's fee, not the other way around. How does that work?
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jerry
Super Nomad
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Registered: 10-10-2003
Location: loreto
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hi you getting antsy yet to go??
i have cingular and if you pay them $3.99 a month when your in baja the calls will cost you $.59 a minuite i just talked to them and well be adding it
next week
last year it was $.99 a minuite and if you just use your regular account it 1.49 a minuite this is the best i found so far
jerry and judi
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Bajaboy
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Posts: 4375
Registered: 10-9-2003
Location: Bahia Asuncion, BCS, Mexico
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You'll get a few different answers but I find the Latadel cards an excellent option. You can find them sold in a variety of places including casa de
cambios, farmacias, and grocery stores. I would use my cell phone in an emergency.
Zac
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Summanus
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Posts: 481
Registered: 10-15-2006
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Using your computer you have many different options. We use CrystalVoice ourselves at the rate of about 2 cents a minute for US calls. World-wide
calls used to run about 12 cents...but I think you can beat that now. There are many other Internet phone providers, and I am sure some will post on
your question.
[Edited on 12-31-2006 by Summanus]
Summanus....ancient Roman Nightly Thunder God. He liked refrieds too.
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Capt. George
Super Nomad
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Registered: 8-21-2003
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I use an MCI card. costs me .35 per minute
have to get the correct code numbers etc before leaving states...
good luck Capt George
\"The penalty good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men\" Plato
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baja Steve
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Registered: 8-31-2003
Location: Bend, or
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I use skype with my lap top and carry my phone and use my skype account when at internet cafe's. cost is about 2 cents per min.
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tehag
Super Nomad
Posts: 1248
Registered: 1-8-2005
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phone
On your home computer open a Skype account for $10. Go to an internet cafe in any town in Baja. Take your mini head set ($20 at Radio Shack). Log in
to you Skype account and talk for 2.5 cents a minute to anywhere in the US. If you use all your Skype time, no prob, they already have your credit
card #, and you can bump your account from anywhere.
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bajalou
Ultra Nomad
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Location: South of the broder
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Gizmo's 1 cent a min. to call US from a computer - very similar to Skype but costs less and they give you a free US number for people to call you.
No Bad Days
\"Never argue with an idiot. People watching may not be able to tell the difference\"
\"The trouble with doing nothing is - how do I know when I\'m done?\"
Nomad Baja Interactive map
And in the San Felipe area - check out Valle Chico area |
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bajadock
Super Nomad
Posts: 1219
Registered: 12-20-2006
Location: Punta sur de \'Nada
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Yahoo Messenger with voice is $.01/min to states. Those I have called are complimentary of voice quality and very few "drop" interruptions of signal.
I am on Telnor DSL, so not certain what difference dialup speed would make. Using a $25 headset/microphone.
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Summanus
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I made a mistake and eagerly bought $200 worth of time on our sat-computer phone when we first installed it...at 2 cents/minute and using it
infrequently, it will take us forever to use that amount. There is no charge for calling another 'user', which are most of our calls. The Yahoo
'phone' is handy, also. Talking long distance these days is almost free.
Summanus....ancient Roman Nightly Thunder God. He liked refrieds too.
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Al G
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2647
Registered: 12-19-2004
Location: Todos Santos/Full time for now...
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Mood: Wondering what is next???
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Can Gizmo or Skype be set up from Baja?
Albert G
Remember, if you haven\'t got a smile on your face and laughter in your heart, then you are just a sour old fart!....
The most precious thing we have is life, yet it has absolutely no trade-in value.
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Summanus
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Sure, Al..we did. Easy directions...just search out 'skype' or 'crystalvoice' or any of many other providers.
Summanus....ancient Roman Nightly Thunder God. He liked refrieds too.
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RICHARDH
Junior Nomad
Posts: 84
Registered: 11-15-2006
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| Quote: | Originally posted by bajalou
Gizmo's 1 cent a min. to call US from a computer - very similar to Skype but costs less and they give you a free US number for people to call you.
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OK, it sounds like Gizmo is a good deal. But it looks like it will require a Wi-Fi access point for anyone who wants to use it on a portable basis
from a laptop.
So that raises the question about the availability of Wi-Fi access points. Danny Palmerlee's *Baja & Los Cabos* (Lonely Planet, 2005) lists lots
of "Internet cafes" in various towns from San Ignacio to C. Constiticion.
Do these places usually have Wi-Fi accessibility as an option?
Or do they typically require the use of a proprietor-supplied computer (in which case it seems Gizmo or Skype, etc., probably wouldn't work unless the
proprietor took care that it would, somehow)?
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Minnow
Banned
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Location: Lost Wages
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Mood: Embarrased Harry Reid is a Nevadan
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Here is what I have done for the last three years for those calls that you don't have computer access for.
1.Nextel direct connect from Northern Baja. Advantage, unlimited free walkie talkie to all of the US. Disadvantage, the person on the other end
needs Nextel or boost for this to work. Don't think you can use boost in baja free, they charge you a per minute fee if calling from baja.
2. Sams club att calling cards. These are the best, and I use them all over Mexico. I have tried countless others but these have one feature that
smokes them all. An 800 number you can dial from any pay phone without inserting a latatel/nortel/mextel phone card first. Just walk up to the phone
dial the access number, and then dial the access number on your card then the PIN on your card and you are in. It works the same with regular phones
also. It may sound complicated but it is easy. I have all the numbers, including my pin memorized. You can also recharge over the phone from
anywhere with a credit card, believe me this comes in way handy. It only costs 15 cents a minute to call the US from baja, it is a little cheaper to
call Baja from the US. here is the dialing proceedure.
018002882872 thats the mexican access code it is not on your phone card you buy at sams club, so write it down. then it says dial the number you are
calling now. this is where you dial the 800 number on the back of your phone card. Then you enter your pin, then you can dial any number you want.
It is so cheap and good, I sometimes use it to call long distance in Mexico, just remember that once you are in the ATT system your call is in the us
and you have to dial 011-52 to get back into Mexico.
Hope this helps
Proud husband of a legal immigrant.
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bajalou
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4459
Registered: 3-11-2004
Location: South of the broder
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| Quote: | Originally posted by RICHARDH
Or do they typically require the use of a proprietor-supplied computer (in which case it seems Gizmo or Skype, etc., probably wouldn't work unless the
proprietor took care that it would, somehow)? |
It might be possible to run them from a portable USB drive. I know I have Firefox loaded on one and can run it on any computer that has USB ports.
No Bad Days
\"Never argue with an idiot. People watching may not be able to tell the difference\"
\"The trouble with doing nothing is - how do I know when I\'m done?\"
Nomad Baja Interactive map
And in the San Felipe area - check out Valle Chico area |
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Minnow
Banned
Posts: 1110
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: Lost Wages
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Mood: Embarrased Harry Reid is a Nevadan
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This guy asked a specific question about calling cards and such and you are trying to turn it into a general discussion about VOIP.
Proud husband of a legal immigrant.
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RICHARDH
Junior Nomad
Posts: 84
Registered: 11-15-2006
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Minnow
Here is what I have done for the last three years for those calls that you don't have computer access for.
...
2. Sams club att calling cards. These are the best, and I use them all over Mexico. I have tried countless others but these have one feature that
smokes them all. An 800 number you can dial from any pay phone without inserting a latatel/nortel/mextel phone card first. Just walk up to the phone
dial the access number, and then dial the access number on your card then the PIN on your card and you are in. It works the same with regular phones
also. It may sound complicated but it is easy. I have all the numbers, including my pin memorized. You can also recharge over the phone from
anywhere with a credit card, believe me this comes in way handy. It only costs 15 cents a minute to call the US from baja, it is a little cheaper to
call Baja from the US. here is the dialing proceedure.
018002882872 thats the mexican access code it is not on your phone card you buy at sams club, so write it down. then it says dial the number you are
calling now. this is where you dial the 800 number on the back of your phone card. Then you enter your pin, then you can dial any number you want.
It is so cheap and good, I sometimes use it to call long distance in Mexico, just remember that once you are in the ATT system your call is in the us
and you have to dial 011-52 to get back into Mexico.
Hope this helps |
Minnow, do these ATT cards require that you have a land line billable account with ATT already set up?
Or is it just a simple matter of purchasing the card without any rigmarole? And if so, are they usually available at all Sam's Clubs?
I ask because I remember that I once had some sort of telephone calling card that was based on an existing line-line account -- I think maybe it was
Sprint.
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Al G
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2647
Registered: 12-19-2004
Location: Todos Santos/Full time for now...
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Mood: Wondering what is next???
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ATT cards requires nothing...
1) as was said write down the Mexican #
2) realize the amount of minutes ,say 500, are used at so many ATT minutes for so many Mexican minutes...I would start with 1000 ATT minutes depending
on how long you will be here.
ATT says you will pay say .05 a minute, but I think Mexico charges .79 a minute so it will take 158 minutes off your ATT card. Capt. George said .35
MCI I don't know if that what MCI charges per minute when you buy the card (does not matter what you pay to start) or has the Mexican charge went down
to .35 a minute?
This is what happened to me as I figured it out.
Calling Card latatel is a better deal....I think
That is why I think Gizmo is the best deal...most all internet cafes have cat5 connections for laptops...this is better then wifi which is more
dependant on the quality of the internet café wifi equipment . Trying to locate a microphone still for Gizmo
If you don't have a laptop go latatel, but cannot quote you per minute charge....
Albert G
Remember, if you haven\'t got a smile on your face and laughter in your heart, then you are just a sour old fart!....
The most precious thing we have is life, yet it has absolutely no trade-in value.
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Al G
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2647
Registered: 12-19-2004
Location: Todos Santos/Full time for now...
Member Is Offline
Mood: Wondering what is next???
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Minnow
This guy asked a specific question about calling cards and such and you are trying to turn it into a general discussion about VOIP. |
Minnow...Please read the first line in bold and especially the first word...
""Cheapest, most reliable method to call long-distance from Baja to US ""
[Edited on 1-16-2007 by Al G]
Albert G
Remember, if you haven\'t got a smile on your face and laughter in your heart, then you are just a sour old fart!....
The most precious thing we have is life, yet it has absolutely no trade-in value.
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RICHARDH
Junior Nomad
Posts: 84
Registered: 11-15-2006
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Al G
...
Calling Card latatel is a better deal....I think
That is why I think Gizmo is the best deal...most all internet cafes have cat5 connections for laptops...this is better then wifi which is more
dependant on the quality of the internet café wifi equipment . Trying to locate a microphone still for Gizmo
If you don't have a laptop go latatel, but cannot quote you per minute charge.... |
Many thanks, Al.
I now have Gizmo all set up on my laptop, tested, and ready to go. I bought a microphone at Radio Shack for a total price of US$13 something, but I
found an old microphone that came with an old, now-defunct Acer Notebook Lite. Both microphones provided nearly the same quality sound. So I took
Radio Shack's back for a refund.
I guess by "cat5 connections" you must be referring to use of the laptop's "Fast Ethernet connection", which I used once for Internet connectivity at
a coffee shop in the remote town of Ely, eastern Nevada. The general availability of fast Internet connectivity is great news!
Since, according to the travel guides, Internet cafés seem to charge by the hour for Internet connections, I guess I should plan to do my phone
calling, e-mailing and other Internet activity in contiguous batches.
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