Calling from USA to BKK?

[dummy_plug]

Searched for some threads, but mostly older ones that may not have relevant information and I didn't find specifically what I was looking for.

Outside of Skype or any other VOIP system that requires me to be tethered to my computer, what are the best options of making cheap calls to BKK?

I'm rarely home or by my computer, so I make most of my calls using my handphone. I use Onesuite.com right now and it charges me $0.10 per minute to make a call to Thailand. Not too bad, but outrageous compared to the $0.02 I get hit to call Singapore or HK. I've seen on the net some other calling card companies that seem to be of varying levels of 'shadiness' so I wanted to see what other BMs use to call their lady friends.

[EyeMahk]

Are you calling one number all the time, or is it different numbers?

[Lefty]

I use phone cards I buy online at pinplan.com. For Thailand cells now it is 2.9 cents per minute. Using local access numbers to get into their systems saves a little off using their toll free number. One half cent per minute less by using a local access number. They have local access all over the place and if I can get it in rural Oregon I doubt many places are left out.
They offer pinless dialing and speed dial for up to ten numbers at any one time per pin number.

[Rocket J. Squirrel]

I use Pennytalk fromt the States with toll free access. They are at pennytalk.com

[PigDogg]

I used Mega Clean and Stable bought through Viapin.

They had both toll and toll free access but there was a discount if using the toll number which was a local call.

This card does not have inactivity fees which is important if you're not calling frequently.

Calling from Thailand to American landlines, I'm now using Yahoo Voice which is half the cost of Skype.

[SamplerDoc]

Yahoo or Skype depending on which numbers you call and how often

[Guest]

I use Fanchan or an IP phone card. 8.5 hours of talk time for only 5.00$ and if you are callling a land line you get additional time for free. Lots of local access numbers available to save even more money.

[EyeMahk]

I have tried about every calling card and call forwarding service there is, and gave up on them for one reason or another (bad quality, calls not going through, etc.) A SkypeOut number forwarded to where you want to call is OK, but it is pricey. A few months ago, I finally found the perfect solution.

If you are calling just one number, look into mydivert.com. You are assigned a local number that you forward online to any number in the world. You pay by the month for the local number (many USA area codes are ‚¬2.95/month. London UK is ‚¬2.95/month). When you forward the call to a Thai mobile, you are billed 1.2c/min. Of course, the person in Thailand pays nothing. This is about the lowest per minute rate I have found.

But the most important thing that I have found is call quality is excellent, no drops, usually no echo and no delay.

This is especially good if you are want people to be able to easily reach you while you are in Thailand, you tell everyone your mydivert.com number then set it to forward to your Thai mobile. Or if you are calling a girlfriend every day do find out that she still misses you then you can set her number to be the forwarding number. You can change the forwarding online anytime you like. So when you drop the Thai GF for a filipina one, you just change the forwarding to the Philippines mobile. Swap "sawasdee krup" for "mabuhay" and you're in business.

Some area codes are more expensive, but as most people have a unlimited long distance plan on their cell phone, it doesn't matter if they are calling New York or Montana, so you can just pick the cheapest area code. There used to be some for ‚¬1.95/month but the lowest now seems to be ‚¬2.95/month.

[dummy_plug]

Thanks for all the responses! I'll look into your suggestions.

EyeMahk - I think your suggestion sounds like it may do the trick!

[dummy_plug]

Why is it so expensive to call to Thailand? Is there a particular reason for this? Even Skype To Go charges $0.13 and OneSuite is $0.10. I know that domestically, calling by mobile is quite cheap so I'm surprised that to make an intl' call to Thailand it is relatively more expensive.

[EyeMahk]

Because the phone company is taking advantage of the fact that people are willing to pay it rather than shopping around.

Hard expenses the phone company has in completing a call to Thailand involve two things:

1. How much do they pay for using the lines to complete the call.
2. What is the tariff applied by the destination phone company for servicing an incoming call (in the case of Thailand, AIS, True, etc., in the case of Philippines, Globe, Smart, Sun). Remember, all incoming calls are free to the Thailand customer.

The tariff applied by the Thai company to an overseas operator for an incoming mobile phone call is very small, it is something like 25 baht for a 100-minute block, which is about US$0.007 per minute. Less than 1 cent. Contrast that with what a Philippine telecom company charges for in incoming mobile phone call. About 7 cents per minute. 10 times higher. The reasons for this are numerous (government regulation, taxes, etc.) but this is why you can often find someone (like mydivert.com and some other calling cards) than can offer calls to Thailand for just a few cents per minute.

[Guest]

Have a look at  www.rebtel.com  i believe that USA is a rebtel country. I use them from the UK and Italy to call Thailand and many other countries and found them very easy and cheap to use.

[pampamsam]

I have experimented with various $2 calling cards bought from bodegas around New York City and I found that using one card called NYC gave me about 3 hours of talking time for $2, that is if I used it it at one time. If I made a 60 minute call and then a day later used the card I found out that $.50 was deducted from the amount available.

[Lefty]

(dummy_plug @ Oct. 27 2008,20:27) Why is it so expensive to call to Thailand? Is there a particular reason for this? Even Skype To Go charges $0.13 and OneSuite is $0.10. I know that domestically, calling by mobile is quite cheap so I'm surprised that to make an intl' call to Thailand it is relatively more expensive.

2.4 cents a minute using local access numbers isn't expensive IMO. Even 2.9 to use the toll free access is fine by me.
I can dial 7 digits, then a 2 digit speed dial and have connection to any Thai cell in seconds.

[newatthis]

Eyemahk
I just signed up on Mydivert and it is working fine. thanks for the tip....