ZoeTaylor Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 Hi all We are trying to think of the cheapest way to phone back from Oz to the UK when we get there and also for people to be able to get hold of us without it costing a fortune. Hubby is thinking we should get a basic £5 per month SIM card that allows you to use your phone in Australia. Not even sure these exist. Googling is saying that a phone card with a landline is best. Any advice gratefully received! Thanks. Zoe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Pom Queen Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 Skype, messenger, even mobiles now have different wifi call options all free. I know our mobile package gives us so many minutes of free international calls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unzippy Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 Phone what in the UK? Landlines? Mobiles? Smartphones? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 Vodafone had a good deal which included overseas minutes on payg - not £5 though!!! If you are on a 3 (non essential) contract in UK you can use Like Home for 30 days in Australia. Otherwise you can use the wifi options - Skype, Viber, Watsapp etc as long as your recipient has the same app on their phone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cliffy43 Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 I phone european and uk relatives constantly, on Skype mainly, but Messenger and voip landline with your internet company and most times it costs nothing. Can do it from mobile, tablet or even landline. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wooba Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 I'm with Woolworths mobile. Their $45 month plan ($40.50 with points card) gives free calling to 10 countries including UK. If someone in the UK or Canada wants to call me, they just send a Google hangout, SMS or email and I call them back.Sent from my LG-H990 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 We usually face time or Skype. Virgin mobile gives an international call allowance too. We also have very cheap UK calls from our landline with Optus. Hubbie calls his elderly dad the old fashioned way once a week and chats for up to an hour. Costs usually about $5 extra a month for this. There are lots of options depending who you want to call and how. Conversely my sister has a phone contract in U.K. That allows her to call our landline for free for calls up to an hour. So can be worth sorting people before you go. If someone wants to Skype or face time us they usually text to set it up. They even remember the time difference...........usually! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 Facetime or Skype gets my vote. ipad, computer. phone and off our home internet so no costs. We only call when at home generally as don't like calling when out as usually busy with life so prefer it to be when at home and we have time to properly devote to chatting. I also use Viber with my mum to send pics and texts (which if out comes off my plan data wise, if at home, off our internet). She likes getting pics in real time from when we are out and about and its no different to texting her a pic if I was back there still. Can make calls on it too, comes off the phone data plan if not at home. I've used this twice I think, both times for a quick call when out to ask her something as I knew she was waiting at the other end. FWIW, we don't have a landline here in Aus. Never have done since we arrive 4 years ago. I don't know anyone who does these days. All calls are mobile or done over internet in some shape or form. Even when I've had to call UK landline numbers (HMRC, bank etc), I've used the Skype set up and put a few $$ credit on to call and still have most of it left. I just sit at the computer at midnight to speak to someone in the UK at their desk there. Never had any issues and cheap as anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benj1980 Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 I'm with Telsra prepaid and have international minutes as part of my package. I've never used them. I use FaceTime/Skype. I don't even know if I can call landlines and mobiles with my international minutes, can anyone share? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DukeNinja Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 (edited) Amaysim Unld 2GB PAYG (on the Optus 4G network): https://www.amaysim.com.au/plans/mobile-plans/unlimited-small This is what I've bought for myself and the missus. Usually AUD 25, but there's a special offer on at the moment where if you purchase the sim by the 30th of September, you only have to top up by AUD 15 for the first 6 months to get unlimited calls the UK (mobiles and landlines), and unlimited calls and sms to Aus mobs and landline. Plus you can choose 5 digits of the number. So after 6 months you can kick it to the kerb and port your number. This should give you enough of a headway to make a start in Aus. Edited September 16, 2017 by DukeNinja Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DukeNinja Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 Also, we've got 3 PAYG (UK), on which you can use `feel at home` for 2 months, thus allowing you to keep your UK number. We had the GBP20 plans, mainly for the 12GB of roaming data. It also provis us with 3000mins and sms to UK numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoeTaylor Posted September 16, 2017 Author Share Posted September 16, 2017 That's great - thanks all. I think Skype/Whatsapp plus hopefully some free international calls on our mobile contracts will be the way to go. It would be good though if people could call us but I guess we'll just have to be organised! Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 12 minutes ago, ZoeTaylor said: That's great - thanks all. I think Skype/Whatsapp plus hopefully some free international calls on our mobile contracts will be the way to go. It would be good though if people could call us but I guess we'll just have to be organised! Thanks again. Tbh the time difference works against you for half the year. Makes for early morning or late night calls/chats usually. It's not like people can just phone for a chat in their lunch break. It does tend to take a bit more planning. I usually email my parents I the week to arrange with them a time we can all be home to a Skype. Often means 9am their time and 6pm ish our time. Otherwise they lose their day to get out and do stuff. Also consider it isn't perhaps the best to spend too much time on the phone with people when trying to settle and adapt. You can often forget to cut the cord as it were and end up feeling like you are missing out on what is going on back there and be distracted from your actual life here. I'd try to go with emails/texts and to organise a chat time on weekends or an evening but not go overboard with it all. Give yourselves a chance to settle in and find your feet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 Yup when the 10 and a half hour difference kicks in we will switch from the evening calls to the morning calls. Still works OK you just have to remember and plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mcguinnessp1968 Posted September 18, 2017 Share Posted September 18, 2017 Hi all We are trying to think of the cheapest way to phone back from Oz to the UK when we get there and also for people to be able to get hold of us without it costing a fortune. Hubby is thinking we should get a basic £5 per month SIM card that allows you to use your phone in Australia. Not even sure these exist. Googling is saying that a phone card with a landline is best. Any advice gratefully received! Thanks. ZoeJust use whatsapp or something similar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amibovered Posted September 18, 2017 Share Posted September 18, 2017 if you really want to get into it voip is the way to go, we had a UK number for people to call us on when in Australia, and we have a Melbourne number so that friends and family form Melbourne can call us cheaply now we are in the UK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoeTaylor Posted September 19, 2017 Author Share Posted September 19, 2017 Hi Thanks again. Whatsapp, Skype etc are great (although not for some of our older relatives). The problem will be if we need to call British banks, mortgages companies, pension companies etc I guess. Hopefully we can get some inclusive international minutes for that scenario. Zoe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottieGirl Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 I used my mobile, I had a $30 SIM only bundle with Vodafone. Hardly ever paid for UK calls, almost always came out of the allowance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benj1980 Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 I message my family more than anything. I'm on family whatsapp groups and it means I wake up 50-100 of trivial tripe text messages, but I can't complain that I'm not in the loop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnnyboy Posted December 29, 2017 Share Posted December 29, 2017 You can also use a sip account (most probably free) and that will give you a number from UK. Then they can ring you as it's a local call to them. Just give them a buzz from your mobile, then they can ring u from uk on that number. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 30, 2017 Share Posted December 30, 2017 You can use Skype to make those calls to banks etc. I do without issue. I use free Skype for family and if it’s for business or some such then I use my Skype credit and call direct on this. It’s say $10 or $20 in credit and it lasts for ages. I’ve often had to call HMRC and used Skype to do so. You can see your credit on screen and the sound is great. They hear me fine the other end and I can sit at my desk with paperwork in front of me. It really isn’t difficult to set up and use. On 19/09/2017 at 21:41, ZoeTaylor said: Hi Thanks again. Whatsapp, Skype etc are great (although not for some of our older relatives). The problem will be if we need to call British banks, mortgages companies, pension companies etc I guess. Hopefully we can get some inclusive international minutes for that scenario. Zoe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calNgary Posted December 30, 2017 Share Posted December 30, 2017 If you have a landline phone ,just set up a plan with Tesltra, mine is a dollar a call to the uk and that covers me for up to a 60minute call. The only difference is we have type 2 extra numbers in when dialing the country code. Cal x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoeTaylor Posted January 2, 2018 Author Share Posted January 2, 2018 Thanks guys. We are here now and have already got a pre-pay mobile which works for 1000 mins to the UK for the first month. Skype seems to be a great way to ring the UK pretty cheaply. Loving Australia and our first stop for Christmas with family in Melbourne and very excited to head to our new home in Adelaide tomorrow :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 2, 2018 Share Posted January 2, 2018 18 minutes ago, ZoeTaylor said: Thanks guys. We are here now and have already got a pre-pay mobile which works for 1000 mins to the UK for the first month. Skype seems to be a great way to ring the UK pretty cheaply. Loving Australia and our first stop for Christmas with family in Melbourne and very excited to head to our new home in Adelaide tomorrow :-) Give a shout once you are settled We are Adelaide too and very happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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