Talk Can Be Cheap

When I first moved to Ireland, I registered with an international phone company that catered to students studying abroad. Because I was a student, this plan offered me discounted rates on international phone calls. The first month  I was away I sent 4 texts to America and made about 4 or 5 phone calls to my family; none of which lasted more than 10 minutes. When I received my invoice for that month, it was a staggering $350. Needless to say, I never called from that phone again!

Since I had to communicate with my family somehow, I started to try and find less expensive ways to do so. I did have Skype on my computer, but lugging a laptop everywhere you go isn't very convenient. Once again I decided to turn to the app store for help and I wasn't disappointed!

Tip #4

Do not buy calling cards or international cell phones

Download the TextNow app or Skype app

                          

The TextNow app allows you to text and call your friends or family in the United States for free. When you register with TextNow, you are assigned an American phone number. I know it sounds like there should be some sort of catch, but there really isn't! When I first started using this app, I was petrified that when my family and friends received their phone bills they'd be sky high. To my relief, no one was charged extra for my texts or calls.

The only disappointing thing about this app is that it only works if there is wifi connection so it can't really be used as a typical phone. Despite that minor flaw, I was so grateful to have discovered TextNow.  It's very rare to find a place that does not offer wifi nowadays so I was able to save so much money by finding hotspots and calling from my iTouch.

I also downloaded Skype on my iTouch and would occasionally use that to make phone calls. When you buy Skype phone credit, you can make international calls for about $0.002 a minute. My ex-boyfriend lived in Egypt and I was able to call him from my Skype app on my iPhone for the same price I was paying to talk to local friends. Unfortunately, Skype is another app that won't run without a network connection or wifi.

I know a lot of people think that it is a good idea to have cell phones for emergencies but I'd rather save money and just call collect!

Because I was traveling with an iTouch, I did not have a speaker so at first I couldn't make phone calls. My Irish roommate, however, solved that problem when he bought himself a pair of headphones that included a speaker. I bought a pair for myself for $20 and never had a problem using my iTouch as a phone again.