Black Wireless: GSM w/more Data & Int'l calling - Promo code

[bugbaby]

Hey GSM users esp if you call internationally a lot!

I just switched from Airvoice $30 plan to Black Wireless $30 coz Airvoice hiked the $10 Int'l calling plan  from a $35 plan to the $40 (which wasn't really $10 worth, you get only $2-5 worth compared to calling cards such as Vonage).

Black Wireless $30: Unlimited Talk/Text/MMS, 100 Int'l Text, +500MB Data, + Int'l calling $2 (16-50 min depending on country, which is the same #minutes as the former airvoice so-called $10 worth)
- Get $5 off initial order using promo code 8633V  -disclosure: i'll get referral $for use of this
- Also get 50% off if you sign up by Dec 3 -they'v been extending deadline daily so it could still be available after

I found this better for me than Airvoice $30 which is only 100 MB Data and no Int'l calling or the Airvoice $40 which gives the same int'l calling -but 1GB Data [edit]

Also it was much easier to switch, didn't have to go through set-up for data & int'l calling that i had to do w/airvoice  +SIM card was free incl Fedex shipping in 2 days, vs Airvoice $4.99

[Daley]

For other readers (and Babybug as well), be mindful that Black Wireless has only been around for a couple years, tops. They are owned by SDI, a calling card company that's been around for over a decade and are basically just repackaging services through Locus Telecom, who owns H2O Wireless.

Speaking of H2O Wireless, their "unlimited" monthly packages include $5 worth of direct dial international calling credit a month, and their monthly plans have the same data limits as Black. If you want to get a good deal, you clearly go to the source MVNO.

Alternately, on the AT&T network, there is Red Pocket Mobile. Although not quite as cheap as Black, they provide $2 worth of direct dial international calling on their monthly "unlimited" plans, and have some of the cheapest international rates on mobile available.

On the T-Mobile end, there's of course P'tel which now has monthly plans starting at $35 (with $5 of international calling credit at some pretty good rates, but it's not direct dial) and "unlimited" 128kbps internet access.

Additionally, there also Lycamobile and Ultra Mobile who both have some decent international calling rates and who's international calling credits vary depending on the plan... but they're still new on the market like Black is (though Black isn't quite the gamble given how they're set up), and as such, not as safe a bet as P'tel, Red Pocket and H2O Wireless as a longer term provider.

All that said, international calling will always be cheaper through a home VoIP provider like VOIPo, VOIP.ms or Future Nine than with mobile phone service. Yet another reason to bring back the home phone and be patient about when you call.

[bugbaby]

Dear I. P. Daley,

Thank you for your very enlightening response. I actually first heard of MVNO from your superguide when i found MMM earlier this year and am I glad!  I'll definitely be keeping H2O on my radar, and probably switch when my paid Black wireless time expires.

I need to read more about VOIPs coz as soon as I tried Google voice and it didn't work too easily I kind of gave up on all internet calling as being too tech-ey for me , even though i pay for internet.

[Left]

Along with the VoIP deal, if you haven't looked at apps such as textme or textnow they aren't such a bad price for it.

I make calls calls to taiwan for 2 credits/minute using textnow. With credits costing about 100 credits/$2, I can talk for almost a hour. "almost" since they do odd rounding once in a while. I know just calling them takes 2 credits even if I don't talk a full minute. But sometimes it takes on a minute, maybe call dropped? I'm not sure. But it's still cheap for me. If they are also on the app, it's a free call entirely. I normally do their free credit thing where I watch an ad or download an app.

I mean sure you have to buy a plan with data to use it so the mvno plans would work unless you are tied to a wifi network all the time. But I wouldn't spend anything on their international plans once you are done with the included $2-5 dials. I don't know the exact numbers for the data, but using textme app has been fairly light on my data usage. But I don't use it ALL that often, maybe 10-30 minutes/week?

[Daley]

Thank you for your very enlightening response. I actually first heard of MVNO from your superguide when i found MMM earlier this year and am I glad!  I'll definitely be keeping H2O on my radar, and probably switch when my paid Black wireless time expires.

Babybug, I'd like to stand moderately corrected. Upon further researching, SDI is apparently backboning their own international long distance separate from Locus, and their rates aren't the same from country to country. As such, Black is cheaper on some destinations than H2O is. Once more, it just goes to show the dearth and variance of international pricing available from MVNO to MVNO and how not any one provider is going to be the best option for every person in need of these services.

Anyone looking to do mobile international, always check the destination rates called with all the providers above. Also for the record, it appears that Red Pocket has better per minute rates on most destinations than Black does. As I mentioned before, Red Pocket's got some of the cheapest direct-dial international rates available on any mobile plan for a good number of countries. P'tel is the only other carrier that has rates approaching Red Pocket's level, but international calling is more of a calling card style setup. In exchange for that loss of convenience, however, you do gain "unlimited" international texting on their plans... as always: research, research, research! :)

VoIP isn't that difficult, honestly... it just requires following instructions on initial setup and some VoIP providers will even provide you a pre-configured device. Google Voice is just shoddy in general. Have a crash course on the subject!