Calling Card ReviewsInformation You Can Use

Dr. Alfred Santoro asked:




International calling cards are becoming big business. Just look at your local convenience store, super store and other venues and you will see card after card being offered for purchase. To the uninformed they all look the same, except of course the interesting graphics that some cards exhibit. What are the features that can make or break your calling card experience? Let’s list a few that are important.

Phone rates…The biggest issue with phone rates is determining what card has the best rates to the area you call. Does the company have a complete listing by country code and city code so that you can see the actual rates you are being charged? And, if you see a discrepancy is there a reachable customer service number to correct the problem?

Renewability…One of the biggest problems with many international calling cards is having to continuously buy new cards every week or month because the old card runs out of minutes. Each card has a number that is unique. This number needs to be learned as well as a new password. Wouldn’t it be nice to have one card, and one card only? In that scenario, once you have memorized the card number and your password that mental exercise is not necessary anymore! And, taking this another step further, if you happen to change calling card companies, even the access number is new! Would you like to be able to call a local number that gives you easy, direct access to your card’s minutes?

Rollover minutes..To get the most bang for your buck, the calling card you choose should have rollover minutes. For example, no one calls exactly 25 minutes each month. Isn’t it true that some months you call 15 minutes and another month perhaps 60? It is the same for everyone. The best calling cards have the option of rolling over your minutes month to month for at least a year, so that you are not losing what you already paid for.

Hidden fees…deal with a company that is upfront with its fees. For example, many cards have connection fees that are either not disclosed or are huge. Perhaps you bought a $10 international calling card. If the store doesn’t charge you at least $12 for this card then the required federal taxes will be taken out of your $10. So instead of $10 worth of calling time, you are really getting only $8. Also, there may be a 50 -80 cent connection fee that is taken out every time you call someone. Some companies take it even further and charge you the connection fee ONCE YOUR CALL IS RINGING! What if your party does not answer? Too bad, you are still charged the connection fee.

I prefer to deal with calling card companies who add the taxes on TOP of the cost of the card. You can expect approximately $2 of taxes for approximately $12 of purchased time. So, as an example, if you purchase a $25 card you should expect approximately $4 in taxes for a total of $29 and change. If this card also has minimal or no access fees, you have done a good job investigated the most economic card out there.

Lastly, quality of calls are an issue. Remember, the quality of calls can be affected by many different variables, some of which are not controllable by the companies who sell the cards. The most important aspect in this regard is having a reachable customer service number in the event that you are not satisfied with your calling experience.

After much investigation, I have found a card that meets these requirements. Along with a minuscule 2 cents per minute charge when calling long distance in the US!

Ruth Vargas

Vanessa A. Doctor asked:




A lot of people are using prepaid calling cards nowadays, especially if they want to contact their loved ones or business partners, whether abroad or locally. Prepaid calling cards give its users the convenience of being able to make the call anywhere at anytime just by using the card on any mobile phone or pay phone. This eliminates the need to be in your home when you decide to make the call, which is a common problem with most long-distance providers.

Aside from this feature, prepaid calling cards also is considered to be a whole lot cheaper than the usual long distance providers since you are only paying for the amount of talk time that you have consumed. Prepaid calling cards are preloaded with a certain amount of talk time which is used up as you make calls, which means that you only pay for the amount of talk time that you have used.

Unfortunately, even prepaid calling cards are not safe from scammers out there who are looking to exploit people who are using prepaid calling cards for their communication needs. In order to be able to prevent such prepaid calling card scams from happening to them, people must know what to look for in order to detect if a prepaid calling card scam is actually happening to him or not. This will help the user protect himself from potential problems that may be caused by such scams on prepaid calling cards.

Prepaid calling cards come in different forms and manner, depending on what the scammers are looking for, or what they are hoping to get. One form of prepaid calling card scams involves a scammer calling you at your home wherein he will attempt to get the information that he needs from you, such as your 3-digit PIN number on the back of the card which such people may use to charge for purchases at your expense. They will usually make it appear that they are representing a legitimate company, such as the Security and Fraud Department at VISA, in order to get you to divulge information that you normally would not share with just any other person. Once they are able to get you to give them your 3-digit PIN, then the scam is completed. Instead of giving them your PIN, tell them that you will verify it with the company directly in order to avoid this from happening to you.

Other scams involve unadvertised or non-obvious charges and fees that unsuspecting buyers will not be able to identify, especially since these things are not mentioned in the card or by the company, and that they only find this out once it is too late. In order to avoid this, make sure that you know and understand all the terms and conditions of the cards that you are using. Although it may advertise a certain price for a certain amount of talk time, such a deal may only apply under specific circumstances, and additional fees may be charged if you don’t follow it. In this way, you may actually get much less for what you are paying for.

Being armed with the knowledge about how different prepaid calling card scams work can help you detect them before they happen, and help you avoid them. Although there are other new forms of prepaid calling card scams developing out there, being vigilant and aware can sometimes go a long way in terms of protecting yourself from such scams.

Vanessa A. Doctor

Prepaid Calling Card http://flatrateonline.net

Patrick Stanley

Know it all asked:


I completed the game and recived the trophy grave robber for collecting 13 of 13 death cards. However I can not find how to activate them for CO-OP play. Any Ideas on where to activate them?

Cynthia Schultz