skype

nsees

So in lieu of buying a calling call for our trip or trying to see about activating international calling on our cells, would skype be a good option?  I see that it isn't a free service but would it be reasonable to set up for only being gone 3 days or not worth it?

(I have to double check that DHs laptop has a webcam like mine does)

sophabelle

i use skype and it's free.... but i don't know if there is a charge to use it internationally or not.....though i use it video to video calling not to an actual phone. 

 

mrs.a.butler

It is 100% free!!  I use it every day DH is at work.  

The only thing that isn't free on it is if you make a call on it to an actual phone.  But as long as you are calling Skype to Skype, it's free!

And you can absolutely do it internationally.  My ex's Mom used to talk to her son, who was in Kuwait, all the time on it.  And my good friend used to talk to her husband all the time when he was deployed in Iraq.  (Lots of military use it)

 

nsees

sophabelle:

i use skype and it's free.... but i don't know if there is a charge to use it internationally or not.....though i use it video to video calling not to an actual phone. 

 

oh ok.  I must have read their site wrong.  I saw pricing info for a subscription.

Temp76535187505890

What Internet service will you be using?

nsees

ArmyQM:

What Internet service will you be using?

Do you mean what type of Internet will the hotel have?  Because I'm not sure on that.

Ris1127

You have to pay to do conference calls and have more than one computer on a call. Other than that it's free. I just set up an account to talk to my niece.

Temp76535187505890

nsees:

ArmyQM:

What Internet service will you be using?

Do you mean what type of Internet will the hotel have?  Because I'm not sure on that.

Yes.  You'll need a good enough connection to use Skype.  It uses a lot of bandwidth. 

nsees

OK I'm set up and DHs laptop has webcam so this might just work!

blissfully_caffeinated

I've used Skype internationally. Here's the deal:

If you call from your computer to another computer it's free (same with other people calling your computer from their computer). Even internationally. If you call from your computer to a phone, they charge you. It's still cheap though. If you want a phone number so people from a phone can call your computer, they charge you.

Here's the kicker - you have to have a decent internet connection to use it. I've traveled quite a bit and it's really hit or miss. A lot of motels don't have good enough internet for it to really work with the video. If that's the case, you can usually get away with just doing sound but not video. The connection doesn't have to be anywhere near as good for that. There have only been a few instances where I couldn't use Skype at all. There have been quite a few times where I couldn't use the video though.

It's pretty good but I'd still look into international calling on your phone. I recently switched companies but before I did (when I had AT&T) I could add international calling to my phone for a month at a time at $5/month. I could cancel it immediately afterward and they would prorate the month. I didn't have to do anything to my phone to use it internationally but that was because of the specific phone I had. You still get charged some in addition to the monthly fee for calls when you're international but it isn't much. It was usually cheaper just to do that but sometimes it wasn't. It just depended on the country.

Sometimes I'd do Skype. You should be able to call your phone company and ask to speak with the international department. Don't even bother talking to the general rep's because they don't know enough about the services. Remember to ask about the county you're going to specifically because it can vary.

ETA: Skype is definitely less of a PITA to set up than doing your phone internationally. Even if you don't end up using it for this trip it's nice to have an account.