Cheap Prepaid International Calling Cards for You, low rates for calling to any country. » Prepaid Calling Card Purchase phone cards online, PINs delivered via email.
The EastWest calling card offers the best international rates to many countries. The card has Toll Free Access in the US and Toll Free/Local Access in Canada, and can also be used from Europe. Enjoy low international rates and high quality connection with the EastWest prepaid calling card.
Please read the disclaimer about additional provisions. Rates and fees are subject to change without notice. Application of surcharges and fees has the effect of reducing total minutes on the card. Continue reading »
The Arbat calling card offers extremely low rates from Russia to many destinations, with local access in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and other major Russian cities. And it’s a Permanent PIN card with the handy Refill option. Add to this the fact that the Arbat prepaid calling card has no connection/maintenance fees and excellent connectivity, and you can see why it’s so popular!
· Connection Fee - No
· Maintenance Fee - No
· Rounding - 30 seconds
· Toll Free Access Numbers - No
· Local Access Numbers - Yes (Russia)
· Service Taxes & Surcharges - No
· Pay Phone Charge - N/A
· Validity period - Unlimited (*)
· Prompt Languages - English, Russian
(*) Card expires if no refill within 10 months
Rates listed are for using Moscow Access number.
Rates for calls from other cities in Russia and from Ukraine are higher (+7c/min).
See Domestic Rates in Russia Continue reading »
There are millions of international prepaid calling cards being sold and used everyday. You may be wondering how it all began.
Although international prepaid calling cards have become a powerhouse technological system generating billions of dollars, you might be surprised to know that it was first developed three decades ago. The history of prepaid calling cards is as interesting and amusing as other modern invention stories that you may have heard before. The cards were originally made in Europe then reached America after a decade. Today, almost every nation in the world has a variety of international prepaid calling cards available.
The 70’s
In 1975 SIDA, a producer and distributor of vending machines in Italy began experimenting with the idea of making calling cards. The idea was to replace coins being used for payphones since medal coins were in shortage and theft and vandalism was rampant. The first batch of made prepaid calling cards were released into the market in 1976.
These were very slim cards from cardboards and got stuck on more than one occasion. They operated via a magnetic strip at the back of the card that can be scanned by new special phones upon insertion of the card. The idea of paying per minute was already incorporated in this pioneer batch.
In 1977, the popularity of the new prepaid calling cards rose after one year and nearby countries in Europe like Sweden, France, the United Kingdom and Austria also started using the system and manufacturing cards. The magnetic strip validation was the key trait of the cards. A year later, Nelson G. Bardini from Brazil used inductive technology to improve international prepaid calling cards. There are sequences of coils that identified how much is used up in the card.
The 80’s
The new cards using inductive technology was presented at the national inventors’ exhibition in 1982. Japan also began manufacturing prepaid calling cards which sold several thousands daily. The Nippon Telephone and Telegraph company was the first in Japan to adapt to the new system. In 1984, France developed the technology by using chip-based “smart cards”.
Three years later, World Telecom Group, Siemens and General Electric manufactured magstripe cards which contained information. This is the same technology used by credit cards today. In 1988, the first catalogue of telecards was released in England by Dr. Steve His*censored*s. In 1989, AT&T invested in the system as well producing several thousands of cards daily.
The 90’s
In 1990, the non-magstripe calling card was made by Regional Bell Operating Company in New York which involved dialing a toll-free access number. The caller would then input the Personal Identification Number or PIN. This new system started the rise of international prepaid calling cards since it was very versatile and allowed access to any phone in the world. By 1995, over six hundred million dollars in sales were made from international prepaid calling cards.
The 2000’s
Sales continued to soar well into the 21st century counting in the billions. The system replaced most collect call systems and coin payphones and continued to develop with other gadgets as well like cellular phones and the internet. With its continuous success, international prepaid calling cards are definitely here to stay.
Prepaid calling cards have been one of the latest technological innovations in our telecommunications this generation. The use of prepaid calling cards has given us a new way of constantly communicating with other people, whether they are our friends or loved ones, and makes it more convenient and efficient as supposed to using the basic long distance carriers.
It is important to remember, however, that not all prepaid phone cards offer the same advantages as other prepaid calling card phone companies would in their prepaid phone cards. There are a lot of different prepaid phone cards out there, each one with its own advantages, perks and features. In order for you to get the most bang of your buck, you need to make sure that the prepaid phone card that you are buying (or using) is the right one for you, and if it offers you the best rate that you can get from your money.
Before choosing what prepaid phone card you are going to use for your calls, you must first decide from which provider/s you are willing to buy these prepaid phone cards from. It is important that you choose those providers that are reliable. There may be a lot of cheap prepaid phone cards out there, but if you find that they are from companies which have a questionable character, then you should probably think twice about purchasing prepaid phone cards from them, especially since you cannot guarantee the quality of the product that you are buying.
Once you have chosen from which prepaid phone card providers you are going to purchase your phone card from, you must now research about the prepaid phone card that you have set your eyes on. Make sure that the features of the card are exactly what you need, if not more. It is always a good idea to know a little something about the item that you intend on purchasing before you actually purchase it.
This is the time when you need to inquire about the rates of the prepaid phone card that you are going to purchase. Keep in mind that calls directed internationally may be billed at a much higher rate as compared to calls made locally. Also, you need to make sure that the prepaid phone card that you have purchased does not have any hidden charges and fees that will eat most of the credits in your card, making spend more than what you actually thought you would be spending on a cheap prepaid phone card. There are also some cards that round the number of minutes that you have used in calling, thereby making you pay for minutes that you haven’t even used. You end up spending more than necessary.
The call rates of prepaid cards can vary, depending on your location and the location of the person that you are calling. So make sure that you are aware of the different rates for the calls that you may make just so you wouldn’t be put in a position wherein you unexpectedly cut your calls because you have much less talk time than what you expected.
Eliza Maledevic Ayson
Prepaid calling cards are telecommunication credit cards that are being used by consumers to pay for cellular and telephone services. With the use of prepaid calling cards, it allows you to pay for local or long distance calls in advance.
There are masses of prepaid calling cards out in the market and online. So you need to find the right one for you. There are easy guide in choosing the right prepaid calling card, so read on.
It seems to be a daunting task of searching and selecting the right prepaid calling card in an over saturated market, since there are lots of options to choose from. Typing the keywords ‘prepaid calling card’ in Google will give you thousands of results. Some people simply search for the prepaid calling card that gives them the lowest rate. But these people seems not to realize that the prepaid calling card that their getting are actually the most pricey one.
There are easy steps for you to follow in order to gain the right prepaid calling card for your needs. These steps can make you save money and get the best deal that you need.
The fist step is identifying your needs. Identifying what your needs are can help you in selecting the right prepaid calling card for you since there are heaps of cards out there, you can easily compare if you have identified your needs.
When you are identifying your needs, there are certain questions to be asked such as: Where are you calling? How long your calls will be? Are you going to make long distance calls, if yes how frequent? Do you need the prepaid calling card when traveling or you simply going to use it in the US? Are you going to use the prepaid calling for personal or business use? Do you need a prepaid calling card that can be recharged? Do you need high quality in terms of connection or you are looking for the cheapest in making calls?
The next step, understand your options. As soon as you identified your needs, you need to understand your options. You have to obtain the details about the prepaid calling cards before you buy it. There are companies out there which are tricky and add hidden fees. So you need to check out all the details first.
Lots of companies have hidden fees such as connection fees, termination fees, maintenance fees, disconnection fees and lot more. Prepaid calling cards are being displayed with low rates but they have those hidden fees that will surprise you midway of using it. It is best to understand all of these hidden charges before you buy any prepaid calling card.
The final step is making selection. If you are searching online, you will definitely find wide variety of prepaid calling cards. In selecting the right prepaid calling card for you, you should allocate few of your time and give some thoughts to make sure that you will be getting the right product for your needs. The great way to find the right prepaid calling card is from company that can give testimony and proof of its service.
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