Hi automator,
You're right, the MCI fee is just not worth it. Looking at the MCI
page, if you're using their "200 minutes for $9.95" plan, you pay
$9.95 whether you use no minutes or all of your minutes!
Have you considered OPEX long distance?
Residential rates for OPEX are 4.5 cents a minute in the U.S., and 10
cents a minute from the US to Canada - any time, any day. They also
offer very good in-state rates (you'd have to check for your specific
area code and first three digits of your telephone number). You only
pay for your actual calls.
OPEX does charge a $2 fee if your monthly long distance bill is under
$20, but you can get around this *and* get an 8% discount by using
their pre-pay feature. Residential accounts also include a calling
card, for use away from home - calls are billed to your home account.
OPEX Long Distance Services
http://www.opex-ld.com/
If you're not interested in a new residential service, there are also
a number of "dial around" services you could try - some have a monthly
fee, but great per-minute rates both nationally and into Canada,
others have no monthly fee, but no international access either.
There is a large listing of these services here:
BestCheapLongDistance
http://www.bestcheaplongdistance.com/
I hope this is the information you're after. If you need further
assistance, please don't hesitate to ask!
missy-ga <--lives on her phone |
Request for Answer Clarification by
automator-ga
on
25 Jun 2002 13:34 PDT
Missy, thanks for the quick reply. But I hear that there are phone
cards for just a couple cents per minute, and they vary widely
depending on usage pattern. I think I'm looking for a phone card, not
another long-distance plan.
Can you tell me why going with a different long-distance plan is
better than picking up a cheap long-distance phone card? My original
question was about phone cards, not another long-distance plan, but
I'm open to a good argument in favor of simply getting a different
plan.
thanks.
|
Clarification of Answer by
missy-ga
on
25 Jun 2002 16:15 PDT
Hello again!
My best argument in favor of a new residential service is one of
convenience: with a new residential service, you need only dial 1,
plus the area code and telephone number of the person you're calling.
No fuss, no bother, nothing extra to remember and no cards to lose.
With a calling card, you have to dial your 1-800 access number, then a
PIN (I tote around a pre-paid card for emergencies myself, and my PIN
is 10 digits!), then 1, then the area code and phone number of the
person you're calling. And if you lose your calling card? Misplace
it? Or - heaven forfend! - your wallet is stolen? You've already
paid for that, and now it's gone. Additionally, many "cheap phone
cards" charge a connection fee of anywhere from 25 cents to $1 or more
for every call you make, rather negating the benefit of a low
per-minute rate.
Yuck. Admittedly, I am quite lazy when it comes to the telephone -
I'm on it for the better part of the day, and the idea of dialing more
than 1 plus the number makes my fingers itch.
Let's have a look at some phone cards, though, since I completely
misread your intent:
PinCity boasts a rate of 2.9 cents anywhere in the US, with no
connection fees and no monthly surcharges. Ordering and account
recharging is available only online:
PinCity
https://www.pincity.com/default.asp
They have a price comparison chart, based on ten 30-minute calls here:
PINCITY.COM PRICE COMPARISON
https://www.pincity.com/products.asp
CardshopOnline offers a "Best Rate Finder" - simply plug in your
country to and country from information to find up to the minute best
pre-paid rates available:
CardShopOnline
http://www.cardshoponline.net/
(CardShop is careful to note: "Different cards have different
connection fees for the first minute, so the card best for long
conversation may be not so good for short, and vice versa.")
There is also a rate comparison selector at LowestPrepaid.com. The
front page shows a variety of available cards, including a domestic
card with a per minute rate of 5 cents and no connect fee, as well as
a domestic card with a per-minute rate of 3.5 cents and a 25 cent
connect fee.
LowestPrepaid.com
http://www.lowestprepaid.com/index.html
Nobelcom.com has a list of phone cards available for US calling, some
as low as 1 cent a minute, with connection charges ranging from free
to a whopping 99 cents per call:
Nobelcom.com - US - US cards
http://www.nobelcom.com/cgi-bin/newActive/nobelcom.cgi?pagename=CP_from-united_states-to-united_states&AFFN=690002
The same company offers US - Canada cards:
http://www.nobelcom.com/cgi-bin/newActive/nobelcom.cgi?pagename=CP_from-united_states-to-canada&AFFN=690002
I hope these are a good starting point for you! There are literally
thousands of pre-paid cards available, these are just a sampling.
Please let me know if there's anything else I can help you with.
missy-ga
|
Clarification of Answer by
missy-ga
on
26 Jun 2002 22:35 PDT
Hi automator!
I'm glad I found what you needed! I don't know *where* my brain was
the first time around! (P'raps in my suitcase, on vacation without
me?)
Happy calling!
missy
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