Options for calling Ukraine

[Lyuda_and_Kip 1]

Currently the communications between myself and my fiancée are via email, Skype and at times phone using calling cards. Once her visa is approved and she moves here, she will want to continue to communicate with her family regularly as she does today. Her parents are older and not technically savvy so the communication with her parents will mostly be by phone. Are calling cards the best option for this?

I looked at Vonage and see that Ukraine is not one of their 'unlimited' countries. Are there ways to call Ukraine other than calling cards?

Edited August 12, 2013 by Da_and_Kip

[Scot_Roselyn 7]

Look into using something like WeChat or Viber. It is used all over the world and if you are using a internet connection (wi-fi) you can make free calls. This is what I do with Rose and she lives in Maldives (Philippine citizen).

Scot

[scott/laura 0]

When I need to call Ukraine I get a very good connection to cell and land lines using googlevoice and it is fairly cheap.

One alternative that I have not tried but believe it would work would be magic jack. They would need to at least plug in the phone, crank up the computer, join the internet and open the program. With MJ they would be able to call you anytime they wished for free. The program is a basic phone interface. click on the numbers and enter.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Currently the communications between myself and my fiancée are via email, Skype and at times phone using calling cards. Once her visa is approved and she moves here, she will want to continue to communicate with her family regularly as she does today. Her parents are older and not technically savvy so the communication with her parents will mostly be by phone. Are calling cards the best option for this?

I looked at Vonage and see that Ukraine is not one of their 'unlimited' countries. Are there ways to call Ukraine other than calling cards?

So far Ukraine has not been included in any of our unlimited international options either. Check around with some of the pre-paid phone services and see what they offer.

We have been using the "Continental" callinc card since Alla and I met to communicate. We still use the same card for calling friends and relatives in Ukraine. Alla spends about $20 per month but this varies of course. Google "PennyBoss"

TBH at $20 per month to cover our needs I am pretty satisfied and have not spent a great deal of time looking for options. I just recently cheked some of the prepaid services and their unlimited plans IF Ukraine was available, would be $50-65/month. But everyone is different

[Lyuda_and_Kip 1]

Thanks for the info everyone! I will check these options out and see what works best for us.

[TBoneTX 45,304]

*** Thread moved from General Immigration Discussion to the Russia/Ukraine/Belarus regional subforum. ***

[vbtwo 54]

I use Google Voice, seems to be one of the cheapest options without any hidden fees that calling cards usually have (connection fee, weekly fee, some other bs fee). If you have an Android phone, you can set it up to use Google Voice for international calls just using the regular phone app and calling the number regularly. There's also this thing called OBi100 (pretty cheap on Amazon) that connects to your Google Voice account using your Internet connection and then you just plug in any regular home phone into it and you can use it as a home phone (free incoming/outgoing to US and Canada, and Google Voice rates for calling anything else). No need to pay for a home phone (be warned, no 911 access when using it)!

Otherwise the cheapest route to go is using something like Skype or any other Internet calling app and then it's free and usually has better voice quality then calling phones.

[baron555 934]

We use a ClonCom phone card.

[jft 12]

I use Skype to call my fiancée in Russia on her mobile phone via Skype's for-pay Skype to phone mode. Works very well and the price per minute is not bad. If you're looking for a pure phone solution RSL India Call (which despite the name lets you call anywhere) is affordable and easy to use.

[Noel194 53]

Virgin Mobile pre-paid is .15$ per minute my wife has the cell for here and calls her mother evryday and spens about $30 a month.

[Bill and Tanya 18]

Skype seems to have the best sound to obscure locations and mobile phones, however is not as cheap as you may think if used quite regularly. I have been using Rebtel for voice calls and SMS for about 9 months, and their service is about half of what Skype costs. I still keep a little credit on my skype account in case the Rebtel call is not clear. The one thing you do not get with Rebtel that many have complained about is SMS history. However, when used from the iPhone app, the rebtel SMS is sent, and appears to the recipient as came directly from your mobile number, so replied SMS will come directly to your phone. They give you an option to send a toll free SMS, but is basically a web address that will open in their mobile web browser.

[Lyuda_and_Kip 1]

I use Google Voice, seems to be one of the cheapest options without any hidden fees that calling cards usually have (connection fee, weekly fee, some other bs fee). If you have an Android phone, you can set it up to use Google Voice for international calls just using the regular phone app and calling the number regularly. There's also this thing called OBi100 (pretty cheap on Amazon) that connects to your Google Voice account using your Internet connection and then you just plug in any regular home phone into it and you can use it as a home phone (free incoming/outgoing to US and Canada, and Google Voice rates for calling anything else). No need to pay for a home phone (be warned, no 911 access when using it)!

Otherwise the cheapest route to go is using something like Skype or any other Internet calling app and then it's free and usually has better voice quality then calling phones.

Thanks for the info vbtwo! I looked into the OBi100. And though I am not 100% sure yet, the info from OBi seems to indicate that if you have an OBi box hooked to the internet at home here and one hooked to the internet somewhere else in the world, that you can directly call between those two boxes using the identification number on the bottom of the box and the call will be completely free! There is no monthly or yearly fee associated with it. Just purchase two boxes ($40 - $50 each) and you can potentially communicate with someone across the globe without any additional expense! I'll provide another update as I get more info.

[vbtwo 54]

Thanks for the info vbtwo! I looked into the OBi100. And though I am not 100% sure yet, the info from OBi seems to indicate that if you have an OBi box hooked to the internet at home here and one hooked to the internet somewhere else in the world, that you can directly call between those two boxes using the identification number on the bottom of the box and the call will be completely free! There is no monthly or yearly fee associated with it. Just purchase two boxes ($40 - $50 each) and you can potentially communicate with someone across the globe without any additional expense! I'll provide another update as I get more info.

Ah yes, they have their own VoIP service that's free between them similar to the way Skype works for voice calls except that you can use their device and a regular phone.

Also, you can make a Google Voice account for them and then send them the box configured to that Google Voice account and then they'll be able to call you (or any other US number) for free and you can call them from any US number as a local call. You just have to create a Google Voice account in the US by specifying some other valid US phone number, but you can then turn off all forwarding and just use the VoIP aspect of it anywhere in the world for free.

[Katiedog 6]

My wife has a WDT card for phone calls. There are not any hidden bs with this company and the rates are not bad. The operators at customer service also speak Russian and Ukrainian. You can find them on most search engines. They are based in the Chicago area. She also uses SKYPE a lot with her Iphone5. We will be riding down the road and she will be talking to someone in Ukraine on her phone, looking at their picture. Pretty bizarre for an old school guy like me. Also want to recommend a company called MEEST. They are based in New Jersey. They ship heavy and large packaged to Ukraine at very good rates. Not airmail, takes about four weeks, but really great for sending "care" packages to family and friends. They also deliver the packages to the door of the recipient.