[discobay]

Yeah Max I suppose things will change and I too have been with one2free for years. I SO detest having to sign a 12-month contract and after all these years they wanted me to do just that. Sunday on the other hand and in a refreshing way don't insist on a contract. Their $300 rebate for joining them from another network is a nice bonus too.
I hope their network and voicemail system are up to it.

[Levi]

db: Have an address. Thus have a bank account. But, no HKID. Which I need to get a HK credit card. Seems NW won't accept foreign credit cards to register for a IDD number.

Since my employment contract is less than 6 months duration (I'll renew in Jan) I can't get a HK ID right now. After Jan, I'll be ok to get one.

So, just looking for solutions that don't require me to wait so long. So far, the only plan I've come up with is to use prepaid SIMs, which are both inconvenient and I think more expensive.

Ahh, I just realized a hidden query here: anyone know how I can get a HK credit card without a HKID? That would be great... even my own bank (Hang Seng) won't give me one without the ID.

[JaredHK]

Used Sunday for years until last year when their service got bad. Switched to 3 and the reception in TST and parts of Kowloon was worse then Sunday. Also very oddly I kept gettind 15+ recorded sales calls and this was a number I had since '96 with no problems. I switched back to Sunday recently and the service is better and the sales calls have stopped. The coverage is perfect except for one dead zone which is California Fitness in TST.

[BenderBends]

Levi: For IDD calls - use Skype (www.skype.com) and call from your computer. If the people you talk to overseas have a computer with skype too it will be a free call. If you need to call a mobile or land based phone line...it will only be $0.02 per min. They are by far the best to go with for international calls. The only problem being you cant call when away from your computer.

But it does have a voicemail, a skype in (which is for them to call you)......

and best of all....whenever you talk to them.....it only costs them their normal airtime usage......

saves money all around.....

[BenderBends]

so is it correct to say that:

CSL 1010 is the best plan as far as voice quality and coverage.



So does this sound pretty good:

1400 mins
50 IDD mins
50 SMS
500 C (Credit)
Call Forwarding Bundle
Voice Mail
Caller Display
Call Waiting
Call Conference

Price= $178

[discobay]

The cost of the package measured against the number of voice minutes is HIGH. The call forwarding, voicemail blah blah bundle is free with most networks. The extras they are offering are the sms, idd and C. I believe that the sms package is only for inter-network messages. Sms's sent overseas incur additional charges. 500 C will only allow you to read and send emails and is not sufficient for surfing. The only real bonus is the 50 idd minutes.
Did you ask CSL about the options for a China number?

[claireabella]

Matt - I think that is exactly what I am going to go for. Cos is a bit higher - but I would say not much more money really in the greater scheme of things - it is all pretty cheap and it seems the most reliable service, and you can collect Asia Air miles!

[Levi]

Thanks for the info on skype, Matt. I'm already using it to talk to some of my friends. The voice quality is great, much better than using my phone.

My problem is... when I need to make a long distance call when I am not at home sitting in front of my computer. Plus, people like my parents aren't really into VoIP; still a bit old-fashioned, I'm afraid to say.

Right now, I'm paying about $1 HKD per minute to call Japan using my CSL prepaid SIM during offpeak hours. I pay around $1.30/min (I think) calling the US. I think Europe aside, Japan is probably one of the most expensive places to call. Ok, for me, at least. I don't see myself calling Africa anytime soon, and I know that costs a pretty penny.

But, calling Japan or the US during peak hours is pretty expensive.

I think after I do some shopping around, and from what I'm reading here, I'm going to try to change to 1010 or One2Free. Seems like the concensus is that 1010 or One2Free are the best choices. I've used Vodafone in Japan with great satisfaction, but I suppose people are generally not too satisfied with their service/reception here in HK. Seems to be the same with 3.

Good luck to the rest of you.

[Travie]

Originally Posted by mattstewart

Also, I will most likely, if not now then in a few months, get a China number to add, because i will be in and out of china frequently.So which one is the best company to go with?

to add a china number to a HK sim card, (known as 1 card 2 number service) you will need to go for Sunday or TSL (Telecom Digital). TSL do not have their own network but rent the lines from CSL. (they don't even have their website in English, but they are the largest paging service provider in HK) This service allows user to use one sim card and travel between china and hong kong with cheaper rates and you can be reached which ever number you were called on, saving the caller of the two places from IDD.
(pls note TSL do not provide GPRS service or roaming service)

[discobay]

Some time back (1 or 2 years ago) a friend of mine took out a China-based mobile number and sim card which came with a HK-based number to which you could forward you 'normal' (HK-based) number. Result being that when you went to China you would forward your number, switch sim cards then be contactable in China.