Posted on 5/5/2013
International travel is becoming more commonplace, with more college students studying abroad and miles easily converting into airline tickets. Yet when traveling overseas, it can be difficult to stay in touch with loved ones or work colleagues back in the states without paying an arm and a leg for an international data plan. Here are some of the best tech solutions for calling home cheaply.
1) Whatsapp: This app easily connects phones from different carriers so you can text or picture messgae Whatsapp users at no charge. Once you download it, it easily syncs with your Facebook friends list to find contacts with Whatsapp installed. It’s very popular and universally used. The only drawback is that it can’t be used for phone calls.
2) Skype: Perhaps the most well known video conferencing system, Skype lets you video chat for free with anyone with a Skype account. With the app, you can Skype from your smartphone. Because it’s so popular, you can be sure that most all your friends are already on it.
3) Google Voice. This phone system is my favorite. Google Voice can be accessed from the G-Chat bar on your Google account by clicking the phone icon. It won’t work unless you load a minimum of $10, but then you can call any number from your computer. Extremely inexpensive, I found that most calls were free or one cent per minute (I spent a whooping twelve cents for hours of phone calls during a month in Indonesia). Great for calling people who only have landlines or people traveling without smartphones. It’s all on the web, so no need to download. Just make sure you load money before you leave the country; it often won’t let you set it up abroad.
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4) Google Hangouts: Similar to Skype and GoogleVoice, Google Hangouts is a group video chatting system for anyone with a Google account. People in the Hangout can access and edit GoogleDocs together, invite others to join the Hangout, and even use silly special effects like crowns. Again, no need to download since it’s all on the web.
5) iMessage: This is a free messaging service for anyone texting over WiFi with an iOS device or Mac with iMessage. Great for easily texting anyone else with an iphone, since you can still use your phone’s texting function and it’s included on all iPhones. To turn off SMS (and only text through iMessage) go into ‘Settings’ and ‘Messages.’ Turn off all options except for iMessage. If you’re an iPhone family, this is probably the simplest option.
6) Viber: This app works for pretty much with all phone carriers, making it easy to communicate with people on different networks. Much like Whatsapp, Viber immediately tells you who from your contact list is on the app. You can make calls as well, although there is no picture message option.
7) Tango: Lastly, Tango is the communication app that does it all, and well: text, call, pictures, etc. The drawback is that it’s not as popular yet so it can be hard to find contacts. But if you and your family all agree to install it, this could be the app for you.
Just remember, to save money, turn off your data plan and use the above solutions only via WiFi, whether that’s in a hotel, coffee shop or airport.
What apps do you use while traveling? Run into issues with any of these? Let us know in the comments below.
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