Cheap Calls to Italy: Using Mobile Phones

Cheap Calls to Italy: Using Mobile Phones was written by Caroline Telford from dialtosave.co.uk

Mobile phones tend to differ greatly when attempting to use many of the cheap international call options. For the uninitiated, it could take a great deal of trial and error to find the most efficient method of calling overseas mobiles, or using a mobile to call overseas (or both!). Unfortunately, this is not helped by the fact that there are no official 'rules of thumb' that can be universally applied to mobile phones, but rather they tend to vary from network to network.

Access Numbers Deciphered

Most infuriating at times is trying to use either prepaid cards with access numbers, or the postpaid variety. For starters, many access numbers provide the regular 08 number, or a landline alternative that would normally be 02 for England. As a very, very tentative rule of thumb, the landline (02) numbers are meant for usage by mobile phones.

Why is this? Well two reasons really. The first is that generally speaking, 08 numbers may cost more to call via mobile phones than landline numbers. The second is that many mobile networks offer contracts that give their customers a fixed duration of free calls to landlines only for any given month (although some give fixed durations of free calls to any network at all). Still, this is one of the main reasons that landline access numbers are provided, to cater for mobile phone users.

Honestly speaking however, instead of spending valuable time and money through trial and error, a quick phone call to an individual's mobile network helpline could probably answer all these questions and more. Not only would the mobile network be able to clarify what is free and what isn't, but they may even be able to enlighten further on what the best option to pursue may be for cheap international phone calls.

Take Care with Call Charges!

When making cheap calls to Italy mobiles, it is crucial to remember that call charges do tend to vary for mobiles. Most cheap international call options are slightly more expensive for mobiles, and as such it is important to look at not only the standard rate that any provider is offering for calls to that country, but also that mobile rate.

All said and done, there are still many cheap options available to call mobiles in Italy, just not for as low a price as it would be to landlines. A good way to save money is to try calling a persons landline before resorting to trying the mobile. For those who plan to call both Italian mobiles and landlines often, it may even be prudent to have a cheap international calls option for both.

In short, generally speaking mobiles do end up as a more expensive option, especially for regular calls of long durations. Of course, at the same time, being able to make cheap calls to Italy while on the move might be something that is required, and there really is no harm to it provided that a good option for doing so is selected.