Hi,

I currently live in France and my telephone / internet / tv deal offers me free calls to the UK and many other countries. Does this exist in Switzerland? I have seen the deals with Swisscom but I can not find anywhere that calls to the UK / France are free?

Also the package seems really expensive (CHF111) per month, although I understand it may just be because things are more expensive in Switzerland.

What I need is telephone where I can call anywhere / internet which I can use anytime / tv- just basic, we dont really watch much.

Any ideas or suggestions would be great, the same with mobile phone operators. I looked at Orange, but I heard their coverage is not so good. Leaving the alternative as the expensive Swisscom.

Let me know

Thanks

Alex

get a skype subscription

If VOIP is an option, then there are much better solutions than skype.

Don't tell us what they are or anything!

I'm not aware of any "international calls included" packages here. Swisscom does have a deal where you pay a monthly fee (around CHF 10.00, I think), then all international calls are half the usual rate. This always works out in my favour and I am a fairly light user of the phone.

The CHF 111.00 package to which you refer is Swisscom's "Casa Trio" premium package, combining phone line, highest speed internet (20MBits/s) and the full set of TV channels in multiple languages, along with a set top box with a hard disk recorder. If you don't want or need all that, pick and choose your components and it may cost less (although îf you want English language TV and don't want or have a satellite dish, or to get involved with Slingbox, then you'll need cable or Swisscom TV). More info on Swisscom's various packages here.

You might like to check cable suppliers' offerings, too. The supplier depends on where you plan to live.

Skype is definitely the way to go. You can also now buy standalone Skype phones (no computer needed, they plug directly into the router), which allow you to use the Skype service as if it were a regular phone. This is what I do and it's great.

The really neat part is not just the cheap calling to other countries, but the fact that you can purchase a "SkypeIn" number in several different countries which people in that country then call as a local number, but will then ring the phone in your home.

http://shop.skype.com/phones/

Ok, well I will have a look at Skype then. Otherwise it seems the best way to do it would be to do things seperate, like just get a phone line, normal tv and then some kind of interent link.

find a cheap SIP (voip) service

I use sipgate (costs me 10ukpm) and they gave me a choice of which locale i would like the number to be in ...

basically as far as my family are concerned I have a local phone number - so calls are at local (free) rate both directions

for the phone we use a Siemens gigaset IP phone ... works with both PSTN (local swiss net) and UK , switches depending on how long you hold the call button.


skype works too , but was not an option for me when I put this in place.

Give Switzernet a try at CHF9 a monthly with calls to the UK landlines for free, untimed ( as well as to other destinations incl. US/ Canada, Singapore etc. ). Their website has a tariff comparison table. If you ever need a referring number, ask me

Skype is not the way to go if you care about your money.

There is a VOIP standard called SIP, supported by everyone but Skype.

Good SIP phones are made by Siemens (the C470IP for example), among others.

Take a look at this table: http://backsla.sh/betamax
(Yes, you can call UK cells from 3.6 eurocents / minute).

If you need an incoming uk number, you can get it from localphone for 1 euro / month, others might even be cheaper.

If you're interested in mobile VOIP (VOIP over 3G), there are nokias with integrated VOIP client (the E52 for example).

Have you thought about VOIP? I use a UK company which I get 1000minutes for a fiver. Also means we have a UK number for friends and family to call us. http://www.voiptalk.co.uk/

I use http://www.helvatel.ch/rates.php for cheap calls anywhere... 2Rp/min for the UK.

I have switched over to Vonage, www.vonage.co.uk gives me a UK phone number.

Skype may be the cheapest option but as a new arrival to Switzerland, I just discovered that the Orange mobile plan here lets you call anywhere in the EU and US with your allotted minutes. Pretty good deal I think.

i posted about this in one of the other threads. We use www.10787.ch with a regular swisscom line. Its something like a calling card where you dial 10787 before calling and most locations around the world are just a couple pennies. The great part about it is that I can also use it from my mobile (slightly more expensive than calling from a landline but still a great price). The quality is just as good because its a regular line. Their service is also great.

Go for Switzernet. It's the best in the market I would say. You just need to buy a voip device (49 Sfr), and then 9 CHF per month fee for a number you'd like. Free calls to almost all Europe. I looked at www.comparis.ch before subscribing with Switzernet, and I find it the best in terms of cost, service and telephone number.

Whilst Skype might not be the cheapest option for pure telephony, I find it the most convenient by a long chalk when one wants to start getting smarter.

So, for example, when working at the ol' pc (MS and Apple) , I have Skype up and running and can make and receive calls, videocalls, landline calls (incl conference calls) via Skype.

Also have a Skype/landline cordless that is simultaneously logged on to the same Skype ID, so will also ring when called, and can make and receive Skype and landline voice calls with.

Shut the pc down, and still reachable via cordless... no dicking around with redirections, etc. Start the pc again, automatically logged in to Skype again, still no redirection required.

Sometimes, "cheapest" ≠ ""best"

This is what I have and I find it the most cost effective. We have cablecom for TV programmes, cost CHF 15.-- monthly and internet for CHF45.-- broadband. No fixed telephone line. We have purchased a prepaid landline nbr from www.guest-voip.ch. You need to get a sip voip phone (Siemens has it) and configure it. We use the number to receive calls. To make outgoing calls, we have www.justvoip.com. It gives you free calls to several EU countries/UK/US/Asia/Australia/New Zealand etc with just a credit of EUR 10.00 on that account. Big Savings!!! Check it out.....

Good morning all.Some nice company throw ins going on here!Take it easy lads,dont take it at all so serious because cheapest of all is that what comes for nothing."skype or not".

I still think if your primary call destination to call is the UK, then I would use a UK VOIP service. The advantage is that you can have a local UK number that your friends and relatives can also use to call you. Also if you have SKY then you have a UK number which can be the same area code as the address you are registered to......

I use this one: http://www.voiptalk.org/products/VoIPtalk+1000