International SIM Cards For Use At Home And Abroad

Until recently, there were few alternatives for making international phone calls without incurring excess charges. However, in the world of mobile communications, progress is made quickly and the situation has now changed for the better. International SIM cards (also known as global phone cards) can be the perfect choice if you either make international calls frequently from your home country, or travel a good deal for business or pleasure.

With the new breed of international SIM cards, you can keep the same UK number for all your calls. This prevents others in the UK being put off by the thought that phoning a non-UK number might be expensive for them, and you don’t have to give different numbers to different people, depending on where you, and they, are in the world. Also, you don’t have to keep swapping one phone SIM card for another, and sometimes resetting your phone in order to make calls and texts.

There are, of course, certain things that you will want to check before committing yourself. In recent years, a number of companies offering international SIM cards have gone under, due mainly to the small profit margins they were able to generate and sustain. Before deciding on your international SIM card service provider, speak to a consultant or advisor, and to be on the safe side, choose one of the larger providers, or at least one that’s been around for a while. And do hang on to your old phone SIM card, as it may be useful if you have network problems with your new one; no network can promise 100% coverage in all countries, so it’s not a bad idea to have a backup phone SIM card just in case. National networks are still able to offer the best coverage and greatest clarity in their home country (though international ones are getting better all the time) and are usually the most cost effective way to call. Also, many international SIM cards do not have the facility yet to offer picture messaging so, if you send or receive a lot of pictures, you’ll want to use your existing phone SIM card for this.

If you’re used to using foreign phone SIM cards with networks in the country you’re travelling in, these work in the same way as a UK phone SIM card. However, with a global, or international, SIM card you will notice a difference. Rather than dialling and receiving calls directly from a number, international SIM cards operate on a sort of call-back basis; you dial the number, and the network contacts it directly, but then the call is disconnected. In a few seconds, though, your own phone will ring as if you were receiving a normal incoming call, and when you answer it, you will hear a ringing tone. As soon as the person you’re calling answers, you will be reconnected and can carry on your conversation as normal. It can take a little while to get used to the system if you’re new to it!

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