Dear readers,
Departure for Thailand next Friday. After going through all the steps as indicated on the website of the Thai embassy, everything is now finally arranged and I am ready to leave. Now it is the case that I continue to perform work for my organization and a large part of that is by telephone, on fixed numbers in the Netherlands. Now I have done all sorts of research, but the best option is still not clear to me.
I call about 60-70 hours a month on a fixed number in the Netherlands. What can I do best? Are there Thai SIM cards with which I can make unlimited calls to the Netherlands for x thousand baht? I found some things that you can buy bundles via Skype, but the quality appears to be far below par. Are there any apps or other online solutions that people have experience with? So no whatsapp etc, because then the other user must have that too. Just an app/tool/piece of software that allows me to make unlimited calls to fixed numbers in the Netherlands from Thailand. This should cost 100-150 euros per month.
Anyone have experience with the above? Bandwidth/speed internet is not an issue. Since the internet in Thailand, fixed / glass / cable is much faster than in the Netherlands. I have an apartment in Bangkok where I get 300/400 mb wireless.
Thanks in advance!
Regards,
Sander
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Dear Sander,
I have been using Skype for years to call landlines in the Netherlands. Costs 0,02 Euro per minute. Calling via Skype for 70 hours will cost you around 84 Euro. I am still satisfied with Skype call quality, but I really don't get 70 hours a month.
I also use WhatsApp or Signal to call the Netherlands. Do you think it is special that you report that others must also use WhatsApp / Signal, but that also applies to Skype?
Have no idea if there are SIM cards/subscriptions that allow you to make unlimited calls.
Looking on the internet, for example, I came across this site: https://www.mytello.com/en_TH/rates?q=Netherlands
Whether information is still up-to-date? No idea.
Maybe someone else can give you more info.
No, that does not apply to SKYPE. You can indeed call for free with SKYPE if the other person also has Skype, but you can also call any fixed or mobile number in the Netherlands (and other countries) with Skype. That costs almost nothing and the quality is good.
There are also other providers of internet telephone, but as far as I am concerned they have no advantages over SKYPE.
Hi Tony,
because the questioner asked about calling landline numbers I did not mention free calls to another Skype user. Of course I use Skype (and WhatsApp, Signal and FacetIme) to speak to people all over the world for free. Have an acquaintance who lives in Auckland and we use Skype to video call at no additional cost. If I have to call a landline, I also use Skype, still to my complete satisfaction and at low costs
VoipBuster 0,02 € cents per minute ... even cheaper than calling locally in the Netherlands and the quality is excellent, depending on internet speed. Create an account and buy credit with a credit card.
I always call Belgium via Skype and I am very satisfied with it, the connection quality is certainly as good as via my mobile provider, so I can only recommend Skype because I have been using it for years and I have not used any other way for years.
If you only call from a fixed location from home and therefore not on the road, you can use a fixed VoIP device, which you can buy at Lazada for €4, and request a VoIP number from a provider in the Netherlands. I myself just have a 085 number with CheapConnect and that costs almost nothing.
I've been doing with a prepaid amount of 25 euros for a long time, I can't finish it in a year.
I can call directly with all numbers in the Netherlands (including 008 and 009 numbers) and receive calls and the whole rate plan will cost you a few cents per call and the quality is sublime. (including voicemail)
You can also install an app on your mobile so that it works like a landline VoIP phone, such an app will cost you about 45 euros once.
Furthermore, it works like a landline phone, but you have to be within range of the internet and what the costs are will differ per internet provider here in Thailand.
It gives me a pleasant feeling that people in the Netherlands can call me on a simple number without country codes etc. at the normal Dutch rate.
I think calling via VoIP is the cheapest solution.
You then indeed start by buying a VoIP phone.
I myself have had good experiences with a Gigaset IP phone. You connect this to your internet router at your workplace. See https://www.gigaset.com/de_de/cms/ip-telefone.html (in German).
You can use six different VoIP accounts here. In addition, you can use your own Gigaset network for excellent call quality with other Gigaset users, whom you can call completely free of charge (TIP: place such a telephone with someone you often call, eg your parents).
Such a Gigaset has an analog connection as an extra, eg for a fixed Thai line.
For account 1, the following suggestion:
Indeed, you can get a cheap NL number at CheapConnect. That will cost you € 8,95 per year (keep an eye on the extension yourself, that is not automatic!). You can port any existing NL number to CheapConnect for a one-off fee of € 5.–.
This way you can be reached on a NL number, anywhere in the world. See https://account.cheapconnect.net/referral.php?ref=25716
However, calling out via CheapConnect is not the cheapest solution.
There is a wide choice of VoIP providers for calling out. My choice for account 2 would be Freevoipdeal. See: https://www.freevoipdeal.com/dashboard
If you take out a call credit of € 10 there, you can call fixed numbers in the Netherlands for free for four months. You can simply use the call credit to call mobile numbers (which cost 1,8 cents per minute) or fixed numbers if you no longer comply with the fair use policy given your calling behaviour.
You can enter the login details for your Freevoitdeal account in the Mobile VoIP app for your mobile phone. With your own good internet connection you can then use your mobile phone to make calls via that app. In principle, the call quality only depends on your own internet connection (mobile or WiFi).
Then you have four accounts left. If you often call other destinations, look for the cheapest provider for that.
You can arrange everything before you leave (and practice with it for a while) so that it suffices to take your Gigaset with you and plug it into a router. Which can be anywhere in the world, including in Thailand.
Also take a closer look at the possibilities of SIP trunking and hosted PBX. Read for example https://www.channelfutures.com/cpgallery/the-cp-list-20-top-sip-trunking-providers-you-should-know en https://www.onsip.com/.
I do something similar.
Family in the Netherlands has taken an extra VoIP number from their provider.
That is Thailand put in the router on a free telephone port.
And now from a fixed line from Thailand for 2,50 euros per month unlimited calls to Dutch numbers.
Cheapconnect is cheaper I see, thanks for this tip.
I use NONOH.NET for business, make a lot of calls, excellent app on mobile, both to landline and mobile. Buy an AIS SIM card with fast internet and a fixed rate as low as possible if you do not make many local calls. Pay with iDeal or otherwise. Often completely free... see website. Been using it for 10 years, still the cheapest. You can also use free WIFI externally, for example in shopping centres. I have a permanent home address and have an IP telephone from Htek at home, great sound quality and speakerphone, very handy. Good luck and have fun calling. Greetings Sjaak.
Best is Skype, but if the other side has Line og FB or WhatsApp it's free too
Voip discount
Free calls to landlines.
At Voipdiscount, there are occasional promotions that you can call a fixed number for free, you can use the whole in the Voipbuster app.
Have a Dutch number at Xeloq
Phone works in the cloud (VoIP), even easier with an app on your mobile phone or tablet is a regular VoIP phone and you can call for very little
costs worldwide.
You must first have an amount to use the services and for a small amount per month you have your own telephone number.
The quality is just good.
You also never run a high risk because when the credit is used up, the service stops.
You can easily top up with ideal or paypal for a small additional charge.
I myself have been using the number for years in Thailand to my satisfaction and since 2 years also for business with my company in the Netherlands.
http://www.xeloq.com
Dear Sander,
I myself take, from IAS, unlimited internet, with great speed because I am impatient.
That costs per 90 days Th Bth 2000,- or € 55,=
So it can be even cheaper.
Then you take 100 Bth calling credit and you can reach the whole world!
So your company can simply “expand” for such a small amount!
Good luck with your business!!
Welcome to Thailand
I regularly call fixed numbers in the Netherlands with VoIP Buster and that costs 2 cents per minute and every time you top up you get 4 months free to fixed numbers. The quality of the connection is very good
I forget to mention that I use the app for mobile and via my laptop.
I use CheapConnect.nl via the internet. This allows me to call landlines, but in the Netherlands I actually only do that with the GSM with unlimited bundle and therefore only use CheapConnect to receive calls. If you want to make a lot of calls, VoiP Planet may be cheaper. Just look at rates.
Download voipstunt.com, transfer costs 10 eu with card 12 eu, you can call landlines from TH to Nl for 6 months for free, pay something to your mobile, but that payment will be deducted from the 10 eu that you paid, and after the For six months, all telephones to the Netherlands will be deducted from the 10 eu, so it is actually completely free
I have ais mobile. When I call the Netherlands, but this also applies to other countries, you have a special low rate if you put 31 before the country code (so before the 004) or 005, I don't remember exactly. Then you pay a very reasonable rate, but I don't know exactly how much.
So for example the telephone number in the Netherlands is 020 (Amsterdam) 1232 456 90 then you choose 004 31 20 1232 456 90
To landlines it costs about 5 BHT per minute.
I would say go to Skype and take out a year's unlimited subscription, I thought 35 euros. That's for everywhere in the world. I use Skype in Thailand and it is also clearly audible. and had no problem
I don't call 60 hours, but you can request that
Do you take advantage of it
Gr
About 10 years ago I created an account with the then called Voip Buster and was lucky enough to get a telephone number linked to it, but people who only have an account can also call landlines worldwide for very little money.
Now the name has changed to Mobile Voip and I recently called my Thai girlfriend to try it out again and paid 0.020 cents per minute.
I don't know if this is still the same (but I hope so) and whether you can do this and save money and effort.
Never shot is always wrong so good luck
Jan,
Does this only cost 0.020 cents per minute?
So for 1 euro you can call for 83 hours, this is indeed a nice deal.
Just checked and it was now 0.025 per minute
Will certainly be 0.025 euros per minute and not 0.025 cents. So this is 100 times more expensive than in your original post above. A small difference 😉
When choosing a Voip provider, keep the following in mind:
– whether or not they charge a connection fee per call;
– VAT will be charged on your purchased call credit (this is the case if you create an account with an address in the EU). It may therefore be better to create the account with a Thai address (a difference of 21%);
– the rates are often higher if caller ID is off or displays a non-EU number;
– how many free days are given with a top-up (the amount does not matter, whether you top up with € 10 or € 50). Usually it is 90 days, sometimes 120, I have not encountered a year anywhere.
– there is often a choice of several payment methods, each entailing different costs;
– some providers specialize in certain countries and charge lower rates for calls there;
– via a PC you can also use your account to send a cheap SMS.
Here are two sites comparing the rates of providers from a major German call factory: https://www.voipkredi.com/page.php?page=betamax-dellmont en https://www.voip-comparison.com/betamax
At 25 sent per minute, Viopbuster is certainly not the cheapest for calling NL mobile numbers. Vopibuster has not changed its name, incidentally. Mobile Voip is the universal app that all Betamax providers now use (you'll notice that when you change providers).
Dear Prawo, this is very clearly about calling fixed numbers in the Netherlands.
Voipbuster is the app for mobile and Voipconnect is via your browser, your login is the same. Your calling credit and freebies are the same.
Calling Voipbuster to Voipbuster is always free.
I don't want to make a long story, so talk 360 is my favorite
I use that too, great and the people you call can see your number. So know who is calling.
Even when I'm in NL I use it via 4G, it's cheaper than with the provider.
Talk360 certainly doesn't have the lowest rates. And no holidays. Hotvoip does not have the latter either, but it does offer lower rates and good call quality.
See https://www.hotvoip.com/rates/calling-rates#/#letter-N (e.g. for the Netherlands €0,06 and for Thailand €0,03).
I have been using a subscription with Skype for many years.
Unlimited calls to fixed numbers in all European countries. Not for mobile.
Calls can go on for as long as you like, with a maximum of 600 minutes per call.
I pay 55.88 Pound Sterling for that annually, currently converted 64.30 Euros.
Excellent quality and can of course also be used if you are in or outside Europe.
Which private individual can you reach on a fixed number these days?
Hello, I use cheap calls on my smartphone Nonoh. Buy call credit for 10 euros, and call all countries fixed, mobile. You can see the price immediately.
It strikes me that almost all responses are about the cheapest possible solution, not about the best or most comfortable option.
There is a lot of talk about Skype, but then you cannot request a number for Thailand because it does not support Skype, so calling back from the Netherlands is a bit difficult.
Moreover… if you use Skype on your laptop or computer, that thing must be switched on otherwise you will be unreachable.
As I wrote, I chose a Voip solution, not because it is the cheapest, but the most comfortable for both myself and for those who want to call from the Netherlands because I have a normal Dutch number, and wherever in the world I am, I connect the phone to the internet and be reachable in excellent sound quality.
A quality that Skype and other online chat programs cannot offer because voip providers use a specially made area of the internet, a special “frequency” so to speak.
Initially I also used Skype (also to keep in touch with the company I still had in the Netherlands at the time), but sometimes you hear an unpleasant echo, chatter from others (very often with What's app) and regularly the connection was simply lost and it was it will not be possible to re-establish the connection for a while.
Then give me a normal telephone on my desk with number keys and a screen in which I can see who is calling or has tried to call me. Online 24 hours a day. And then also listen to the voicemail. And a telephone answering machine…..so…..
The questioner wants to make calls to Dutch fixed numbers for about 70 hours a week…..I would advise taking a telephone with Voip.
Can it cost 100 euros per month?
Well, no problem I would say.