Many posters here are using apps other than Skype, but I don't know why...it seems to do the job well and economically. Is it because Skype is blocked in many hotels, coffee shops, etc. but the alternatives are not?

+1 for Talkatone + Google Voice. Absolutely free and you can call any phone just like Skypout... I've successfully used this in Asia and Europe with no problems...

Google voice is more expensive than Betamax.

http://www.google.com/voice/rates
http://backsla.sh/betamax‎

You have to use Talkatone in conjunction with GV, then it is free... (when calling to the US)

Bear with me since I'm a newbie at all this, but the Talkatone knowledge base says you pay GoogleVoice rates, so that wouldn't be free??

I'm also not sure what it adds if you already have Google Voice, which allows you to send the number you want to call to your phone and you then pay the GV rates, unless I'm misunderstanding something.

if you just want to text, i recommend WhatsApp. it is available on multiple devices, Apple, Android, etc. all it uses is data, so you can use it over wi-fi or cellular data.

alright, for talking over data, cellular or wi-fi

if you have an Apple device, even iPad, then Google Voice and Talkatone are the way to go.
if you have an Android device, even tablet, then Google Voice and GrooveIP are the way to go.

what this means is, you sign up for Google Voice, in the US i assume. you get a US google voice number. then you sign into GrooveIP with your google credentials. then GrooveIP makes a call, OVER DATA, to another number. if that other number is US based, which you can use abroad, then the call is completely free.

i have used this over data in other countries on my cellular with a local sim, on my cellular with a US carrier sim with data turned on, and on a laptop signed into Google Voice in a hotel room.
this uses NO carrier minutes, only data, and very little data. the sound quality is very good, little or no delay or echo depending on where you are.

if you are calling another country through google voice, that is when those google voice rates would apply. this is to call an in country person with a US number or someone back home.


*i just saw you said topup, UK? i assume this works the same with a UK based set of numbers but have not tried it. or you can just get a US number (through google voice) and then have you friends/family do the same.

Betamax is free to US, plus maybe other 60 destinations

Talkatone , Truphone

In the interests of full disclosure:

The GrooveIP app is not free - $4.99
The GrooveIP Lite app is free, but only allows calls over WiFi.