 XoX
join:2003-08-19
Qc, Canada
 ·TekSavvy DSL
| good PAY-BY-THE-MINUTE plan (just in case a need to use it)? Hi,
I am searching for a cheap PAY-BY-THE-MINUTE provider... I looked at Wind but they do not cover my area... The primary use for the phone? In case i need it that is why i do not want a monthly plan but would still like some free included option like the one i found so far....
The one so far that seem to fit my idea is Fido and Virgins Mobile. They charge between 0,30$/min and 0,35$/min but include free unlimited incoming sms, call display and voicemail (only really need those)...
I plan on bringing a phone but i was only able to find the needed information from Fido. For Virgin i was unable to find on what network they operate and the frequency so i am not sure... Since i do not have the phone now, i can not use the tool they offer (a bit stupid).
ps: I live in Sherbrooke so i must be able to get a local number that is why Wind is not an option and Fido for Prepaid seem to be limited to Montreal and Quebec City... |
|
|
|
 GuspazGuspazPremium,MVM
join:2001-11-05
Montreal, QC
kudos:20 | Fido is owned by Rogers and uses the Rogers network. Virgin is owned by Bell and uses the Bell network. Koodo is owned by Telus, and in Quebec Telus uses the Bell network.
In Sherbrooke, I believe there are only three networks in operation: Bell, Rogers, and Videotron. Somebody might correct me if there is some minor carrier. But that's it. Everybody else selling service is either using one of those networks, or more likely, owned by one of the incumbents.
EDIT: Interestingly, it looks like Videotron has a bigger coverage area in Quebec alone than every other new entrant (Wind/Mobilicity/Public Mobile) canada-wide combined.
--
Developer: Tomato/MLPPP, Linux/MLPPP, etc »fixppp.org |
|
DavesnothereNo-BHELL-ity DOES have its Advantages
join:2009-06-15
START&Cogeco
kudos:6
4 edits | said by Guspaz:....EDIT: Interestingly, it looks like Videotron has a bigger coverage area in Quebec alone than every other new entrant (Wind/Mobilicity/Public Mobile) canada-wide combined.
IIRC, Videotron outbid almost everyone on almost all new spectrum for QC during the last auction, so that would not surprise me at all.
At least they seem to be USING it, rather than buying, not using, and 'sitting' on spectrum like some other carriers have done, both in Canada and USA, simply to keep it out of the hands of competitors.
I hear that there has been some discussion on both sides of the border that providers ought to be legislated to either 'use it or lose it', and that any such reclaimed spectrum should get re-auctioned on the next time around.
And on the OP's question, I'm pretty happy with Rogers' PAYG, using the plan where your first 5 minutes of local airtime used each day are at 25 cents each, and the rest that day are at 15 cents, regardless of how many calls are involved.
Voicemail and Basic Call Display (number only) are included.
All SMS is extra, but I do not use SMS anyway.
--
We have only 2 things about which to worry :
(1) That things may never get back to normal
(2) That they already HAVE !
-
START Forum »Start Communications
Or you can still use Canadian Broadband.
|
|
 GonePremium
join:2011-01-24
Fort Erie, ON
kudos:3
·Start Communicat..
| reply to Guspaz
said by Guspaz:Koodo is owned by Telus, and in Quebec Telus uses the Bell network. I believe Telus operates their own 1900MHz network in urban areas (Gatineau, Montreal, Quebec City and possibly Sherbrooke and the highways between them specifically) separate from Bell like they do in Ontario, but anything 800MHz is Bell's yeah.
said by Guspaz:EDIT: Interestingly, it looks like Videotron has a bigger coverage area in Quebec alone than every other new entrant (Wind/Mobilicity/Public Mobile) canada-wide combined. Well, when you already have wheelbarrels of money from BDU and media holdings along with lots of customers you can extort into subscribing through triple- and quad-play loopholes in a province where the vast majority of people speak a language different from elsewhere in Canada, of course you're going to build a honking home network in one single province and not worry about anywhere else. Contract this with the true new entrants who are stuck building national networks all the while being limited by foreign ownership rules and had very limited capital to build out those networks and it becomes pretty bloody obvious why Videotron is in the position they are in now compared to the other three. |
|
Reviews:
·RipNet
| reply to Davesnothere
said by Davesnothere:Voicemail and Basic Call Display (number only) are included. I don't use VM myself, but is it not still the case thast you can only retrieve VM from your phone with most/all carriers, therefore using your minutes?
I recall a while back (okay, quite a while) that people were surprised by this when they found they were burning through 30cent minutes just listening to their voice messages.
Brad.
--
Xplornet WiMAX -} Buffalo WZR-HP-G300NH running DD-WRT -} about 13 machines running everything you can think of. |
|
Reviews:
 ·TekSavvy Cable
2 edits | For pay per minute Wind it is 20c with no roaming or LD fees on top of that in Canada. You can travel and call anywhere for the 20c price. If your not going to use it much a local number doesn't really matter if you don't get dinged with roaming or LD fees. The main thing lost when not in a Wind zone is the free incoming calls. No voice mail (costs extra). Top ups -$40+ 180 days, $100+ 365 days both from time of top up.
If you will not use it much the cheapest is 7 11 speakeasy phones as they have smaller top ups that last 365 days. »www.speakout7eleven.ca/indexctrl.html |
|
DavesnothereNo-BHELL-ity DOES have its Advantages
join:2009-06-15
START&Cogeco
kudos:6
1 edit | said by BrianON:For pay per minute Wind it is 20c with no roaming or LD fees on top of that in Canada. You can travel and call anywhere for the 20c price. If your not going to use it much a local number doesn't really matter if you don't get dinged with roaming or LD fees. The main thing lost when not in a Wind zone is the free incoming calls. No voice mail (costs extra). Top ups -$40+ 180 days, $100+ 365 days both from time of top-up....
Are you saying that if I don't mind taking an Ottawa number (for example), that WIND will charge me only a flat 20 cents per minute for all of my airtime/LDX combined when outside one of their 'home' zones ? (as I surely WOULD be)
Even if that IS true, how much must I ALSO pay up front monthly for the plan ?
And who is their network partner when outside of their 'home' zones ? |
|
DavesnothereNo-BHELL-ity DOES have its Advantages
join:2009-06-15
START&Cogeco
kudos:6 | reply to b_p_smith
said by b_p_smith:....I recall a while back (okay, quite a while) that people were surprised by this when they found they were burning through 30-cent minutes just listening to their voice messages.
It varies, but many plans/providers charge that way.
I believe that messages can be retrieved for free by using other phone lines, but as I do not use the VM on my cell, not sure of the details for my own plan. |
|
ns1225
join:2010-12-30
Montreal, QC Reviews:
·Bell Sympatico
1 edit | Some providers like Rogers may charge for leaving a messaging and all the minutes that it requires. With TELUS it's free and retreval is just a regular chargeable call to the TELUS mailbox service.
Any unlocked GSM phone will work for Rogers, Fido.
With Bell, TELUS, Virgin you'll need an unlocked (or locked) 3G HSPA+ phone on 850 & 1900 Mhz.
You should be able to get any provider locally in Sherbrooke, they all let you choose a local number in the signup process. |
|
Reviews:
·Start Communicat..
| reply to Davesnothere
said by Davesnothere:Are you saying that if I don't mind taking an Ottawa number (for example), that WIND will charge me only a flat 20 cents per minute for all of my airtime/LDX combined when outside one of their 'home' zones ? (as I surely WOULD be)
Even if that IS true, how much must I ALSO pay up front monthly for the plan ?
And who is their network partner when outside of their 'home' zones ?
Yep, that's how it works. You don't have to use a monthly plan either; you can go strictly pay-as-you-go.
Here are the plans: »www.windmobile.ca/en/Pages/voice-plans.aspx
The table shows the rates on their network. Down at the bottom are the rates outside their network, where it says "Low flat rates when you travel" with the US/Canada flags.
I don't know who their network partner is though. Might be able to compare their coverage map with the maps of Rogers and Bell and see if you can find a match. |
|
Reviews:
·TekSavvy Cable
2 edits | Made a mistake actually, it's not Canada it is Canada/US. From the site:
US/Canada Roaming - 20¢/min: When outside a WIND Zone, receive a call or make a call to anywhere in Canada or the US– no extra long-distance charges apply. As for network partners I think in Canada it is Rogers, not sure in the USA.
They also periodically have a top up bonus, currently at 50% so anything over a $20 top up gets you a service credit equal to 50% of your top up. |
|
DavesnothereNo-BHELL-ity DOES have its Advantages
join:2009-06-15
START&Cogeco
kudos:6
1 edit | said by cybersaga:Yep, that's how it works. You don't have to use a monthly plan either; you can go strictly pay-as-you-go.
Here are the plans: »www.windmobile.ca/en/Pages/voice-plans.aspx
The table shows the rates on their network. Down at the bottom are the rates outside their network, where it says "Low flat rates when you travel" with the US/Canada flags.
I don't know who their network partner is though. Might be able to compare their coverage map with the maps of Rogers and Bell and see if you can find a match.
said by BrianON:Made a mistake actually, it's not Canada it is Canada/US. From the site:
US/Canada Roaming - 20¢/min: When outside a WIND Zone, receive a call or make a call to anywhere in Canada or the US– no extra long-distance charges apply. As for network partners I think in Canada it is Rogers, not sure in the USA. They also periodically have a top up bonus, currently at 50% so anything over a $20 top up gets you a service credit equal to 50% of your top up.
Thanks.
All in all rather generous.
I was on the WIND site earlier today.
However, some of their FAQ pages are outdated (says 2011), as they still speak of a 25 cents per minute airtime surcharge for users when they are 'AWAY' (not in a HOME zone).
That was the way that WIND had things set up when I previously checked.
Looks like HOME & AWAY zones are a thing of the past then ?
How far along do I have to play to find out what municipality's phone numbers I could choose ?
Folks calling me would still have to pay LDX if my number was elsewhere, even if MY outbound calls did not.
If Rogers is partner here, then likely AT&T in USA.
50% Bonus on top-ups ? - WILD ! |
|
Reviews:
·TekSavvy DSL
| reply to XoX
If you use very little minutes, get a speakout 7-11 SIM card from a friend in Ontario. I heard they will activate QC numbers, they just won't sell you a SIM card on Quebec.
If you want an all-around good deal that includes SMS & Internet, look at Koodo prepaid. You can roll over Data, which is a big plus. There's 15$ base fee though that includes no minutes, just texting. |
|
df909
join:2013-03-05
Canada | reply to XoX
said by XoX:ps: I live in Sherbrooke so i must be able to get a local number that is why Wind is not an option and Fido for Prepaid seem to be limited to Montreal and Quebec City...
I just checked the Fido website and they're offering 819 numbers in Sherbrooke QC, as do with most other providers. Also I'd suggest against Koodo prepaid as they require you to purchase a base plan (min $15/mo) plus retrieving your voicemail will cost you airtime whereas you don't need to purchase any base plan and voicemail retrieval is free @ Fido & Virgin. |
|
Reviews:
·Start Communicat..
| reply to Davesnothere
said by Davesnothere:Looks like HOME & AWAY zones are a thing of the past then ?
Not really. Everything's the same if you're using their $0 plan and you're only paying for what you use. If you use their other plans that include unlimited calling and data, that only applies to HOME. You're still paying by the minute/MB in AWAY zones. |
|
bt
join:2009-02-26
canada
kudos:1 Reviews:
·Start Communicat..
| reply to Davesnothere
said by Davesnothere:Looks like HOME & AWAY zones are a thing of the past then ? Only for PAYG rates. Going pure PAYG (without any addons), the only difference between "HOME" and "AWAY" is you don't get the free incoming calling in "AWAY" zones. You do still get free incoming texts, though.
said by Davesnothere:If Rogers is partner here, then likely AT&T in USA.
They roam on T-Mobile in the US. |
|
 hap
@umontreal.ca | reply to Cloneman
If you can't get 7-11, the next best thing would be Petro Canada Mobility...refills don't last as long ($25 refill is good for 120 days), but call display, voicemail and incoming SMS included |
|
AsherN
join:2010-08-23
Thornhill, ON | reply to XoX
Petro Canada Mobility is pretty cheap and runs on the Rogers network. |
|
XoX
join:2003-08-19
Qc, Canada Reviews:
·TekSavvy DSL
| reply to Cloneman
said by Cloneman:If you use very little minutes, get a speakout 7-11 SIM card from a friend in Ontario. I heard they will activate QC numbers, they just won't sell you a SIM card on Quebec.
If you want an all-around good deal that includes SMS & Internet, look at Koodo prepaid. You can roll over Data, which is a big plus. There's 15$ base fee though that includes no minutes, just texting.
I looked at he information and they seem the best offer... For the sim i will try to call and ask them directly since it's clearly stated for the phone but not a sim card only...
Thanks for the info. |
|
XoX
join:2003-08-19
Qc, Canada Reviews:
·TekSavvy DSL
| reply to BrianON
Thanks for the information.. For now they seem to have the better deals with the 365 days... |
|
