Hi folks,
I'm looking at moving to the United States next year and I would like to keep my Australian phone number active but also receive any text messages sent to it.
I was originally looking at Aldi Mobile, which for $5 will keep my phone number active for a year, but unfortunately does not have roaming activated.
I'm not concerned with the price of actively using international roaming. I just want it registered for it to receive SMS for free for various two-factor auth set-ups.
Any ideas?
Yes I considered that. Can you:
- get a mobile number (04…), and
- receive text messages sent to it?
If there was a solution like Google Voice in Australia, that would suit. I just don't know that I can receive security codes to a Skype in number. It needs to also be in the mobile area code so that various websites accept it.
No, they give you a landline number, so doesn't look like this option is for you.
Can you just leave the phone connected to WiFi at a friend's house here and use something like Pushbullet to push notifications to the cloud?
That's not a bad idea at all. I might be able to hide a phone away at my parents' place where it won't get disturbed. Then I can go with Aldi. I'll look into that one.
Read up on Telstra's pre-paid offer called Long Life, 12 month credit expiry.
Some people on Whirlpool have figured out you can charge up on another pre-paid plan and then convert to Long Life to get much better text, call and data options as well as the long credit life. You can receive texts for free OS with Telstra pre-paid.
I just got back from OS and apparently missed out on some texts as I had the phone off or on airplane mode. I had to use it for an two-factor auth and it worked fine though. Do your own testing as to whether or not texts will wait for you if they can't be delivered immediately. NB: I was in Cuba so could be the local telco's fault.
You need to stump up a hefty deposit to get Prepaid roaming to function if they'll activate it at all.
Where did you get that info? I have gone roaming on prepaid a number of times, no deposit. Please read: "International Roaming is automatically activated for Telstra Pre-Paid mobile services."
You can even buy an international data roaming pack on prepaid.
Personal experience, although not with Telstra.
Very interesting… I stand corrected.
I think you mean get the recharge on Long Life (the offer with the long expiries) and then switch to Simplicity (the offer with the lower call/txt/data rates).
Get a telstra prepaid sim. Normally they disconnect your service if your credit has expired for more than 6 months. The trick to extend your service without having to recharge is to simply log into your account and change your prepaid plan. The credit expiry date is updated to the plan changed date and now you have another 6 months.
Now this is why I really love OzBargain! Not sure if SlickDeals can adequately replace it :-/
Check out YouRoam at www.youroam.com
I have used and it's a great service.
This way you can receive calls from your ONumber on your USA number.
Suggest you also get a Google Voice number too.
Thanks for the tip. Do you know if it allows me to send and receive text messages? The website only appears to mention calls.
Already sorted with a Google Voice number from about a year ago. It's brilliant, if only they supported Australia!
Hi kenm,
I think that your best option would be Amaysim's "As You Go Plan".
There are no monthly service charges whatsoever.
You get to keep your number active.
And you only pay for what you use.
According to their website international roaming is supported:
https://www.amaysim.com.au/help-support/international-roamin…
You have to enable it online (via MyAmaysism) before leaving:
https://www.amaysim.com.au/help-support/international/how-ca…
Tips and tricks for roaming:
https://www.amaysim.com.au/help-support/tips-and-tricks-for-…
I lived overseas in 2007, and Optus charged me $5 a month just to keep my number active. Rip off.
These days, I have a mobile number that I want keep active but don't make many calls on, so I just use Amaysim's "As You Go" plan and only pay for what I use, which usually comes in below $5 a month.
I highly recommend it.
I've had only good experiences with Amaysim.
They have a pretty "no B.S" approach, which I like.
That looks pretty good. I suppose so long as I have maybe $5 credit on it, they're not likely to cancel my number without warning. Thanks!
Nah, it doesn't work that way…
The way it works is they have both prepaid and postpaid plans.
You must choose "postpaid" when you signup and then they will just bill your credit card automatically - no need to muck around with recharging, and your number will not be cancelled…
You just need to buy a SIM starter pack from a local store…I think the supermarkets and petrol stations stock them…
It's about $2 for the SIM then you just set it up on their website and it's good to go within less than 10 minutes…
:-)
Oh cool, so it isn't a prepaid plan at all. They just bill you for what you use at the end of each month, and who cares if it's $0? And because it's a post-paid plan, they don't deactivate.
That's brilliant. That's exactly what I want. And really convenient if I can get one from the supermarket right before I leave.
@kenm: Yep, exactly!
If it's $0, it's $0…
And, if your bill for the month is less than $10 they won't bill you until either your bill hits $10, or 3 months passes - whichever one comes first…
You don't even have to go to the shops to get the SIM…
You can just go to their website and go to the "As You Go" plan and click "Buy Now" and then you can choose your phone number and enter all your details and, I believe, they will then post the SIM out to you in the mail…
Get a Telstra Pre-Paid service and activate on the Long Life offer. $70 recharge will give you a 365 day expiry.
I'm on this at the moment, for my 2 year stint in London.
But I worked out the 6 month plan is cheaper than the 1 year plan. Just have to recharge twice a year instead of yearly.
Have you thought of getting a Skype number? You can choose what country, not sure if you can get a mobile number though.