Spudd Posted July 22 #126 Share Posted July 22 1 hour ago, CDNPolar said: Does this Austria number allow you to call anywhere in the world under the plan? No additional fees? I am struggling now because I have recently launched my own business and want to be connected when travelling by phone, but will NOT pay Rogers $15 per day for Roam Like Home. I also want clients to be able to call a North American number when trying to reach me. Complicated. I think that one day we will all buy eSIM's for our phones and have global calling much cheaper than Rogers Roam Like Home. You want Freedom's Roam Beyond plan or just buy the add-on for when you travel, depending on how often you go. Or, you can enable Wi-Fi calling with Fido, which will let you make and receive phone calls while on Wi-Fi abroad. I believe the other phone companies (except Freedom) block this. I use the Freedom method myself and it works great while traveling. While at home, the data service is a bit spotty in rural areas. Annoying but not a show-stopper for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare CDNPolar Posted July 22 #127 Share Posted July 22 10 minutes ago, Spudd said: You want Freedom's Roam Beyond plan or just buy the add-on for when you travel, depending on how often you go. Or, you can enable Wi-Fi calling with Fido, which will let you make and receive phone calls while on Wi-Fi abroad. I believe the other phone companies (except Freedom) block this. I use the Freedom method myself and it works great while traveling. While at home, the data service is a bit spotty in rural areas. Annoying but not a show-stopper for me. It is the less than expected data service and connection that I am concerned with and don't want to leave the reliability of Rogers.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex-Airbalancer Posted July 22 #128 Share Posted July 22 (edited) 13 minutes ago, Spudd said: You want Freedom's Roam Beyond plan or just buy the add-on for when you travel, depending on how often you go. Or, you can enable Wi-Fi calling with Fido, which will let you make and receive phone calls while on Wi-Fi abroad. I believe the other phone companies (except Freedom) block this. I use the Freedom method myself and it works great while traveling. While at home, the data service is a bit spotty in rural areas. Annoying but not a show-stopper for me. I will be switching to Freedom shortly , probably go with their $29 Canada /USa plan and than switch to their international plan when we go over seas We have been on Bell and Rogers , they are spotty in rural areas also 🤣 Edited July 22 by Ex-Airbalancer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spudd Posted July 22 #129 Share Posted July 22 1 hour ago, CDNPolar said: It is the less than expected data service and connection that I am concerned with and don't want to leave the reliability of Rogers.... Fido's service will be identical to Rogers, they are using the same towers. It's just marketing that makes Rogers more expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare broberts Posted July 22 #130 Share Posted July 22 1 hour ago, CDNPolar said: It is the less than expected data service and connection that I am concerned with and don't want to leave the reliability of Rogers.... Freedom used to be owned by Rogers and as far as I know have an agreement in place to use its network when needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare CDNPolar Posted July 22 #131 Share Posted July 22 Going to do my due diligence. I have basically bit the bullet for so many years because I felt that to get the best network you had to go with one of the leaders.... I have had friends on the cheaper plans from other companies that don't get great reception and service in some areas... This however may be a game changer with one of these global plans. Thanks to everyone for your input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex-Airbalancer Posted July 22 #132 Share Posted July 22 4 minutes ago, broberts said: Freedom used to be owned by Rogers and as far as I know have an agreement in place to use its network when needed. Rogers only had Freedom for a short period of time when Rogers took over Shaw, one of the condition of buy Shaw , they had to sell Freedom Freedom uses both Bell & Rogers towers in different areas 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex-Airbalancer Posted July 31 #133 Share Posted July 31 Switched to Freedom so far the reception is no different than Bell in the rural area Come November we will find out how the international is any good 😉 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare CDNPolar Posted August 1 #134 Share Posted August 1 We have been warned away from Freedom by a few people telling us that the reception we have with Rogers will never be matched by Freedom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex-Airbalancer Posted August 1 #135 Share Posted August 1 1 minute ago, CDNPolar said: We have been warned away from Freedom by a few people telling us that the reception we have with Rogers will never be matched by Freedom. We been on Rogers , Bell and Freedom in the last 4 years , they are about the same I am writing about areas not in the GTA or 401 corridor our house is probably 500 m from the 401 and have been only getting 2 bars with all 3 companies Our daughter who lives in the GTA has been with Freedom probably over 7 years and finds them to be fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldbarnnewhay Posted August 2 #136 Share Posted August 2 In October, we switched to Freedom from Rogers for the Canada/US plan as it is significantly cheaper. We have had no issues while in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. Rogers has reached out on 3 occasions advising that they would match Freedom's price and gbs for the Can/US plan. However, they would only provide a contract or fine print after we agreed to switch. Sorry, no deal. When asked about matching Freedom's individual Europe one month GB plan, the Rogers associate had no idea what I was talking about. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare CDNPolar Posted August 2 #137 Share Posted August 2 We are so interested in the calling to 92 countries, but we have to do more research. I rely on my phone when travelling for my business - which does not turn off when I am travelling. I have to have connectivity and phone connection is very important. I am not disputing anyone's experience here, but do want to be very sure before we take the switch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calliopecruiser Posted August 3 #138 Share Posted August 3 16 hours ago, CDNPolar said: I rely on my phone when travelling for my business - which does not turn off when I am travelling Then I wouldn't worry too much about it, and write the phone charges off as a business expense. Of course you still want to be mindful of the cost, but if the cost savings will not be much different from the tax benefits of a business expense, don't worry too much about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare CDNPolar Posted August 3 #139 Share Posted August 3 1 minute ago, calliopecruiser said: Then I wouldn't worry too much about it, and write the phone charges off as a business expense. Of course you still want to be mindful of the cost, but if the cost savings will not be much different from the tax benefits of a business expense, don't worry too much about it. This is how I am looking at it now. I get the whole business expense piece, but in reality that is only about 30% back on the cost as the expense only reduces your taxable income. It is still a cost that I would rather not have, reduce, or eliminate if possible. I have been investigating Freedom and this 92 country thing which is very interesting. BUT, the fine print if very misleading depending on how you read it. The Canada/USA/Mexico with 92 country roaming is the following rules: * I can receive a call anywhere in the 92 countries for free. * I can call Canada from any of the 92 countries for free. * BUT these calling features are not free between the roaming countries * If I am in China and want to call someone or somewhere in China, I will pay for that call * If I am in China and want to call someone in the USA, I will pay for that * For instance, China to USA is $3.50 per minute * Much of my business requires me to call the USA I have two lines - one personal on a physical SIM and one business on an eSIM. This makes things more difficult now. I used to use Airalo but since I already have an eSIM installed (for business) my phone dose not allow two eSIMs. I think that what I will do is activate Roam Like Home for the business line and forward my personal number to the business line. Then I don't need the eSIM for Data. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calliopecruiser Posted August 3 #140 Share Posted August 3 17 minutes ago, CDNPolar said: I get the whole business expense piece, but in reality that is only about 30% back on the cost as the expense only reduces your taxable income. Right, but if changing to Freedom (or whatever other solution) only saves you 30% or 35%, why bother? If switching saves you 60% or 70%, then it might be worth taking the savings. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex-Airbalancer Posted August 3 #141 Share Posted August 3 I always find it fun when people say it is business expense and you can write it off Have to make money to write it off 😉 When I had my company at the end , closed it about a year ago, everything was mostly done by email , text " A company would send me drawing, I would email a quote , get the PO , good out do the job, email report and invoice , and receive e-transfer , if there was no problems I wouldn’t talk to anyone 😉 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare mariners Posted August 4 #142 Share Posted August 4 CDNPolar, this will be our first year sailing without requiring access to our office and cell phone numbers as we are finally fully retired from our business (well, will be by the time we cruise). Despite having staff and family handle our landline home and office phones, and also having access to e-mails, to keep our business running smoothly it was necessary to keep our main cell phone number. IMO, it was money well spent despite the cost of the Roam Like Home we paid through Rogers. Only you know the value of your contracts, and need for contact with clients/customers/etc. For us, because of the nature of our work, it allowed us to take trips and cruises for extended periods of time. A lot of our work could be completed while we were on holiday. The daily cost of the phone, which was only charged on days where we used the phone, was well worth the cost. Depending upon the length of time that you are away, and the dates of your billing cycle through Rogers, there is a maximum amount that you will be charged for each billing cycle if you are using your regular data, etc. We might not have paid the "cheapest" price, but the peace of mind was well worth the cost. We also got to travel to much of the world while we still had good health. Some things are priceless. Whatever you choose for your phone(s), wishing you wonderful cruises and the least stress possible as you figure out what works best for you. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare *Miss G* Posted August 4 #143 Share Posted August 4 Rogers has more 5G coverage across Canada and the US than Freedom. Freedom’s 5G only extends to major metropolitan areas within Canada (BC, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec). And, even then, quality will depend upon which tier of service and priority level they have purchased from the big name carriers. The same scenario will apply when traveling. All is dependent on roaming agreements each carrier has with providers in other nations. If a greater voice quality and data speed is important to your business, I would stick with Rogers. Especially when traveling. Wifi calling is always an option, but the cost of use depends on your carrier agreement. If that plan doesn’t cover China while you are in Canada, it’s not going to cover China while you are somewhere else. iPhones are great in that you can use Face or VoiceTime over wifi and don’t have to worry about added cost. Roam Like Home is a good option but will pull from your voice and data plan, the same as wifi calling, so you really need to be familiar with what your plan covers. All the above, of course, is entirely dependent on the quality and coverage of service within the country you are traveling. If you are traveling to major metropolitan areas, you shouldn’t have a problem with Rogers. If the mom and pop hotel that you are staying in doesn’t have great wifi… well. You get my drift. Disclaimer: I do not work for Rogers. lol 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex-Airbalancer Posted August 4 #144 Share Posted August 4 15 minutes ago, *Miss G* said: Rogers has more 5G coverage across Canada and the US than Freedom. Freedom’s 5G only extends to major metropolitan areas within Canada (BC, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec). And, even then, quality will depend upon which tier of service and priority level they have purchased from the big name carriers. Disclaimer: I do not work for Rogers. lol Phones don’t work on 5 G so it no problem 😁 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare *Miss G* Posted August 4 #145 Share Posted August 4 16 minutes ago, Ex-Airbalancer said: Phones don’t work on 5 G so it no problem 😁 Are you using a dumb phone? 😛 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brimarl Posted August 4 #146 Share Posted August 4 Seems to have strayed away from the original topic..... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare CDNPolar Posted August 5 #147 Share Posted August 5 22 hours ago, mariners said: CDNPolar, this will be our first year sailing without requiring access to our office and cell phone numbers as we are finally fully retired from our business (well, will be by the time we cruise). Despite having staff and family handle our landline home and office phones, and also having access to e-mails, to keep our business running smoothly it was necessary to keep our main cell phone number. IMO, it was money well spent despite the cost of the Roam Like Home we paid through Rogers. Only you know the value of your contracts, and need for contact with clients/customers/etc. For us, because of the nature of our work, it allowed us to take trips and cruises for extended periods of time. A lot of our work could be completed while we were on holiday. The daily cost of the phone, which was only charged on days where we used the phone, was well worth the cost. Depending upon the length of time that you are away, and the dates of your billing cycle through Rogers, there is a maximum amount that you will be charged for each billing cycle if you are using your regular data, etc. We might not have paid the "cheapest" price, but the peace of mind was well worth the cost. We also got to travel to much of the world while we still had good health. Some things are priceless. Whatever you choose for your phone(s), wishing you wonderful cruises and the least stress possible as you figure out what works best for you. Wise words, thank you. I have decided the following which I have tested and it has worked. For my phone which has a physical SIM for my personal cell, and an eSIM for my business number I will do the following: 1) I will forward my personal number to the business number. 2) I will turn the personal number OFF in Settings 3) I will allow my business number to connect and Roam and any calls from my personal number will come through as a forward. 4) My husband will get an eSIM for data only This will cover the business portion. The only thing that I have not figured out yet is Wifi calling because on Ocean cruises, there will be a lot of time that we are not close enough to shore to receive calls. The last time I tried Wifi calling my phone constantly seemed to overheat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare CDNPolar Posted August 5 #148 Share Posted August 5 16 hours ago, brimarl said: Seems to have strayed away from the original topic..... We are famous for straying.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex-Airbalancer Posted August 5 #149 Share Posted August 5 17 hours ago, *Miss G* said: Are you using a dumb phone? 😛 Only if you consider IPhone 11 to be dumb phones 🙄 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fouremco Posted August 5 #150 Share Posted August 5 2 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said: Only if you consider IPhone 11 to be dumb phones 🙄 Not dumb, just technologically challenged as it nears its fifth birthday next month. 😇 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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