<p>S is studying abroad this summer. He's been encouraged by other students to use the Viber app to call for free. Does anyone have experience with it? We had planned to use skype and e-mail, but he'd also love to be able to call and text with other students in his location abroad and neither of those options would be optimal for those purposes. If you've used Viber, was there any charge associated with it? The website said it is free, except that roaming charges might apply? Thanks for any info you can provide -</p>
<p>When my d studied abroad they had local phones provided by the school, we paid of course, but it worked well for the kids to contact each other and the school staff and was relatively cheap. Check with the program there.</p>
<p>Also double check ATM use and your bank. That is where prices can really add up. We opened a second checking account for our daughter at a bank that had “sister” banks in her country so no charge for converting money, ATM withdrawals etc. 3 to 5 dollars each withdrawals adds up very quickly, and using card and restaurants etc didn’t have the added fees. She had two cards with her as different countries prevelant banks needed a different sister bank</p>
<p>In most European countries, you can easily get a cell phone. They are pay as you go plans…you buy the minutes, use them, and replenish. Have your son check with the study abroad office…or by chance does he know a student who has done the same program? My son left his Orange cell for the next student!</p>
<p>DD was overseas for two years. We used Skype. Computer to computer it is free…with video too if you both have decent connections. We couldn’t do that…but were able to call DD for about 5 cents per minute on her cell phone.</p>
<p>If your kiddo is going to be where there is Internet access, I’d suggest Skype. You can also then enter the cell phone number in case of emergency so you can Skype to the cell (not free).</p>
<p>D just finished program in France where they were required to have French phone number, so students either bought disposable phone or bought sim card for their own phone. D has iphone 4s. We got it unlocked and she bought sim card when she got there. That allowed students in program to text (and call) each other. Since she still had Iphone, she could iChat with friends back home with iphones (most of them) anywhere there was wifi. To keep in touch, we used facebook chat on phones/computer (wifi in hotel and where class met) and we skyped. I think you can get sim card or go phones that work anywhere in Europe also. </p>
<p>I second checking to see if your bank here has partner banks, since ATM withdrawal is cheapest way to get foreign currency.</p>
<p>My daughter did a study abroad last year in Europe and we used Viber daily. In our experience, the texting worked perfectly however the phone calls via Viber were quite inconsistent. Sometimes it would work but often it would routinely drop the calls. So we used it mostly for texting and used Skype for conversations. Skype worked flawlessly from Europe. There is no charge for Viber, she bought a phone on arrival and a monthly minute plan that would be topped up as needed. Roaming charges may have kicked in during travel times but I don’t remember her complaining of using mega minutes because of it.</p>
<p>My d is in Argentina at the moment. We are using skype/ facetime and facebook. Skype was great when I was booking flights for her- I could share my screen and we could go through the process together. She has an ipad with her and was having difficulty with the website and the ipad. I just got an iphone 5 and love that she can facetime me . H and I were out for dinner and she " called us". It was great. </p>
<p>Facebook messaging is also working. I actually have my chat turned on, but everyone else hidden. I can literally see when d is back at her home stay home in the evening - reassures me that she is “home”. </p>
<p>A few people have mentioned viper to me, but I can’t see what it will give us that the above are not. D bought a local cheap phone and sim card for local calls within Argentina.</p>
<p>Hope your son has a great trip!</p>
<p>Our son is overseas (China) during summer. There he bought a cheap mobile phone, and pays for the minutes of usage. However, Skype (without video) works much better (qualitywise) than the mobile phone. Haven’t tried Viber.</p>
<p>My D received a local mobile phone from her study abroad program for local calls. For calls home, we used Skype. She took her smartphone from home, but we suspended the call roaming function and she just used wifi. We also used the WhatsApp texting application so that she could text us wherever she had a wifi connection. four months in Prague and that system worked pretty well.</p>
<p>Thanks so much everyone - I can always count on lots of good ideas from parents here!</p>
<p>My D has been in Spain since August, and everyone there seems to use WhatsApp to text. Nobody seems to call anyone. We Skype with her every month or two, but mostly use FB chat. Depending on where he’s going you might be able to use an unlocked phone from here and just by a sim card there. I believe unlocked AT&T and Verizon phones work in Europe but Sprint phones do not. It’s just a summer, I can’t imagine that he’ll have time to be phoning home too much…</p>
<p>I just installed and used Viber a few days ago to communicate with my business partner in Brazil. The call quality was fine and it was as easy as dialing a cell phone. I’m never clear on when Skype is free and when it isn’t.</p>
<p>My D started and maintained a travel blog (for free) when doing study abroad. It worked great, provided a place to upload her pics, and she could post about her day when it was convenient for her - No need to worry about time changes! We did try to talk to her at least once a week, and she used a land line at her school for that.</p>
<p>BTW - The pics and posts now make a nice coffee table book…</p>
<p>We just returned from a month abroad (Europe and Turkey) and D was here in the US. We used a variety of methods: Viber, Google Voice, and phone (with cards bought at tobacconist–dirt cheap). The phone cards work with pay phones as well as “local” phones, such as hotel, hostel, etc. </p>
<p>Voice quality on the actual landline phones was the best. Viber worked about 50% of the time, and we arranged at pre-determined times to speak. It wasn’t the best, but hey, it was free. There were times I was online and daughter was online and she would just Google Voice (call) me. Quality was quite good with a slight delay, so we paced our speaking. </p>
<p>BTW, when she was traveling alone through Mexico last summer [NOT my idea!!!] she purchased a dongle for her little netbook and a phone/wireless card so she could access the internet when in locations where there was no wifi immediately available. This was great consolation to her when she was stranded, alone, during a hurricane in Puerto Escondido. She would GoogleVoice me every few hours during the storm and report in about the flooding situation. Surprisingly the wireless service worked throughout the storm. GoogleVoice was free from the US, and I think it was a penny or two a minute from Mexico. Nevertheless, it was a good backup and was a tad more reliable than Viber. </p>
<p>In many countries cell phone service is far cheaper than here in the US, and if you can get ahold of a used cellphone here in the US that is ATT/T-Mobile (NOT Verizon) the sim card can be interchanged for an international one in wherever your child goes. </p>
<p>If it were me–and it will soon be, because my daughter is studying abroad next year, 2 different countries!–then I would do a combination of the above, with the cell phone for brief “check-in” calls and emergencies, and the rest of the methods for longer chats.</p>