MORE FREE PHONE SERVICES

While doing research for another article, we came across a few new ways to make free local and long distance calls that you might find interesting.

One Ringy-Dingy - This seems to be another one of those "proof of concept" services that isn't really designed to make any money. Essentially, it uses a scheme similar to international callback in order to give you free access to a dialtone. From there, VoIP provider TelaSip connects you to any phone number in the U.S. for free. The phone you are calling from MUST NOT have Caller ID blocked in order for this to work. Calls are limited to 10 minutes each, but that seems to be the only restriction.

Free International Calls - Details on this service are rather sketchy, but it essentially allows you to make free long distance calls to international destinations with cheap termination rates. All calls technically originate in the U.K., so you should be able to at least call just about anyone there for free (except, perhaps, mobile phones). The catch? You have to register. Phone calls are currently capped at 10 minutes each, but may be increased, depending upon call volume. There is a "community pool" of free minutes available. Once that number is reached, there are no more free calls. When we last checked, there were approximately 73,000 minutes available though. You will need an ATA or VoIP softphone in order to access the service.

 FakeCaller.Com - This is a nifty little web-based application that allows you to send text-based messages that are read to any person you choose that has access to a telephone. As a nifty side-effect, you can also forge the Caller ID name and number that is used for originating a call. I believe that you can use it for a limited number of times each day, but there seems to be no official policy in place as to an exact number.

 ZOIPPE - Zoippe is a Hong Kong based VoIP provider that currently has a promotion running that allows you to use 100 free minutes of service by referring 5 other people who download their free VoIP softphone. Refer enough people, and you can receive up to 1,000 free minutes per account. You can use your free minutes to call anywhere internationally. The more expensive the termination rate, the faster you will eat through your free minutes though. Obviously, you need to download their VoIP softphone in order to get the service to work.