Is Skype Really the Best Deal for Immigrants?

Up to recently, phone cards - even the shadier phone cards - have been the best way for immigrants to make cheap international calls. But thanks to the growth of VoIP technology such as Skype.com and other Internet telephony programs, there are more options for cheap international calls.

The Orlando Sentinel recently did a feature on US immigrants turning to Skype, as VoIP technology becomes easier to access.

For calling the US or Canada, Skype is a great deal. But the article fails to mention that Skype charges an arm and a leg to call many countries that immigrants come from. A quick look at international Skype call rates shows us that for most of the countries, calls range from .20 to .30 cents per minute!

Conveniently, the article focuses on an Argentine immigrant couple calling home. Argentines are lucky. For them, sure, Skype can be cheap. Calls to Buenos Aires are a little over .02 cents per minute to a landline.

But even then, using Skype to call a cell phone in Argentina costs nearly .20 cents per minute!

And don't get me started on Honduras. For that country, Skype to a landline costs a whopping .42 cents per minute, and .45 cents if you're calling a cell phone.

In so many cases, Skype does not provide a cheap alternative to phone cards.

The article, of course, is hasty to categorize calling cards as outdated scams that only the poor are stuck with. It extols Skype as a panacea for cheap calls. It dutifully inserts a brief sniffle for the still-elitist nature of this otherwise Utopian technology:

Yet despite the increasing use of technology by Hispanics to stay in touch, sheer economics means that calling cards are bound to remain popular, especially among those from poorer countries, according to Hispanic advocates. However, calling-card users have often been ripped off, state Attorney General Bill McCollum and others say.

Yes, many phone cards are rip-offs. But not all. That, in fact, is the whole purpose of this blog: to warn you away from the scams, and to recommend the good deals on phone cards that are out there, but admittedly hard to find. We help you find them.

Contrary to what the Orlando Sentinel suggests, the solution for poorer immigrants is not to save up and buy an expensive computer, headset, webcam and Skype.com credit account. Don't waste your hard earned savings to invest in technology, if you're only going to be ripped off by Skype calls in the end.

The solution is to save your hard earned money, and stick with cheap phone cards - the trick is getting the right phone cards.

That's what this PhoneCardsCheap.ORG blog is all about: finding you the cheapest, best quality phone cards, and warning you about the scams out there. This way, you can avoid the phone card scams without having to pour hundreds of dollars into a computer, accessories and Skype charge account, only to then pay .45 a minute to call you sister's cell phone in Honduras, and continually feed the Skype beast.

Despite all the hype about Skype, phone cards are still by far the cheapest way to call, for the vast majority of the world. And phone cards aren't just for the poor. Whether you're rich or poor, a good deal is a good deal.

So don't get hoodwinked by fancy technology when old-fashioned savings are even easier to obtain. Happy calling!