Cheap cellphone rates for calls overseas.

For a lot of people with the need to call overseas via a cellphone, exorbitant costs have always been a major deterrent. But now thanks to some new sevices, that proposition is much more affordable. The new services are offered by companies like Truphone.com, Jajah.com, or Rebtel.com to name a few. Instead of using traditional phone lines to route international phone calls, these new services direct calls over the Internet using VoiP or voice over Internet protocol made popular by other companies like Vonage Holdings (Vonage.com). Each service is a little different on how it works. But according to the WSJ, they most share the same basic; all you need is a cellphone with Internet access and a credit card. After you sign up online, you will receive a text message with a link to download and install the software that will allow your future calls to be routed through the Internet. A preset amount of money will be put on hold from your credit card and the actual amount of the phone calls you make later are then deducted from that. Still according to the Wall Street Journal, these services are a work in progress therefore they are not without their share of problems like static, echo, fainting, etc. But overall, considered the huge savings that they provide, they are well worth the try. For instance, a cellphone call to China on Jajah can cost as little as 3.3 cents a minute or 2 to 18 cents a minute to UK using Rebtel. None of these services covered every country on earth and each one offer different rates for different countries.

For more, see WSJ.com