New ways to save money with your phone appear almost weekly. If you’re not confident on the web, invest in a Multi IMSI travel SIM card. This new generation of SIM slots into any unlocked mobile and can come with two numbers (one UK, one US). Callers can dial either number to reach you, wherever you are in the world.

With Truphone’s (020 7100 6860; www.truphone.com) “Local Anywhere” Multi IMSI SIM, it’s 10p a minute to phone from the US and 25p from much of Europe – compared with £1-plus and around 35p, respectively, using main- stream UK networks. Local calls within the US are 10p a minute.

The basic SIM with a UK number and £10 credit pre-loaded costs £14.99. It costs another £12.99 a year for another local number and a flexible £7.99 a month to access local rates overseas: currently only the US is available, but much of Europe plus Australia and South Africa will be added in 2010.

WorldSIM (020 8819 2557; www.worldsim.com) is an alternative Multi IMSI. It’s free to receive calls in 80 countries and phoning home from the US or Europe costs 25p a minute. The SIM costs £39.99 (with £10 pre-loaded) from WorldSIM’s website, but you should soon be able to pick up one cheaper via resellers on Amazon or eBay.

For the more tech-savvy, VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) is often a cheaper way to stay in touch. Part of your phone call is routed over the internet, which saves you money.

The best solution for Nokia smartphone, iPhone, iPod Touch, or Android users is the free Truphone app, available at the iTunes App Store, Nokia Ovi Store or Android Market.

Set up a Truphone account online and add credit, just like any pay-as-you-go service, find a free or cheap Wi-Fi hot spot and call any UK landline for 3p a minute. Or call any Truphone or Skype user free.

Skype for Mobile is another option, and supports Windows Mobile handsets as well. Register at www.skype.co.uk and Skype sends a text with easy-to-follow installation instructions.

Jajah’s VoIP service is better if you don’t have reliable access to Wi-Fi and works on any phone. Opening a free account at www.jajah.com allows you to set up a local Jajah Direct number for contacts, in 20 countries worldwide: you phone that local number and the call routes itself to their real phone number. A landline call from Italy, for example, costs 2.1p a minute plus the local call. The Jajah@call (or “Tweet to Talk”) service promises free two-minute calls to any Twitter contacts. It currently works in the US, but a UK release is due.

Original Source – Telegraph