It's a phone dominated society with technology now reaching a point where almost everyone seems to be carrying some type of communication device where ever they go.

Back in the 18th century in the US, people used to carry gun holsters on their hip, then they were outlawed and only those licensed to use them such as the law could carry them. Now, we've almost gone full circle and instead of guns, people now carry holsters on the hips carrying a communication device such as a phone.

Consider PDA's or Personal Digital Assistants. Once upon a time they were simply calculators but in a short space of time, have become a necessary piece of communication for the majority. While there may be a learning curve associated with them it seems the biggest challenge than facing people is which one to choose.

The same applies to cell phones and with the integration of the two, communicating personally, by message text or via email is now as mobile as it gets. Originally, they started out as big as bricks but soon decreased in size and as they did, became more powerful.

Devices such as the Blackberry and the Iphone in recent years have taken these communication levels to a brand new level and the truth is, we "ain't seen nothing yet." Now being able to talk with someone away from home is the norm, being able to get online without a computer is almost the norm and not having to worry about a phone cord is...well, what's that!

Wireless technology was aazing when it first surfaced but now, it's just part of the landscape. One of the significant aspects of cell phone technology is the increased competition for consumers by those providing the service and technology means the price of both the gadgets and the carriers themselves have dropped alarmingly. It's definitely a buyers market.

Pre Paid Phone Cards

What about phone cards? Well, they are still pretty popular. Prepaid phone cards have grown so much in popularity over the past few years that I can honestly say, particularly within my circle of friends, I don't know anyone who hasn't used one.

Their growth has been significant within the international calling arena, in fact, prepaid phone cards have become part of the communication vocabulary. International phone cards, international calling cards and prepaid phone cards...you've only got to take a walk down a busy shopping precinct and you see phone card advertising everywhere. From the local newsagent to the delicatessan; you don't have to look very far to buy a phonecard.

	Sandisk 16GB MicroSDHC Memory Card Sale Price: $16.68
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	Speck SPK-A0332 CandyShell Card Phone Case for iPhone 4 (NightDrive Grey, Fits Verizon and AT&T Models) Sale Price: $24.15
	Leave your wallet at home with this convenient and ingenious iPhone 4 card case! The CandyShell Card is a protective, one-piece iPhone case that lets you stash up to three credit-card-sized cards inside its built-in rubberized slot...

	Speck SPK-A0334 CandyShell Card Phone Case for iPhone 4 (MoonSicle White, Fits Verizon and AT&T Models) Sale Price: Too low to display
	Leave your wallet at home with this convenient and ingenious iPhone 4 card case! The CandyShell Card is a protective, one-piece iPhone case that lets you stash up to three credit-card-sized cards inside its built-in rubberized slot...

	SanDisk microSDHC 8GB Card with SD Adapter (SDSDQ-8192) Sale Price: $5.14
	This SanDisk 8 GB MicroSDHC / TransFlash Card w/SD Adapter is for you to expand the memory capacity for your compatible device like cell phone, PDAs, digital camera, music players, and more cool device that is with a microSD card slot available...

AT&T Sim Card Brand New Unactivated Sale Price: $0.01

SKU #71234 - Brand New - Unused - Unactivated - Replace a lost or damaged card - Use as backup - or even with PrePaid! Retail Price at AT&T Store - $24.95! Brand New Never activated / unused / unpunched AT&T 3G 64k Sim Card - The Latest & Greatest Sim Card From AT&T! You can replace your existing AT&T sim card with this sim card, or use it to activate new service with AT&T! Use this sim card to replace your lost/damaged sim and still keep your existing phone number...

	Kingston 8 GB microSDHC Class 4 Flash Memory Card SDC4/8GB Sale Price: $7.98
	Starting at 4GB, microSDHC cards offer higher storage for more music, more videos, more pictures, more games ¿ more of everything you need in today¿s mobile world. The microSDHC card allows you to maximize today¿s revolutionary mobile devices...

	Sandisk 4GB MicroSDHC Memory Card with SD Adapter (BULK Packaging) Sale Price: $1.14
	Not all devices support microSDHC 4.0GB cards. Some devices support SD HC but NOT 4 GB in size, but only 2 GB. PLEASE CHECK BEFORE BUYING Please contact your device manufacturer for details. To ensure compatibility, look for the microSDHC logo on the product or packaging of your new phone or PDA...

	Transcend 4 GB microSDHC Class 6 Flash Memory Card TS4GUSDHC6E Sale Price: $6.99
	Transcend and Amazon.com have teamed up to offer this item in Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging, a recyclable, easy-to-open alternative to traditional packaging. A Frustration-Free Package comes without excess packaging materials such as wire ties, hard plastic "clamshell" casings, and plastic bindings...

	SanDisk 16 GB microSDHC Flash Memory Card SDSDQ-016G (Bulk Packaging) Sale Price: $15.50
	SanDisk is proud to announce our newest format and capacity to the SD card family: microSD High Capacity (microSDHC) 16GB flash card. Not all devices support microSDHC 16.0GB cards. Please contact your device manufacturer for details...

	Speck SPK-A0333 CandyShell Card Phone Case for iPhone 4, Fits Verizon and AT&T Models - 1 Pack - Retail Packaging - GrapeEscape Purple Sale Price: $24.81
	Leave your wallet at home with this convenient and ingenious iPhone 4 card case! The CandyShell Card is a protective, one-piece iPhone case that lets you stash up to three credit-card-sized cards inside its built-in rubberized slot...

Worldwide phone cards are the ideal way to stay in touch at a minimal cost with friends and family. Yes, the internet offers no cost ways to communicate with people around the world but sometimes you you just can't get computer access.

The next best alternative...worldwide phone cards!

This article is not intended to give you the many benefits of phone cards but it is more about what you should ask before buying one. Yes, phone cards are an extremely cheap way to stay in touch but you don't want to become one of the "horror statistics" and join a long list of people who have been "caught with their pants down" in the past.

Worldwide Phone Cards

So what should you ask before purchasing a phone card? The international calling card industry has really had to tighten up it's act in recent years because of some unscrupulous operators spoiling the party for many.

The successful companies have recognized how important it is to provide excellent service and are reaping the rewards by offering excellent and unprecedented benefits to consumers. Sometimes, it's not about finding the cheapest deal with phone cards but finding the company offering the best service. Here are some of the things you should look for when purchasing a card.

1. Make sure all information is disclosed up front. You are the buyer and the last thing you want is to be hit with any nasty surprises later on.

2. Avoid deals where the rates change depending on what time of the day it is. You want rates that are at a constant level 24 hours a day.

3. Ask whether the first minute or two of a call is higher than the remaining minutes of the call. If they are, ask why. Avoid these offers if possible.

4. Get all the information you can on any fees you're not aware of. Things like connection fees, maintenance fees or even sign up fees. Don't ignore these. There is nothing worse than thinking you have $10 dollars worth of calls and when you go to make a call, you suddenly discover your account is a couple of dollars lighter because of fees.

5. Worldwide phone cards are great and very convenient but what happens when something goes wrong? This is actually the first thing I look at when buying a card... the company's customer service. Best case scenario, you want to be able to contact a customer service rep 24/7.

6. Ask what you card's expiration date is or if it has an expiration date. Again, this is important and should not be overlooked.

	Sandisk 16GB MicroSDHC Memory Card Sale Price: $16.68
	SanDisk is proud to announce our newest format and capacity to the SD card family: microSD High Capacity (microSDHC) 16GB flash card. Not all devices support microSDHC 16.0GB cards. Please contact your device manufacturer for details...

	Speck SPK-A0332 CandyShell Card Phone Case for iPhone 4 (NightDrive Grey, Fits Verizon and AT&T Models) Sale Price: $24.15
	Leave your wallet at home with this convenient and ingenious iPhone 4 card case! The CandyShell Card is a protective, one-piece iPhone case that lets you stash up to three credit-card-sized cards inside its built-in rubberized slot...

	Speck SPK-A0334 CandyShell Card Phone Case for iPhone 4 (MoonSicle White, Fits Verizon and AT&T Models) Sale Price: Too low to display
	Leave your wallet at home with this convenient and ingenious iPhone 4 card case! The CandyShell Card is a protective, one-piece iPhone case that lets you stash up to three credit-card-sized cards inside its built-in rubberized slot...

	SanDisk microSDHC 8GB Card with SD Adapter (SDSDQ-8192) Sale Price: $5.14
	This SanDisk 8 GB MicroSDHC / TransFlash Card w/SD Adapter is for you to expand the memory capacity for your compatible device like cell phone, PDAs, digital camera, music players, and more cool device that is with a microSD card slot available...

AT&T Sim Card Brand New Unactivated Sale Price: $0.01

SKU #71234 - Brand New - Unused - Unactivated - Replace a lost or damaged card - Use as backup - or even with PrePaid! Retail Price at AT&T Store - $24.95! Brand New Never activated / unused / unpunched AT&T 3G 64k Sim Card - The Latest & Greatest Sim Card From AT&T! You can replace your existing AT&T sim card with this sim card, or use it to activate new service with AT&T! Use this sim card to replace your lost/damaged sim and still keep your existing phone number...

	Kingston 8 GB microSDHC Class 4 Flash Memory Card SDC4/8GB Sale Price: $7.98
	Starting at 4GB, microSDHC cards offer higher storage for more music, more videos, more pictures, more games ¿ more of everything you need in today¿s mobile world. The microSDHC card allows you to maximize today¿s revolutionary mobile devices...

	Sandisk 4GB MicroSDHC Memory Card with SD Adapter (BULK Packaging) Sale Price: $1.14
	Not all devices support microSDHC 4.0GB cards. Some devices support SD HC but NOT 4 GB in size, but only 2 GB. PLEASE CHECK BEFORE BUYING Please contact your device manufacturer for details. To ensure compatibility, look for the microSDHC logo on the product or packaging of your new phone or PDA...

	Transcend 4 GB microSDHC Class 6 Flash Memory Card TS4GUSDHC6E Sale Price: $6.99
	Transcend and Amazon.com have teamed up to offer this item in Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging, a recyclable, easy-to-open alternative to traditional packaging. A Frustration-Free Package comes without excess packaging materials such as wire ties, hard plastic "clamshell" casings, and plastic bindings...

	SanDisk 16 GB microSDHC Flash Memory Card SDSDQ-016G (Bulk Packaging) Sale Price: $15.50
	SanDisk is proud to announce our newest format and capacity to the SD card family: microSD High Capacity (microSDHC) 16GB flash card. Not all devices support microSDHC 16.0GB cards. Please contact your device manufacturer for details...

	Speck SPK-A0333 CandyShell Card Phone Case for iPhone 4, Fits Verizon and AT&T Models - 1 Pack - Retail Packaging - GrapeEscape Purple Sale Price: $24.81
	Leave your wallet at home with this convenient and ingenious iPhone 4 card case! The CandyShell Card is a protective, one-piece iPhone case that lets you stash up to three credit-card-sized cards inside its built-in rubberized slot...

Choosing an online phone card can be a confusing experience for a new time user. There are so many choices to make but making the right choice involves a process of due diligence and elimination.

The reason you'll shop for an online phone card is to take advantage of the cheaper call rates and for those with friends and family overseas, phone cards provide a great opportunity to spend more time chatting to the people most important in your lives.

Selecting An Online Phone Card

When I select an online phone card, I perform a checklist of requirements before deciding on the right card for my situation. Here are some questions you'll need to ask yourself:

#1. What is the per minute cost of calls to my destination of choice? Surprisingly, I didn't choose the cheapest option out there simply because there were too many grey areas present. Sometimes cheapest isn't best and in the end, the choice you make may be a combination of things.

#2. Will the rates vary or stay constant? Are there any hidden fees? This was important. I preferred to select a card that offered constant rates and the opportunity of earning bonus minutes in relation to how often I used the card. The last thing I needed were unwelcome surprises. Another factor I considered was the charge of connection and maintenance fees. I wanted a straight out rate and this is one area you will need be clear about when choosing your online phone card.

#3. Placing more than one call without re-entering the pin? This wasn't a major factor in my overall decision however, I liked the idea of not going through the entire process of re-dialling lengthy pin numbers if I happened to be disconnected. This could occur by several means but one of the most common is flat phone batteries. This is an option to consider but more a preferred choice.

#4. Customer service... could I contact my phone card company if a problem arose? In the end, this was the one requirement I placed the most emphasis on. Even though they weren't the cheapest, their level of customer service was fantastic and for the sake of a few cents for every hour I spent on the phone, it was well worth it. I recently put the customer service factor to the test when I required a copy of my phone records for a 12 month period. They reciprocated with a full copy within three days. It was no trouble at all. I couldn't have asked for any more.

As a money saver on phone calls, an online phone card is just the ticket. One thing I found was that the cheapest phone card on the market wasn't necessarily the best option. In fact, my card was a little more expensive than most but what I had was a reliable provider who I have developed a good relationship with. They are no "fly by nighters" which has been a problem in this industry and if I "struck a hurdle" I was always satisfied in the knowledge I could pick up the phone and speak to a customer service representative and have my issue resolved quick smart. To me, that's worth the extra I pay for my online phone card.