There was a time when communication was expensive. If you wanted to talk to people the other side of the world, you’d have to pay massive fees for the privilege. Now, with the advent of modern technology, there are loads of ways that you can chat to people. Keeping in touch with friends and relatives across the globe has never been easier. As long as you have a tablet, laptop or smartphone, you have access to a whole host of technology. Here is a simple guide to free communication.
Free messaging: WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger
If you were to send text messages to people in a different country, you would find yourself with a massive phone bill at the end of the month. When you go on vacation, but want to stay in touch with your friends and family, you should avoid texting them. Texts are cheap when you are in the same country as your phone provider, but once you start traveling, they increase in price. People tend to think that sending a text will be cheaper than making a phone call abroad. In fact, sending a text is much more expensive than a minute-long phone call.
Download WhatsApp to your smartphone or iPhone so that you can message people for free. If you have Facebook, you can also download the Facebook Messenger app to talk to your Facebook friends on the go. Beware of hidden charges. If you use too much internet while you are abroad, it will cost you a lot of money. The best way to send free messages is to ensure that you connect to a free WiFi provider. That way, you are not using any of your mobile data.
Free video calls: Skype vs. FaceTime
If you long to see someone’s face, there are two main ways to do so. If you love Apple products, you should use FaceTime. The app comes as standard on all modern Apple systems. It allows you to talk to anybody in the world who has an Apple gadget. The main drawback of the app is that people with Windows or Android technology can’t download the app. That means that you will need a different piece of software to talk to people who don’t have Apple products.
Skype is much better than FaceTime, because everybody can use it. Using your Skype login, you can connect with anybody in the world. You can buy credit to call phone lines from your Skype account, but there is no need to. Instead, make sure that all your friends and family download the app. The app itself is free, and so you should have no issue getting people to download it. When everyone you know has the app, you can all communicate free of charge.
Free calls: Viber
If you just want to make audio calls, you should consider using Viber. This app is easy to use and uses fewer data than similar apps. Many people use the app as they would WhatsApp and just message people through the system. You can also use the app to make direct phone calls to other people. The phone calls use the internet, and so you should ensure that you connect to a strong WiFi before you make a call. All communication through Viber is free, and so it is a cheap way to talk to people. If you don’t have a smartphone, you can get Viber for your tablet and use that as a communication device. Viber is available on iOS, Windows and Android, and so everybody can download it. Recently, the Viber developers have branched out and made the app available on PCs and Macs too.