Canada wide talk

[joannjules]

Hi everyone!  This might be a silly question, but what exactly does 'Canada wide talk' mean?  I had assumed it referred to long distance only but the past two months I've gotten a text saying that I'm x minutes away from using up the 50 minutes included in the $10 plan.  Are local calls counted in under 'Canada wide talk'?  It boggles my mind that they would be so here I am...asking the question, lol.  Thanks in advance!!

[CalgaryBen]

@Lieux wrote:

@CalgaryBen I did some test too but the  the minutes used /50 is updated in real-time, was not right with my test...it was several minutes later that I can see the details of my calls... so let us know...

Results of my tests still hold -- 4 hours later, my minute consumption remains unchanged from toll-free tests.  Meanwhile, to make sure the counter is in fact real-time, I just made another local call, and indeed see 1 minute get used.

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@CalgaryBen wrote:

So, while unofficial, my test results suggest that toll-free numbers (one 1-866 in Canada, the other 1-888 in US) don't consume minutes on metered plans!  YMMV, as they say...

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And really...while there might be some official statement...you'd think toll-free would be exactly that.

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Actually, I wasn't expecting the results I observed!  I was pleasantly surprised.  I intuitively felt it would consume minutes (while I can't definitively say this was or wasn't my experience in the past on other carriers).  This exposes some potential exploits/abuse, but I won't go further into that... I'd just call it a nice perk to choosing PM. 

[computergeek541]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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So, while unofficial, my test results suggest that toll-free numbers (one 1-866 in Canada, the other 1-888 in US) don't consume minutes on metered plans!  YMMV, as they say...

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And really...while there might be some official statement...you'd think toll-free would be exactly that.

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When calling from a cell phone, toll free is only supposed to mean that there is no long distance charge.  It is not supposed to mean anything other that, and it doesn't mean that airtime doesn't get used up.  I know that here are some strange things that happen in the Public Mobile universe, but other cell phone carriers have always charged aritime minutes (on minute limited plans) for making toll free calls. 

[computergeek541]

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@Lieux wrote:

@CalgaryBen I did some test too but the  the minutes used /50 is updated in real-time, was not right with my test...it was several minutes later that I can see the details of my calls... so let us know...

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All partially used minutes are rounded up.  In addition, the ring time for calls that are eventually answered count towards the total.

[sunflowershine]

Hi, any calls are counted as per minute incremental. You can think about download a free app to call and texts in North America for free. I am using TextNow and have my own number. Seems pretty good as long as you have wifi. 

[srlawren]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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you'd think toll-free would be exactly that.

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@Anonymous not necssarily.  Toll-free means no long distance charges, not no airtime charges.  

[Anonymous]

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@CalgaryBen wrote:

@computergeek541 wrote:

Officially, all calls count towards your 50 minutes of plan usage, including calls to toll-free numbers.

Being curious about this statement, I had to try.  Checked my minute usage using the Self-Serve portal for a phone with $10 plan, and dialed the first 1-8xx number I could find (on the back of a Cdn credit card), and stayed on the call for 20 seconds.  Disconnected and checked my minute usage on the phone.  It didn't change!  I then decided to try a US toll-free (found the Las Vegas Bellagio booking line and called it, went through some prompts, then hung up).  Checked Self-Serve portal, and minutes remained unchanged!  In my experience, the minutes used /50 is updated in real-time, so I take it to be an accurate indicator.  I also checked in Usage History to make sure calls were there -- and they were.

So, while unofficial, my test results suggest that toll-free numbers (one 1-866 in Canada, the other 1-888 in US) don't consume minutes on metered plans!  YMMV, as they say...

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And really...while there might be some official statement...you'd think toll-free would be exactly that.

[stonechucker]

@joannjules, unfortunately for consumers and subscribers, Public Mobile does not include local calls at no cost.  Province wide exists for whatever province you connect to a tower in, for any phone number in that province, no matter which province your number is from.

As mentioned earlier, Canada wide is any province, to any other province or the same province.

What would be considered a local call in Ottawa to  Gatineau will not complete on a Province wide plan, but will on a Canada wide plan.

i personally think all carriers should include those local calling area calls, but Public Mobile does not.

[Lieux]

@CalgaryBen I did some test too but the  the minutes used /50 is updated in real-time, was not right with my test...it was several minutes later that I can see the details of my calls... so let us know...

[CalgaryBen]

@computergeek541 wrote:

Officially, all calls count towards your 50 minutes of plan usage, including calls to toll-free numbers.

Being curious about this statement, I had to try.  Checked my minute usage using the Self-Serve portal for a phone with $10 plan, and dialed the first 1-8xx number I could find (on the back of a Cdn credit card), and stayed on the call for 20 seconds.  Disconnected and checked my minute usage on the phone.  It didn't change!  I then decided to try a US toll-free (found the Las Vegas Bellagio booking line and called it, went through some prompts, then hung up).  Checked Self-Serve portal, and minutes remained unchanged!  In my experience, the minutes used /50 is updated in real-time, so I take it to be an accurate indicator.  I also checked in Usage History to make sure calls were there -- and they were.

So, while unofficial, my test results suggest that toll-free numbers (one 1-866 in Canada, the other 1-888 in US) don't consume minutes on metered plans!  YMMV, as they say...

[srlawren]

@joannjules did you see unlimited local calling anywhere in the plan description?  Honestly, expecting unlimited anything for $10 is probably not a realistic expectation.  You assumed that the plan included local calls, but didn't validate that assumption.  

You might want to check out this knowledge base article: https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Knowledge-Base/Plans-amp-Add-Ons/ta-p/250167.  Do a find-in-page for the text "How ‘Limited’ Talk and Text Plans Work" and have a read.

[Lieux]

No silly question here @joannjules.!!!! You can ask what you want....except a poutine right away!!!!!

[computergeek541]

Officially, all calls count towards your 50 minutes of plan usage, including calls to toll-free numbers.  Why wouldn't a local call use up any of your 50 minutes? 

[mh1983]

You can make outgoing calls to any province in Canada (so long as you're in Canada), but you're limited by the included minutes. To get unlimited Canada wide, you'd have to go w/ the $30 plan as a minimum. Otherwise, you have to "augment" your existing plan with a talk add on.

[Anonymous · Accepted solution]

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@joannjules wrote:

Hi everyone!  This might be a silly question, but what exactly does 'Canada wide talk' mean?  I had assumed it referred to long distance only but the past two months I've gotten a text saying that I'm x minutes away from using up the 50 minutes included in the $10 plan.  Are local calls counted in under 'Canada wide talk'?  It boggles my mind that they would be so here I am...asking the question, lol.  Thanks in advance!!

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All calls in or out count as minutes with the $10 plan.