Singapore Calling Cards - SingTel Prepaid Mobile

MMS and Surfing Data : Access Points

2009-03-15T07:52:00.000-07:00

SingTel supports only local data usage and MMS for her prepaid hi-card.

SingTel Prepaid hi-card Setup
1. Dial *IDEAS (or *43327). You will receive an SMS. Following the instructions and provide your mobile phone model to get the settings for installation from SingTel.

2. You can otherwise try to set your own Access Point settings
APN: hicard , Username: 65IDEAS, Bearer: Packet Data or GPRS

SingTel Prepaid Data Charges

Pay Per Use (per KB	Access Rate (Exclusive of GST)	Access Rate (Inclusive of GST)
2G Prepaid Data – Local	$0.0050	$0.0054

MMS Charges

Image Size	hi!Card to S'pore Mobile Numbers	hi!Card Global MMS to Overseas
0-5 kb	11 cents	20 cents
>5-30 kb	33 cents	60 cents
>30-100 kb	86 cents	$1.00
>100-300 kb	86 cents*	$1.00*

*Promotional rates - see main site

Prepaid Top-Up Cards

2009-03-15T07:15:00.000-07:00

To top up your SingTel hi card, you can choose from

1. BonuS$30 - Pay a face-value of S$15 to receive S$30 value

2. Hot$128 - Pay a face-value of S$28 to receive S$128 value. The S$128 is split into two accounts - one with a S$100 value for local calls and SMS; the second with a S$28 value for IDD calls and global SMS.

3. General prepaid top-up cards - with face values starting at $10, $15, $20, $25 and so on. These you might only find at SingTel stores and authorized dealers.

4. Payphone - Add S$2 only at any SingTel payphone. Just add 10 cents first to start a call and you see an option with "Easy Top-up" on the display screen. Press the button and follow the instructions.

Top-up hi-card steps

1. Just dial 9676-7777 (toll-free) on your mobile phone

2. Select option 2 .

3. Enter the 10-digit Card number on the back of your Top-Up Card, followed by
the "#" key.

4. Enter your 6-digit PIN (you need to scratch off the panel from the back),
followed by the "#" key.

SingTel Prepaid Card - Sheng Siong Promotion

2009-03-14T07:33:00.000-07:00

Exchange limited edition promotion top-up cards: Super Hot$128, Bonus $30 or $20 Top-Up Card for free goodies at Sheng Siong (supermarket) outlets:

1 card - Pepsi Twist 330ml x 3
2 cards - Jacob's Cream Cracker 445g x 1
3 cards - Royal Golden Grain Premium Fragrant Rice 1kg x 2

Redemption is only applicable to special edition SingTel Prepaid Mobile Super Hot$128, Bonus $30 and $20 Top-Up Card pasted with the promotion sticker.

Promotion valid till 31st March 2009.

Terms & conditions apply.

Sheng Siong outlets:
Ang Mo Kio (Blk 122 #01-1753/1755 Ang Mo Kio Ave 3/ Blk 233 #01-1168 Ang Mo Kio Ave 3) • Bedok North (Blk 539A #01-477 Bedok North St. 3) • Bedok Reservoir (Blk 739A #01-01 Bedok Reservoir Road) • Clementi (Blk 720 #01-144 Clementi West St. 2) • Chin Swee Road (Blk 52 #01-25 Chin Swee Road) • Yuan Ching (3 Yuan Ching Road #01-01A/02) • Jurong West (Blk 544 #01-97-#01-99 Jurong West St. 42) • Katong (57 Tanjung Katong Road) • Loyang Point (Blk 258 #01-333 Pasir Ris St. 21) • Mc Nair (Blk 108 #01-295 McNair Road) • Serangoon (19 Serangoon North Ave 5) • Teban (Blk 61 #01-21 Teban Garden Road) • Ten Mile Junction (No 1 Woodlands Road #01-08 Ten Mile Junction) • Tekka Mall (No 2 Serangoon Road #02-26 Tekka Mall) • Woodlands Check Point (Blk 6A #01-280 Woodlands Centre Road) • Marsilling (Blk 301 #01-217 Woodlands St. 31) • Bedok Center (Blk209 #01-631/#02-631 New Upper Changi Road) • Jalan Bahar (9 Jurong West Ave 5 #01-09) • Commonwealth (Blk 88 #01-10 Tanglin Halt Road).

SingTel Prepaid Card - Roaming Overseas

2009-03-14T06:28:00.000-07:00

The question you may have is whether roaming is supported? Yes! you can use the prepaid card overseas. What's more there's no additional charges to let you use it overseas, and by this, I mean no roaming subscription costs.

Roaming Coverage
You can pretty much enjoy roaming using SingTel prepaid card in any country (I haven't done the count but I put it above 120 destinations)

How do I make and receive calls and SMS?
Sending and receiving SMS is very much the same experience you have while using it in Singapore. So is it for receiving calls - you just answer it.

But outgoing calls is made using a call back service. To put it simply, you need to know how to dial properly.

You need to dial according to this format - *131*(country code)(phone number)#. The starting string (*131*) and the ending character "#" is important. So is the country code and mobile number of your friend you are calling. One problem you may have is all your numbers are in the phonebook. Some steps you can try to make this easier
a. make use of the SIM tool kit option. Using a Nokia N98, I can access this via Menu->Tools->SingTel Menu->Prepaid GD121. This should rightfully allow you to pick up a phonebook contact and help add in the dialing codes ... though I couldn't get it working.

b. dial out using a phonebook contact and stopping it. This should come out as an entry on your dialled numbers list which you should be able to edit and add in the format.

c. rely on your good memory =) You need to remember the number to dial (country code as well) + the *131* code.

Minimal Balance to maintain while roaming
Keep at least S$8 if you want to use it.

Checking Account Balance
Dial *133# to know how much more you have left.

This pretty much sums up the key parts you should know to get you started.

Simplified Call and SMS charges

2009-03-12T11:27:00.000-07:00

I think many people have difficulty piecing the prepaid call and sms charges. Hope this summary helps! Always check back with SingTel's website for updated charges.

When in Singapore
a. Local call charge (calling Singapore numbers)
16 cents per minute (Monday to Friday, 8am to 7.59pm) or 8 cents per minute otherwise
calls are charged by the 1st minute, then later by 30 seconds blocks.

b. Local SMS charge (sending to Singapore numbers) - flat rate of 5 cents per SMS

c. MMS charge

Image Size	hi!Card to S'pore Mobile Numbers	hi!Card Global MMS to Overseas
0-5 kb	11 cents	20 cents
>5-30 kb	33 cents	60 cents
>30-100 kb	86 cents	$1.00
>100-300 kb	86 cents*	$1.00*

*Promotional rates - see main site

d. Data

Pay Per Use (per KB	Data Access Rate (Exclusive of GST)	Data Access Rate (Inclusive of GST)
2G Prepaid Data – Local	$0.0050	$0.0054

e. Global SMS charge (sending to international numbers) - flat rate of 15 cents per SMS.
*Global SMS to users of Telkomsel's prepaid card (simPATI) is 5 cents only.

f. International IDD calls (if you dial using the format - 001(country code)(area code)(phone))
001 is SingTel's premium IDD service
Call charge = Local call charge + SingTel 001 IDD charge
Charging blocks
Local call - 1st minute, then later by 30 seconds
001 IDD - 6 seconds charging block

g. International IDD calls (if you dial using the format - 019(country code)(area code)(phone))
019 is SingTel's low cost IDD service
Call charge = Local call charge + SingTel v019 IDD charge
Charging blocks
Local call - 1st minute, then later by 30 seconds
v019 IDD - per minute charging block
***!!!! Important!!!! v019 is a cheap choice especially since it is FREE for many popular destinations. That means you pay only local call charges. See their promo here

h. Receiving incoming calls (from local or overseas numbers)
You only pay the local call charge.
*Tip* - try activating the hi-card free incoming call subscription. Read my post on SingTel Prepaid Card - Optional Free incoming Call

i. Receiving SMS & MMS is Free

When Overseas
a. Sending SMS to anywhere
if you are in Malaysia - $1.00
if you are elsewhere - $1.50

b. Calling to Singapore numbers (you use the call back service by dialing - *131*(country code)(area code)(phone)#) . Remember the "#" at the back.
if you are in Malaysia - $1.50 +$0.50(setup fee)
other zonal rates range between $2.00 - $6.00 +$0.50(setup fee). See here
Charging blocks
Calling Singapore - per minute block

c. Calling to other countries (follow the same pattern above)
if you are in Malaysia - $2.00 +$0.50(setup fee)
other zonal rates range between $2.50 - $7.50 +$0.50(setup fee). See here
Charging blocks
Calling other countries - per minute block

d. Receiving calls from anywhere
if you are in Malaysia - $1.50
other zonal rates range between $2.00 - $6.00. See here
Charging blocks
Receiving calls - per minute block

SingTel Prepaid Card - User Guide Overview

2009-03-11T06:22:00.000-07:00

There's so much more you might want to know about the prepaid service and how it works. Here's a quick look and later you can visit the actual site for more. The link is below.

How to use the card (activation)
When you first buy your SingTel prepaid hi card, you need to dial the toll-free IVR (interactive voice response) at 96767777. This will activate your line. If you are overseas, you should dial *130#. Remember this difference as roaming charges will apply if you try to call to activate your hi card.

To re-cap
in Singapore - dial 96767777
overseas - dial *130#

Check account balance
in Singapore - dial 96767777 (toll-free)
overseas - dial *133# (This allows you to check your balance for free even while roaming)

Setting up MMS (Multi-media Message Service)
dial *IDEAS (or *43327). You will receive an SMS which you should reply with your handset model to receive the MMS settings to install.

You can visit the actual SingTel Prepaid site for miscellaneous parts which I'm skipping, for e.g.
how to activate or deactivate supplementary services such as call forwarding etc

Enjoy reading! =)

SingTel Prepaid Card - Optional Free Incoming Calls

2009-03-11T06:08:00.000-07:00

You can optionally, subscribe to a daily free incoming call (FIC) plan to talk all you want.

In a nutshell, how this will work for you. After getting the SIM card, you need to do the following
a. dial *130# on your mobile. This is a short code that activates your daily FIC plan.
b. expect to be charged a flat-rate of S$0.60 per day to enjoy the plan. This charge is taken off your main prepaid account balance - if you have just gotten the S$8 hi-card, you should have S$10 in the main account (I will get around to explaining the account balance part soon)
c. if you terminate the service, its going to cost you S$1.50 to stop it.
*rates may change so do check first.

So should you take advantage of the FIC plan?
Well, if you are expecting to receive at least 8 mins worth of voice calls per day based on current rates, you should have recovered your FIC plan. (if you forgotten the rates, go to my post on How much does it cost to buy a SingTel prepaid SIM card)

Free Outgoing Calls Promotion - Ends 30 April 09

2009-03-10T08:47:00.000-07:00

Till 30 April, for every 4 minutes of outgoing call you make, the 5th to 8th minute is free to you.

Unfortunately, the free 4 minutes only happens once per call. If you are interested, check out the details of the SingTel prepaid promotion.

Promo ends 30 April - Free 10 mins V019 IDD to select destinations

2009-03-08T08:27:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the late update here. This free IDD promotions ends 30 April 2009.

What you should know is that the rates below apply to hicard users
a. FREE V019 IDD to the entire call applies only to countries such as Brunei, Canada, Hong Kong, Puerto Rico, South Korea, USA. You only pay for local airtime.

b. this partial free V019 IDD promotion will give you a free 10 min IDD block after you used 8 minutes. For example, you make a phone call to China - the first 8 minutes you pay the current V019 IDD rates + local airtime, but from the 9th minute to the 18th minute, you only pay for local airtime.

The countries under this promotion include - China / Malaysia / Philippines* / Thailand / Indonesia*. For T&Cs of the promo, check out the details here.

International call rates (calling anywhere else when you are in Singapore)

2009-03-06T10:55:00.000-08:00

Using SingTel IDD 001
You can make an international call easily on your prepaid number by dialing in the following formats: +(country code)(area code)(number) or 001(country code)(area code)(number)

Charges are made up of two parts - International IDD + Airtime (see above for local call rates)
To check -> SingTel's 001 international IDD rate.
IDD 001 starts charging by 6 seconds block.
Using SingTel v019
This offers cheap IDD to any destination compared to the premium 001 IDD service.

To call, you can dial: 019(country code)(area code)(number)

Charges are made up of two parts - v019 IDD + Airtime (see above for local call rates)
To check -> SingTel's v019 international IDD rate .
v019 starts charging by the 1st minute, followed by 6 seconds blocks

*Promotions for v019 for SingTel prepaid hi-card users !!!!
The v019 IDD rate is FREE - yes, no need to pay for promotional destinations for prepaid only. These destinations include Bangladesh, Brunei, Canada, China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Thailand & USA. The local airtime is still chargeable. Prepaid Promo details.

How much does it cost to buy a prepaid SIM?

2009-03-06T10:54:00.000-08:00

How much does it cost to buy?
You can start with a S$8 hi-card which comes with a S$10 value. This should work with any phone comfortably. While SingTel only has 2G service today (correct as of 7 March 2009), it should not affect you much - I hope.

Buying one should not be too difficult, you should get one at convenience stores like 7-Elevens, Cheers, money/ currency exchangers, mobile phone stores etc.

Prices can start at $8, $18 or $28.

What are the basic charges?
You can use calls and SMS at the following rates
a. Local calls (calling Singapore numbers) - 16 cents per minute (Monday to Friday, 8am to 7.59pm) or 8 cents per minute otherwise
calls are charged by the 1st minute, then later by 30 seconds blocks.

b. Local SMS (sending to Singapore numbers) - flat rate of 5 cents per SMS
c. Global SMS (sending to international numbers) - flat rate of 15 cents per SMS.
*Global SMS to users of Telkomsel's prepaid card (simPATI) is 5 cents only.

d. You can use it for data or WAP surfing. See my other post

For more charges, see my post to get a better picture of what you should know.

SingTel Prepaid Hi-Card - How to register and use

2009-03-06T10:07:00.000-08:00

Using a prepaid card has significant benefits not only for the lower calling rates, but offers peace-of-mind when you use it - you determine how much you use and keep to your budget =)

How to register and what registration details are needed?
1. Go down to any shop where it says SingTel authorized reseller, SingTel's own hello! stores, Cheers convenience stores, 7-Eleven. You can also find them at any shops displaying posters like

2. Show your passport (foreigners/ tourists) or NRIC (Singapore Citizen/ PR). Your details would be scanned and submitted - part of the national movement to manage the use of prepaid cards. It should be relatively painless.

3. With each passport or NRIC, you can register a maximum of 10 lines.

4. Select your lucky mobile number and you are all set to go!

*The registration process is the same be it for Starhub or M1 prepaid cards.