Free text message from the US to RP?

[Juliet and Steve 93]

My Juliet is visiting relatives in an area where there is no cell phone service so we can't talk.

She occasionally visits her brother who is high enough "on the mountain" to obtain a signal so I can text her but oddly my cost for an international text is pretty stiff.

I saw http://www.chikka.com/ which offers free texting to and from RP

Has anyone used this? Good site...bad?

Any sugggestions?

Thanks

[sweetlymystic 19]

My Juliet is visiting relatives in an area where there is no cell phone service so we can't talk.

She occasionally visits her brother who is high enough "on the mountain" to obtain a signal so I can text her but oddly my cost for an international text is pretty stiff.

I saw http://www.chikka.com/ which offers free texting to and from RP

Has anyone used this? Good site...bad?

Any sugggestions?

Thanks

try installing whatsapp..works with 3g or more..works well if you have signal

[reelss 4]

if you both have smartphones, whatsapp, viber and skype are options. Viber and skype are free and even let you make free phone calls over cellular network or wifi.

An added advantage is you can extract the message history and provide it at the time of the interview to prove your marital relationship.

[Dirk 30]

we have been doing sms text via yahoo messenger for months now via cell phones. It has been free on both ends. just a word of caution, that during peak holidays, networks are really slow in the villages due to everyone being home. That is the only issue we have had.

I have also read that SMART offers a text package for OSW's that you can add 4 phones and unlimtied text to each for around $5 a month. The key is finding a SMART SIM card in the US.

[Hank_ 9,173]

Be nice to hear from those in the Phils that may be using chikka, curious how it works myself.

[Hank_ 9,173]

Was doing a little reading on the chikka site, it appears its free to send messages to the Philippines but for someone in the Phils to reply there is a charge. The rate seems to vary slightly between Globe, Sun and Smart.

[dale_trisha 3]

Chikka is what Trish and I used when she was there and it worked fine. There is a small charge for her by its very small compared to the SMS between a Phil and US Phone. chikka also works nice on PC to PC/Smartphone/tablet device and if your on wifi it is then free. the only real catch we got was that if she did not text by perhaps the 6-10 txt I sent that was unaswered she would not get any until she did. She will be in Phil for 4 months this winter and we will be using it again. She also uses it all the time from the US now to her family in Phiil.

[CatSam 0]

Chukka is nice but whatsapp,viber,BBM,etc way better since Juliet needs to go to his brother's place to get a good signal I guess those apps r not good for her yeah, you can use chikka you can send her free text but if she will reply here are the rates:

Billing and Charging

How much will I get charged if I use Chikka?

Nothing, it's free! Sending Chikka messages from your PC or any supported online device to mobile phones in the Philippines is always free.

How much will my friend be charged if he receives my Chikka message?

It is always free to receive messages sent via Chikka.

How much will my friend get charged if he replies?

There are several plans available to mobile recipients when they reply to a Chikka Message.

Globe

Bucket plan for P5/10 messages valid for 1 day. Text 5 to 2814.

Regular Rate — P2.50 per message.

Sun

Bucket plan for P5/10 messages valid for 1 day. Text 5 to 2814.

Regular Rate — P2.00 per message

Smart

Regular Rate — P2.50 per message

***2.50/41 = $6cents?

[ReiSea 1]

It's been a while since I used chikka but I used to use it to send text messages to my family in the Philippines when I was in South Korea. It worked quite well although there would be delays in receiving messages sometimes. Also, after sending them several messages, they have to reply at some point or else I won't be able to send them more. I guess it's to make sure that you are not sending spam messages. And yes, as Hank said there is a fee when they reply to your chikka message, the last time I used it, it was I think 2.50 pesos per reply/message for Smart subscribers. I'm not sure how much it is now though.

[Samuel and Marvic 4]

Chikka is not the best, but it at least allows you to be able to send texts to Smart and Globe with decent turnaround time. I used to use Pinger, but they discontinued the free texting for the Philippines. The good news about it though is since it is a PI number, the rates for responding are comparable to any other local number (you have a number assigned to you when you sign up).

One caveat I have towards Chikka is that unless you refresh the application fairly consistently, it will in fact disconnect from the network and any messages sent to that number for you will be lost in the ether (happens every 15 minutes it seems :/).

[Artisan 138]

I pay an extra $5 a month with T-Mobile to get unlimited International SMS. My wife sent me a SMART SIM that has roaming activated and I use that in a spare phone. She can text me on my spare phone using a local number and I can text her in return for next to nothing. Definitely well worth the inconvenience of carrying two phones.

[cardilene 26]

If you have an Apple or an Android product,

install VIBER or CHIKKA, both are really really reliable

I use Viber for voice calls as well,...

But it is reliant still to a WiFi or a good service provider,...

Good luck,...

[We Are The Art 46]

Try Pinger.com We've been using it free for over a year with no probs. (I tried to insert a link but the posting editor isn't working)

Enjoy!

[piglett 16]

Be nice to hear from those in the Phils that may be using chikka, curious how it works myself.

it works great

my wife who is now in the U.S. with me still texts her brother & sister in the PI. with chikka

best of all IT'S FREE !!!

good luck

piglett

[piglett 16]

One caveat I have towards Chikka is that unless you refresh the application fairly consistently, it will in fact disconnect from the network and any messages sent to that number for you will be lost in the ether (happens every 15 minutes it seems :/).

i used it almost every day for 3 years when my wife was still in Manila

it was very rare for us to not get a message from one another

not saying it never happened buy was rare. not sure why you had trouble with it

could it be your ISP?? i was on verizon at the time with one of those little "sticks" that goes in a laptop