Goldhead said:

I don't get it. Why would you use a phone card from you SO phone? Maybe for very short long distance phone calls, but there's no need to buy a $5 phone card if you're making a 2 minute phone call....
I mean, you might get 2c/minute from your phone card, but you will be charged 25c/minute for calling the toll free/local number, right?
Toll free is not free from a SO cell phone, right?
You're better off using a payphone.... or just dial your long distance directly from your SO phone...
How much is it anyway for LD. Like 40c/minute for Canada? EDIT: Never mind, I just found out that it is 45c/m LD, which is not bad for emergency LD short calls.

There are several reasons why I would use a phone card (or prepaid service like JustDial).
1. No matter where I am across Canada, I just call the toll-free number, and wouldn't have to pay long distance charges.
2. You said it would be better using a payphone? The problem with payphones, is that they are becoming less common. If you are traveling in an unfamiliar area late at night and your car breaks down down some country road (as my car has done), I'm so glad I had my cell, and didn't have to find a payphone. Being in an unfamiliar town as well, one wouldn't even know where the payphones are at all. At least in my area, calls from payphones are now $0.50.

iamdrumming said:

I use JustDial.ca with my SpeakOut phone. All I do is call the toll-free number, then the number I want, and I'm connected.

I use JustDial also, but if you are travelling outside your SpeakOut regular calling area AND use JustDial you are screwing yourself! I live in Lethbridge and was recently in Edmonton and paid a LD fee to SpeakOut for making a local call. So, Using JustDial would mean you pay:

1) Your regular air time.
2) Your SpeakOut long distance charge, and
3) Your JustDial long distance charge!

The same applies to Calling Cards--and in this case you run the risk of paying an additional "Connect" charge.

What on earth has happened? Twenty years ago Canada had (almost) the cheapest telephone charges, now we have the world's (almost) most expensive cell phone charges?

I suspect that when we loaded up the CRTC with lawyers/journalists and schoolteachers -- fine people, who often have little hard-nosed business experience -- the big guys led them by the nose and got them to agree to our outrageous charges!

A calling card *only* makes sense when you're calling long distance from your phone's home area code. You will still be charged SpeakOut's local calling rate in addition to the calling card fee. Read the fine print on those cards carefully - some have a call connection fee of $1 or more.