With me and one son here and mom, sisters and two sons there, we love it!!! Actually, I don't have a camera, as it's one of the things that I always mean to get around to buying but never do, but the setup is grand, and DG uses it all the time with her son who is now in Hawaii. She's the computer tech person in the family. I remember being here for a year when there was only snail mail, and all letters were two weeks out of date, and some got lost, although the ones I have saved are dear and precious. But cyberspace has allowed me to stay in touch with my sons and family in a way I never imagined, and without it I would be fairly bereft. As one who reads endless amounts of science fiction, I am only too aware that today's sf is tomorrow's science, and for me, the communication universe is a miracle. Phone rates are way down, too, so calling and chatting is nowhere near the money it once was, and I talk to the States 2-3 times a month. Easy, cheap and wonderful! Batya

I'll be turning the whole phone off so it won't be updating all day. As far as I can tell from reading cruise site information, I could turn the phone on Airplane mode and turn on the wifi mode when on the ship (with their minutes). It suggests if I take a while to "ponder" a text, that the wi fi and roaming should be turned off so the phone doesn't start updating again. I asked for the phone # from skype a couple days ago so I'm not clear on how much data time it uses or what other charges are incurred. Talking on the phone sounds better than texting if the data charges aren't too high. Need to investigate that. Facebook would be a good way to see updates on the teenagers.

We have one ISP (Charter High Speed Cable) for all computers and a wireless router. We've never seen any kind of loss of quality because of it. We just got a guaranteed rate of $30 a month for the next 2 years by making the 2 year commitment - I'm sure other ISPs have similar offers. We used to pay $50/month for our landline (Qwest) and $60/month for one cellphone (Verizon) $1320/year We now pay $60/year for our "landline" and $200/year for 2 cellphones instead of 1 - not counting the initial purchase of the phones for $30 each. A significant savings! ------CUT YOUR LANDLINE PHONE COST----- NOTE: You cannot use Skype for 911 calls so you should have a cellphone for backup. Good idea in case of a power outage anyway. We have a Skype subscription for unlimited calls in the U.S and Canada as well as a Skype Online Number that anyone can call us on - costs us $60/year total - that's $5 a month. We have personalized voicemail, can forward calls, video calls, and a whole lot more. Skype Subscriptions Skype to Skype calls are always free, even without a subscription. Skype is a free download - no reason not to at least try it. You will need either a headset or microphone & speaker if you don't have it built in your PC. Skype Free Using Skype on your end to call an overseas landline is cheaper than anything you can find stateside. There are some blocked countries though. Skype Unlimited calls to overseas landlines for $9.95 a month There are also adapters you can buy that plug into your computer that allow you to use a regular corded or cordless phone(s) with Skype. I bought a Zoom adapter at WalMart for $40. This is the D-Link adapter There are others, just search for 'Skype Adapters' There are even WiFi phones that allow you to use Skype in any hotspot or with your own WiFi. Here are a couple: Netgear WiFi Skype phone Belkin WiFi Skype phone You can even buy a NO PC cordless phone. They're kind of pricey but still a heck of a lot cheaper than a years worth of landline service. GE PC Free Skype Cordless Phone Check out all of the Skype possibilities on Amazon: Lots of Skype Thingies and Doo Dads! -----CUT YOUR CELLPHONE COST----- We now use Tracfone exclusively at an enormous savings over our previous service with Verizon. We each have a full featured, Bluetooth capable Motorola W376g camera phone. There is a special online right now - Phone for $29.99 * Free accessory kit ($14.99 value) * Free Double Minutes for the life of the phone ($49.99 value)* Free shipping * And if you use this promotional code - 23444 - as of today, you can get $3 off your order. Get the Valentine's Day Tracfone Deal Here! There are always airtime deals. We're currently using the 400 minute/1 year service with 250 bonus minutes for $100 for each phone. With our lifetime Double Minutes, that's 1050 minutes for $100 - Promotional code 16142 - expires on Feb. 24 You can also buy the W376g at WalMart for $29.99 with Free Double Minutes but you won't get a free accessory kit. The phone comes with a wall charger, btw. Well.... That was a lot of links and a whole lot of typing. I hope it's useful to someone :-)

Thanks so much for all of the input and suggestions! Moxie, I particularly found your link helpful, as I might not have even thought about checking to see which carriers support my phone. (Turns out, a good number of them do across all bands, including names I recognize like 3, GiffGaff, O2, and Vodafone.) We used a portable WiFi in Iceland and it was a godsend. I think a UK SIM card will be the more economical route to go for my trip, though, so will continue to pursue that route. Looks like several of you successfully use WhatsApp. I'm probably more likely to continue using Skype, as I don't use Facebook products at all if I can avoid it (just a personal thing with me, no need to expound on it here). In thinking this through, I'm hesitant to ask my US contacts to download an app if they don't already have it. Actually, I may need to explore switching my carrier (particularly if I can find one that includes talk/text between UK and US), and perhaps looking at getting DH and I on the same plan. My phone was not unlocked until recently, so this wasn't an option - but it is now. If, however, I keep my current carrier (which does not have coverage in the UK) and purchase a UK SIM from one of the carriers that is compatible with my phone, I remain confused as to how calls and texts between the UK and US work. I understand there's a charge associated, but how do I pay for the calls and texts? ETA: Looks like with some SIM cards, the cost of texts/calls from UK to US simply comes out of airtime credit and can be topped up online as needed.