Singapore Prepaid Calling Cards - Starhub Prepaid

How much does it cost to buy a Starhub prepaid SIM?

2009-03-19T10:54:00.000-07:00

How much does it cost to buy?
You can start with a S$8 Starhub 2G Green Prepaid card which comes with a S$10 value and 20 free local SMS, or a S$15 card which comes with S$18 value and 60 free local SMS.

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.

What are the basic charges?
You can use calls and SMS at the following rates
a. Local calls (calling Singapore numbers) - 22 cents for 1st minute, and 18 cents thereafter
Current promotional rates (till 31st March 2009)- 8 cents for the 2nd minute onwards

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.

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.

Starhub Prepaid Card - Basic Value-Added Services

2009-03-19T10:17:00.000-07:00

1. Free calls to emergency numbers
2. 120 number phone book memory
3. Free Caller Number Display
4. Voicemail

Starhub Green Prepaid Card - How to register and use

2009-03-19T10:07:00.000-07:00

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 Starhub authorized reseller, Starhub 's own 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 SingTel or M1 prepaid cards.

Free 10 SMS with 5 SMS sent daily

2009-03-18T10:37:00.000-07:00

When you send 5 local or 5 Global SMS each day, you get 10 free Local or 10 free Global SMS accordingly. These free SMS must be used by the same day 2359hours.

You do not have to register to enjoy the benefit!

MMS and Surfing Data

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

Starhubl supports local and roaming data usage, MMS.

Starhub Green Prepaid Gee! Setup (Gee! that's the branding)

1. Dial *110#. You will receive an SMS. Following the instructions and provide your mobile phone model to get the settings for installation.

2. You can otherwise try to log on to the web to get the settings pushed to you

Starhub Prepaid Data Charges

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

MMS Charges

Image Size	S'pore Mobile Numbers	Global MMS to Overseas
<30kb	30 cents	30 cents
30 - 100 kb	80 cents	80 cents
>100 - 300 kb	80 cents	$1.50 (now $0.80 promotional)

Prepaid Top-Up Cards

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

To top up your Starhub Green Prepaid card, you can start from the below choices

1. General prepaid top-up cards - S$18 (bonus S$0.50 value, 60 local SMS) and S$38 (bonus S$1.20 value, 125 local SMS)

2. Happy$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. Value expires in 50 days. Roll-over of balance requires another Happy $128 top-up.

3. Electronic top - starting from S$10 and upwards to S$500. Bonus credits and SMS given

Top-up Green steps

1. Just dial 9850000 (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.

Starhub Green Prepaid Card - Roaming Overseas

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

Roaming Coverage
I would think the roaming coverage would be comprehensive but the detailed count should be more than 100 countries.

To activate
Dial *111# before leaving Singapore

To top up overseas
Dial *112*(10 digit top-up number)*(6 digit PIN)#

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 - *123*(country code)(phone number)#. The starting string (*123*) and the ending character "#" is important. So is the country code and mobile number of your friend you are calling.

Checking Account Balance
Dial *113# to know how much more you have left.

This pretty much sums up the key parts you should know to get you started. More info and actual rates refer here

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 Starhub's website for updated charges.

When in Singapore
a. Local call charge (calling Singapore numbers)
Per second billing - 1st minute 22cents, subsequent 8 cents per minute (usual 18 cents)

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

c. MMS charge

Image Size	S'pore Mobile Numbers	Global MMS to Overseas
<30kb>	30 cents	30 cents
30-100 kb	80 cents	80 cents
>100 - 300 kb	80 cents	$1.50 (now $0.80 promotional)

d. Data

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

e. Global SMS charge (sending to international numbers) - flat rate of 15 cents per SMS.

f. International IDD calls (if you dial using the format - 008(country code)(area code)(phone))
Using Starhub IDD 008
To check the full rates -> Starhub's IDD008 rate calculator
Charges are made up of two parts - IDD 008 + Local Airtime
Charging blocks - per second

g. International IDD calls (if you dial using the format - 018(country code)(area code)(phone)) Using Starhub IDD 018 for cheap international calls
To check the full rates -> Starhub's IDD018 rate calculator
Charges are made up of two parts - IDD 018 + Local Airtime
Charging blocks - per second

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

i. Receiving SMS & MMS is Free

When Overseas look here!

Starhub Green Prepaid Card - 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 Green prepaid card, you need to dial the toll-free IVR (interactive voice response) at 98500000. This will activate your line. If you are overseas, try dialing *113#.

Check account balance
in Singapore - dial 98500000 (toll-free)
overseas - dial *113# (This allows you to check your balance for free even while roaming)

You can visit the actual Starhub prepaid site for miscellaneous parts which I'm skipping etc

Starhub Green 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 Singapore.

In a nutshell, how this will work for you. After getting the SIM card, you need to do the following
a. dial *133*1# on your mobile. This is a short code that activates your daily FIC plan.
b. expect to be charged a flat-rate of S$0.59 per day to enjoy the plan. This charge is taken off your main prepaid account balance
c. if you terminate the service, just dial *133*0#.
*rates may change so do check first.
#a minimum balance of S$1 must be kept in the main account else your FIC plan does not work

So should you take advantage of the FIC plan?
Well, if you are expecting to receive at least 6 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 Starhub Green Prepaid Card)

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

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

Using Starhub IDD 008
You can make a call by dialing: +(country code)(area code)(number) or 008(country code)(area code)(number)
To check the full rates -> Starhub's IDD008 rate calculator

Using Starhub IDD 018 for cheap international calls
You can make an international call easily on your prepaid number by dialing in the following formats: 018(country code)(area code)(number)
To check the full rates -> Starhub's IDD018 rate calculator

Charges are made up of two parts - IDD 018 + Local Airtime Rates
Charging blocks - per second

Key Promotional Offers (18 Destinations) Local Airtime applies!
1. Australia (fixed line only, and exclude numbers starting with 611, 614)
2. Brunei
3. Bangladesh ($0.20 setup charge per call - currently waived
If using Happy $128 Top-up Card: Local airtime charges at 10 cents per minute)
If using main account balance: Local airtime charges at 8 cents per minute)
4. Canada
5. China (monthly $5 subscription currently waived till 31 Dec 09)
6. Hong Kong (monthly $5 subscription currently waived till 31 Dec 09)
7. India ($0.20 setup charge per call - currently waived.
If using Happy International Balance: Local airtime charges start from 9 cents per minutes for 1st two minutes, 10 cents per minute thereafter
If using main account balance: Local airtime charges at 10 cents per minute)
8. Laos
9. Macau
10. Malaysia
11. New Zealand (exclude mobile with prefix 642)
12. Puerto Rico
13. Russia
14. South Korea
15. Taiwan (fixed line only)
16. Thailand
18. United Kingdom (fixed line only, and exclude numbers starting with 443,447,448,449)
19. USA (states including Alaska and Hawaii) (monthly $5 subscription currently waived till 31 Dec 09)

*Promotions for 018 for Starhub Green prepaid card users valid till 31 Dec 2009. For more specifics on the account deduction for the promotional destinations check Prepaid Promo details .