expoweb/handbook/phone.htm
2018-07-28 17:23:06 +02:00

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<title>CUCC Expedition Handbook: Mobile Phones</title>
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<h2 id="tophead">CUCC Expedition Handbook</h2>
<h1>Mobile Phone Use Guide</h1>
<pre><b>
Base camp: 00 43 664 763 0255<br>
Top camp: 00 43 664 582 5229 - incoming calls and texts only. <br>
Top camp: 00 43 664 871 6782 - what it uses to send texts and make calls (from 2018)
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<p>After many years of using complicated radio systems of varying degrees of complication and reliability,
we have finally settled on a foolproof method for communicating callouts from top camp to base camp: mobile phones.
Cheap Austrian pay-as-you-go mobiles have sufficiently good reception on the plateau for sending SMS messages,
and even occasionally for conversation.</p>
<p>After the 2016 expo we decided that it would be a good idea to
<a href="http://expo.survex.com/years/2016/rescue_debrief.html">invest in second phone at top camp</a>
which could be used at cave entrances
in the case of a rescue. This has not yet been done.
<p>For some years (including 2018) we have been using the "B-Free" mobile scheme provided by the A1 company.
We get reception even inside the Stone Bridge bivvy.
(In 2011 we tried using another provider which picked up the T-Mobile network,
however the reception was not as good as B-Free.)
<p>B-Free&nbsp;has an annual renewal of the SIM which gets you the phone number and connection (plus some credit).
More credit comes in the form of a receipt with a printed code or a card with a scratch-off secret number.</p>
<h3>Robust phone<img src="t/ruggear-p860-explorer-02-th.jpg" align="right" margin="5px"></h3>
We use "feature phones" with real buttons not smartphones with touch sensitive screens.
The top camp phone is particularly robust Russian
<a href="https://www.gsmchoice.com/en/catalogue/ruggear/p860explorer/gallery/">
"RugGear explorer p860"</a> with yellow plastic case and rubber grips, a talk time of 10 hours, and a stand-by time of 18 days.
It has 2 SIM slots whcih is really useful when we fail to renew last-years SIM in time and have to buy a new one (2018).
<h3>Annual renewal</h3>
<p>This has to be done in less than 13 months otherwise it costs a more as you
essentially have to start from scratch (~&euro;10 for a new SIM with &euro5 of
credit). The phone cannot be used in the last month, but renewal is cheaper
than starting from scratch. "Renewal" is just a matter of buying another &euro;20 credit.</p>
<h3>Checking credit</h3>
<p>The simplest way (which doesn't require understanding a number read out to
you in German) is to dial <b>*101#</b> ("0 BALANCE" in the contacts list in the phone book). This doesn't actually make a
call but results in you getting an SMS-like message containing the balance
details. There's no charge for this.</p>
<h3>Adding credit</h3>
<p>If you need to buy more credits for a phone the simplest way is to buy
a "B.Free" A1 top-up at the Post Office (closes 1200-1400 forlunch).
We used to be able to get this form the supermarket, but no longer (2018).
They'll give you a printed receipt with the code to key in. See
below for how to use it.</p>
<p>Other options we've used were:
<ul>
<li>go to the Hartlauer shop (on right of road to railway station, not far
beyond the post office). Wave the phone and ask for a 'B-free Bon'.</li>
</ul>
<p>You should be given an "aufladecode", which may require scratching off a panel at lower right back of card)
or just a long "till-receipt" strip with AUFLADEWERT: EUR 20.00 at the top. </p>
<ul>
<li>Dial <b>0800 664290</b> (if you're lucky someone might have put this in the phone address book
possibly under the name "0 ADD CREDIT" or "_ ADD CREDIT")</li>
<li>Listen to an audio menu and Press 2 (to select something)</li>
<li>Then type in number on the scratch panel, followed by #</li>
<li>Listen to the number read back to you (in German), and press 2 to confirm code is correct.</li>
<li>Press "No" (red key) twice to end the call.</li>
<li>Check the balance on the phone has been increased by calling <b>*101#</b> (or "0 BALANCE")
<li>This is all confirmed as working correctly in 2018.
</ul>
<h3>Tips and Tricks</h3>
<ul>
<li>If you're in an area where reception is poor and you need to go to a
particular spot to check messages, try dialling the balance request
number (<b>*101#</b>) once there - this usually seems to trigger delivery of any
pending SMS messages.</li>
<li> Commonly used numbers are put at the top of the contact list ("phone book") in each phone
by prefixing the name with "0 " or "_", e.g. "0 ADD CREDIT", "0 BALANCE", "0 BASE CAMP" etc.
</ul>
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