Listen live: http://www.rte.ie/radio1/radioplayer/rteradioweb.html#!rii=9%3A20149647%3A70%3A02%2D02%2D2013%3A – go to 8 minutes

LOW CALL KNOWLEDGE

We love Forget1850. A lot of companies use 1850 and other such numbers. While these allow you to call them from anywhere in the country at local rates from a land line, they can cost a lot when dialled from a mobile, with some providers charging as much as 35 cent a minute.

And unlike landline numbers, which are routinely included in the bundled “free” minutes offered by the mobile-phone and landline operators, calls to 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers are excluded from such deals.

This directory points people in the direction of alternatives to such numbers and can lead to big savings.

Living abroad? Find numbers that work.

Colm Murphy of Network ID Ltd said that inspiration for the new App came after he was charged €13 for a call to one particular organisation’s ‘customer services’ 1850 number.

“The vast majority of household service providers, including telecoms, Revenue, Government Agencies, as well as most banks and energy suppliers, use 1850 / 1890 as their customer service contact numbers.  Irish consumers such as myself are becomingly increasingly irritated at the high costs associated with calling 1850 / 1890 numbers.

With the number of Irish now emigrating and the fact we are in a global market customers from abroad can often find themselves in a frustrating position of trying to contact a company from outside of Ireland but only being offered an 1850 or 1890 contact number.

Users of Skype will also know be familiar with nuisance associated with 1850 & 1890 numbers as they too cannot be called using their software.

“The Forget1850 directory App was developed to provide consumers with a choice on what costs they incur when contacting these organisations or companies” said Murphy.

In some cases, consumers may be unwittingly paying as much as €10 in phone charges to simply communicate with a company – especially when reporting a fault in a product or service, where the wait time to speak with a company representative may be excessive. Invariably, an 1890 number is the only contact number advertised.

‘Forget 1850’ users could save up to €52.50 per year by using alternative landline numbers rather than the typical 1850/ 1890 numbers advertised by companies” according to Colm Murphy.  “For example, if an O2 bill pay customer calls an 1890 (35c per minute) number for 10 minutes they will be charged €3.50 per call. Based on a rough average of making 15 such calls per year that’s a saving of €52.50”.

Users from abroad may not make the same savings but at least they now have a simplified directory of numbers to choose from when contacting an Irish company in the future. 

Non-geographical numbers such as those beginning with 1850/ 1890 and more recently 0818 became popular before bundled minutes became an integral part of both landline and mobile contracts. However, not only are 1850/ 1890 and in some cases 0818 numbers not included in a monthly contracts ‘Free Minutes Bundle’,  they also cannot be called from overseas or through Skype.

Forget1850 is available on iOS, Android and
Blackberry platforms and costs from €1.50.

Forget1850.com, Network ID Ltd, Colm Murphy, Save on 1850/ 1890 Calls, The Irish Emigrant

Colm Murphy, MD of Network ID Ltd, which is based in GMIT’s Innovation Centre, said that inspiration for the new app came after he was charged €13 for a call to one particular organisation’s customer service 1850 number.

“The vast majority of household service providers, including telecoms, Revenue, government agencies, as well as most banks and energy suppliers, use 1850/1890 as their customer service contact numbers. Irish consumers, such as myself, are becomingly increasingly irritated at the high costs associated with calling 1850/1890 numbers,” he said.

The Forget1850 directory app was developed to provide Irish consumers with a choice on what costs they would incur when contacting these organisations or companies.

Forget1850 users could save up to €52.50 per year by using alternative landline numbers rather than the typical 1850/1890 numbers advertised by companies, according to Mr Murphy.

Forget1850 is available on iPhone, iPad, Android and Blackberry platforms and costs €1.59. For further information, visit www.forget1850.com

Galway Independent, Forget1850, Save on 1890 / 1850 Calls, Network ID Ltd, No More 1850 / 1890 Calls, Reduce Your Phone Bill, Lower Calling Costs, App Development, iPhone App Developer

Tipp Tatler, Forget1850.com, Cheaper Calls in Ireland, 1890 Cheaper Calls, 1850 Cheaper Calls, Reduce Your Phone Bill, Irish App Developer, App Development Services 

“Ever get frustrated when a company offers an 1850, 1890 or 0818 telephone number as their customer support contact number?

Aside from the possibility that you’ll be auto-queued, there’s the annoyance of the charge: many operator contracts do not regard telephone numbers of this type as part of their inclusive monthly minute deals.

That means you pay extra.

This sneaky little app lets you look up the company that provides an 1850, 1890 or 0818 number to see whether they have, in fact, an ordinary landline number that won’t cost you money to call under the terms of your supplier.

It has a set list of companies already pre-loaded (everything from Lidl to the Motor Tax Office to Joe Duffy’s Liveline).

Finally, if you know of a company using an 1850, 1890 or 0818 number but that has a normal landline number, you can input the details from the app. It’s a handy app that might save you a few cent every now and again.

Forget1850 is available for iPhone, Android and BlackBerry. Further details on www.forget1850.com

Adrian Weckler, Sunday Business Post, App Of The Week, Galway App Developer, Irish App Development Services, iPhone App Development, Forget1850 App, Android App Development, Network ID Ltd 

“The vast majority of household service providers, including telecoms, Revenue, Government agencies, as well as most banks and energy suppliers, use 1850/1890 as their customer service contact numbers. “Irish consumers such as myself are becomingly increasingly irritated at the high costs associated with calling 1850/1890 numbers,” Murphy railed.

“The Forget1850 directory app was developed to provide Irish consumers with a choice on what costs they would incur when contacting these organisations or companies,” said Murphy. In some cases, consumers may be unwittingly paying as much as €10 in phone charges to simply communicate with a company – especially when reporting a fault in a product or service, where the wait time to speak with a company representative may be excessive. Invariably, an 1890 number is the only contact number advertised.

“Forget1850 users could save up to €52.50 per year by using alternative landline numbers rather than the typical 1850/1890 numbers advertised by companies,” according to Murphy. “For example, if an O2 bill pay customer calls an 1890 (35c per minute) number for 10 minutes they will be charged €3.50 per call.

Based on a rough average of making 15 such calls per year that’s a saving of €52.50.” Non-geographical numbers such as those beginning with 1850/1890 and more recently 0818 became popular before bundled minutes became an integral part of both landline and mobile contracts. However, not only are 1850/1890 and in some cases 0818 numbers not included in a monthly contract’s ‘Free Minutes Bundle’, they also cannot be called from overseas or through Skype. Forget1850 is available on iPhone, iPad, Android and Blackberry platforms.

John Kennedy, Silicon Republic, App Development Services, Irish iPhone Developer, Android App Development Services, Forget1850 on iPhone, Forget1850 on Android, Save on 1850 Calls, Save on 1890 Calls, Lower Mobile Costs

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