How to make cheap International calls? US & Canada calls are always free

Beautiful Life

I have been considering to add an VoIP service, because of the needs
- to make family calls to multiple locations in Asia, about 500 minutes per month
- to save expense also from the other family side. i.e. how they can reach my family via landline or mobile free.
- to conveniently join any US-number Conference call every morning
- to occasionally call anywhere in US and Canada free
- to look for cheap voice bundle package regarding AT&T U-verse alternatives such as internet cable connection.  U-verse quality is fine, but connection unstable sometimes.

My Devices and Options:
- iPhone 4, iPad 2 (mine), iPad 3 (my wife's)
- AT&T U-verse internet connection at home
- WiFi via Cisco Linksys E2000
- My family members already have WiFi setup in their houses in US, not necessarily in Asia.

Numerous VoIP options are looked at.

VOIP Provider	US , CA	INTL (min)	Info Link	Setup Fee	Call Landline	Call Mobile	Comment	Great Bargain For
Comcast VOIP	ULM	---	Link	Free	$44.95	Yes(?)	$29.99 for 1st  six mons
	---	100		Free	$4.95	No	Asia, Europe
	---	100		Free	$9.95	No	Latin America
Verizon FiOS	ULM	---	Link	Free	$44.99	Yes	triple play $84.99	Existing FIOS customer
	---	500	Link	Free	$19.99	Yes
AT&T U-verse Voice	ULM	---	Link	Free	$40.00
	---	adj	Link	Free	+adj		Still above average price
Google Voice	ULM	---	Link	Free	Free	Free		No budget
(per min)	---	---	Link	Free	$0.02	Link	Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain, Sweden
(per min)	---	---	Link	Free	~$0.05	Link	Eastern Europe
(per min)	---	---	Link	Free	$0.01	Link	China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Taiwan	Low budget
(per min)	---	---	Link	Free	$$	Link	Others
Skype	ULM	---	Link	Free	$2.99	Yes		Low budget
(per month)	---	ULM	Link	Free	$8.99	$$
(per month)	---	ULM	Link	Free	$13.99	Yes	China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand
(per month)	---	ULM	Link	Free	$13.99	$$	Worldwide
(per min)	---	---	Link	Free	$$	Yes	Worldwide
OBi	ULM	---	Link	$110	Free	varies	Option: iPad mini	Fixed parties
Free Conference Call	ULM	---	Link	Free	Free	Free	Free for US, Canada, Europe, Japan, Korea, Brazil	No budget. Fixed parties
Pinger text-free	ULM	---	Link	Free	Free	Free	Earn free minutes	No budget

More VOIP providers’ information is available at http://www.whichvoip.com and http://www.consumer-rankings.com/voip/

Reviews:
     As my monthly international call to Asia usage is at around 500 minutes, if calling to land-line Asia is about $0.02 per minutes (see chart above), the expense would be $10 per month.  I am already a Google voice and Pinger app user; VoIP plan for US and Canada becomes unnecessary.  Then, Comcast Voice, Verizon FiOS, and AT&T U-verse Voice can be quickly rules out.  Vonage World, charges $25.99 per month offering unlimited international call has the best offering, if f you prefer hassle-free flat rate.

More than 10 countries and territories with unlimited¹ calling to mobile phones - such as China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam. Philippine is not included; needs a separate plan.

I don't call my relatives in Asia often; pay-per-minutes would fit my need.  Google voice international plan would fulfill my current needs.

There are also other non-conventional options available.

• OBi:    For $100 two OBi devices, you can have unlimited call between you and a  fixed/designed party on the other side.  It requires is stable and fast internet connection.  OBi uses Google voice. However, with two OBi devices, two parties can reach each other using OBi IDs, regardless of locations, and does not require Google voice service.
• Free Conference Call.com:  Most useful for calls between two close friends/family members among US, most Europe countries, Japan, Korea or Brazil, because it offers free local country numbers.   One party registers to receive an "Free Conference Call.com" account and passcodes (numbers), schedule a "virtual meeting" time.  Both parties can then call their free local phone numbers available and enter passcodes to enter into the same session.  The service is completely free.  (This service is not available in China, India, Hong Kong, Philippine, Russia, Taiwan)
• Regarding Pinger app, calling to Hawaii or Alaska is not supported currently due to high termination costs at these two locations. Call receiving is free. My iPad becomes another phone at home with numbers known to family and close friends only.

Other offerings may look attractive by charging 10 cents per minutes. Watch out for hidden fees (service fee, maintenance fee, round-up fee, etc).  For example,  69cents weekly maintenance can deduct the prepaid card value quite fast.  Sites I reviewed are, for international calling to Taiwan, where my wife's relatives live, are:

• http://speedypin.com/phone/cards/Taiwan
• http://www.uniontelecard.com/destinations/886/taiwan/
• http://www.timedial.net/phone-cards-price-compare/
• http://speedypin.com/
• http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/money/shopping/shopping-tips/best-ways-to-make-international-calls/comparison-chart-of-phone-cards/index.htm

What I do:

(Free)

• use my unlimited AT&T national mobile plan for calling US landline or mobile number.
• use Pinger Text-Free iPhone / iPad app, US/Canada phone number, voicemail service 
• to call or text message Canada occasionally.
• to text message US and Canada unlimited.
• for non-urgent business contacts (e.g. contact number used in Craigslist or EBay)
• to call families in Asia who also have Pinger app installed, when FaceTime has issues in iPad, or when Wi-Fi connection is not available.
• use FaceTime for face-to-face via home Wi-Fi for international family and friend talks.

(Low-cost)

• Rarely, for international calls, use Google voice pay per minute

Pinger Android app URL

I have not paid AT&T long-distance expense since then!