Your flights are booked, reservations made, but have you remembered your apps?

1. Stay connected!

First things first: Don’t forget to download textPlus before you travel overseas. Calls and texts are free to other textPlus users, but you can also call any number in the world at highly discounted rates. Traveling with a group of friends? With textPlus you can all communicate for free over Wi-Fi. “Where are you?” “I’m at the Louvre!”  And the call quality is crystal clear!

2. How much does this cost in dollars?

A currency converter app like XE Currency allows you to get up-to-date currency exchange rates so you know just how many Euros that croissant is costing you.

3. Manage your money while you’re away

Keeping track of finances while you’re traveling can be difficult, but you can make sure you’re not going over budget with Mint.  It can even send you alerts when you’ve had one too many gelatos!

4. Where’s the Wi-Fi?

Free Wi-Fi Finder allows you find a local hotspot for you to connect.

5.  Where’s my ticket?

TripIt keeps your itinerary organized right on your phone - and it syncs with your calendar so you’ll know exactly where you’ll be on Tuesday.

 Wishing everyone safe travels!

Courtesy of The New Yorker

So, we were homesick for textPlusand called and texted (for free on  textPlus!) and sent CEO Scott Lahman a custom postcard from Special OPS/Amsterdam.

Then we got over our homesickness and continued to marvel at the wonder of Amsterdam.

What an ecologically aware country. Everyone in Amsterdam seems to have a bike. Navigating the city streets was as foreign as the city itself.  Trams, buses and cars all share the same street lane. Half the sidewalk is designated for bicycle lanes.  Bicycles have the right of way and if you're not paying attention, one will run you over. Here’s a picture of a crowded bike storage facility.

 

Catching on to this ecological awareness, we took the tram/bus combo to the datacenter every day, 45 minutes each way. We were also trying to save the company money on taxi fares, out of startup respect.

The food: You can buy food on the wall from vending machines.  Hit or miss what you get if you don't speak Dutch. I got a fried cheese log that was delicious.

 

The street outside the Airbnb townhouse.

Here are Owen and Richard looking just a bit tired...and cold. The high of the day was 39 °F.

Richard sent some of his observations of Amsterdam back to textPlus basecamp in Southern California and we couldn't resist sharing his chronicle of the team’s adventures.

Richard: Donovan & Owen were the advance team.  They arrived two days early to navigate Amsterdam, find our Airbnb place, meet the owner, get the keys, and settle in. They also found the datacenter.

 

Howard and I arrived in Amsterdam three days later, and dropped off our stuff at the townhouse and immediately headed for the datacenter. At this point, we had been up for 32 hours straight and were a little disoriented. We got lost on the bus system and finally arrived 2 hours later (a trip that usually takes 45 minutes).

Then the work began: rack and stack all physical hardware in one afternoon. It’s hard work--really hard work.

After all that hard work, Owen suggested that we needed to hit the “famous” parts of Amsterdam. No one disagreed with him. So, we cleaned up at the townhouse and headed out to Amsterdam Central. Wow. We were stunned by the beauty of the city. It’s so elegant with amazing architecture--just beautiful.

At dinner, Donovan received an unusual comment from the waitress."I cannot accept your tip,” she said. “It is too big."

 Nice!

Next week: Part Two: Adventures in Amsterdam

 

In the not so distant past, primetime television was the weeknight entertainment choice for most Americans, but according to a recent update from analytics giant, Flurry, the size of the mobile app audience is almost as big as the TV audience--50 million Americans are using mobile apps during 7-9 pm. And this mobile app audience is now equal in numbers to desktop users.

While these statistics may serve as a warning to the industries concerned, we wonder if it’s also sending a signal to the big carriers. There’s a revolution going on in communications and it’s simply never going to be the way it was before. Paying for text messages? Really? Two-year contracts? Why?

It truly becomes a wonderful world when technology serves people--and when freedom of choice in communication is the norm. We created an open communications platform for this very reason. Like the other players in this space, we offer free texting and calling in-network. Unlike the others, though, we let our users communicate outside the network to reach any number in the world. textPlus can connect users to 8 billion phone numbers worldwide. Calls outside our network (international long distance, for example) are a fraction of the cost carriers charge, and even less than Skype.

We never wanted to be a part of a closed communication network that requires users to have the app to communicate. There’s a new consumer out there who is looking for value, a seamless solution for staying in touch, and a choice for how they want to communicate. That’s the textPlus customer. The days of paying too much for needed communication and entertainment services are over. The days of being locked into contracts--or platforms--are over.

We’re thrilled to be a part of this mobile communication revolution and this spring we're taking textPlus to the world. Stay tuned for more details.

Here’s the truth about the texting only and the calling only apps. They have one goal; to trap consumers. You cannot message or call outside these apps. So, the myth is that these apps actually provide communication freedom.

Where does this leave consumers? They are forced to use pricey cellphone carrier plans to communicate to the world outside their apps. So, "free" isn't really free; it's just an interim step before having to deal with the big carriers. And according to a recent Wall Street Journal article, families are actually cutting back on expenses like food and entertainment just so they can afford their cellphone plans.  How ridiculous.

At textPlus, we’ve created something different. Users can call and text for free within the textPlus network - anywhere in the world - but we also let our users call outside of the network at incredibly reduced rates. Think of us as a carrier inside of an app.

textPlus users can call a landline or mobile number in China, Mexico, Argentina - wherever they want. How do we support this freedom of choice for textPlus users? We have discreet advertising inside textPlus. That’s how we pay the bills, but we also allow users to buy credits or earn them for free by watching a video, for example, or downloading a useful app. You can actually earn enough calling credits to make all those long distance calls outside of textPlus for free.

Truth: Our goal is free calling plus the freedom to make the choice about how you communicate with the world.

Truth: If your budget only includes an iPod touch or an iPad or tablet, you can make calls from those devices. You don’t even need a phone.

Truth: We have no interest in boxing in our users. We do not want to trap anyone. We want everyone to be able to call or text whomever they want without fear of the cost.

Spin can be powerful, but truth always wins out.

Next, let's tackle the big carriers. That will be fun.

Make a call on textPlus today and while you’re talking, we’ll be planning to plant 5000 trees to celebrate Earth Day!

What can you do? If you’re on textPlus, make a call - heck, make a few more! If you aren’t on textPlus, you can download here: iPhone, iPod touch & iPad or Android

In honor of our amazing textPlus users, we will donate to Trees for the Future. Since 1989, this great organization has been helping farmers restore degraded lands and has planted over 80 million trees in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Shoes by Christian Louboutin

April 15th always reminds us of money--and how to keep more of it. A recent Wall Street Journal article titled Cellphones Are Eating the Family Budget made us kind of mad. One statistic noted that families with more than one smartphone can pay up to $4000 per year for calling plans from the big carriers. That’s highway robbery in our books.

With a data plan and access to wifi or an internet connection, textPlus users can save a huge amount of money on calling and texting. And if you have an iPad or Android tablet, you can turn these devices into a phone and skip the calling plan altogether. Cool, right? Texts and calls in-network are always free anywhere in the world--and texting is always free in the US and Canada in or out of network.  That means you can reach everyone in your address book--even if they don’t have textPlus. Calling outside of our network domestically or internationally is ridiculously inexpensive.

It seems awfully strange that people should cut back on their groceries, entertainment budgets and shopping--and send all that hard-earned money to Verizon or AT&T.

We think you should hang on to your money. Life’s short. Have some fun. Spend your money on the things that matter--like cool shoes  or a fabulous vacation.

Photo Courtesy of Condé Nast Traveler

We're taking this as a compliment.  T-Mobile is dropping cell phone contracts and Verizon may follow suit.  Well, you still have to pay a monthly fee so it’s hardly big news, but hey, they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Before the carriers tried to be us, before apps pretended to be us, there was textPlus: The leader in delivering quality mobile calling and texting in or outside of our network.

We offer value, choice and the freedom to decide how you want to communicate with the world. No contracts, no download fee, free in-network calling and texting anywhere in the world, and super inexpensive rates when calling out of network domestically or internationally. We don’t force textPlus users to call “in-app”  like some companies out there. With textPlus, you’re free to call any landline or mobile number in the world.

Simply put, you’re free. You have choices. You don't even need a mobile phone. If you don't have an iPhone, Android or Windows phone, you can make calls right from your iPod touch, iPad or tablet. You can roam without roaming charges.

Doesn’t it feel good?

 

For all textPlus users, we’re having a Spring Sale! From Friday April 5th to Sunday April 7th you can earn 50% more credits with Tapjoy offers. Inside textPlus, look for the Tapjoy offers and take advantage of this great opportunity to earn lots of credits.

If you’re not on textPlus yet, this is a great opportunity to download now: iOS  Android

Have fun calling!

Our most recent survey examined the preferences of Hispanics and Latinos when it comes to calling and texting with friends and family outside of the country. Over 600 of you responded--thank you!

Survey results are great to help us deliver the best possible value to our users. Our job is to help everyone connect with loved ones at home or out of the country for free - or at super-discounted rates.

Here are 5 money-saving calling tips:

1. You can use textPlus to make free in-network calls to other textPlus users anywhere in the world.

2. With textPlus, you aren’t forced to call only textPlus users! You’re free to call any landline or mobile number in the world at extremely inexpensive rates.

3. Calling credits can be bought -- or earned for free inside the app. Your choice.

4. Texts in-network are always free-anywhere in the world. And texts are always free in the US and Canada in or out of network.

5. textPlus gives you the freedom to make the choices that work for you!

We try hard to make communicating with loved ones simple, stress free and completely affordable. We believe in providing choice and free access for everyone.

So, who are you going to call today?