Dialing the phone in Germany

I think anyone who considers themselves smarter than the average person should move to Europe and then try to make a phone call. Nothing incites more humility. Once they get that figured out, they should then get a handy and try to call someone on it.

If someone's figured this out and can explain it, I'd appreciate it.

Jim

What exactly is the problem Jim?

Munich landline number +49 89 123456
Munich mobile number +49 172 123456

From a landline in Munich to the landline dial 123456 (same network so prefix not required)
From a mobile in Germany to the landline dial 089 123456 (since you are on a different network)
From a landline in Munich to the mobile dial 0172 123456 (since you are on a different network)
From a mobile in Germany to the landline dial 0172 123456 (possibly don't need the prefix if on the same network)

From outside Germany ringing in, put Access Code (usually 00), Country Code (49 for Germany), Area code (i.e. 89, 172, etc) and then number (i.e. 123456)

Where's the problem mate? Is this different to the US?

Um, well, I get a phone number from someone with a zillion digits on it, I press them all, and get a recording in German. I delete some of the numbers and press those - different recording in German. I try adding a zero, deleting a zero, inverting the numbers and I get connected to the Mars lander.

Ps. to the UK - the Beagle says 'Hi'

This may help

http://www.countrycallingcodes.com/

And then don´t forget the precodes if you want dirt cheap calls overseas. Dial 010012 before the number (which still needs to start with 00). It will then only cost 3 or 4 cents a min to phone most of western Europe, USA, Australia, and a bunch of other places. Only works phoning from a landline to a landline, though. I phone within Europe quite a bit. My bill for overseas calls last month was only about 7 Euros.

The OP is partly right.

If you are used to the consistent and sensible dial codes in Europe, 0 for trunk, and 00 for International, and then go the USA it confuses the hell out of you.

What really got me is that sometimes you dial a local number, and a recorded voice tells you to dial the number again but put 1 in front of it. Why ? To confirm you are dialing a semi long distance.

011 for International access is not so bad, but not only does the USA and Canada have the same country code, but half the Caribean country codes start with 1 also.

For example +1212 is New York from anwhere, 1212 is how you dial New york inside the USA. But 1242 is an international call to Bahamas, and 1246 is an international call to Barbados. This is called the NANP.

Worst of all while European countries introduced second by second billing up to 20 years ago, from a US public phone you still have to pay for the first 3 minutes, and calls from public phones can be really expensive. You pay say $4.50 to hear "Please leave a message...".

Worse still you have to understand English to know how much to pay, because the American public phones are too primitive to use a display to show the amount.

Then there are mobile phones in the USA. You have to pay to receive calls, so they are not considered attractive. And roaming to us is receiving a call in a different country, roaming in the USA is a different state.

Americans must be overjoyed with the simplicity, order, and low cost of the phone systems outside the USA.

Yes I am capable of being a dial code bore at parties.

Petal, those numbers work when dialling to a mobile also.

@jimne - It could of course be that you have the right number, but that they don't have their phone turned on or something and that german voice you are getting is their answer phone message!?!

Actually I find it more expensive here. Plus in the states there is no distinction between the mobile network and the landline network i.e. it doesn't cost $1.50/min to call a mobile number from a landline, and you pay for long distance just as you do for a landline. You do have to pay for incoming calls, but this is usually no problem. I got an ass of minutes per month that I would never use for a bit cheaper than I pay here, and I don't use it here that much.

Anyhoo...

Just curious, is there a specific meaning or reason to the "+" when listing a telephone number (say on a business card, e.g. +49 89 40 ...)? Is it just some sort of redundant reminder that you should have an outside line first? Or something more sinister? I'd never seen this before arriving in Europe.

Because not all phone systems will recognise the 00 prefix for international numbers.

@randy

+ is the universally recognized international access code. It works from mobiles, and you should substitute it for the local international access code from a landline.

The international access code is 00 in many countries, 011 in NANP countries, 001 in Singapore. Other international access codes are 0,90,19,99,000. I could go on.

So + is a recongized standard.

Just think yourself lucky you're not in Russia... dial 8 to get out of the town, dial 10 to get an international line and then start playing with the international codes!

I still have nightmares about making international calls from the post office!

Go to the desk. Write down the number and the name of the person you want to talk to. Take a seat. The operator attempts to places your call.

Easy so far.

When the operator has successfully placed your call they burble out the number they have just dialed followed by the number of the phone booth you have to scurry to... if you take too long to get there you lose your call. If you go to the wrong booth you incur the wrath of someone else. If you're really lucky the person on the other end hasn't already hung up/been frightened off by this scary(non-English speaking) Russian operator.

Finish your call... Now pay for it!

And start all over again!

Koala,

I'm very glad you said that. According to my little database of dial codes 8 is the trunk access code in Russia, + or 810 the international access code, and 7 is the country code, which is also the same country code as Kazakhstan.

So 812345678 could also be dialed as 810712345678, or of course +712345678

I'm slaving away trying to put this knowledge inside mobile phones

Me too. Pay phones are outrageous--40 cents for 10 seconds? Mobile phones are cheaper in the US too. I paid $40 for 1200 minutes/month and the rate for incoming and outgoing calls were the same no matter who the provider is on the other end. I never know what the bill's going to be here in Germany. And except in NYC, I've never heard of having to pay for local calls on a landline.

what's NANP?

NANP is North American Number Plan. US cities have 3 digit area codes like 212 is a well known New York code. But 21 countries are given similar 3 digit codes inside the USA number system. Jamaica is 876. Inside USA call 1876 for Jamaica, from Germany call 001876.

As I said I'm in danger of truning into a dial code bore.

In the USA you cannot tell if you are calling a landline or mobile phone, and its the same cost, because the receiver pays for the call. Thats why a lot of people keep their phones wwitched off, only using them to call somebody back after they are paged.

I do find carrying a mobile phone to call people who page you instead of just letting them call your mobile absurd.

I don't know anyone who keeps their mobile phone switched off for that reason.

The three digit area code in the US (and why not just say area code?) has only become complicated in the last 4-5 years with so many people getting mobile phones.

And really, the only thing I find complicated about numbers in Europe is the random number of digits in any given phone number (what's that about?) and knowing when to dial 0.

American numbers do have a fixed number of digits, and I have had this presented to me as an advantage. Because you can see a number is wrong if it has the wrong number of digits.

But variable number of digits are a huge advantage. A company like Siemens might say have 2340 as the main switchboard, and 234xxxxx for direct calls to desks where xxxxx is the 5 digit extension.

You do not use the 0 if dialing a local call on a land line, e.g. a Munich number while in munich. Otherwise you use the area code 089 for Munich 0172 for D2, 040 for Hamburg.

I call it 3 digit area codes because are codes are only 3 digit in the USA. They can be anything from 2 to 5 digits in other countries.

That's exactly how it works at every company in the US where I've been employed. So I'm still not understanding an advantage to a random number of digits. If I've only got five or six digits for an American number (sans area code or NANP number, if you want) then I know I don't have the whole number. Here, a number could 5, 6, 7 or 8 digits long--making them harder to memorize and even harder to know what to fix if you've dialed wrong.

Nope when you dial many American companies, you hear a recorded voice asking you to type in your parties extension, or press 0 for an operator. So you are paying for the call just to listen to a robot.

With the example I mentioned above you only start paying when the person picks up his extension, and if he iesn't there, the call is not answered, and you pay nothing.

Being able to verify the number of digits seems like a small advantage in comparison.

Not any of the companies I've worked for. Everyone gets a diferent direct dial number that shares a 3-digit prefix. Believe it or not, this works even with all the numbers being the same seven digits long. As with anything else, the system used depends on what's most efficient for the size of the company.

Everyone's got voicemail in the US too. Not so here in Germany. If I dial a number I want at the very least to let someone know I've called.

Still not getting the random number of digits.

yes I believe we call that the answerphone... you use it to leave a message when the called party is in the bath or otherwise engaged in more interesting activities than speaking with you

PS: mobile phones in germany are indeed a rip-off. nowadays in the UK you pay between £25 and £50 for a subscription including 1000 minutes to any network, and no incoming calls to pay. and you get a free phone upgrade every year (compare with germany: pay 50 bucks for a fone and have to sell your soul to vodafone for 2 yrs)

PPS: when I was in the US I had to pay $1.50 a minute for incoming calls on voicestream. wozzup with that???

With the many phone companies and cell phone network companies present in the US, I found Moore's Law to be in effect. The price kept dropping the the technology got better. I started in 98 with a cell phone at $65 a month with only 400 minutes daytime and 600 nighttime and in 2003 the wife and I had two phones for $28 each -unlimited cell to cell minutes, plus 500 daytime minutes and 1500 nighttime.

I think Moore's Law is also in effect for the confusing country codes. Give it a couple of years. It will only get worse.