keeping my orange cell number whilst away for the summer

Vinyasa

Bronze
Dec 22, 2010
1,419
6
38
www.kieranbarry.com
I know there have been various discussions about this before but i would like the latest DR1 wisdom on this.

So, if im away for 6-7 months but i for sure want to keep the same cell number for when i return, what do i need to do?

Leave my phone with a friend and a bunch of pre-bought 100$ recharge cards and ask him to top up once a month?
And if so, is this enough, or would he need to actually use the phone as well??

Some sort of online recharging possible??
 

rogerjac

Bronze
Feb 9, 2012
1,389
456
83
If you leave a bunch of cards with a friend they will probably lose them, use them,or give them away. They will not be putting them on your phone. Better be someone you can trust. I am in the same situation (again) and am just going to get a new number next time around. Try and be nice and let them use your phone and they abuse your trust
 

william webster

Platinum
Jan 16, 2009
30,247
4,329
113
eztop.com.......... just recharge before you return..... the number is embedded in the chip/SIM card, can't go away .

I travel w/ mine... ready to call a taxi/whatever from the airport or for trouble on the way in.
 

Vinyasa

Bronze
Dec 22, 2010
1,419
6
38
www.kieranbarry.com
If you leave a bunch of cards with a friend they will probably lose them, use them,or give them away. They will not be putting them on your phone. Better be someone you can trust. I am in the same situation (again) and am just going to get a new number next time around. Try and be nice and let them use your phone and they abuse your trust

i dont know what sort of flakey friends you have? ;)
but i would ask someone reliable
 

rogerjac

Bronze
Feb 9, 2012
1,389
456
83
I should have said family. If you can't screw your family who can you screw. I came back to find my phone was gone ( appearently it stopped working and got misplaced) In Canada I have things that last 5 10 20 years. Here I see the same things don't get anywhere near that milage. I watch but can't figure out what they do to things.
 

william webster

Platinum
Jan 16, 2009
30,247
4,329
113
Correct... and all your old minutes do NOT expire -they are reactivated when you top up.

Surprisingly, few people know this.... I've been doing it for years..... all my minutes return, my number returns... todo.

If you're on a plan (not prepaid), you need to keep the phone active.... not prepaid... you own those minutes and that number
 

william webster

Platinum
Jan 16, 2009
30,247
4,329
113
Only when you want to activate the phone and number...... no frequency req'd

You're overthinking this....... you OWN your number and those minutes.... there are no tricks here.

Recharge when you need to to... before you arrive.

www.ezetop.com
 
Jan 17, 2009
1,622
59
48
I tried recharging twice this year, using an Orange card and on their own website. While the card is accepted and credit shown online, when I arrive I can't make a call. Get that recording that I have no money, to purchase minutes.

I'm going to cancel Orange. This last time I was away for four weeks and the balance on my prepaid account was to expire on April 4. I recharged online on April 8. I arrived and the phone wasn't active. I had to purchase another 50 pesos card to be able to talk to a Support person (yes, the call went through but told me to connect me to support I needed to add money). to make the story short, I was told they could see that I had recharged with a 100 pesos card but to get credit for it, I have to go to the Orange office in Puerto Plata. Ridiculous. They can see my recharge but can't credit it unless I show up in their offices?

I obviously don't care about the 100 pesos. It'll cost me much more to go to Puerto Plata, but find the practice disgusting.
 

Vinyasa

Bronze
Dec 22, 2010
1,419
6
38
www.kieranbarry.com
:)
Am overthinking it because i have heard so many stories of people losing their numbers...and i cant afford to as have too many business cards already printed!

So, why is it some people claim to have 'lost' their numbers? No phone company is going to keep your number for you forever, if you stop using it
 

Salsafan

Bronze
Aug 17, 2011
924
15
38
My prepaid of last february had an expiration date somewhere three months later. Don't know if it'll be automatically extended when I recharge before that date or what happens if I recharge after that date. Or if I can postpone the expiration when buying the card (they asked how long I'm going use the card, I told 4 weeks).
 

VJS

Bronze
Sep 19, 2010
846
0
36
When you buy your minutes on a prepaid plan, they have an expiration date, - for Orange it's 3 months. So a sure safe strategy would be to recharge every 88 days or so, via ezetop.com or other sites. Even after the minutes are long expired, you still have the number and can reactivate it by reloading - but not sure how long that lasts until they give your number away - I am pretty sure I went almost a year once without reloading and it still worked fine.
 

william webster

Platinum
Jan 16, 2009
30,247
4,329
113
Mine is CLARO, and I can tell you from my experience and that of my friends that the expired minutes will 'revive' with a 'recharging' of minutes.

As with many things here in RD, there are many solutions to the same problem - easy ways and harder ways -

We all need to find our own way - and be comfortable with it.

Good luck
 

les1

Member
Feb 1, 2007
310
15
18
Correct... and all your old minutes do NOT expire -they are reactivated when you top up.

Surprisingly, few people know this.... I've been doing it for years..... all my minutes return, my number returns... todo.

If you're on a plan (not prepaid), you need to keep the phone active.... not prepaid... you own those minutes and that number

I am on claro top up. If I'm away for 4 months I top up and have the same number automatically. Once I was away for 6 months or so and the claro shop had to get thro to the claro office to get my phone unlocked. It had the same number.
 

CaptnGlenn

Silver
Mar 29, 2010
2,321
26
48
my first phone about a year and a half ago was a pre-paid, and iirc it needed to be used once a month to stay active and keep the number. wasn't just about buying more minutes. After that expired, (I had been away for 6 months), I just changed over to a plan. It's cheap and easy.

THEN... last time I was in D.R. the damn phone wouldn't work. Tried everything... still wouldn't work. Someone told me "bad sim card", so I went to Orange to get new one. After standing there about 45 mins. waiting my turn, the guy took one look, pull the card out, WIPED OFF THE CONTACTS, and it worked fine. He smiled politely and said, "Dirty card." I don't know why I didn't think of that.
 

snowbird44

New member
Oct 29, 2004
276
4
0
I know there have been various discussions about this before but i would like the latest DR1 wisdom on this.

So, if im away for 6-7 months but i for sure want to keep the same cell number for when i return, what do i need to do?

Leave my phone with a friend and a bunch of pre-bought 100$ recharge cards and ask him to top up once a month?
And if so, is this enough, or would he need to actually use the phone as well??

Some sort of online recharging possible??

There is a simple answer to this. If you have a pay as you go account:
Get a trusted friend to recharge your phone before the expiry date so that you won't lose your balance. It will accumulate until you come back and use your phone.
If you don't top up by the expiry date you lose your balance of minutes/money, but you have 30 days before you lose your number.
This has been my experience and I make sure that I don't lose my number. It also has fringe benefits to keep your number. Orange gave me RD$2000 talk time for being a loyal customer last January.