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A History of Telecom/Eircom phoneboxes

A History of Telecom/Eircom phoneboxes

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Wednesday, April 24th 2024, 11:34 pm

Back in the nineties before the popularization of mobile phones, every village, shopping centre, public spaces typically had one or more public telephones. In fact, public telephones were so popular, there were often queues of people wanting to us[...]

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When Callcards made the Junior Certificate!

When Callcards made the Junior Certificate!

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Thursday, June 22nd 2023, 11:42 am

If you happened to be sitting the Junior Certificate Foundation Level examinations in 1996, your Section 5: Media Studies examination question would have included Callcards! Recently discovered by some keen Callcard collectors, you would have receive[...]

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Manage your IrishCallcards collection directly from IrishCallcards.net!

Manage your IrishCallcards collection directly from IrishCallcards.net!

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Saturday, December 3rd 2022, 11:45 pm

I am delighted to announce a new feature of the IrishCallcards.net website. From now it is possible to manage your Irish Callcards collection directly from the website! With our Colnect style feature you will be able to not only manage your Callcard [...]

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Do Callcards still work?...

Do Callcards still work?...

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Sunday, November 27th 2022, 2:21 pm

A question I am quite often asked, do Callcards still work? The answer may surprise you. Callcards lost popularity back in the late nineties due to the increase in affordable mobile phones. Gradually shops stopped stocking Callcards and Eircom (no[...]

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So after all those years, are my Callcards valuable?...

So after all those years, are my Callcards valuable?...

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Monday, November 29th 2021, 1:05 pm

So after all those years, are my Callcards valuable?... A question I have been asked quite a bit lately is this. Unfortunately in the majority of cases I get asked, the answer is no. Telecom Ei[...]

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A brief history of the chip based Smartcard

A brief history of the chip based Smartcard

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Tuesday, October 5th 2021, 11:37 am

Chipped based phonecards were first introduced by France Telecom in the year 1983. Invented by French inventor Roland Moreno chipped based phonecards were revolutionary in terms of better security and durability compared with the previous magnetic[...]

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The story of the Telecom eireann Callcard

The story of the Telecom eireann Callcard

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Friday, October 1st 2021, 4:53 pm

Before Callcards became an iconic symbol of nineties Ireland, an advanced trial and rollout took place by Telecom eireann in the late eighties. This roll out saw trials conducted in cities Dublin, Galway and Limerick. The cards tested duri[...]

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Callcard Chipsets

Callcard Chipsets

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Friday, October 1st 2021, 4:27 pm

This guide to the chipsets used on Telecom eireann and Eircom Callcards will allow you to easily identify the different chipsets used on various Callcards produced. These small EPROM[...]

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Collecting Callcards Nostalgia

Collecting Callcards Nostalgia

Author: Nick Rankin
Updated: Friday, October 1st 2021, 3:58 pm

Remember when you used to go around ransacking all the local card phones in the hope that someone left their used Callcard? The excitement felt when you found a "rare" 50 or 100 unit Callcard on the lucky days. For many people, Callcard collecting[...]

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