Broadband: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home?
- 10/18/07 4:56 PM
yes and I like it
by moglets1 - 10/19/07 7:24 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I should point out that I live in Australia - things may be different over here. I have a "One-Way" service with Engin and I think that it is just the bee's knees - in other words, great. It costs me $9.95 per month for the basic service, interstate calls (no matter how far from me) are never more than 10 cents each (untimed) and I spoke to Canada for 45 minutes and it cost the grand sum of $2.50!!
I find that unlike a few of my friends who are with another company, the quality of the connection does not degrade, there is no loss or interuption with the line and you really cannot tell the difference between Engin and Telstra calls.
Naturally, now that I know how well the system works, I make the majority of my calls (no matter whether they be local, interstate or international) through Engin.
Because it is a one-way service (I can call out, but others can NOT call in, I have kept my Telstra connection, so if there were an emergency with the internet connection (which so far, fingers crossed there has not been)I would still be able to call out.
All in all, I think that it is an excellent system.
Mally
Yes, but I don't recommend it
by bananamom - 10/19/07 7:27 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
We signed on with Packet8 two years ago, the only Voip service available at the time in our area (we now have several available). At the time, we thought hey, under $20 bucks to call anywhere, anytime. Super! Well, in just two years' time -- maybe less than two years actually -- we now pay $27. Practically each month, there's a "rate hike."
From that perspective, it's a rip off.
We also had terrible trouble at first with the phone just being "dead." People dialed our number and just heard dead air. And at home, we heard no ring -- yet we had a dial tone.
My husband despises the service and we're thinking of ditching the landline altogether.
YES, I USE VOIP
by Michelle A. - 10/19/07 7:33 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I AM VERY PLEASED WITH THE VOIP SERVICE I HAVE FROM www.zerafone.com/phonewise. THE PREMIUM SERVICE IS WHAT I HAVE FOR $19.95. I REALLY LOVE THE FACT THAT MY BUSINESS AND HOME PHONE HAS MUSIC ON HOLD, WAKE UP CALL AND MANY MANY MORE FEATURES. I REALLY LIKE THAT I CAN LISTEN TO MY MESSEGES IN MY EMAIL OR THE TRADITIONAL WAY. NO ONE CAN EVER SAY THEY LEFT A MESSAGE WHEN THEY HAVEN'T. NO ONE CAN DELETE MY MESSAGE ON MY EMAIL EVEN IF, THEY DELETED IT ON THE PHONE. I REALLY LIKE THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY. WHAT A SAVINGS FOR ME AND MY BUSINESS.
Yes, and I love it. (Tell us why.)
by FordmanLaoac - 10/19/07 7:33 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Inexpensive, portable and reliable. I have used Lingo for the last few years and really like it. I am living in the Philippines and still use my Utah phone number. My kids are a local call away. Although I only have a 384K DSL connection I can use the phone and the internet together without any problems. It's a win win combination.
FordmanLaoac
Yes and no
by 1kylake - 10/19/07 7:57 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I have service with Mediacom. It is not VoIP, it is broadband, transmitted over the cable. The installation included everything so no extra wiring was needed. All 3 house phones work on it. The quality is better that I had with AT&T. I elected to keep my old number so it was 9 days before I had service. This was explained when I called to sign up, so it was no big deal. I could have had service immediately if I had gotten a new number. I have lost my service once when some dummy hit a pole. Other than that, I love it. I got the pkg.,phone, tv, broadband internet for $89.95. A lot cheaper than what I was paying for what I had.
Vonnage A+
by DDT3 - 10/20/07 12:02 PM In reply to: Yes and no by 1kylakeHave used Vonnage for years, great quality, features and unbeatable value. Have recommended it to many. Just hope they get their lawsuit junk settled and stay in business. I would hate to change... I like the simul-ring and the easy to set forwarding, and all the stuff you pay extra for is included.
But personally I wouldn't do a bundle with my ISP, I just don't like bundles & commitments.
Why: SAVINGS !
by bobfox321 - 10/19/07 8:20 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
My average ma bell and at&t phone rip-off bill was about $150.00, not including my cell. Now my home and cell costs are less than $65.00 a month. Real saving from a phone network that was out of control and a total rip-off with little or no innovation since the 1932 World's Fair when they showed off a video phone demo. They never produced it. Bye-bye monopoly. (can micro$oft please be the next to be DE-monopolized ??)
Land Line all the way - I ditched Vonage and am SO HAPPY!
by dreamsicle - 10/19/07 8:32 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
This is why I quit Vonage after 11 months:
*Poor quality - I have a broadband connection and bought a Vonage phone, but the party on the other end always complained that I was "echoing" or sounded "robotic." Sometimes I couldn't even get a dial tone. Constantly had to reboot.
*Poor service. I spent countless hours on the phone trying to remedy quality issues, phone number assignment issues, etc. - I can't even begin to start with all of the problems.
*Do you enjoy deciphering thick Indian accents? I don't! Especially when I have been holding for over 20 minutes just to get through to Customer Service. I can't understand one word "Brian" from India is trying to tell me when calling Vonage's C.S. line.
*It will cost you! I couldn't take another minute of it, so I cancelled 1 month early and had to pay the $40 penalty fee for opting out before the 12 months was up (more awesome Customer Service). At this point in time, my phone was failing on a daily basis.
*I couldn't be happier with my AT & T land line - I pay $50 a month for unlimited local and long distance calls. I can actually pick up the phone and it works!
yes , but.....
by drtrouble - 10/19/07 8:40 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Okay, totally redundant services - landline, VOIP (Vonage) and cellular. (I am about to delete or transfer the landline.)
VOIP has only been a problem when the cable modem crapped out. Despite power problems elsewhere, we have not been plagued with them (even when major weather killed power to neighboring swatches for several days.) For those who mention the difference in the event of a power failure, realize that most have non Western Electric phones that require separate power to function anyway (although many have batteries.) Only the ole Ma Bell Western Electric throughly wired phones are able to function soley via the phone line itself. (Yes, I do have a few of those in storage!)
The only significant problem with the VOIP line has been the inability to filter out the interference from the nearby radio antennae. Filters are otherwise able to negate any transmission on the landline (and not needed for cellular.) (This does provide some safety against wiretaps!)
The other is the Fax thing. Individuals pay extra for the fax capacity with Vonage.
A couple issues not mentioned by others:
1) Legal differences of telecommunications via Internet/cable/DSL based versus traditional lines.
This implies differences in protection regarding wiretaps, privacy and types of taxes. (Only relatively recently has the Federal Excise (luxury) tax been dropped for the landlines! LOL)
2)Consider the problem recently when the SKYPE servers got overloaded and crashed, despite their planned redundancies.
Note that many of the differences in satisfaction for VOIP appear to be carrier dependent. So, be certain to do careful comparison shopping.
Vonage is terrific
by sld12day - 10/19/07 8:52 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I used to have Vonage and loved it-would have it again. I don't have it right now because where I'm living has telephone service through BrightHouse Networks (the cable & internet provider as well). No one ever complained about the voice quality and I loved getting my bill online. Even when I canceled the service, they were courteous and professional and did not hassle me about it. I get to keep the router and when I sign up again, it's already there for me. My hope is that the prices stay low.
Yes, we have SKYPE and we love it!
by rkzander - 10/19/07 9:01 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
We got a trial of Skype when my husband got his new laptop. We tried it and we love it! It is only $29.95 per year, so that is about $2.50 per month! You can't beat that price! We have been calling friends and family, who we didn't call often because of the high long distance charges on our land line. We were using a phone card for awhile, but you have to recharge it and it is about 3 cents a minute. With Skype, you don't have to worry about recharging or how long you are talking! It is great to keep up with everyone! One person mentioned the "echo" that is heard by the person you are calling. We had that problem at first with an ordinary headset. If you get a noise cancelling headset, or phone, you do not have that problem. People we call say that we are as clear as when we call on our regular land line phone! Plus, it is nice to have your phone directory right there on your computer. You just select the person you want to call, click on the call icon, and Skype does the rest! We have told everyone we know about it, and would recommend it to anyone! We don't plan on giving up our land line quite yet. We just are using for the long distance savings.
Skype
by DonnaLutheran - 10/19/07 9:19 PM In reply to: Yes, we have SKYPE and we love it! by rkzanderI connected my SKYPE service to an adapter that connected to my phones. I had 4 cordless handsets connected to my SKYPE network and one that was not cordless. It was great. Dialing numbers was a little tricky though and I had to dial 011 preceding all the numbers. My husband didn't like that. The phone quality was excellent but I found the best phone quality with an old fashion cheap handset that was not cordless.
My computer crashed and I have a recycled one now that is really old. I sold the adapter on Ebay.
Oh.. I have dial up access through my school and SKYPE still worked good. I would recommend SKYPE over any other VOIP provider.
Oh.. I paid $14.95 for a year of unlimited dial out calls last January.
Do you use VoIP services at home
by sandyt_26282 - 10/19/07 9:09 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Yes and I love the financial advantage that VoIP offers. All my family is interstate which means all STD calls but with VoIP I can talk to them anytime - I never use up my 500 minutes a month allocation and save around $30 a month of my land line bill. It was easy to install and the service is very reliable. I recommend it to all. And yes I am also puzzled about why other people haven't cottoned on to the advantage of VoIP.
I use Earthlink VoIP and I love it!
by rggrant - 10/19/07 9:38 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
In all of this discussion I don't understand why the Earthlink VoIP service has not been mentioned. I get 500 minutes, all the phone company extras (caller ID, etc.) and my cost is $0. It's all included in the $49.95 cost of my internet service. The service is available on all of my phones and my Fax works just fine. I've been using this for more than a year and have no complaints.
VIOP
by Fred Sheriff - 10/19/07 10:12 PM In reply to: Poll: Do you use VoIP service at home? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I use a service from JaJah.com
It requires the recipient to have signed on as well { As most do } to be TOTALLY FREE.
You can call other numbers not signed on, this though requires a payment into the system so as to be in credit.
You use your computer to instigate the call which is then switched to your normal telephone handset, this saves messing about with headsets, extra phones etc.
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