I am very interested in switching our residential phone service to a VoIP service like Vonage. It's tempting based on the price and features ($24.95 a month for unlimited local and long distance with tons of free features), but I don't want it if it's poor call quality or problematic. I played around with "internet phone calls" a few years ago, and it sucked. There was an obvious delay in speaking. I'm hoping the technology has gotten much better by now. Do any of you have it or do you have any experience with it? It all sounds great when you read their web site, but I'd rather talk to someone who's not employed by them.

 

I in my house have cable for my phone service here we have v.o through cable which gives the same options as vonage. At my office we have a T1 line with internet calling to me they are both good no major interruptions or problems. My home line is always up and running and it comes through the modem that feeds my pc. Pretty much the same **** here at my office evrything is fiber optic and runs really quick. Hope this helps you if you have more questions feel free to ask.

 

Thanks. Yeah, I'm very tempted. If it works well, it's a fantastic deal.

 

It really is I love the fact that I can call anywhere in the us,canada, and puerto rico for 1 flat fee each month..

 

My dad uses it and LOVES IT! He lives in East Texas, over by Tyler, so he has *** Cable and it does him good. I think he said it's only been down once and that wasn't for a long period (like 30min?) in the 3 months he's had it now. Also, if you get referrals, they credit you for a full month or somethin like that. Death to POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service)! I would like to add that if your DSL or Cable is flaky (not stable or consistant) then you probably won't be able to use any VOIP services.

 

I have VOIP service through my ISP, speakeasy.net. They are awesome. It's called One-Link DSL that connects without needing a phoneline. I mean, it needs the line, but not local phone service which used to be required for DSL. Like was said, unlimited local and long distance to the US and 22 other countries plllus every calling feature known to man. It has unified messaging so you can get your vmails emailed to you or check them from any browser if you can't call. It's fun having Caller ID since I never would've paid for that by itself. You can forward your phone for a variety of conditions. They have an online phone book that you click on a contact and click dial and the phone rings, you pick it up and it is dialing the number. More features than I feel like typing. I don't know about other services, but Speakeasy prioritizes voice traffic over their network which keeps calls clear. I haven't had any trouble to speak of. I was just talking to my moms while downloading Need For Speed Demo... Once or twice there has been a call with a little bit of echo and by hanging up and redialing was gone.

PM me your phone number if you want me to call you and download at the same time. Last time I tested it, I was getting just over 900K/200k while on the phone when I usually test at about 1300/300 with no activity. That's on a line rated for 1500K download and 384 upload...

 

i was just considering of switchin to vonage but i herd that u cant dial 911..is this true?

 

have vonage for a year now, and will never switch back...you can dial 911 you just need to list your addresss first with vonage,also call quality is perfect!

 

absolutely....(not vonage as my service choice though...got a better offer). i paid 120.00 bucks for dsl and unlimited verizon phone services, plus an additional 75.00 for my cable tv. now i pay 99.00 for unlimited phone long distance included plus my cable tv, plus my cable computer line.

the only potential problem is during a power outage. a phone will not work for very long even with a back up battery.

in that unlikely "extended" event, i have a cell phone. np

all services work as expected.

 

Yeah, I thought about that too. I wouldn't want a home phone service that went dead when the power went out back before cell phones. But if something happens now, my wife and I each have a cell for back-up.

 

I have had Vonage for several months now and LOVE it. I used to have VoIP through my ISP (*** Cable), but it cost $.10/min for long distance. Vonage is great in both quality and pricing. Plus, when the hurricane hit, I brought my VoIP router to Texas with me, plugged it in, and still have the same great service. I had both a New Orleans number and a Texas number on the same phone, so when I moved, I didn't have to change anything, except my listed physical address for 911.

 

Okay, this all sounds really great. For those of you that have it, would you mind answering a few questions?

1. Are you able to use your current, existing phone jacks throughout your house? I assume you have to run a wire from the phone to the router setup...right? If so, does that mean that you can't use the phone lines and jacks that are already installed in the walls?

2. How many phones can be connected to it?

3. Have you had issues with keeping your old phone numbe? I've read complaints from people who said it has been months and they still don't have their old number switched over yet.

4. Is it long-distance for someone to call you? I know that (if I have Vonage) I will have free long distance, but if they have to assign me a temporary number, will it be a long distance call for the guy across town to call my house?

Thanks for answering!

 

I don't have Vonage but things should be about the same...


Hope that helps...

 

1. Yes.

2. The same as regular phone service, as many as you have.

3. I didn't want to keep my old number, so I don't have an answer to this one.

4. No. It will be a local call to anyone in the same area code. I have two phone numbers on my account, one with a New Orleans area code, one with a Longview, Texas area code. Friends / relatives in either city can make a local call and reach my house just as if they were calling their neighbor.

 

yeah, i liked that i could pick area codes. i use LA and NY area codes for my "branch offices". i'm nationwide, he he.

jk with that.

 

Thanks for all the input guys. I really appreciate it. I wussed out and decided to wait a while to see if they work out a few "bugs" first. Over the last two weeks, I've read a TON of info and reviews on Vonage. I saw enough negative things to spook me for now. That's not to say that I wont do it down the road. For now, I called my local phone company (Sprint) and I was able to lower my monthly bill by $5 and include a boat-load of features I never had before...so I'm happy.

 

Hey matt I saw a vonage commercial yesterday offerring the first month free is you sign up now... Thats a nice deal... Like I said I have cable internet and phone service and I like it so much better than having a conventional phone line. I dont get static and crackling in the lines, I get clear crystal sounding calls, I can check my voicemail from my computer at work, I also get emails telling me when I have a voicemail.. It really makes things a lot simpler to me..

 

Hey Tim. From what I've been reading, Vonage is awesome as long as everything is working well and you have no problems. Most of the complaints I've seen all have to do with their customer service if you do have a problem. Most people seem to be in agreement that their c/s sucks bad. I've also read a lot of complaints about keeping your old phone number (something I would want). As I said above, I may still go with them sometime, but for now I'm good. The new plan I switched to yesterday gives me everything Vonage has except the free long distance. Both my wife and I have cell phones with free LD, so it's no biggie. I did get:
Call Waiting
Caller ID
Repeat Dial
Return Call
Selective Call Forwarding
Regular Call Forwarding
3-Way Calling
Sprint Voice Mail (can be checked from anywhere)

And the best part is it's all costing me about $5 a month less than I was paying.

 

Matt yeah the phone number thing is a biggie.. When I moved into my new house a year ago I opted for the cable line phone service they told me I had to change my number but for me it was all good because there were ppl that had my number I didnt want having it you know.. I havent heard except for in this thread that Vonage's c/s sucks..
To be honest it sounds like you got a sweet deal there with what you are telling me and I like the features being offered so I guess I too would stay where you are.

Good luck with it Matt

 

For awesome customer service, check out www.speakeasy.net for DSL and VOIP. They are awesome. When you get a rep, they can help you with EVERY part of your account that you need, none of the old "let me transfer you to that dept. and you can start all over."