voip: yea or nay?

[_chachi]

i'm considering getting voip as a business line at my house. is this a good idea? does it work as advertised?? which provider should i go for??

[Dante]

Not sure what to tell you, but I just signed up for it at home with Time Warner. They're installing it next week.

It's $19.95 the first three months, then $39.95. It includes caller id, call waiting and call waiting id. I can call anywhere in the US and they plan on adding Canada soon. Not a bad deal.

[skipshady]

Not sure what to tell you, but I just signed up for it at home with Time Warner. They're installing it next week.

It's $19.95 the first three months, then $39.95. It includes caller id, call waiting and call waiting id. I can call anywhere in the US and they plan on adding Canada soon. Not a bad deal.
Couple of dumb questions from a VOIP ignoramus:
Isn't the whole idea of ip phone is that you don't have area restrictions? Do international rates apply if you were calling a VOIP client in another country, say DR Congo?

[microbrew]

Couple of dumb questions from a VOIP ignoramus:
Isn't the whole idea of ip phone is that you don't have area restrictions? Do international rates apply if you were calling a VOIP client in another country, say DR Congo?

Sort of like how noone offers unlimited calling to cell phones on other service provides.

You still have a tie-in into the PSTN (publicly switched telephone network) at some point to reach non-VoIP phones or even other non-compatiable VoIP phones. If Time Warner doesn't have a presence in the former Zaire, then the call gets routed over the PSTN.

However, there are plans out there that have unlimited calling to some countries in Europe or Asia, so you are correct that area restrictions don't really apply.

[TheWakeUpBomb]

Check out Lingo. I've heard good things, and you can't beat the price - $20 a month for unlimited local, LD and some international. And the first three months free.

https://www.lingo.com/guWeb/

I'm going to switch in a couple of months, I think. Just be sure you have a cell for back-up when you lose power. VoIP is going to get bigger and bigger.

[skipshady]

Sort of like how noone offers unlimited calling to cell phones on other service provides.

You still have a tie-in into the PSTN (publicly switched telephone network) at some point to reach non-VoIP phones or even other non-compatiable VoIP phones. If Time Warner doesn't have a presence in the former Zaire, then the call gets routed over the PSTN.

However, there are plans out there that have unlimited calling to some countries in Europe or Asia, so you are correct that area restrictions don't really apply.Thanks for clarifying.

So there is no more free lunch on the internet, is there?

[Foosinho]

My plan is to go to VoIP after I get into my house (let's call it the 5 - no 10 - year plan) to replace the landline.

[AndyMead]

I used to work in the high tech industry at one of the companies that produces IP telephony. The employees are always the guinea pigs, and my group moved into a new building about four years ago that was designed from the ground up for VOIP. There were some bugs the first half year or so, but after that it worked great.

Residential VOIP is a slightly different beast, but the technology is sound.

There are some caveats. 911 service should work - as long as you don't move the phone. The installed PSTN has proven far more weather resistant and independent of power fluctuations than the cable networks.

[_chachi]

i signed up with vonage for the $30/month unlimited calls to canada and usa. i'm using this for work, so i haven't dumped my landline. yet. i should be getting my phone adapter on monday. i'll let everyone know how it works out.

[Squash]

I still use a string and a can. Now my coverage is less than 50ft , but it's pretty much free once you have the cans and string. Land lines in the future should become cheaper for calling as they lose more and more clients to cell phones and VOIP.

[skipshady]

Land lines in the future should become cheaper for calling as they lose more and more clients to cell phones and VOIP.But then you have AT&T dropping out of residential long distance because they can't stay profitable. Who knows what will happen?