Voice Over IP

sf340dvr · Joined: 05 Jul 2005 Posts: 57 Location: Appleton, WI

Does anyone have any opinions on Vonage, Time Warner, or any other VOIP service?
How does it work, and is it easy to install?

jholmes · Joined: 23 Mar 2006 Posts: 80 Location: Eagan, MN

I have Vonage, and I think it's great! It just like your normal phone and works seamlessly with the existing touch-tone phones and wiring throughout your house!
When you order the service, Vonage sends you a router that connect to your cable modem (you should have cable because DSL still requires you to have a traditional phone line). The router has two phone jacks (for separate phone lines if you order that) onthe back, just take a spare phone cord, plug it in the "LINE 1" jack, and plug the other end into existing phone jack in your house. That's it! It will then work with any of your touch-tone phones throughout your home.

There are a couple of things I noticed about the service:
1. If you don't dial the area code for a local call, it needs to fiqure this out, so it takes about 7 seconds before the call goes through.
2. If the power goes out in your home, you don't have phone service because the internet connection and router need power. Though if this happens, Vonage detects this, and you can have your account set up to forward your calls to a cell phone.
3. E911 (Enhanced 911) doesn't exist in all areas yet with some providers. E911 allows the dispatcher to see your address on the other end. This becomes helpfull if the emergency prohibits you from talking, or your kid ends up calling 911. (We would currently use our cell phones in this instance)

All-in-all the service is great, and so cheap! I pay $27-$28 a month for unlimited calls in US or Canada, ant that is the total bill, including taxes!

Hope this helps you make a descision!

Tonyeo · Joined: 24 May 2009 Posts: 2 Location: White Bear Lake

I have to agree, been using Vonage for a long time and never had a problem.

Tony

handnhammer · Joined: 13 May 2006 Posts: 60 Location: Ann Arbor, MI

I just signed up for AT&T Uverse a couple weeks ago with bundled TV, Internet, Phone.

It works great so far. There's a couple of features that they don't have over Vonage, but the bundled price is what made me switch. Also they have E911 and a battery backup, so when your power goes out you don't loose your phone service. This is a huge safety factor.

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