VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) Options/Recommendations?

[zannej]

It's me again Margaret.
This is branching off of the thread talking about internet in rural areas. Fiberoptic is now being installed in my area and should be available next month. We currently pay about $80/mo for a landline with caller ID, call waiting, unlimited local and long distance within the mainland US, and voicemail-- which we have never used as we never set it up and never figured out how.

Our landline phone has an answering machine. So, I'm looking for something inexpensive, reliable, and that has the same features (maybe minus the voicemail-- unless it's super easy to use and access & doesn't cost a ton). I want something that can work with our existing landline phone (a Panasonic one with a base and 5 handsets). I would love something that can connect via wifi if possible, but I can run a hardwired line if necessary. The main phone is currently connected to a landline in Mom's room at the south end of the house while the internet will be at her desk on the north end. Worst case we could move the base phone unit to her desk. The phoneline goes into the box on the north side of the house and the cable for it runs under the house and up next to the wall in Mom's bedroom.

We want to get the MESH adapter to boost signal in the house as the thick walls interfere with signal. Although, I suppose we could see how it works without the MESH as the modem allegedly has 2500ft range and our house is around 2300sqft.

So, any recommendations?

I saw Magic Jack, Vonage, VOIPLY, and a few others but don't really know what to get. I thought SwyftConnect would have a VOIP but they said they don't.

I forgot to mention that I want to be able to transfer my existing landline phone number over to the VOIP.

Breakdown of what I want:

• Easy to set up, install, & use
• Compatible with existing Panasonic landline phone w/ 5 handsets
• Reliable service with clear sound and good volume
• Unlimited local & long distance
• Caller ID
• Ability to transfer existing landline number
• Inexpensive price
• Good & reliable customer service

Not needed but would be nice:

• Call waiting
• Voicemail and/or voice to e-mail
• Ability to send & receive faxes (with some easy way to set it up)-- very low priority
• Call log of sorts that keeps track of every number that calls even if the phone is answered

Does anyone have any other things they would recommend?

 

[d_marsh]

Here is my honest advice based on my limited experience. Don't get it. I had Ooma for a year in 2021 and it was horrible. Maybe they have somehow improved things since then but I would bet my money on it. Poor call quality, dropped calls, people complaining they can't hear you, phone would ring and no one would be there, etc. etc. Where I live cell phone coverage is okay but not the best, but I have good internet so I though VOIP would save the day. It didn't.

 

[SoJer]

..Does anyone have any other things they would recommend?

My .02 (from Experience..)

- Magic Jack: GTG Cheapest, by-far, Never any 'outages' (well, other than Internet, itself, but that wasn't 'MJ's cause, etc..)

- Vonage: Avoid. Call-quality was.. "OK", but if there were Ever any 'Acct issues' / Service-changes desired, well.. Let's just say You'd Better be fluent in Bangladeshii.. Pass, for us, based on Past experiences..

.02
jd

 

[zannej]

I should mention that my landline service has terrible quality, is hard to hear, and has outages after rain that can take weeks to fix. AT&T is phasing the landline service out and the only way I can really get through to their CS without standing outside trying to get signal on my cellphone is to contact someone on Twitter DMs and have them contact the landline department for me and they refuse to credit my account for the times I have been without service. Plus they keep raising the price. The only plus is that it sometimes works when my internet is out.

I don't have a hard time understanding Indian accents usually, but being able to actually hear from someone and get things resolved in a timely fashion would be nice. I've heard MJ has lousy CS.

how much does MagicJack cost? are there monthly fees? I saw something on Amazon for $50 that said it was 12 months of free VOIP via MagicJack but the reviews were mixed.

How long ago did you have Vonage? I know it has been around for over 15 years. I've heard mixed reviews on it as well.

 

[mml373]

It's me again Margaret.
This is branching off of the thread talking about internet in rural areas. Fiberoptic is now being installed in my area and should be available next month. We currently pay about $80/mo for a landline with caller ID, call waiting, unlimited local and long distance within the mainland US, and voicemail-- which we have never used as we never set it up and never figured out how.

Our landline phone has an answering machine. So, I'm looking for something inexpensive, reliable, and that has the same features (maybe minus the voicemail-- unless it's super easy to use and access & doesn't cost a ton). I want something that can work with our existing landline phone (a Panasonic one with a base and 5 handsets). I would love something that can connect via wifi if possible, but I can run a hardwired line if necessary. The main phone is currently connected to a landline in Mom's room at the south end of the house while the internet will be at her desk on the north end. Worst case we could move the base phone unit to her desk. The phoneline goes into the box on the north side of the house and the cable for it runs under the house and up next to the wall in Mom's bedroom.

We want to get the MESH adapter to boost signal in the house as the thick walls interfere with signal. Although, I suppose we could see how it works without the MESH as the modem allegedly has 2500ft range and our house is around 2300sqft.

So, any recommendations?

I saw Magic Jack, Vonage, VOIPLY, and a few others but don't really know what to get. I thought SwyftConnect would have a VOIP but they said they don't.

I forgot to mention that I want to be able to transfer my existing landline phone number over to the VOIP.

Breakdown of what I want:

• Easy to set up, install, & use
• Compatible with existing Panasonic landline phone w/ 5 handsets
• Reliable service with clear sound and good volume
• Unlimited local & long distance
• Caller ID
• Ability to transfer existing landline number
• Inexpensive price
• Good & reliable customer service

Not needed but would be nice:

• Call waiting
• Voicemail and/or voice to e-mail
• Ability to send & receive faxes (with some easy way to set it up)-- very low priority
• Call log of sorts that keeps track of every number that calls even if the phone is answered

Does anyone have any other things they would recommend?

I have Ooma and love it. Ditched my smart phone, bought a dumb flip phone for travel, and Ooma's service forwards to it when needed. Voicemail as well. Also a phone app. Meets your specs, I think. Is about $25 a month, I believe. Best thing is they have VOIP using LTE (celluluar) technology, and/or internet (can use both), and battery backup is also a feature. I wired my new construction house for phone lines and use Ooma in place of a copper line connection.

 

[dademoss]

The number I give to people if I HAVE to is a google voice number , that forwards to a Magic Jack number. Had the Magic jack for years, it plugs into the router, and I have a cordless phone with extensions to send it to other rooms.

Google Voice takes messages and keeps a log, so does magic jack. Google Voice is "free", Magic jack is around 35 bucks a year.

 

[DrHenley]

Google Voice works well for me. I've been using it for many years now. They had some hiccups a number of years ago but seem to have all those ironed out now.
On my phone I can use either WiFi, carrier data, or carrier voice to make and receive Google Voice calls. It is set up to automatically use the Google Voice number instead of the carrier number when I use the phone's native phone app. I can make and receive calls on laptop, desktop, and Internet only tablet and can see the call log, voicemails, and text messages from any device.
If you are in a big city with widespread WiFi, you won't even need a phone plan most of the time.
On my tablet I have an AT&T data only tablet plan that is really cheap. Since my phone is on a different carrier I have redundancy that doesn't depend on a single carrier. When I get a call, my phone and tablet both ring and I can answer from either one.
I get constant telemarketing calls on the carrier phone number but hardly ever on the Google Voice number.

One drawback is that you cannot make a 911 call from a Google Voice number, so make sure you have the local emergency numbers in your contacts.
Also, occasionally when a site asks for your phone number, it won't accept a Google Voice number. This is rare but still happens occasionally.