Earthlink trueVoice VoIP, anyone?

April 2, 2006 3:39 PM

Anyone used Earthlink's trueVoice VoIP service? They called with an offer today. I'm suspicious of VoIP, but I'm tired of paying $53 per month for DSL plus $100 for phones plus long distance, etc. They're offering $69 for 8mbps DSL plus phone line and unlimited local and US/Canada LD, $14 for additional line, and no extra taxes or charges, (they say). My worst fear is that it's usable but rinky-dink like Skype.
posted by QuietDesperation to computers & internet (6 comments total)

You might take a look at SunRocket to see how they compare.

I've got a client who uses them, and he loves the service.
posted by SlyBevel at 5:10 PM on April 2, 2006

I have SunRocket too and am generally quite happy with it. $200 for a year of service and they give you a free pair of cordless phones. Plus if you refer someone they give you a very generous kickback, which reduces your monthly price further.

That said, the price if you just buy DSL + SunRocket is going to be pretty darn close to $69, assuming the $53 per month DSL is available in your area without a POTS line. Earthlink's service does not seem like a bad deal although it has basically no track record.

Even if you still need a POTS line for the DSL you can still save money by converting your second line (I assume you have two, from the fact that you're paying $100 per month for "phones") to VOIP.

Earthlink's VOIP is basically provided by Level3, it appears. I don't know much about them except that they are a big business networking and telepohny provider.

One advantage of getting your VOIP and Internet from the same company is that they can provide end-to-end prioritization for your phone calls, so you will have less trouble with dropouts and so forth when you're using the Internet and talking on the phone at the same time. Earthlink may or may not do this and in practice it's usually not as big a deal as it may sound (it can be worked around with a router or other device that has quality of service features).
posted by kindall at 5:52 PM on April 2, 2006

I've had Vonage for several years now and have never had any problems with it. It's always worked for me, and the voice quality has been just fine. Certainly a hell of a lot better than my Cingular Wireless service. Bleah. But I digress...

From what I have heard, the Earthlink VoIP service is decent. See how far from the central office you are, because you know how DSL is.. 8mbit is a pipedream for most users anyway.
posted by drstein at 9:29 PM on April 2, 2006

Can't help you with Earthlink, but on a related note I just made a discovery with my DSL service yesterday. My low intro rate period just ended and the monthly fee had jumped up to over $50 like yours. Just for kicks I called my DSL service provider. Without batting an eye they asked if I'd like to be re-rated to a $19.95 plan for the next 12 months! So if the VoIP thing doesn't work out, might be worth a call to see if you can get that DSL rate down . . .
posted by globetrotter30 at 9:41 PM on April 2, 2006

If the DSL is installed without installing a separate circuit for it, you have to maintain POTS service to use the DSL.

You can of course cut it down to the bare minimum, or maybe, maybe switch providers, but you will have to keep it.

I have Speakeasy for DSL (on a dedicated curcuit) and Vonage's $15 plan. Both work wonderfully.
posted by easyasy3k at 10:55 PM on April 2, 2006

I'm a fairly new TruVoice customer but I am happy so far. I got new telephones at the same time so I am uncertain if the few glitches I have had are from them or the service.

For example, I have had a few calls not go thru the first time I dialed, but always the 2nd time. All the calls have been of good voice quality. The v-mail on the web is handy, but loads slowly. The v-mail that I call into is fine.
posted by egk at 10:33 AM on April 3, 2006