Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with landline

Dropping the landline

yawper — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 20:04:11 -0800

Thinking of dropping my landline, but I'm stuck in the dark ages. I have a cell phone which is great for local calls, but terrible for long distance. Skype, VOIP, calling cards, etc...I am clueless about these things. I live in Canada. Also: I have a central alarm system in my home. My husband and I each have Bell cell phones and we get good reception with them at home, so that's not an issue. We have Rogers home phone, cable, and cable internet. We really only use the home phone for long-distance calls to the US and other parts of Canada (we live in Ontario).

Question 1 - what are our best options for long-distance calls?

Question 2 - will dropping the landline still allow us to use our alarm system? (Grand Alarms, for what it`s worth.) Yes, I will contact them tomorrow to find out for sure but am hoping someone here has experience with this.

And yes, I realize this question has been asked several times, but I couldn't find any recent questions that were specific to Canada. Thanks!

Is the excuse Verizon just gave me for why we keep losing dial tone plausible?

ook — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:51:43 -0800

Three times this month: we lose dial tone. We call to complain. Their automated system runs an automated "line test," which fixes the problem. Is the excuse Verizon just gave me for why we this keeps happening plausible? Their customer service representative claims this is because "there's a short in one of your telephones that knocks out the line" and recommends we go through a debugging process of removing them one at a time every time the line goes out to see which it is.

I don't know enough about how the phone system works to be able to judge whether this is a reasonable thing to suggest, or if they've sent me on a long goose-chase just to get me off the support line.

Do any of you?

Plug a landline into a 3G cellphone?

shipbreaker — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 10:39:29 -0800

retrofitting 3G networks back down to landlines: My cellphone has a 1.75mm jack for plugging in earbud/wires. Is there RADIO SHACK technology that can let me somehow plug a "landline" into a cellphone? Is there a secret cellphone code that can generate a "dial tone"?

Undercharged for DSL and land line. Now what?

Anonymous — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 10:42:29 -0800

Telecom has undercharged me for DSL and land line service the past couple months. Is this going to bite me in the butt? If so, when and how severely? Back in December last year, I signed up for DSL internet service from my local telecom on a "first six months free with two-year commitment" promotion for longtime residential phone service customers. In the spring of this year, before the six months were up, they mistakenly started charging me for DSL, and I had to call them several times to get them to adjust my bill.

They rectified it and then some: since then, they've been crediting me on every billing cycle for more than the amount of the DSL charges, so that my total bill, including land line phone service, has been ridiculously low. The six month free period ended in late June, and I should now be paying around $70.00 per month for the two services. My July bill came last week: the erroneous credit is on it again, and my total amount due is about a dollar.

How likely is it that they'll discover their mistake? If they do, are they likely to bill me for all of the charges I should have been paying during the time they've been crediting me incorrectly? If they do that, do I have any recourse, since it was their error? Should I a) notify them of their error, b) simply start paying what I think I actually owe without comment, or c) continue paying the exact amount they're billing me? Thanks.

Passing off calls with Skype?

wongcorgi — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 21:32:55 -0800

Help with some logistics questions for Skype as a home use landline/cell replacement. In order to save some scratch, I've gone to prepaid cell plans in my home. My family plan previously had over 8000 rollover minutes with 900 expiring every month- we don't talk a lot.

I've been using Google voice redirecting to a SkypeIn phone number for home use (to save on cell minutes), using my desktop PC mainly to take calls.

My question is this- how do I get around the fact that any incoming calls will have to be taken at my desk? (Especially when calls aren't for me?) I looked at the Skype forums and it looks like you can't pass off calls/transfer to another Skype client. It looks like you can transfer to another account with Skype pro but that is no longer offerered (and I'd like to avoid the hassle of multiple accounts and the additional subscription fee)

I'd rather not get a Skype to landline phone adapter (I dont even have a regular phone around) and I all the wifi Skype phones I've seem have pretty poor reviews.

Any recommendations on good hardware or other ideas?

Making the jump into the 21st century

mds35 — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 06:35:33 -0800

Why do we need a landline? The year is 2009. I know this question has been asked before but as the years go by and networks change, the answers do as well.

We pay $45/month for digital voice that we almost never use (maybe 8-10 minutes per month). I'd like to eliminate the expense but the wife says no, keep it.

But do we really need a landline in this day and age? It's not even a true landline phone since it's digital and comes through the cable modem.

Here's our set-up:

We have 3G iPhones through AT&T.

At home we have Verizon cable internet and digital cable along with digital voice. These all come through the same "pipe." So it seems to me that if we needed a landline and the internet was down, our landline would be too.

Also, we have a Skype account that we could fund for emergency phone calls.

So do we need this antique?

This is in Boston. FIOS and U-Verse are not yet available on my street, FWIW.

What's the downside to VOIP?

middleclasstool — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 22:07:11 -0800

What is the current state of VOIP? VOIP was never an option for us in the past, as it requires an internet connection, and we're on DSL, which until recently required a phone line.

But now AT&T is selling DSL without requiring phone service. Looking at it, I can get our current level of DSL service plus unlimited Vonage phone service (including call waiting/forwarding/id and voicemail) for what we're paying now for just basic phone service (no long distance, we've been using cards since getting burned by a crooked long distance company) + DSL.

But I'm thinking there's a catch. Like bittorrent will kill my phone service (or vice versa), for instance. What are the ugly trade-off realities of going to VOIP for your home phone line?

Everybody provides every service now.

Acari — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 11:22:13 -0800

Canadian phone/cable/internetfilter: what combo of services are cheapest? The scenario:
Two people moving into a new place in Edmonton, mostly calling each other [or not, neither have cell phones right now] and local calls almost exclusively. Cable TV is not a requirement, although even the phone company provides that service now.

Is it best to go with a dsl/landline package from Telus?
A cable internet/digital phone package from Shaw?
Internet from [somebody] and VOIP [with Vonage? somebody better?]

Having two cellphones on a family plan and [magical internet from whoever] sounds like it provide the most convenience for us, but there are also a zillion cell phone providers to sift through to figure out what the best deal would be there.

Our total phone usage is currently quite low [maybe 20 minutes/month each?] but that might creep up with cell phone ownership. The kind of calls we make are mostly of the this-is-my-current-location-i-will-see-you-at-X-o'clock type, and would be served equally well by text messages, but voice calls are necessary for contacting older relatives.

What I'm looking for is someone who has been down this road and can point to the glaringly obvious solution that I haven't even considered yet.

Who you gonna call?

nmabry — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 08:58:58 -0800

Time to kill the landline and consolidate communications...but can I keep that phone number? What's your best suggestion for keeping the landline number active? Ok, when I say landline, it is a VOIP line through Packet8, which is costing me about $28/mo. This phone number is what has been given out to all my billing accounts, and what we've had for several years. I do have a GrandCentral number that we'd transition to over the next several months, but I'd need the legacy number active in the interim.

We've finally had enough family move to Verizon to merit dropping the landline. One option I've thought of is adding another line on Verizon ($10+tax) and porting the number there. This, however, leaves me pulled in for another 2 year contract. The savings over my current situation would be significant enough that it merits considering. It also leaves a phone at home regularly. There are other pros to this option, as well.

We're also considering Skype as a cost-effective home phone solution, but I don't believe I can port my number there.

Is there a cheaper alternative to keeping the landline number (short-term to an indefinite time period)? I'm comfortable with a permanent forward or a voicemail box or another creative solution.

T-Mobile @ Home VOIP Opinions Wanted

cscwallace — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 14:54:18 -0800

Anyone have experience with the T-Mobile @ Home VOIP service? I need to lower my phone bill but keep my landline phones. The T-Mobile @ Home service provides local and long-distance service for $10/mo. using a broadband router. I already have T-Mobile cellular service and have been very pleased, so the @ Home service is very tempting. However, there is a 2-yr. contract and I would like to know:

Anyone here have actual experience using the @ Home service? Would like to hear both positive and negative experiences before I make the leap. Thanks!

Is Skype a viable landline alternative for us?

Happy Dave — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 04:55:56 -0800

What's the best Skype package for managing contact with our international friends and family group? I've been examining options for keeping in touch with the families and friends of both my wife and myself. We moved into our place a year ago and never got around to getting a landline, because we both have mobiles with good packages, and our internet is provided through building-wide, minimal cost wifi.

However, it's kind of tough to keep on top of costs of calls with our mobiles, and we've been consistently going over international call allowances and getting smacked with bills £30 - £50 over our call limits. Ideally, I want to remove all the various bolt ons, international allowances and so on we have on our mobile contracts and just pay for calls, texts and data.

So, I've been looking at Skype as a possibility. I have family and friends in Scotland, some who can use Skype, some on landlines. My wife has family and friends across the US, again some using landlines, some able to use Skype.

From my research, it looks like the Unlimited World subscription would give us all the benefits of having a landline on top of the obvious benefits of Skype-to-Skype video calling, which we have already. Has anyone used this package from the UK? Can you call landlines in the UK with it? Is it a good landline alternative? I'm thinking it'd be cheaper than pretty much any landline deal (about £6 a month, which I can pay through Paypal).

Any experiences or perspectives?

Need a headset for music AND landline phonecalls

dtgriscom — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 12:16:36 -0800

Is there a wireless headset that will let me listen to beautiful music from my computer as well as make/receive phonecalls on my landline? I spend all day listening to music from my Mac Pro using wireless headphones (Sennheiser RS120s; great for what they are). Problem: when the phone rings I have to whip off the headphones and pick up my cordless phone. This, technically speaking, is a pain in the rear. I'd love to have a wireless headset that could do both functions.

For music, the solution would either plug into the Mac's 1/8" speaker jack, or connect to it via Bluetooth (I'm running Leopard, which supports A2DP). For phonecalls, the solution would plug into a modular phone jack (I use Callvantage VOIP, so theoretically the solution could connect straight to the data stream, but Callvantage is proprietary so I don't think it would be possible.)

There must be millions of desk workers in my shoes who would buy something that solves this problem; I find it hard to believe that there isn't a company who's seen the market and built a solution. The closest product I've found is this, which adapts a wired phoneline to a Bluetooth phone, with a stereo input on the side. It doesn't seem to be available, though.

Can an existing home number be assigned to a cell phone?

wordwhiz — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:28:40 -0800

Can an existing home number be assigned to a cell phone? I'm thinking of adding a (third) line to my cellphone plan, if I can give it my current landline number -- then ditch the landline. Is that even possible? For a variety of reasons, I'd like to keep the old home number itself. But why I should keep paying Time Warner $39 when AT&T will give me a third cell line for ten bucks. (Vonage tells me they can't provide service my number.)

Also, any other downsides to this idea that I haven't considered?

Long distance cell phones between Hamilton and Peterborough

ndicecco — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 18:16:38 -0800

My girlfriend and I are going to different universities in the fall - hers in Peterborough, mine in Hamilton. What should we do about long distance phone calls? Since the cell phone world seems to change every year, I didn't find any previous posts that were very helpful.

Neither of us have ever had cell phones... so it may be time that we left the stone age. It would be nice to have a phone we could take with us, considering that we both have very active lifestyles. The drawback, of course, is that cell phone companies in Canada are apparently evil.

Based on the research I've done so far, the Telus Share plan looks like our best option. Should we be wary? Are there better options?

I think Voip would be the cheapest way to go, since the basic idea is unlimited long distance between us (it would be nice to call our parents in Toronto and Vancouver once in awhile too)... but I have no idea where to go to set that up in either Hamilton or Peterborough.

Other things to know:

-she doesn't care about what phone she uses. I would like something I could sync with my Mac. The iPhone hits Canada in July...
-local outgoing calls would be minimal: 100 minutes/month each should suffice
-texting between us would be nice, but not necessary
-local texting doesn't really matter

Any advice on long distance plans, cell phone companies, voip, or even landlines would be useful.

please, someone get Verizon out of my life

Capri — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 16:44:10 -0800

How do I find out which phone companies provide local service in my new home? I'm moving to a house in Washington state that previously had a Verizon landline, so I called Verizon to set up a landline myself. I really should have just shot myself.

I want to get my landline from a different company. Any company. Even "We Suck Phone Service." (It can't be worse.) How can I find out what phone companies provide local phone service to my home? The helpful people at Verizon told me I have no choice, it's them or no landline. I am not inclined to believe anything they say, but don't know how to go about finding out the truth. (Please let it not be that they are my only choice.)

(I have no interest in going without a landline, so suggestions along that line really won't help. But thanks for thinking of me anyway.)

Connect Landline to PC?

bsexton — Wed, 07 May 2008 11:23:23 -0800

Is there a way I can connect a 4 line RCA 4 Line Executive Series phone to my PC to automatically log incoming and outgoing calls to measure phone productivity? Also if it came with an autodialer that would be great. The phone has a data port so I'm thinking I can connect to it some how. Thanks for the help!

Docking the Casbah - cell phone at home?

msamye — Fri, 02 May 2008 11:42:53 -0800

Any good options to connect a cell phone into a residential phone? So, I'm moving into a new apartment and miss having the convenience of a residential phone. Which is to say, the phone that will ring that I will hear even if I am 2 rooms away. I'm debating about just plugging my nice landline phone into a Skype adapter, and that'd be cool, but really only works for calling out.
What would be even -better- is if there was a way to plug my cell phone into the residential phone to make and receive calls, like a docking station. Any ideas?

good landline phone

jgballard — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 12:41:17 -0800

Old school question here, folks, but can anyone recommend a good landline (not cordless) phone for an office setting? I had an AT&T 955, but it's gone buggy (buzzy, actually) on me. I like the aesthetics of it otherwise, but if anyone has any ideas...

Going completely Skype, wireless and mobile?

zaebiz — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 17:22:35 -0800

I live in a semi-rural area and am incredibly frustrated with my area's landline phone provider. The provider has a monopoly in the area and delays fixing constant faults for many weeks. I want to go completely Skype, wireless and mobile. What are my options? I already have mobile phone access from another provider and am aware I can also get broadband for the area. I also have a mobile phone with basic internet access. I live in Australia not far from a major city. The provider is Telstra. However will consider any overseas service which is effective. Frankly, I don't really like the intrusiveness of telephone calls in any case so would be happy with a voicemail service retrievable over the internet perhaps. I could get phone numbers in cities that my friends and relatives live in so it would be cheaper for them in any case.

No more POTS. What else to do with wiring?

bartleby — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 11:26:31 -0800

No more landline. What else can I use my home phone wiring for now? Just moved, decided to skip the landline.
Gets me innernet through cable modem.

It's a rental, so I can't rip it all up.
But all those RJ-11 jacks in each room must be good for SOMETHING.

What?

saving money to spend on more daytime cellphone calls!

twistofrhyme — Wed, 30 May 2007 15:29:32 -0800

How to be a (cheapskate) grown-up in Toronto? I seek advice about good utilities providers in Toronto.
Who should be my provider for:

RENTER'S INSURANCE:
this is tricky.
i have 2 roommates, and between us 3, we'd like to insure about $30K worth of stuff. most insurance providers balk at splitting the policy. any ideas?
we used to pay about $18/month total but that company changed their minds about splitting the policy.

CELL PHONE:
i currently use about
400 weekday minutes,
200 weekend minutes,
100 weeknight minutes a month.
this in about 20 calls a month.
i send maybe 15 texts.
i currently pay about $90/month to Ma Bell- too damn much!
I can keep my phone number now when i switch teams, right?

I'd want:
400 weekday minutes
per second billing
answering machine
call display.
phone can be ugly.
is pay as you go a good option?

LAND LINE:
i need to be able to check msgs from away from home.
that's all i need.
it would be nice to keep our current phone number (Bell).

INTERNETS:
currently backpacking it onto my Bell landline bill.
needs to be pretty fast, we're laptop geeks around here.

piggybacking landline and internet and cellphone would be fine if it actually worked* and saved us money. (*bell promised me they could do it when i signed up and it never worked out.)
(bell = jerks.)

Should I lose my landline phone in favor of my cell phone?

TwilightKid — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 11:33:46 -0800

The pro's and con's of killing my land line phone service in favor or going purely cell phone.....Go! I pretty much make all my call during the day at work, or on my cell phone at night. Meanwhile I still have my landline, basically cause thats how I grew up, and it seems odd not to have it. My bill is about 28 bux a month, and about 20 of it is random taxes and services. (note: I have the most basic of phone plans).

Is there any good reason, not to just abandon the land line at this point and live strictly off my cell? for the most part, my cell service is fine. I get good reception where I am. I have 'yet' to be in a situation where i needed my cell in an emergency at home, and it did not work....

but part of me still feels a bit awkward in losing the landline and saving myself about $300 a year in wasted conveinence.

thoughts?

decent portable phones

dpx.mfx — Wed, 26 Oct 2005 18:33:19 -0800

I need a decent portable, landline, telephone. I have two 900mhz phones. They're both terrible and full of static. We rarely go more than 100 feet or so from the base, don't need an answering machine or anything fancy. Needs to have caller ID. Do you love yours? Please tell me what it is.

Landline phone network connectivity

gorillawarfare — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 13:56:02 -0800

If a phone number became disconnected from the network due to downed phone lines, what would one hear when trying to call that number? Currently, calling a landline phone in Mobile, AL gives me what sounds like normal ringing sounds, then a click and no more rings after a minute or two. Could this be the result of network outages? Or does the ringing imply a working connection?

Get rid of home phone?

lois1950 — Mon, 04 Jul 2005 00:47:00 -0800

Thinking about getting rid of land line and going strictly with cell. Don't spend much time on the phone, land or cell. Anyone out there got a good reason not to switch? (internet connection is cable) Any feedback appreciated.