Now I know that I promised a long-awaited column about Local Number Portability this week, however I have some good news and some slightly less good news…
The Good News – according to the website of my existing landline phone provider (a local bell), my home phone number now has an order scheduled for it to be disconnected…i.e. the request to port-out was confirmed and everything is a go
The Slightly Less Good News – said order isn’t set to take place until July 13th, so we’ve got a couple of weeks yet before the action itself takes place and I’m finally able to write my last check to Ma Bell
And of course, the underlying issue here is that I wanted to use this particular experience to tell everyone about the ins and outs of number portability, so what I’m going to do is appropriately stall for the next two and a half weeks until we see what actually happens with my line…as many of you know, getting the confirmation – or ok to port – is only half the battle!
So in the meantime, I thought that we’d first take some time here to expand on what I introduced last week – the wonderful world of Voice-over-IP technology! As I kind of brushed over the surface rather quickly last week, there were undoubtedly many questions that came up and so over the next few paragraphs, I’m going to do my very best to cover what you want to know about VoIP in just a little more detail…
For starters, like we said last week in our overview, simply put – VoIP directs your telephone calls over the Internet, however the big difference between the technology today and previous attempts to use the Internet for telephony is that now you get to use your own phone…not the cheap microphone that came with your PC. In fact, just one of the nice things is that your PC really has nothing to do with it this time – your provider sends you a small box which you plug into your broadband router, you plug your traditional, everyday phone into that very same box, and boom – you’ve got dial tone! You’re assigned a ten-digit telephone number just like with any other phone service and anyone else with a phone of some sort can still call you – really, the only difference is that this time, the sound waves that make up your call are getting digitized and sent over the Internet instead of over those copper wires outside of your house.
So what exactly does this mean? Well, quite easily the number one bell ringer is that it’s a whole lot cheaper! By utilizing the existing network infrastructure of the Internet, there’s instantly one less very large (and very expensive) piece of the puzzle that service providers have to even worry about. You’ve already got an Internet connection running into your home, so instead of installing a separate line of their own to connect you with the rest of the world, these guys have opted to basically use what’s already there – pretty cool, eh?! Of course, prices most certainly vary by provider – depending on special features and whatnot – but you can get monthly phone service via VoIP for as low as ten or fifteen bucks a month…and considering that merely local service from my own phone company cost me fifty bucks a month, there’s instant savings right there.
But that’s definitely not the end of it, either – taking advantage of the lower overhead, VoIP companies are also able to offer loads of extra features…many even free of charge…in place of the pricey feature packs that we’ve all gotten accustomed to from the Bells. Call forwarding, Caller ID blocking, Do Not Disturb, and even voicemail – not only do they often get included in your standard monthly fee, but often times you’re even able to control them directly yourself via the provider’s website, so there’s no more calling the central office to request that your home phone gets forwarded to your cell while you’re out of town…
Also very cool with the coming of VoIP is the breakdown of regional barriers. This was kind of introduced with cell phones, however it’s not really marketed because it can sometimes cause the provider more hassle than good – basically, giving you a New York telephone number when you’re actually residing in Los Angeles. Home phones can’t do it because you don’t physically live there, cell phones are touchy because although technically “possible,” you might very well be roaming all the time and that gets a little sticky, but with VoIP, you’re connected to the network via the Internet – no one cares where you actually are anymore! Now it becomes a toss up because although you might incur long distance to all of your local friends by choosing a number out west, if Mom lives out west and suddenly you’re a local call away for her, then it just might be worth it after all. It should also be noted that, such as in my own particular case, many of the “local calling areas” offered by VoIP companies are significantly larger than what Ma Bell might provide – you’ll find these kinds of details on each individual provider’s website.
But nonetheless, I think the most important feature offered to us by VoIP is that it now gives consumers a choice as far as who they want to purchase their telephone services from…which we really haven’t had in the past. Even in the large metropolitan area that I live in, there’s pretty much one giant telephone company and if I want a home phone, I’m going through them regardless of how much they want to charge me. That’s the worst part, in my opinion, because although I do like and appreciate the cellular revolution, I grew up on having an actual telephone in the house and I don’t like the idea of being limited to my cell phone when I’m at home…nor do I want to be giving my cell phone number out to every Tom, Dick, and Harry company that I interact with on a daily basis! It’s especially tough for me to stomach $50 / month for a phone that I hardly ever use, but still want around, and for me, VoIP just happens to be the much cheaper alternative to my problem.
But don’t get me wrong – you’re not going to hear me saying that it’s for everybody…at least not just yet. I’ve said the same thing about broadband Internet access and although I’m happy to learn that tech support and customer service has gotten much better at assisting the less computer savvy with their blazing-fast Internet access when simply just asking them to power-cycle their modem is a chore, I don’t think that most of the general public is ready for VoIP yet. Mostly because there is a learning curve with new technologies like this and you’ve got to have patience to handle the occasional outages and hiccups as they work out the kinks, but also partially just because it’s simply not completely and utterly running gold yet – a great deal of testing should be done to determine whether or not your home is ready to make the switch yet…before you do it…but I do think that they’re getting there. This ringing phone on my desk is proof of that!
So what kinds of things would I recommend looking into if this is an avenue that you’re seriously considering?
Technically Speaking…
· Is someone in your house going to be technical enough to support it on your own? Sure, they’ve all got “some help” available, but it’s not to the point where I’d just hand my own Mother over to their mercy…
· Is your broadband connection fast enough to even support VoIP? Statistically, most providers require a solid 90kbps (that kilobits, not kilobytes) going in each direction to maintain quality audio – some even more, and some less by means of compression. My broadband connection provides 5Mbps downstream and 384kbps upstream and I’ve yet to experience any problems, even while downloading. This is really a pretty standard package, but if you subscribe to some sort of broadband lite service, you may want to check the actual specs before continuing.
Knowing Your Phone Bill…
· Although not an issue for cable modem users, many DSL advocates actually receive special pricing on their Internet service because they also have a local phone line with the company – many even require it! Be sure to check into this if you have DSL and think you’re just going to shrug the phone line and retain your Internet connection at the same time…
· Check with your phone company and voice your concerns before leaving, though – they just might be willing to work with you! I only use my home phone for minimal calls and the lowest stripped-down line was still outrageously priced, but you never know until you actually ask.
Think About the Children (and the wife, too!)…
· It’s a family decision, so you really need to communicate if you’re going to undertake a new challenge like VoIP. If your wife uses the phone every day to call her sister across the country, let her do some tests to make sure that the quality is good enough for her standards, too! If you’ve got young children in the house, the current 9-1-1 debacle is definitely worth taking into consideration, and even if it’s just yourself at home, I’d still recommend doing plenty of research, reading local reviews and whatnot, and just educating yourself before taking the next step.
And First Thing’s Last – Consider the Savings…
· No matter how you want to slice it, that extra $35 / month isn’t going to cause you anything but grief if you don’t honestly prepare yourself before undertaking VoIP – just recall the last time you spent your lunch hour on hold with tech support and ask yourself how much you would’ve paid right then to just finish that pizza! I’ll say it again – if you’re not a patient person who’s understanding of technology and its flaws, you’d better hold off…
Of course, once you’ve figured everything out on paper (or online, if you will) and things seem to be lining up in your favor, then I’d by all means recommend placing an order to try everything out for yourself! Choose a company that both meets your requirements and also offers a 30-day, money-back guarantee and just go to town. When it comes down to it, plenty of consumer reports can help to sway your vote one way or another, but for all you know, you could just have a lot of extraordinarily bitter neighbors! The only sure-fire way that you’ll know whether or not VoIP is right for you is by testing it out for yourself – make and receive plenty of calls during that trial period and just keep your ear open for anything that doesn’t sound like a normal phone call. You might be lucky and score a great provider on your first try, and you also might choose ones that’ll have you calling for that RMA number within a matter of hours – you never know until you try for yourself!
For those who do opt to take on the challenge that is Voice-over-IP, best of luck to you! I’ve heard stories of these things working straight out of the box…and I’ve also heard of some very long nights spent fighting with routers and firmware settings and all of that good stuff. It’s not for the meek by any means, but once it’s up and running as it should, I’d bet my wooden nickel that you’ll be pleasantly satisfied! Dial safely…
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