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Vonage advise needed please


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Old 27-09-2006, 06:45
hamid84
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Hi guys,

I have read quite alot about vonage but always seems to be confuse.

Curently I have BT phone line and paying £11.50 lint rent then i have signed up for skytalk and paying £5 to them. The idea was to stop paying £26.50 to telewest for unlimited phone calls.

I also have telewest internet and paying £17.99 a month.

Now if i sign up for vonagem, i believe i dont need phone line for that as i have cable net.

My question is will i get seperate phone no with vonage? Will it ring just like normal phone?

Its only £7.99 a month which means, i dont need BTline+skytalk......... huge saving.

Please let me know more.

Thanks
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Old 27-09-2006, 15:21
pje1979
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Voange will send you a VOIP adapter that plugs in to your router or the adapter will work as a router for a modem that connects via Ethernet. If you have a USB modem then it won't be compatible with Vonages's adapter, you then plug any normal phone into the Vonage adapter. You will be able to choose a phone number from your area code or any area code in the UK if you wish, so yes you will get a seperate number. Your phone will just work like a normal phone. I have Vonage and the audio is good, I can't tell the difference from a BT line. Then you can cancel your BT line and just have Vonage using your Telewest internet.

Last edited by pje1979 : 27-09-2006 at 15:30.
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Old 28-09-2006, 08:26
call100
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Dump all your phone lines and use Vonage through your cable BB connection as described by pje1979. I use it through NTl BB and find it to be clear and reliable with some great features. I use the normal phones I had on the old BT system.
The only problem you might have is the need for a phone line for Sky to plug into. I don't have Sky anymore. Do they still insist you are plugged into the phone network?
If this is not the case then I would recommend you go for it.
Hope this helps..
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Old 30-09-2006, 22:04
John Doc
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In a word, Vonage is excellent. 3 way calling is free and an added extra call transfer is superb. If I get a call for my partner at home (i work from home) I can transfer the call to my partner's office landline and it costs nothing (including the cost of the call) just by dialling Recall #90 before the number and hanging up.

They support 1471, 999 calls and you can access your voicmail anywhere by dialling your local vonage prefix then 6599 (i.e. 0191 406 6599) and tapping in your number and password. They can even send them to your email Free of charge as a .wav file Only downside is that they don't support anonymous caller reject.
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Old 30-09-2006, 22:05
John Doc
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Oh and they support local calling too, so if you are in London, you only need to dial the local 8 digit number without the area code
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Old 05-10-2006, 10:58
Steven L Hunter
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Originally Posted by John Doc
In a word, Vonage is excellent. 3 way calling is free and an added extra call transfer is superb. If I get a call for my partner at home (i work from home) I can transfer the call to my partner's office landline and it costs nothing (including the cost of the call) just by dialling Recall #90 before the number and hanging up.

They support 1471, 999 calls and you can access your voicmail anywhere by dialling your local vonage prefix then 6599 (i.e. 0191 406 6599) and tapping in your number and password. They can even send them to your email Free of charge as a .wav file Only downside is that they don't support anonymous caller reject.
You can also access Voicemail by dialling *123.
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Old 19-10-2006, 19:03
Scot1974
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What kind of contract are you tied into with Vonage, and is there any disconnection fees if you end up leaving the service?
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Old 19-10-2006, 20:44
tomblandford
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I'm sure Vonage is all very good, but why not get your own adaptor or IP phone and use Sipgate or VoipCheap? Much cheaper.
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Old 19-10-2006, 22:44
Scot1974
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I've looked at all these 'buy credit' etc, but it all just seems so much more confusing!!!!
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Old 21-10-2006, 14:29
Steven L Hunter
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I've been told that after 3 months you dont have to pay for the equipment and after then i phoned up kept on getting told that I would need to stay till next month and it kept going on then one time they refunded 2 months service and have told me that from Nov 3rd I can cancel free of charge without any charges i'll be shouting down the phone if they dont cancel it this time!!!!

The service is crap if you have the LINKSYS router they quality is muffled!!
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Old 22-10-2006, 20:35
Scot1974
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Hmm .... that's a tad off-putting ...

I have a wi-fi Linksys router, and that doesnt sound promising at all!
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Old 22-10-2006, 22:16
call100
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Originally Posted by StevenGray16
I've been told that after 3 months you dont have to pay for the equipment and after then i phoned up kept on getting told that I would need to stay till next month and it kept going on then one time they refunded 2 months service and have told me that from Nov 3rd I can cancel free of charge without any charges i'll be shouting down the phone if they dont cancel it this time!!!!

The service is crap if you have the LINKSYS router they quality is muffled!!
How many LINKSYS routers have you tried?? Yours may be useless and others not...
Mine is fine with no problems and crystal clear reception....
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Old 23-10-2006, 19:37
Steven L Hunter
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Originally Posted by call100
How many LINKSYS routers have you tried?? Yours may be useless and others not...
Mine is fine with no problems and crystal clear reception....
I've tried mines and the one at work which they have they both sound bad. I used to have the little black box but it wouldnt disconnect calls quickly so had to get rid of it and get a replacement but the call quality was fine on the old one.
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Old 25-10-2006, 01:50
belfast-biker
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Originally Posted by tomblandford
I'm sure Vonage is all very good, but why not get your own adaptor or IP phone and use Sipgate or VoipCheap? Much cheaper.


I looked at those, but I don't think you can beat the combination of vonages reputation and £7.99/mth for utterly free calls to UK and US/Canada/parts of Europe, with free ATA.

As for voipcheap, a web page that says "Not Found - The requested URL /en/buycredits was not found on this server" when I click on topping up, doesn't instill confidence.

And does it even let you use your normal phone? I could only see reference to a downloadable comms program. My mum won't use software to make a call when she could lift a phone.

Last edited by belfast-biker : 25-10-2006 at 01:52.
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Old 25-10-2006, 02:02
MadMulla
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VoIP Cheap does indeed allow you to use your normal phone, I've been using them and their sister company VoIP Stunt for almost 2 years. I have a Linksys PAP2 ATA and have two DECT cordless phones and 2 standard phones connected.

For about 15 months of those I had free calls for jusr six Euro in total.

With Vonage you don't get free calls, you are paying £8 per month for inclusive calls, that's way way too much money for my liking, rip-off I would call it. £8 each and every month when you might not even make calls, and if you have to have a landline because you have broadband over BT then it's just stupid paying that rip-off cost when you can get better deals over a landline.

Last edited by MadMulla : 25-10-2006 at 02:05.
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Old 25-10-2006, 02:05
belfast-biker
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Originally Posted by MadMulla
VoIP Cheap does indeed allow you to use your normal phone,

Gotcha. Couldn't find reference to that on their (not too good) site.
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Old 25-10-2006, 02:12
MadMulla
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Site seems fine to me:

http://www.voipcheap.com/en/sip.html

http://www.voipstunt.com/en/sip.html

The only problem with this group of companies at the moment is they don't offer an incoming VoIP number, whereas when I signed up I received an 0121 number.

Granted with a PAP2 or certain other devices or softphones you could have a number from Sipgate and use that for incoming and use VoIP Cheap / Stunt for outgoing.

Vonage does work for some people, not many as you do really have to make a few hundred calls each and every month for it to be worthwhile, but yes there are a few people that fall into that category.

Last edited by MadMulla : 25-10-2006 at 02:23.
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Old 25-10-2006, 02:17
belfast-biker
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Originally Posted by MadMulla
Site seems fine to me:

Nope.

From homepage, look at "You can get more Freedays by topping up your account with credit" and try clicking on topping up.


There you go. An error message when you try to top up.


It was like this last time I looked, when I was appraising various companies at the weekend.

Hardly inspriring. It put me right off. That and the fact that it looks like a fly by night travel site.
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Old 25-10-2006, 02:18
belfast-biker
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Originally Posted by MadMulla
The only problem with this group of companies at the moment is they don't offer an incoming VoIP number [...].

Granted [...] you could have a number from Sipgate and use that for incoming and use VoIP Cheap / Stunt for outgoing.

For people like you and I, signing up with two companies to get basic in/out communication is nothing, for many people it's impossible or a chore.

I can't stress enough how easy and convenient vonage was to get sorted.
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Old 25-10-2006, 02:22
MadMulla
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On the VoIP Stunt website when I sign-in to my account, I have no problems with the top-up though as I don't need to top-up I only went as far as where I confirm my credit card details.

Yes, Vonage is pretty simple to set up, but for the high cost per month it needs to be.
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Old 25-10-2006, 11:09
call100
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Originally Posted by MadMulla
On the VoIP Stunt website when I sign-in to my account, I have no problems with the top-up though as I don't need to top-up I only went as far as where I confirm my credit card details.

Yes, Vonage is pretty simple to set up, but for the high cost per month it needs to be.
When did £7.99 become a 'high' cost?. I agree that if you have ADSL and are paying for a landline from BT then it probably is not worth it. However if you have Cable BB then it is as no line rental is needed.
I only have the voip really for people to phone me. I don't use it to make many outgoing calls I admit, but for the little outlay its worth it to save costs to my relatives.
If the charges from landline to mobile were dropped I would only have a mobile. However, I don't expect my relatives to have to pay L/L to Mobile charges just for the pleasure of speaking to me...
Reliability also plays a large part and Vonage have provided that.
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Old 25-10-2006, 11:16
MadMulla
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£8 per month to mainly receive calls just sounds crazy money to me.

Especially when www.Sipgate.co.uk charge £ ZERO per month, have any area-code you like have been going longer than Vonage in the UK, as it's VoIP all the features like caller display, 3-way calling, call waiting, voicemail etc are free.

So paying £8 per month when you could pay Zero does seem rather silly.

Then there's several others all offering VoIP with all the free features you get with VoIP for no monthly cost. Others with a monthly cost of £2 and you get evening and weekend calls free and daytime calls 2p for 60 mins.

I do use my phone to make calls, no where near the ammount to make Vonage worth it, but enough for £1.80 per month for 300 mins per week and still be able to use the £1.80 on chargeable calls.

I don't have a landline, I use VoIP, I have an 0121 number and have all the features available to me, I wanted to save money, not spend money for a service I wouldn't be using to make it worth having, defeats the object. Paying Vonage £8 per month for really only having incoming numbers sounds as crazy as paying £1,200 for Gym membership and only going 2 or 3 times a year.

£8 per month is a high cost when you are paying for something you aren't making use of, and considering all the alternatives out there that don't cost anywhere as much.

As most VoIP services come with no monthly charge and have all the features and then you just pay for the calls made, you need to work out would you make £8 worth of calls each and every month, work out how many calls you make and then see if any of the inclusive calls packages are right for you, if you don't make many calls then paying a monthly fee for them is just throwing money away, this is where the Telecoms make their money as they know most people would be better off paying on a call by call basis, but fool people into thinking they get a good offer.

Last edited by MadMulla : 25-10-2006 at 11:32.
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Old 25-10-2006, 17:37
call100
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Shame that sipgate extras I will need cost and also they cannot provide me with a local number....So guess I am sticking with Vonage...Sipgate don't mention 999 calling either..
As I said, Vonage provides less confusion for the people who phone me. £2 a week does not exactly break the bank.
However, I do understand your reasons for you having Sipgate..
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Old 25-10-2006, 17:38
MadMulla
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Why can't they provide you with a local number? They have all area-codes available.
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Old 26-10-2006, 08:28
call100
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Originally Posted by MadMulla
Why can't they provide you with a local number? They have all area-codes available.
Not according to there sign up section on the website. The list only lists 01 numbers...
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