ooma

[WM]

I was reading a fairly recent thread about VOIP phone services, and I'm leaning toward converting to Ooma from Cox Cable, our current provider.

Those that have Ooma, are you still happy several months later?

I also have a question about setup. My cable modem (which I'd keep for DSL) comes into the back corner of my house. I like it there because I don't have to look at the modem, wireless router, cords, etc. But I don't really want to put a phone back there. Can I just connect the Ooma to the internet and to a phone jack, then use the Scout to plug my phone in where I want it?

I will call and talk to the Ooma people, but it's always nice to get info from those not selling the product.

 

[calmloki]

real quick here we'll have some info for you - we are in the process of porting our old number and after that i plan to disconnect our home phone wiring from the MaBell lines and tie our different lines together (currently separate DSL and voice circuits so I could run just one filter out at the incoming junction box. We currently have our fax machine receiving and sending on Ooma (requires *99 to send). Hoping to tie into the house wiring and use scout for the fax and the base unit for our cordless base unit. Porting is supposed to be complete within the week. To your question; I believe you can assign numbers at your Ooma account online to the different devices.

 

[WM]

real quick here we'll have some info for you - we are in the process of porting our old number and after that i plan to disconnect our home phone wiring from the MaBell lines and tie our different lines together (currently separate DSL and voice circuits so I could run just one filter out at the incoming junction box. We currently have our fax machine receiving and sending on Ooma (requires *99 to send). Hoping to tie into the house wiring and use scout for the fax and the base unit for our cordless base unit. Porting is supposed to be complete within the week. To your question; I believe you can assign numbers at your Ooma account online to the different devices.

Perfect! Another question I had was working out the fax issue, as I have a fax machine that it occasionally very handy and I would like to keep using it. But it sounds like that won't be an issue. I was debating about whether to port our number or not, I'll be interested to see how it goes.

 

[Kronk]

I've been happy with our ooma.

Once or twice, the other party hasn't been able to hear us. Once, the whole system freaked out a bit and we kept losing the connection. Once in a while there has been a slight delay in the system. But then our POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) line had similar downsides.

We have a simple hookup -- network cable into a cordless base unit that has 2 other auxiliary units. No fax, no Scout hooked up. We did have the phone number ported, and that worked flawlessly.

 

[calmloki]

Perfect! Another question I had was working out the fax issue, as I have a fax machine that it occasionally very handy and I would like to keep using it. But it sounds like that won't be an issue. I was debating about whether to port our number or not, I'll be interested to see how it goes.

Ooma doesn't guarantee fax will work, but higher speed connection supposedly improves the odds of success. We upgraded from a telephone line 3MB DSL connection to a 5MB fiber-optic and have sent a 12 page document via fax, which is promising. Whether the second line capability with Ooma Premier will allow us to have a dedicated fax as well as a voice line is undetermined so far.

 

[Bimmerbill]

I've been happy with mine so far. Had it quite a few months. System had issues a month or so back and they had to restore their servers due to a failed upgrade. But you can set it up to ring to another phone in the event the ooma is down. Mine rings to my cell.

 

[HawkeyeNFO]

DO NOT HESITATE to get an Ooma!

I tried using MagicJack and also a Skype adapter as our main phone line, but they were 70% solutions, and Mrs NFO wouldn't giveup the regular phone company setup. It sucks when things don't work. Then We moved and we tried the Ooma. We think it works even better than the old POTS line through Verizon. We've been using it since July '09, and have no complaints at all. It has paid for itself since then.

Not sure how well it works for faxes though, haven't tried that.

 

[WM]

Ok, we're in! Already bought and installed, couldn't wait. A bit of confusion working out the setup, but it was solved with a quick call to customer service (although I'd tried to call an hour earlier with a question about number porting and was on hold for a good ten minutes before giving up).

The fax - one thing I found in the instructions is that you can only hook the fax to the hub, not the scout. I don't understand this and may try to find why or try it anyway. I use the fax only rarely, but it's really nice when I need it, so will plan to just carry the fax machine into the other room and plug it in when necessary if it really can't work with the scout.

So far, I'm mostly pleased. My first test call, to DH's cell, the quality was terrible - wouldn't be willing to talk more than a few minutes, it was cutting out so much. But several calls after that were much better, mostly indistinguishable from my land line except for a couple split seconds of cutting out. I'll be trying it out more over the next few days.

 

[tryan]

We're in month 5 with ooma at the lake. No problems. Been hesitant to use it at home because I'ld need a few extra scouts (bedroom phones, fax ...).

Now if the company can stay solvent for another 5 months, it was worth it.

 

[WM]

Now if the company can stay solvent for another 5 months, it was worth it.

I know, that's what I'm thinking! I have to say, so far I love it. The quality has been very good, no noticeable difference on some more short calls I've made in the past couple days. And I even sent two faxes - one 8-pg and one 2-pg - with no problem, first try.

 

[calmloki]

Foo. My number porting got screwed up - my fault, requested number port on the phone, got a job number, got a confirmation email, and neglected to read the whole email where a copy of the old phone bill and written port request is required. Glad I called to check on progress.

 

[tryan]

Calmloki, thanx for the update. heard it can really take 2-3 weeks. please keep us posted!

I still can't figure how ooma can stay afloat "forever" when they have to buy blocks of minutes to route into existing baby bells. That business model escapes me (unless you think "pyramid").

 

[TromboneAl]

When you guys say the sound quality is good, do you mean good as in as good as a cell phone's quality? The speech delay with cell phones bugs me, as does frequently somewhat-garbled speech.

 

[easysurfer]

Walletpop comparing several LD options:

Savings Experiment: What's the cheapest long distance?

Unfortunately, they must have forgotten about Ooma as an option.

 

[tryan]

Yeah, it's really about a monthly fee (how low can you go) for unlimited. Anybody charging by the minute is over priced (with exception to "emergency only" usage).

 

[ERD50]

Calmloki, thanx for the update. heard it can really take 2-3 weeks. please keep us posted!

I still can't figure how ooma can stay afloat "forever" when they have to buy blocks of minutes to route into existing baby bells. That business model escapes me (unless you think "pyramid").

They sell some enhanced services for $10/month or something. I think they also have business deals for bigger customers, and I bet they make some money on the hardware, phones don't cost much, and you could buy an equivalent to the router/adapter portion for ~ $50 and the seller is making a profit. Plus, if the phone last 10 years or you damage it or just want a newer model sooner, another $200, right? But I bet they really count on X% buying the premium services. I had some of those 'premium' services included with CallVantage (since discontinued) and I really liked them - emailed sound files of any system voice messages that are left for you.

-ERD50

 

[WM]

Foo. My number porting got screwed up - my fault, requested number port on the phone, got a job number, got a confirmation email, and neglected to read the whole email where a copy of the old phone bill and written port request is required. Glad I called to check on progress.

Interesting. My confirmation email didn't mention anything about an old phone bill and written request (I just re-read it to be sure!). But the system did somehow generate a Letter of Agreement which I guess is how Ooma tells Cox to transfer my service. About a week later I got an email from Cox saying they were planning to disconnect my phone service (not internet) on April 1. So it really is taking nearly a month.

When you guys say the sound quality is good, do you mean good as in as good as a cell phone's quality? The speech delay with cell phones bugs me, as does frequently somewhat-garbled speech.

It sounds like a normal phone to me (but then we are switching from essentially Cox VOIP). When we were doing test calls to our cell phones and we were standing in the same room, you could tell there was a slight delay in the transmission. But I can't tell the difference otherwise. I haven't had any garbled speech since the first couple test calls (no idea why those would be any different). On the other hand, our calls tend to be relatively short, 20 minutes or so, max.

 

[TromboneAl]

I often have trouble with cell phone delay when talking to DD. What happens is that we both start talking at the same time.

If you ever want to see how much delay there is, do this: Say "Count with me -- 1, 2, 3, 4..." In most cases, you'll be surprised at the amount of delay.

 

[calmloki]

crossposting my latest Ooma results.
http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f28/replacing-phone-with-voip-47030-5.html

 

[WM]

I often have trouble with cell phone delay when talking to DD. What happens is that we both start talking at the same time.

If you ever want to see how much delay there is, do this: Say "Count with me -- 1, 2, 3, 4..." In most cases, you'll be surprised at the amount of delay.

Oh, I see what you're saying. I haven't experienced that problem of talking over each other. But then I don't notice that problem with my cell phone either. I have a long phone call scheduled in a couple days to catch up with a work colleague - I'll report back and let you know how it goes, and ask her how it seems from her end.

Just did the counting test with my parents - interesting. Definitely a delay, probably comparable to a cell phone. But they both thought that in general the quality sounds like a regular land line.

 

[WM]

Can I just connect the Ooma to the internet and to a phone jack, then use the Scout to plug my phone in where I want it?

The answer to this is yes, by the way. I now have the hub plugged into an inconvenient location, but the scout is right next to my desk. I like being back to an answering-machine type system where I can push a button to hear the messages rather than calling my voicemail and punching in codes. And, I was traveling recently and listened to the messages through my computer - very cool.

 

[WM]

Had my hour-long call with the work colleague, and no problems. Now that you mention it, I can tell that there's a delay. However, we rarely had the problem of talking over one another. Maybe I am just a slow talker

Otherwise, sound quality was great all the way through, no glitches or cutting out. She wouldn't have known I changed my phone service if I hadn't mentioned it.

 

[calmloki]

We are on the road and have Ooma set to ring both our home phone and our cell. If we don't pick up the call is recorded and can be listened to on the Ooma website or as an email. Liking it. OOooo! Also, no need to dial "1" anymore on any US calls.

 

[smjsl]

I have 2 phone systems in the house - one via cable company that I intend to keep and another via phone company that I am thinking of changing. I get internet via cable company too. The cable part works fine for me and does not need to be changed. Could someone clarify the following about ooma?

What is the scout for? If I don't need the second line, can I just plug ooma hub into the wall phone jack and use other phones via the in-home phone wiring after disconnecting phone company from outside box? (I am asking because that's how similar systems used to work in the past without any additional scouts.)

Also, what are benefits of hub vs telo? Features seem very similar. Which would you recommend?

Finally, does anyone have both Ooma AND cable-company phone? Wonder if same internet connection used for both cable-company phone service and ooma would conflict by any chance...

 

[WM]

We are on the road and have Ooma set to ring both our home phone and our cell.

I did this as well, and am finding it very useful, even though I'm not on the road. I find it lets me give people only my home number, but I get the call on my cell if I'm out and can choose whether to answer it. This function is also available to anyone who registers with Google Voice (unrelated to Ooma).

I have 2 phone systems in the house - one via cable company that I intend to keep and another via phone company that I am thinking of changing. I get internet via cable company too. The cable part works fine for me and does not need to be changed. Could someone clarify the following about ooma?

What is the scout for? If I don't need the second line, can I just plug ooma hub into the wall phone jack and use other phones via the in-home phone wiring after disconnecting phone company from outside box? (I am asking because that's how similar systems used to work in the past without any additional scouts.)

Also, what are benefits of hub vs telo? Features seem very similar. Which would you recommend?

Finally, does anyone have both Ooma AND cable-company phone? Wonder if same internet connection used for both cable-company phone service and ooma would conflict by any chance...

I'm using the scout because the hub had to plug into my cable modem and router, which I hide in a back corner of the house. I think I could skip the scout, but I like having it as a mini-answering machine next to my desk. That's the most convenient way for me to play messages.

Not sure about hub vs. telo. No complaints about the hub, other than it has kind of a 90's electronics look.

We had Ooma and cable phone on the same line for a few weeks while our number was being ported. It didn't seem to cause any problems.