Few questions before buying Obihai
Bond007:
I am interested in buying Obihai device for home use.
An answer to the below questions will help me to make a decision.
1. Which device support google voice and this support will not be withdrawn in the next few years?
2. How is to contact Obihia support in case of problem/issues?
3. I noticed that your website say’s google voice does not support 911, this can be available for a minimum fee. Where I can find details about this one, unfortunately, I did not find the web page for this one.
4. What is a warranty Obihai provided for device and service?
5. How to transfer the current VOIP phone number to google voice?
Thanks in Advance.
Mango:
1. The OBi2 series is the latest version that is advertised to have Google Voice support. However, no one will make any guarantees about a free service's availability over the next few years.
2. Obihai's support has never been particularly good, but post-Polycom takeover we have seen a spike in complaints. I would not purchase an Obihai product with the expectation of receiving high quality support, or any support at all, when you have a problem. If you need support, pick a service provider such as Callcentric that will charge a fee for their services, but provide support.
3. It can be purchased from a variety of service providers for varying fees. Anveo (via OBiTALK), Callcentric ($1.50/month), or GV911 ($12/year).
4. Theoretically a year, but see 2.
5. https://www.obitalk.com/info/tutorials/porttutorial
Bond007:
Thank you very much. It really helps
Lavarock7:
When I read through the forums, I notice a lot of issues people are having involve GoogleVoice, rather than some other VOIP supplier.
There are issues with figuring out Googles website, problems porting numbers and in some case having to port to an intermediate provider first, Google suddenly not working for a while and not having an easy way to get support. Then there is the issue that Google wants to handle voicemail. Also, Google Voice is not recommended by them or by many of us as a business service.
For a few dollars a month you can get better service and less hassles. I know the thought of free calls and a free telephone number are alluring, however sometimes it seems that free comes with a cost of time and effort.
Just my 2 cents worth.
vtsnaab:
As an overall situation - we are delighted with our Obi boxes & GV, BUT:
There are twists & exceptions which do apply.
In terms of VOIP, GV does get both thumbs up, while also not being the final solution in that realm.
Worthy of note is that GV has some features which are far ahead of all other providers when viewed as a whole picture rather than the small bits which make that picture, such as=>
- Spam call blocking - fantastic !!
- SMS via email - wow.
- VM transcripts.
- Using the GV numbers as public-facing numbers with appropriate choices made as to forwarding.
- Zero cost.
That having been said - some of our equipment does not work directly with GV, so:
We also have need of using a paid ITSP - and our top choice has been Circlenet.
Sadly, that is more or less scheduled to go away after a while now, so others have been looked at.
With that change on the visible horizon, our 2 top choices for good, low cost VOIP are VOIP.ms & CallWithUs - and a close 3rd is Callcentric.
Getting CWU to work with our Panasonic SIP phone has been a struggle that has eaten both time & funds...but that isn't a likely thing for most folks to have happen, so it is an unusual concern IMO.
VOIP.ms has incredible support IMO, as does Callcentric.
Compared to either landline charges or bundled VOIP from an internet provider, any of the above can be seen as a great win.
As long as our Obi boxes & GV are still getting along, we'll stick with that - and frankly if the Obi2xx goes on sale for a really super price I might consider picking up a spare if that came around sometime soon.
Counting on this to last forever is not a reasonable option IMO - but in contrast to that, even if the time of free GV via Obi ends, our Obi boxes are still great for use via a paid ITSP, if that is the only choice remaining at some later date.
Final thought with this same idea:
If one ONLY wants to mimic a POTS line using VOIP through their internet connection, there are lower cost boxes to be had which work perfectly with a paid ITSP.
Using care in choosing an ITSP is very, very important - as some have pretty good deals but abysmal non-support; others have deceptive deals which are used to entice join-ups - and finally, there ar & have been 'fly-by-night' ITSPs that want yearly payments (for example) which either go up radically later, or just vanish along with the user's funds & services.
So the final word as with ALL buying choices is...
Let the buyer beware.
Best Wishes.
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