Have many questions, Help Pl.

[rakesh15]

I need clarification and have couple of question, as I have not bought this piece yet, but am going to buy soon.

I am having Comcast service of internet and with cable modem and router
Have been using nettalk, ooma and magic jack kind of  VOIP services very successfully, and now want to try this unit.

Here are my question.

1.   What is address and phone no. of obi110 company, who makes it and has it  any connection with Google voice?

2.    Where to buy this piece? Why any major stores are not selling it? And Where is the org. company with its phone number?

3.   I understand that it relies on Google voice and very soon GV will not offer any free services so will they charge 30 dollars per year like ooma/nettalk/magic jack plus?  Or will it be free of any additional charge life long?

4.   What happens if,.. company OBI starts charging may be next year per year of its use,.. and on the other hand,..  GV also starts charging ,... then what??  Are you paying the double charges?

5.   If I buy this piece right now ( Before GV starts charging and change its rules,.. ) will it be free for me, from paying any future charges from GV, since I bought this piece earlier before the rule came??  ( just like the people who bought TK6000 and Ooma classic in earlier in 2009 )  

6.   I am confused as, not clear,.. who is the company which makes this piece? Where it is? Any phone or tech support help, like MJ/Ooma/Nettalk??

7.   Tell me, what should I do so that after buying it soon,..... I do NOT need to pay any other monthly/yearly service charges/taxes to anybody,.. no matter whatsoever rule changes afterwards.

8.  Can it dial any US and canada numbers free,... from US and outside the US??

Please answer my Qs and I have few other questions thereafter.

Thanks.

GV = Google Voice.  
Ooma, Magic jack, net talk, TK6000 are other similar VOIP adapter/devices.

..............................................

[Stewart]

Why are you so distrustful?

Obihai is a very respectable and forthcoming company.  Their web site clearly lists physical and email addresses, phone contacts, etc. http://www.obihai.com/contact.html .  They provide excellent support by email and have some phone support, too.

The device is sold by Amazon and other Internet merchants, as well as some brick-and-mortar stores, e.g. Fry's.

IMO, Obihai will never charge a monthly fee for use of the device.

If GV starts to charge for service in 2013 or later, it is IMO unlikely that they will grandfather current users.  It's also possible that Google will discontinue the service altogether.

Although GV is very reliable, they offer essentially no support.  If something did go wrong, you could be without service for a long time.

Presently, GV works in most countries.  The exceptions are where VoIP is prohibited or blocked by the government or the ISPs.  GV blocks calls to a few "traffic pumping" numbers that are expensive for them to terminate.  You can call any landline, cellular or normal VoIP number in the US and Canada.

If GV becomes unavailable or unattractive, you can still use the OBi device with many other providers; it's compatible with dozens of them.

[Felix]

Rakesh,

I think I can clarify your confusion... Obihai makes devices (also known as adapter, or ATA). Google Voice provides service; so does Vonage, CallCentric and dozens (if not hundreds) other companies. You see frequent references to GV because no other adapter supports it. Other than that there is no connection. Obi doesn't cost you on an ongoing basis (neither does your telephone, camera, or computer); and there is no guarantee that GV won't start charge you (or Facebook, or any Real Player).

With that in mind, the answers to some of your questions become obvious. I have a Kodak camera; Kodak is going out of business - but I am still going to use it. I use Obi with Google Voice and CallWithUs and will continue to use it whether OBi is in business or not (I hope they are for many years to come, though  )

Hope that helps.

[Felix]

And, by the way, you can get the address/phone on their website: http://www.obihai.com/contact.html

[RevKev]

1.   What is address and phone no. of obi110 company, who makes it and has it  any connection with Google voice?

As was posted above, you can find that information on their web site - http://www.obihai.com/contact.html

2.    Where to buy this piece? Why any major stores are not selling it? And Where is the org. company with its phone number?

Currently, the devices are sold though Amazon and Frys.

3.   I understand that it relies on Google voice and very soon GV will not offer any free services so will they charge 30 dollars per year like ooma/nettalk/magic jack plus?  Or will it be free of any additional charge life long?

The OBi devices don't rely on Google Voice. You can use Google Voice and/or any standard SIP service. The choice is yours. The advantage of the OBi is that it's the only device that currently supports Google Voice.

4.   What happens if,.. company OBI starts charging may be next year per year of its use,.. and on the other hand,..  GV also starts charging ,... then what??  Are you paying the double charges?

If you already own the device, they couldn't start charging you for it. They could possibly (but doubtfully) charge for the OBiTalk service which is used for OBi-to-OBi calls. In which case, you could opt to not use that service.

5.   If I buy this piece right now ( Before GV starts charging and change its rules,.. ) will it be free for me, from paying any future charges from GV, since I bought this piece earlier before the rule came??  ( just like the people who bought TK6000 and Ooma classic in earlier in 2009 ) 

OBihai is not associated with Google. If Google starts charging for the Google Voice service, there's nothing OBihai can do about it.

6.   I am confused as, not clear,.. who is the company which makes this piece? Where it is? Any phone or tech support help, like MJ/Ooma/Nettalk??

See #1

7.   Tell me, what should I do so that after buying it soon,..... I do NOT need to pay any other monthly/yearly service charges/taxes to anybody,.. no matter whatsoever rule changes afterwards.

Any service charges would be dependent on the services you choose to use/subscribe to. Currently Google Voice is free and there are many free SIP providers. Other providers charge for their services. This is not a function of the OBi device but of the service(s) you choose.

8.  Can it dial any US and canada numbers free,... from US and outside the US??

Again, that depends on the services/providers you choose to subscribe to. It's not a function of the OBi device.

[jimates]

The Obi is also sold at Buy.com
http://www.buy.com/sr/searchresults.aspx?loc=111&sid=8&qu=obihai

[rakesh15]

First of all, thanks to all for your honest and prompt,
kind answers and I  think, that area is clear now.  Thx again all.

However I will still appreciate, if you could answer my following further questions.

1.   If you connect your local 6.0 Dect phone,  with 5 headsets, they  will work and also it can take the messages on phone's answering machine?

2.   I can also use, the  fax machine attached and send and receive faxes just like my magic jack and net talk.

3.   How much obi110 can charge you compared to below pieces if you call foreign nations ( if they have no US voip piece there ) say India – I mean 6-7 cents per minute, and whom you are paying that amount? GV?

4.   Other very similar VOIP devices costs almost same price, more or less.
So what is the upper hand ( other special advantages of this piece over others ) – except  that, you do not pay monthly / yearly fees for time-being ( to GV ) , though other devices also come at 1 yr service included for free.

a) OBI110 sold for 50 bucks min. with shipping included – now free of service charge, hope GV do not charge soon.
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=obi110&hl=en&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&biw=1920&bih=1051&wrapid=tlif132690728404610&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=9917739872404534184&sa=X&ei=O_8WT9adForDgAfI7LzMAw&ved=0CHIQgggwBQ#

b) Nettalk Duo sold for 57 bucks min. ( though was 45 during holiday's special time) with shipping included - one year free around 20 to 32 bucks per year thereafter, upon long contract
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=nettalk+duo&hl=en&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&biw=1920&bih=1051&wrapid=tlif132690736556210&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=9156155735228501820&sa=X&ei=kP8WT9LuLof1ggeN1JykAw&ved=0CGkQgggwAg#

c) Magic jack plus sold for around 70 bucks min. ( if surfed on e-bay too ) with shipping included – one year free around 20 to 32 bucks per year thereafter, upon long contract
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=magicjack+plus&hl=en&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&biw=1920&bih=1051&wrapid=tlif132690747106210&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=14565405121233282697&sa=X&ei=9v8WT9z0D5DUgQfnrZGpAw&ved=0CH4QgggwCQ#

d) Ooma Telo sold for around 170 bucks min. ( if surfed on e-bay too ) with shipping included – one year free not included  – approx. 3.00+ dollars of govt. taxes per month
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=ooma+telo&hl=en&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&biw=1920&bih=1051&wrapid=tlif132690757968710&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=5870591832952896594&sa=X&ei=dgAXT42CJ4qRgQeRqvXcAw&ved=0CGwQgggwAjgU#

Can someone list special benefits, and a true upper hand of this OBI110 over any of this guy, anyone used?

I had bought nettalk  ( known as TK6000 ) and ooma ( Classic hub )  a long ago,
and  at that time it was free of any future service charges,  so I am free from paying anything to them at all.

Again, thanks for your time and utmost support.

............

[Stewart]

GV rates to India are $0.02/min.  The OBi can be set up with multiple providers; there are several with lower rates to India, at varying quality.  If you call there a lot, there are providers with packages that include "unlimited" calling to India (usuallly capped at 1200 to 3000 minutes), at a fixed monthly fee.