Configure Caller ID WITH NAME?
prospero:
babobi, I looked at a lot of different services, just about everything I could find on Google, and finally settled on NetTalk. They currently have two devices, one that can use WiFi to connect, the other requires a wired connection but is US$20 cheaper and competitively priced with the OBi100. I went with the cheaper one because I don't really cotton to the idea of doing this by WiFi.
You can probably buy either at your local electronics megamart. I picked mine up at Fry's because I like their return policies.
The NetTalk devices come with a year of free service, then is $29 per year after that, has caller-ID NAME, can do a version of emergency calls, you can disable their Voicemail if you don't want it, and you get unlimited free calls to the US and Canada. (I've never called overseas in my life.)
It does take an unseemly while to port my number away from GV to NetTalk, (like up to a month -- but so does everybody else nobody I talked to could do it any faster), but when you register the NetTalk box, you get a new phone number, and have no choice about that.
Then you request the port and wait. Meantime, you can forward your GV account to this new number, and that will get you back your caller-id NAME (as well as working with touch-tone services and doing away with all the other problems I'm having with GV.)
You can log into your OBi box and make various parameter changes, but you can't do that with the Nettalk box. They won't tell you the login and don't want you messing with the parameters, so that you can't even, e.g., assign it a static IP address, it has to use DHCP.
Like the OBi box, the Nettalk box doesn't require a computer, just the router/gateway provided by your ISP, to work. The Nettalk box draws power from a USB cable. You *can* connect it to your computer via said USB cable, or you can connect it to your gateway via an Ethernet cable and just use the USB port for power from a wall plug, as I do. Physically it's about the same size as the OBi. It will give you enough juice to ring phones throughout the house, if you're set up that way.
I haven't found a significant downside to it so far.
pc44:
Quote from: prospero on May 26, 2012, 10:31:57 am
You can log into your OBi box and make various parameter changes, but you can't do that with the Nettalk box. They won't tell you the login and don't want you messing with the parameters, so that you can't even, e.g., assign it a static IP address, it has to use DHCP.
Like the OBi box, the Nettalk box doesn't require a computer, just the router/gateway provided by your ISP, to work. The Nettalk box draws power from a USB cable. You *can* connect it to your computer via said USB cable, or you can connect it to your gateway via an Ethernet cable and just use the USB port for power from a wall plug, as I do. Physically it's about the same size as the OBi. It will give you enough juice to ring phones throughout the house, if you're set up that way.
Interesting. Sounds a lot like MagicJack Plus. I was not familiar with Nettalk, and while I currently prefer the extensive capabilities of GV and OBI, thanks for bringing it to my attention.
pc44
babobi:
Quote from: pc44 on May 26, 2012, 09:04:17 am
Hi babobi,
A lot of people on here seem to like Anveo and Callcentric for reasonably-low-cost VOIP solutions with CNAM support. Alternatively, if you have a PC always on in your house, there are good, free software options that will allow you to filter/reject an unlimited number of incoming calls using your existing or any other provider. Copying your existing list from GV to the PC software would not be too bad of a process. Just an extra, extraneous thought ;D
pc44
Thanks pc44, and can you tell me about these good free software options that will allow you to filter/reject an unlimited number of incoming calls using your existing or any other provider? Can you provide me with specific names of these software programs? I did alot of research prior to purchasing the Obi 110 and for the life of me I could not find anything other than Google Voice that had the ability to block or forward UNLIMITED spam calls to voicemail. I did find a few devices, but none to my liking -- all were limited in the number of calls they allowed one to block, the top contender had maybe a 100 numbers capacity limit.
babobi:
Quote from: prospero on May 26, 2012, 10:31:57 am
babobi, I looked at a lot of different services, just about everything I could find on Google, and finally settled on NetTalk. They currently have two devices, one that can use WiFi to connect, the other requires a wired connection but is US$20 cheaper and competitively priced with the OBi100. I went with the cheaper one because I don't really cotton to the idea of doing this by WiFi.
You can probably buy either at your local electronics megamart. I picked mine up at Fry's because I like their return policies.
The NetTalk devices come with a year of free service, then is $29 per year after that, has caller-ID NAME, can do a version of emergency calls, you can disable their Voicemail if you don't want it, and you get unlimited free calls to the US and Canada. (I've never called overseas in my life.)
It does take an unseemly while to port my number away from GV to NetTalk, (like up to a month -- but so does everybody else nobody I talked to could do it any faster), but when you register the NetTalk box, you get a new phone number, and have no choice about that.
Then you request the port and wait. Meantime, you can forward your GV account to this new number, and that will get you back your caller-id NAME (as well as working with touch-tone services and doing away with all the other problems I'm having with GV.)
You can log into your OBi box and make various parameter changes, but you can't do that with the Nettalk box. They won't tell you the login and don't want you messing with the parameters, so that you can't even, e.g., assign it a static IP address, it has to use DHCP.
Like the OBi box, the Nettalk box doesn't require a computer, just the router/gateway provided by your ISP, to work. The Nettalk box draws power from a USB cable. You *can* connect it to your computer via said USB cable, or you can connect it to your gateway via an Ethernet cable and just use the USB port for power from a wall plug, as I do. Physically it's about the same size as the OBi. It will give you enough juice to ring phones throughout the house, if you're set up that way.
I haven't found a significant downside to it so far.
Thanks prospero. Does NetTalk have a spam filtering option like Google Voice and does it allow one to block an UNLIMITED number of junk calls or send them to voicemail? Is it similar to the Obi Web Portal?
pc44:
Quote from: babobi on May 27, 2012, 01:12:02 am
Thanks pc44, and can you tell me about these good free software options that will allow you to filter/reject an unlimited number of incoming calls using your existing or any other provider? Can you provide me with specific names of these software programs? I did alot of research prior to purchasing the Obi 110 and for the life of me I could not find anything other than Google Voice that had the ability to block or forward UNLIMITED spam calls to voicemail. I did find a few devices, but none to my liking -- all were limited in the number of calls they allowed one to block, the top contender had maybe a 100 numbers capacity limit.
Hi babobi,
Keep in mind that as I mentioned previously, this option will require you to keep your computer on in order for the software to filter/reject unwanted calls. You wanted a specific name for such a program, and the best one that comes to mind is PhoneTray Free. They basically read the Caller ID information from each incoming call via your modem and then block or allow the call based on your filter. Because the filter/blacklist is stored on your computer, the number of incoming entries you can have is virtually unlimited as far as I know. I have tested this program with my OBI device, and while this might not be for everyone, it certainly works.
Hope it helps :)
pc44
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