OBi Phone Service $39.99/year
sdb-:
Today I received my localphone statement for my first month of usage.
55 calls, total duration 3:46:47 for $1.329 (including a 1 minute call to Alaska at 2.9c/minute).
Call quality has been good, better than google voice.
I have had a few reports that my caller ID has not come thru, but every time I've tested it has come thru correctly.
dircom:
Quote from: sdb- on January 05, 2014, 12:04:43 am
......
I have had a few reports that my caller ID has not come thru, but every time I've tested it has come thru correctly.
your caller id usually comes thru, but do people on the receiving end get your name also?
sdb-:
Quote from: dircom on January 05, 2014, 07:39:12 am
Quote from: sdb- on January 05, 2014, 12:04:43 am
......
I have had a few reports that my caller ID has not come thru, but every time I've tested it has come thru correctly.
when you call you using local phone, you say caller id usually works.
do they people on the receiving end get CNAM also?
My understanding of how the U.S. phone system works, is that only the caller id (phone number) is transmitted from originating carrier to destination carrier. That destination carrier does a lookup in one or more databases to get the caller's name (CNAM) and sends the number and name to their subscriber (the callee). The callee's phone can also do a lookup and report that information in addition to or instead of the CNAM from their carrier (like my panasonic phones).
So yes, when I place a call using Localphone it behaves as I expect, every time I test. But one of my neighbors has reported once or twice, as have my inlaws, that my call came thru as "private."
SteveInWA:
RE: Caller ID name, or CNAM, expanding on sdb's comments:
In basic terms (leaving out the technology-used details), the original caller ID system simply displayed the calling party's telephone number, derived from the phone switches setting up the call. As long as the calling party's number is permitted to be displayed (the caller hasn't enabled caller ID blocking, or the caller isn't using some sort of scheme to avoid displaying the caller ID or otherwise alter/spoof it), AND the called party subscribes to caller ID service on their end, with their telco, then the sent number is displayed.
Caller ID NAME was added later. Since the phone network didn't send any sort of name data along with the call, the called party's telco used the calling party's number to perform a database lookup on their end, then added a string to the caller ID data sent to the called party. This all depends on 1) the calling party's telco "feeding" their subscribers' names and matching numbers to the various third-party database maintainers, and 2) the called party's telco paying for the use of those databases, which obviously cost money to maintain.
There are many problems with the system now: before the telco monopoly was deregulated, the "Baby Bell" carriers and the General Telephone and few other incumbent carriers maintained their own DBs. Now, there are various independent companies also selling the databases, and the accuracy and currency of their DBs varies. When they don't have a matching record, they, or the telco doing the lookup, may substitute some other string, such as the city and/or state of the caller, which is easily obtained from the area code and prefix. Or, they may display "Wireless Caller", for mobile numbers, since many cell phone carriers don't feed the DBs. (Sprint and T-Mobile do; I dunno about the others).
Finally, as has been pointed out, some non-telco alternatives exist: VoIP ITSP providers like Callcentric may offer a way for their subscribers to load in their own name/number data, and use that as an override for any telco-provided data. Telephone hardware, like most modern cordless or "feature" telephones, can also hold an address book in the phone itself, so what you end up seeing when the phone rings can come from a variety of sources.
giqcass:
I am of the understanding the information SteveInWA wrote above is correct for the US and most other locations. I also believe based on reading that CNAM is usually tossed out even when it is transmitted with CID. If you want your CNAM information to show up you can submit the info to some of the databases. I don't remember how to do that but it was discussed here before. Since there are so many it's impossible to tell whether the info will show up when calling any one provider. In the case of calling someone on the same sip provider you can often register the CNAM info you would like to display. This does not seem to carry over to PSTN calls or calls to other sip providers so far as I can see.
Minor Rant:
Honestly the whole CNAM/CID system could use an update. There is no way to be sure you are talking to the person you think you are talking to when you receive a call. The data is too easy to fake. My policy is to never discuss private information with someone that calls me. If they need that kind of information I call them back. The SMS system in the US is far more secure when it comes to identity.
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