Hi, so after searching, I haven't really found a thread that compares these three options, which sound like the ones people are most interested in.
Here's my situation. My number is ported to GV, but due to latency, I'd like to port it to a new provider, so it doesn't have to skip and jump to get to my home phone.
I'm concerned about call quality (which hasn't been THAT great with GV, on a semi-fast DSL connection in Michigan), cost, and stability over the long term.
COST
It looks like Vestalink has the best prices at all plan levels, but will the prices stay the same after the first year?
Anveo has the worst prices, followed by PhonePower, but both of these seem like more established companies, so maybe it's less risky porting to one of these. PhonePower confirmed in a chat with me that the prices would renew at the same price, next year.
QUALITY
After having a so-so experience with GV, I'd really like these calls to be of better quality. As such, I'm definitely hoping to port to my new provider, so I don't have issues with the jump through GV slowing things down.
I know I can set up trial accounts with these companies, which I'll probably end up doing, but I'm wondering what people's opinions are on which of these have good call quality.
STABILITY
People are saying since VestaLink it's a young company, it could potentially fail, or might not handle the load of calls, which makes me worried about porting over to them. I would be less concerned about porting to the other companies. Thoughts?
I'll let the rest debate the particulars of your questions. I ported to Vestalink in January and I'm happy with them. They have been around about 4 years under the name Intelafone. Just this past weekend they began a beta upgrade of their network, adding features. I can't say what will happen to your rate after the first year, but if you are interested in their current rates note their website states they end 3/31/14.
Actually, just got an email from Vestalink saying that the rates you start in are the rates that you'll stick with, which is good to know.
If you don't mind me asking - where are you located and what kind of internet connection do you have? Any dropped calls or delayed voice or rings? Thanks for your input!
My thoughts so far:
-- I have had an Anveo personal DID + E911 for several years, and have been happy with it, but their outgoing rates don't match my calling patterns
-- I think the Obi auto-provision is good to have, but I prefer to manually provision (it's not that hard, and gives more flexibility. If I didn't desire flexibility, I would have stayed with Ooma)
-- In my limited testing, Vestalink had good quality (noticeably better than GV or Localphone), although that's based on 2 half-hour calls.
-- I'm probably going to go with Vestalink for my main provider, with Localphone for backup plus the Anveo DID (I might drop the Anveo E911). I'm not planning on porting my GoogleVoice number for a while because I do have some stability concerns about Vestalink.
-- The big unknown: I haven't done testing with GV incoming calls (GV forwarded to one of my DIDs) yet; if the rest isn't acceptable, I may have to re-think my plans.
Quote from: evrk on March 24, 2014, 01:18:52 PM
Actually, just got an email from Vestalink saying that the rates you start in are the rates that you'll stick with, which is good to know.
If you don't mind me asking - where are you located and what kind of internet connection do you have? Any dropped calls or delayed voice or rings? Thanks for your input!
I'm in N.C. and I'm on a cable connection. I didn't mention the locked in rate, which I have, because I thought that was a one time thing that ended a while back. My numbers up and down are very good and consistent, which I think is a must with VoIP, Netflix, and similar usage. I was using GV and I have experience with Magic Jack and netTALK, both of which sucked for me. I also used Lingo for two years and they were pretty much perfect the whole time, but their fees and taxes saw a cheap rate creeping upward with time.
I talk with my brother on my Vestalink setup and he has Vonage. We have had the best call quality I've experienced since leaving Lingo. A premium service such as Lingo is great, but I have an unlimited account now and am paying a fraction of what I was paying Lingo for 250 minutes.
There are lots of solutions, but I think Vestalink is good and working to improve.
I would only suggest if you're considering buying Vestalink try it before you buy it.
I currently have Vestalink and I can only use it for outgoing calls. I'm still using Google Voice and trying to use my Vestalink DID as a forwarded number in GV is an exercise in frustration. The delay is so bad that when trying to have a conversation we end up talking over each other. Vestalink is also unable to port my GV number.
Vestalink seems to work great for a lot of people but I would certainly try them out before committing to a 1 or 2 year plan..............like I did. :'(
Just a comment on bandwidth. Until recently, I had DSL with a speed around 2.6M. I've always had one or two voip lines over the years. Over the past two years I've had Ooma and another voip provider along with streaming video and a few computers operating at the same time. I did put the wifi after the Ooma so I could use the QOS feature. With this setup, I never had an issue with call quality. Unless your DSL speeds are low, you shouldn't have an issue with quality.
BTW, I switched to cable because Verizon kept pushing the price up until it was not worth the money. Otherwise I was happy with DSL.
I am thinking of using Vestalink but I don't want to port my GV number to Vestalink. I want to forward my GV number to my Vestalink number but I am concerned about the time it will take for the call to be transferred to Vestalink, the latency and the overall call quality.
Is anyone forwarding a GV number to Vestalink? If you are how is the quality and would you recommend Vestalink for this?
Thanks
Thanks for all the input everyone. Sounds like GV forwarding to Vestalink is causing at least a few people problems. I honestly might just bite the bullet and port my number to them, but only after I try them out with their test number and make sure the service works well for incoming and outgoing. I've set them up as SP2 on my obi (did a manual input of their server info) but I need to figure out how to actually prompt my obi to let me use SP2 so I can test it. I previously had it set up to be using e911 from Anveo.. any ideas how to switch this in the config?
If it doesn't work well, I guess I can give PhonePower or Anveo a try as well, depending on other people's input.
I hope to do some testing of GV forwarding to Anveo, Localphone, and Vestalink DIDs soon (optimistically, later this week).
To test outgoing, simply pre-pend **2 (for example, I have Localphone on SP3, so I'm testing it by dialing **3 first, then the number).
To test GV on my Localphone DID (SP3), I will set SP3 to ring a phone, and then set my GV forwarding to my Localphone number.
BTW, since I had been paying AT&T ~$23/month (including ~$8 in taxes & fees) for the cheapest possible local phone service (metered!), I consider the rates for Vestalink, PhonePower/Obi, and Localphone to be very reasonable.
Quote from: bsdaiwa on March 25, 2014, 11:14:35 AM
I am thinking of using Vestalink but I don't want to port my GV number to Vestalink. I want to forward my GV number to my Vestalink number but I am concerned about the time it will take for the call to be transferred to Vestalink, the latency and the overall call quality.
Is anyone forwarding a GV number to Vestalink? If you are how is the quality and would you recommend Vestalink for this?
Thanks
I have the same set-up and have been using Vestalink for a couple of months after doing the trial period. So far the call quality has been as good or better than previous Comcast service, and I don't notice any latency problems as others have reported. I'm on the lite plan, since we don't use the service that often. I'd recommend Vestalink, but would suggest you try the free trial period first to see how it works for you, as others have had issues.
I just signed up for the free trial on Vestalink but when I used there web setup it messed up my other settings on my Obi 100. I would prefer to do a manual install but can't find the instructions to do it, has anyone done a manual setup for Vestalink? If so can you provide the settings?
Thanks
Quote from: bsdaiwa on March 25, 2014, 03:23:35 PM
I just signed up for the free trial on Vestalink but when I used there web setup it messed up my other settings on my Obi 100. I would prefer to do a manual install but can't find the instructions to do it, has anyone done a manual setup for Vestalink? If so can you provide the settings?
Thanks
When you log in to Vestalink, open the Softphone setting and copy the info listed.
Quote from: bsdaiwa on March 25, 2014, 03:23:35 PM
I just signed up for the free trial on Vestalink but when I used there web setup it messed up my other settings on my Obi 100. I would prefer to do a manual install but can't find the instructions to do it, has anyone done a manual setup for Vestalink? If so can you provide the settings?
Thanks
I would suggest running ***81 to reset your OBi and you will need first delete your OBi from OBiTALK and reinstall it before you will be able to again manually config it.
When you run the Vestalink easy setup you are dedicating it to the service. I'm not even sure you can run the tool and have it on SP1 and then manually add other services on SP2 and so on.
I've been very happy with Anveo quality so far. Anveo has been around for eight years. Of course that is no survival guarantee.
Quote from: bsdaiwa on March 25, 2014, 03:23:35 PM
I just signed up for the free trial on Vestalink but when I used there web setup it messed up my other settings on my Obi 100. I would prefer to do a manual install but can't find the instructions to do it, has anyone done a manual setup for Vestalink? If so can you provide the settings?
Thanks
This is what I did. Not saying it's the best way, right way, or the only way........just the way I did it.
I ran the Vestalink easy setup tool which installed Vestalink on SP1. I then logged on to my Obi and went through the different screens and found all the changes made by the config file and made screen shots. There aren't that many changes from the default settings so it was pretty easy to do. The config tool does use different port numbers (8891), however, than what is listed on the Vestalink web site.....which I found interesting.
I then did a reset of my Obi to factory defaults.
I then manually configured SP1 with the service provider that I wanted there.
I then manually configured SP2 with Vestalink using the screen shots I had made earlier.
This method worked great for me.......although Vestalink is still useless for me as forwarded number in GV.
I had problems manually configuring my Obi with Vestalink using the settings listed on the Vestalink web site. However, the easy setup tool got things working for me. But it does pretty much "lock" your Obi into using that provider which was unacceptable to me. That is why I went through the procedure listed above.
Good luck.
Quote from: Taoman on March 26, 2014, 09:47:08 AM
I then manually configured SP2 with Vestalink using the screen shots I had made earlier.
This method worked great for me.......although Vestalink is still useless for me as forwarded number in GV.
I had problems manually configuring my Obi with Vestalink using the settings listed on the Vestalink web site. However, the easy setup tool got things working for me. But it does pretty much "lock" your Obi into using that provider which was unacceptable to me. That is why I went through the procedure listed above.
Good luck.
I used the manual setup and it seems to be working fine, but can you post the screen shots so I can modify my settings if necessary.
I am forwarding my GV number to the Vestalink number and it works fine, so far.
Thanks
My first test of GV to Vestalink DID was successful, but I need to do more testing before I'm ready to switch my wife over. So far, so good with Vestalink for me, but the results do seem to vary -- and I still plan on testing GV to Anveo and Localphone DIDs.
I'm using a hybrid method that goes from GV to a free NY Callcentric number and for outbound I use Vestalink. At first this is because I had a storm of incoming calls that didn't connect properly and basically all fingers pointed to my Obi. I don't have the problem with Callcentric or Anveo. Other people seem to be very satisfied where you could say I am simply "satisfied". I have not seen similar reports for incoming problems but I thought "what the heck" and spread minutes between providers even though I'm not a heavy user. At least one other person has reported getting 404 errors on some outbound. The price is too good and the quality is too most of the time. I have not had a voice quality problem with VL and their outbound fax service works compared to Anveo which I've had stuff go in to black holes.
Anveo quality is good too but the outbound minutes on their regular plans are an ouch. I've got too much invested to drop all my numbers and switch to the limited plan which isn't great either.
I don't know about VL but Anveo reports that they use the same number provider as GV. I don't see this as a good thing because I have two numbers stuck elsewhere because there's never availability in areas I want to port from. This includes an 844 number.
Quote from: CLTGreg on March 27, 2014, 11:40:14 AM
I don't know about VL but Anveo reports that they use the same number provider as GV. I don't see this as a good thing because I have two numbers stuck elsewhere because there's never availability in areas I want to port from. This includes an 844 number.
Number portability is less an issue of the specific provider and more an issue of the CLEC the number is assigned to.
I just deleted the google voice SP from my Obi and use Anveo for incoming and am using Callcentric for outgoing as I have a big balance over there to use up. I'll probably always keep at least 2 providers simply for a secondary route if one of them has problems.
Quote from: MikeHObi on March 27, 2014, 01:49:53 PM
Quote from: CLTGreg on March 27, 2014, 11:40:14 AM
I don't know about VL but Anveo reports that they use the same number provider as GV. I don't see this as a good thing because I have two numbers stuck elsewhere because there's never availability in areas I want to port from. This includes an 844 number.
Number portability is less an issue of the specific provider and more an issue of the CLEC the number is assigned to.
Well that could get hyper technical considering "Bandwidth.com CLEC" is apparently a CLEC. But do they own all the numbers available from Anveo and GV or do they sub that out to local CLECs? Doesn't really matter, the restrictions are there no matter what. Go to Anveo's new number finder and put in 843 as an area code. You get back a tiny fraction of what's available through other providers. I'd much rather have a barely used number parked at Anveo and especially the 844 but I can't move either one. But VL and Callcentric and everyone else I looked at could provision numbers.
I think Anveo's point to me was that porting from GV shouldn't be a problem since that is going through Bandwidth.com. That makes sense but it doesn't address why the pool is so empty compared to others.
I do think that Callcentric may be more flexible with numbers as when I was initially going to go with them I had to request a number in a area they did not have one listed.
Quote from: CLTGreg on March 27, 2014, 03:11:02 PM
Quote from: MikeHObi on March 27, 2014, 01:49:53 PM
Quote from: CLTGreg on March 27, 2014, 11:40:14 AM
I don't know about VL but Anveo reports that they use the same number provider as GV. I don't see this as a good thing because I have two numbers stuck elsewhere because there's never availability in areas I want to port from. This includes an 844 number.
Number portability is less an issue of the specific provider and more an issue of the CLEC the number is assigned to.
Well that could get hyper technical considering "Bandwidth.com CLEC" is apparently a CLEC. But do they own all the numbers available from Anveo and GV or do they sub that out to local CLECs? Doesn't really matter, the restrictions are there no matter what. Go to Anveo's new number finder and put in 843 as an area code. You get back a tiny fraction of what's available through other providers. I'd much rather have a barely used number parked at Anveo and especially the 844 but I can't move either one. But VL and Callcentric and everyone else I looked at could provision numbers.
I think Anveo's point to me was that porting from GV shouldn't be a problem since that is going through Bandwidth.com. That makes sense but it doesn't address why the pool is so empty compared to others.
Here's the background behind what you are seeing: First: all phone numbers belong to the original carrier to which they were issued (which could be an Incumbent LEC like Verizon or CenturyLink, a mobile LEC like Sprint, AT&TWS, etc, or a Competitive LEC like Bandwidth.com or Level 3). In some cases, LECs may buy other LECs, or merge, or horse-trade blocks of numbers. But, they have finite blocks of numbers available to them. Obviously, some LECs have a lot more numbers (DIDs) to begin with, than others, and some LECs have a higher percentage of their DIDs in use vs. available. All LECs are at the mercy of the North American Number Planning Administration, or NANPA, which decides when and how to issue new blocks of numbers to all LECs.
The problem is: a given telephone service provider (like GV, Anveo, Callcentric, etc) that isn't their own LEC has to lease their numbers from a CLEC. If they only use one CLEC, like bandwidth, then they're limited in their selection of DIDs. GV has
millions of users, and has sucked up a huge percentage of BW's DIDs. So, Anveo is drawing from a more limited pool, just like GV. Callcentric and some other ITSPs work with several national and regional CLECs, so they have more flexibility. It's like shopping for insurance from State Farm or Allstate vs. with an independent agent. *For the sake of completeness, I should note that Google has also obtained DIDs from certain other CLECs, to fill in areas where BW couldn't provide them.
All Local Number Portability (LNP) does is add entries to the NPAC (Number Portability Availability Center) database to let the LECs know how to route the call via the carrier currently using the number (either the original LEC, or the LEC that is "borrowing" the number).
So, porting problems are a separate issue from obtaining new DIDs. Portability does depend on the gaining LEC having presence in the local calling exchange (phone switch) to host the number. Again, carriers that work with multiple LECs have more flexibility in finding a LEC to host their customers' ported-in DIDs.
Anveo's statement that porting from GV shouldn't be a problem because both carriers are customers of BW is misleading. If a GV user's number is actually from another CLEC, then Anveo being a BW customer is moot. I wouldn't judge them negatively for stating it, however, since GV doesn't publicly disclose any details about its service providers.
Sorry for all the jargon, but it's a jargon-rich industry!
Quote from: SteveInWA on April 03, 2014, 10:04:20 PMGV has millions of users, and has sucked up a huge percentage of BW's DIDs.
Taking a quick look at info from telcodata.us, Bandwidth has 38.5 million phone numbers available to them directly - not including partner CLECs. Even if GV sucked 4 million numbers away that's still only 10% of BW's capacity. Keep in mind that they could always get more numbers as long as they can justify it (by having users).
Could be wrong, but AFAIK Anveo doesn't use Bandwidth.com - they use Voxbone (who might use BW).
Quote from: nitzan on April 04, 2014, 12:46:54 AM
Quote from: SteveInWA on April 03, 2014, 10:04:20 PMGV has millions of users, and has sucked up a huge percentage of BW's DIDs.
Taking a quick look at info from telcodata.us, Bandwidth has 38.5 million phone numbers available to them directly - not including partner CLECs. Even if GV sucked 4 million numbers away that's still only 10% of BW's capacity. Keep in mind that they could always get more numbers as long as they can justify it (by having users).
Could be wrong, but AFAIK Anveo doesn't use Bandwidth.com - they use Voxbone (who might use BW).
I have no insider knowledge of which LEC(s) Anveo uses. I was just responding to the users here on the forum who were either told or led to believe it uses BW. I have also seen someone from Anveo state that was the case on one of the forums...BBR, perhaps? In any case, Voxbone isn't a Tier 1 CLEC in the US, according to their own website.
RE: statistics. OK, from a bulk, overall numeric perspective, you have a point. The problem is, when it comes to number availability, however, that many of those 38.5 numbers happen to be in BFE locations that aren't very popular. BW, like most CLECs, doesn't have numbers available in every exchange. That's why working with a ITSP that resells several CLECs' services offers a higher likelihood of finding a number in a desired location.
Quote from: nitzan on April 04, 2014, 12:46:54 AM
Could be wrong, but AFAIK Anveo doesn't use Bandwidth.com - they use Voxbone (who might use BW).
Quote from: Anveo on February 13, 2014, 01:46:01 PM
Our underlying CLEC in US is the same one used by Google Voice ( Bandwidth.com ) which means we have the same coverage as Google Voice.
Quote from: CLTGreg on March 27, 2014, 11:40:14 AM
I don't know about VL but Anveo reports that they use the same number provider as GV. I don't see this as a good thing because I have two numbers stuck elsewhere because there's never availability in areas I want to port from. This includes an 844 number.
Quote from: SteveInWA on April 03, 2014, 10:04:20 PM
... *For the sake of completeness, I should note that Google has also obtained DIDs from certain other CLECs, to fill in areas where BW couldn't provide them.
VestaLink has the SMALLEST # pool*; Anveo has a large # pool, as does PhonePower.
The main difference is that Anveo picks your # for you, i.e. [(aaa) bbb-cccc] =>
Anveo picks bbb-cccc based on the state + city/town combination (sctc), while
PhonePower allows you to see/pick a # from a pool of sctc available #'s.
*pool size based on the input of zipcodes; for many zipcodes there were no #'s available.
I found that voip.ms has an extensive pool of phone numbers in many areas. You are allowed to pick your own area code, exchange and available numbers. I obtained 3 consecutive DID numbers for our small city area. Later I Ported one of the DID numbers to Vestalink and kept the other 2 DID's on voip.ms as I keep two VoIP services for redundancy.
Quote from: c3c3 on April 04, 2014, 05:46:45 PM
Quote from: nitzan on April 04, 2014, 12:46:54 AM
Could be wrong, but AFAIK Anveo doesn't use Bandwidth.com - they use Voxbone (who might use BW).
Quote from: Anveo on February 13, 2014, 01:46:01 PM
Our underlying CLEC in US is the same one used by Google Voice ( Bandwidth.com ) which means we have the same coverage as Google Voice.
Thanks for posting this. I spent 10 minutes trying to find it before I saw your reply. This is a great discussion. As far how large the pulls are, I don't know except from personal experience. As I recall there is only one or two destinations from Anveo in 843. I can provision (and have) numbers from Concentric, VestaLink and R[censored]. I can't get the same towns from Anveo and I cannot port to them. I especially would like to move the 844 number because they are quite a bit cheaper and I'm basically just parking it for the moment.
Quote from: SteveInWA on April 04, 2014, 03:13:11 AMThat's why working with a ITSP that resells several CLECs' services offers a higher likelihood of finding a number in a desired location.
Oh, I agree with you there. We use 1 ILEC, 3 national CLECs, and at least 3 local ones. (when I say at least - it's because some national CLECs use local ones to expand their coverage)
Quote from: BigJim_McD on April 04, 2014, 07:24:31 PM
I found that voip.ms has an extensive pool of phone numbers in many areas. You are allowed to pick your own area code, exchange and available numbers. I obtained 3 consecutive DID numbers for our small city area. Later I Ported one of the DID numbers to Vestalink and kept the other 2 DID's on voip.ms as I keep two VoIP services for redundancy.
Along these lines.
My experience with getting the best DID's was this:
1. Voip.ms has the largest selection to actually see before buying. Pretty decent numbers as well. I have a few.
2. Phone Power was similar to Voip.ms but they didn't have a lot of numbers in my area to choose from and the DID's in my area were not that great.
3. Callcentric had numbers in my area but they selected them for you. No way to see the actual number before buying. I ported a GV number instead.
4. Anveo had numbers available in my area code but not my local rate center. You weren't able to actually see them as far as I know, but who can figure out anything on that web site?
5. Vestalink had no numbers available in my area at all. Not sure if you could choose a number before buying or not.
6. Future-nine had DID's in my area and were really great numbers. I signed up and purchased a really good number. You need to PM or email Future-nine to have them show you what's available. Numbers are not available on site. Nitzan's really great to deal with.
Having said all that, I have accounts with Voip.ms, Callcentric, Future-nine and just recently with PhonePower.
I cancelled the PhonePower accounts over an issue with their billing dept. but I kind of liked what I saw there.
They're all so darn cheap, it's been easy and fun to compare the different services.
Try a few..............................
Good info for voip.ms. Wonder if they can handle 844 numbers. I'll know soon enough. The six second billing is also nice. Looks like the best place to park numbers that I've seen.
I added an Anveo SIP account but I discovered that e911 is required before any calls can be completed. It is an account only used for forwarding so I could not justify the recurring expense.I removed the Anveo configuration and set up another sub account with VOIP.ms. I have been totally happy with their service, support, and a great selection of numbers.
is there anyone currently using phonepower? I tried with the promo code but invalid, I chatted with the sales rep about any discount, he mention about the $10 referral credit for both party, ps me if you are currently phonepwer user and interest to get the $10 referal credit, thanks :)
Quote from: tech4fun on April 11, 2014, 11:41:56 AM
is there anyone currently using phonepower? I tried with the promo code but invalid, I chatted with the sales rep about any discount, he mention about the $10 referral credit for both party, ps me if you are currently phonepwer user and interest to get the $10 referal credit, thanks :)
PhonePower disabled the coupon code on 3-30-14. It was never intended to be used with the already heavily discounted "OBi" plans but with their much more expensive retail plans. If you look at the regular prices for PhonePower and compare them against the "OBi" plans you will see what a bargain they are.
I will send you a PM.
A note of caution Vestalink charges you for incoming and outgoing minutes, most others have free incoming minutes. They also appear to be higher on overage minutes.
Quote from: Harley on April 15, 2014, 08:08:17 PM
A note of caution Vestalink charges you for incoming and outgoing minutes, most others have free incoming minutes. They also appear to be higher on overage minutes.
Almost all providers count incoming minutes towards their limit. The myth that incoming is free is just that - a myth. In fact we (VOIP providers) usually pay more for incoming minutes than we do for outgoing.
Quote from: nitzan on April 16, 2014, 04:46:51 AM
Quote from: Harley on April 15, 2014, 08:08:17 PM
A note of caution Vestalink charges you for incoming and outgoing minutes, most others have free incoming minutes. They also appear to be higher on overage minutes.
Almost all providers count incoming minutes towards their limit. The myth that incoming is free is just that - a myth. In fact we (VOIP providers) usually pay more for incoming minutes than we do for outgoing.
How is Callcentric doing it? Termination fees? Also, I think billing increment is important that a lot of people miss though I don't know what the average real world example is.
Vestalink charges 60/60 while Anveo charges 6/30. A 10 second call on VL costs one minute. A 10 second call on Anveo costs .5 minutes.
Quote from: CLTGreg on April 16, 2014, 06:29:04 AM
How is Callcentric doing it?
They're doing it in one rate center - only one. I don't think they're actually making any profit from it considering the rates to call their number blocks are around $.0007/min for one and $.002/min for the other. Even a million minutes a month would likely not even cover their CLEC costs.
What's more likely is they are doing it as a loss leader for 1. advertisement, and 2. free users often become paid users.
Also keep in mind you have to purchase E911 in the US, and they charge $1.5/mo for E911. E911 does not cost $1.5/mo - it's closer to half of that - so there's some profit built-in there too. Overall though even with the E911 profit and reciprocal compensation on incoming calls it probably doesn't cover the CLEC costs.
Another aspect to all of this is that Telengy (CC's parent company) is a wholesale/business provider. It's possible that they had a business requirement to become a CLEC in New York - for example they operate calling card phone numbers for a large volume customer in the area. It's speculation, but if that's the case then offering free phone numbers to the public is just a side aspect of this - if they already have to pay for the infrastructure anyway, there is no extra cost to serve more people, and it's good PR.
Good point on the E911 fee. Compared with Anveo they are nearly if not right at double their prices at CC. I mean fr everything.
Can you park an 844 number? If so how much? You're right about being a leader. I have a couple numbers over there but my goal was to port them to Anveo but Anveo can't handle them.
Quote from: CLTGreg on April 16, 2014, 07:01:09 AMCan you park an 844 number? If so how much? You're right about being a leader. I have a couple numbers over there but my goal was to port them to Anveo but Anveo can't handle them.
We should be able to. Please message me the exact number and I'll check with our carrier. How much: $10 to port, $5/mo for up to 200 minutes a month. Can do anything you want with it i.e. go to adapter/softphone, straight to voicemail, forward to another number, etc.
I am wondering where Vestalink is located (POP)? Are there multiple POP's?
Quote from: kmiller on April 16, 2014, 08:44:14 AM
I am wondering where Vestalink is located (POP)? Are there multiple POP's?
They are located in Washington State and use Amazon Cloud Computing services (AWS) to host their Kamailio and Asterisk servers.
I've used Phone Power, VOIP.MS, Callwithus, Callcentric, and a few other REALLY cheap ones... Don't recommend the cheap ones! I still use primarily Verizon and centurylink as backups... Recommend centurylink -- excellent feature pack!