Got a 2nd Obihai...advice needed

[Tobor]

I've been using an Obi 200 for about the past 6 years.  It has worked flawlessly for me.  Today I came across a new Obi 202 on sale in a local store for $3.90 (crazy, I know).  I decided to pick it up because it was so cheap.  I'm looking for some advice...I don't really need a 2nd phone line so I'm not sure what to do with the 202.  Should I keep it as a backup in the event my 200 dies at some point?  Is there any benefit to using the 202 now and keeping the 200 as the backup?  I haven't done any research, but IIRC, I don't think the 202 is really that different than the 200 other than having the additional phone jack.  I'd love to just hear opinions because maybe I'm missing some insight into the device.

[SteveInWA]

The OBi 202 has all the features of the 200, plus one more phone port, and a built-in (not very fast) router.  There is no reason to swap out a functional 200 for the 202.

Aside from that, I highly doubt that the 202 works, given its sale price.  If you're curious, why don't you plug it in, plug a phone into the Phone 1 jack, and see if you can get a dial tone, and call *9 222 222 222 to test it with the OBiTALK echo test.

[Tobor]

Good advice to try it...just plugged it in and called the Obi test line--no issues.  I'm not going to configure it to use my GV# unless I decide to actually replace my 200.  I kind of feel bad that I bought a second one when my 200 has worked great for years.  I honestly haven't even read about the devices dying, but I guess at the price I paid, I can just keep it as a backup. 

[SteveInWA]

Good advice to try it...just plugged it in and called the Obi test line--no issues.  I'm not going to configure it to use my GV# unless I decide to actually replace my 200.  I kind of feel bad that I bought a second one when my 200 has worked great for years.  I honestly haven't even read about the devices dying, but I guess at the price I paid, I can just keep it as a backup. 

Why would you feel bad?  Even if it was an impulse buy, you should feel good that you snagged a $75 OBi 202 for an insanely low price.  Was this at a thrift store or similar place where people donate unwanted stuff and then it gets sold for pennies on the dollar or ?  I'm assuming it was used, right?

If so, there's a possibility that the previous owner had it registered on his/her OBiTALK account.  If so, you might not be able to add it to your own account, to configure Google Voice, unless you were to contact Obihai and ask them to purge the old registration.  It would be easy to determine the OBi's status by attempting to add it to your OBiTALK web portal, using the **5 method.

[Lavarock7]

I have purchased Obis in the past when the price was low. I have sold them (at my cost) to neighbors and friends when they have finally gotten fed up paying for a landline.

[Tobor]

Why would you feel bad?  Even if it was an impulse buy, you should feel good that you snagged a $75 OBi 202 for an insanely low price.  Was this at a thrift store or similar place where people donate unwanted stuff and then it gets sold for pennies on the dollar or ?  I'm assuming it was used, right?

I got it at a store called Bargain Hunt that specializes in buy-outs from places like Costco, Target, as well as a LOT of stuff from Amazon.  They basically price stuff ~ half-off whatever Amazon lists them and then reduce the price by 10% every week...the 202 I bought was priced at $39 back on 6/1/17 and it was 90% off that price today.  I also snagged an HTC Vive recently for $285...you can get some killer deals.

I'm pretty confident the device is new...it is still boxed and the cords haven't been undone.  Question:  if I add the 202 to my account (which I haven't done yet) does that lock it forever?  I don't have anybody I'd gift my 200 or 202 to at the moment, but that might be an option at some point--I never even considered that there would be a problem registering a "used" device to a new account.

[SteveInWA]

That sounds like a fun place to snag good deals.  It's interesting that they can survive and open brick and mortar stores, in the age of online shopping deal sites.

It's unfortunate that Obihai doesn't stick tamper-evident seals on its boxes, but it yah, it sounds like you bought a new one, or at least one that was returned by a customer, unused.

Yes, you can safely add the OBi to your OBiTALK account.  If you want to give it away later, all you need to do is to delete it from your account first.

[Tobor]

Thanks for all the info everybody!  I decided to just go ahead and connect the new device and add it to my account just to check that it was actually operational.  Everything set up easily so at this point I'm just going to keep it plugged in and keep my old 200 as my backup.  I still have both devices registered to my account so hopefully that's not a problem. 

Again, thanks for all the advice & feedback!