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Obi VOIP service providers recommendations?

Started by Marty1781, December 05, 2011, 12:58:29 PM

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Marty1781

I am looking for a recommendation and hoping someone here can help out.  My current setup is that I have a Sprint cell phone (which is also my GV number) and a landline through Verizon.  Whenever someone calls my Sprint/GV number, I have it setup so that my landline also rings.  This is a feature I find really useful as I would otherwise miss a lot of calls on my cell phone because I tend to leave it on vibrate.  My goal is to eliminate the $30 - $35/month in service and fees Verizon charges me for my landline.  However, I still want to maintain some sort of separate line/home phone service for my regular home phone so that it can be linked to my GV number (and having that second number in addition to my cell phone routinely comes in handy for me for other reasons).  I am aware that I can simply add my current GV service to the Obi for free but I don't feel comfortable giving Obi my Gmail username/pwd (plus I rountinely leave Gmail/Gchat open which I understand would cause issues with Obi).  I know I could also simply setup a second GV account for the Obi but apparently, you cannot link one GV number to another, so this would mean that the landline phone using GV #2 connected through Obi would not be able to be setup to ring when someone called my GV/cell phone number.  I need that landline phone to ring when someone calls my cell phone.  

Alternatively, I thought about forgoing the Obi all together and simply getting a service like Nettalk or Magicjack and linking that to my current GV number.  Apparently, NT has major issues properly working with GV and Magicjack blocks GV verification calls so I would not be able to add the MJ number to my GV account.  

So now that brings me back to the Obi.  Using GV as the service provider for the Obi is not an option due to my previously stated reasons so now I am in search of an alternative, reliable Obi-compatible VOIP provider.  Free is good but I would be willing to pay up to $120/year.  Sipgate.com seems like it is jut what I am looking for but they have been out of free phone numbers for several months now and their lowest pay service is $20/month.  This is cheaper than what I pay now but was hoping for some greater saving.  So what I am hoping to find is VOIP provider that offers unlimited, incoming (and preferably outgoing) phone calls at a reasonable price (under $10/month).  Thanks for any recommendations.

SteveInWA

You get what you pay for, is the short answer.  The free or extremely cheap options out there, especially the ones you listed, are going to have reliability and interoperability problems.  If you can live with that, fine.  Just one example of the nightmare that is magicJack:  they selectively refuse to terminate calls on certain carriers, one of which being PacWest, which supplies both Sipgate and Callcentric out here in the Northwest.

I suggest you re-think the Google Voice/Sprint/OBi integration -- it's actually the best solution for your requirements.  Just create a dedicated Google (GMail, GV) account, as you mentioned, and use that account with GV/Sprint Integration option #1.  Plug your phone into an OBi box, and it will ring when people call your cell phone.  You can thus get rid of the Verizon land line.  As a back-up, you can get a la carte inbound and outbound calling plans from Callcentric for a very reasonable cost.  Callcentric (IMO) is the sweet-spot of reliability and performance and cost.  You can get a pay-per minute DID (inbound number) and a pay-per minute outbound calling plan, which will only cost a few dollars a month if you don't use it much.  No contract, and you can change to unlimited plans any time. 

Be sure to disable Sprint/GV integration on your original GV account if you're using it, and then delete the Sprint number from that account BEFORE you try to use it on the new GV account, or you'll have a mess that is very difficult to fix.

That's the way my OBi was set up until a couple weeks ago, when I dumped the GV/Sprint integration while they solve their 30 minute call hang-up bug.

Stewart

If you want reliable service, including 911, with "unlimited" domestic inbound and outbound calling, take a look at VOIPo, Phonepower and Ooma.  All provide their own hardware, independent of the OBi (though the OBi can register to the first two, or connect via its Line port to Ooma).

For better recommendations, post some details:  Approximate monthly usage inbound?  Domestic outbound?  If you do much international calling, which countries do you call the most?  Landlines or cellular?  Approximate international usage?  Want 911?  What features are important?

ChyrillStucker

I am using VoIP services of The Real PBX at reasonable price. You can check with them. Probably you will have to charge extra for separate line for your regular home phone. I am not sure but they claim to provide Obi-compatible VoIP provider.

lhm.

Consider VoIP.ms as a possible alternate to Callcentric and LocalPhone as a low cost provider for domestic calls (half a cent per min.). Both are pay as you go, no monthly fees. I use both and am quite satisfied.