[NFB-Seniors-Discussion] Interesting - FW: [Tech-VI] Free Phone Service With Ooma Telo?

Mon Mar 18 13:23:12 UTC 2024

This may be a workable, affordable option for some people.

RLN

From: tech-vi at groups.io <tech-vi at groups.io> On Behalf Of David Goldfield
Sent: Sunday, March 17, 2024 3:24 PM
To: List <tech-vi at groups.io>
Subject: [Tech-VI] Free Phone Service With Ooma Telo?

Ask Bob Rankin - Wednesday, March 6, 2024, 2:41 PM

Free Phone Service With Ooma Telo?

What is Ooma Telo?

You may remember that I've written about the impending demise of landline telephone service. With that in mind, you might consider Ooma, a replacement for your traditional landline service, which promises "crystal-clear U.S. calling for free with your high-speed Internet." But is that really true? Let's take a look at the particulars.

The Ooma Telo device <https://www.ooma.com/home-phone-service/>  currently sells for about $99. (You can find it $20 cheaper on Amazon <https://amzn.to/3uZfSLL> .) It’s dead simple to set up. Just plug the device into a port on your home internet router (or directly into your cable or DSL modem). Plug a regular phone into the phone jack on the Telo. Ooma is a "VoIP" service, which means your phone calls will travel over the Internet, rather than the public landline telephone wires. So you will need a reliable high-speed Internet connection to use the service.

Go to Ooma’s Web site to set up your account and get your Ooma telephone number. You’ll have to provide your name, street address for E911 purposes, and a credit card number for billing. You can now call any number in the USA free of charge. Ooma also comes with basic features like Caller ID, Call Waiting, and voicemail. There is also a mobile app for iOS and Android devices <https://www.ooma.com/home-phone-service/free-calling-app/>  that lets you use your Ooma account over WiFi or mobile data services.

Ooma does not charge a monthly fee. Instead, you pay once for the Ooma Telo device, and pay only U.S. government taxes and fees monthly (about $6 in most areas). This covers the Federal universal service charges, 911 service fee, state and local taxes, surcharges and regulatory and compliance fees. With Ooma’s easy setup, most customers can start making calls in less than 15 minutes.

Cheap, But Not Quite Free

In addition to the one-time cost of the Ooma Telo device, there are a few other things that you MAY need to pay for with Ooma service. There are optional Ooma Telo accessories such as a Telo handset, a battery backup, or the Ooma Linx which allows you to wirelessly connect additional telephones or fax machines to your Ooma Telo. If you already have a phone handset, all of these are optional.

In most cases, you can port an existing number to Ooma for a one-time fee of $39.95. International calls can be made a la carte, i. e., 1.4 cents per minute to Canada; or you can pay $17.99 per month for unlimited international minutes to call over 60 countries. You probably won't find a better deal on international calling.

An Ooma Premier account costs an additional $9.99 per month or $119.99 per year. It includes a second line, call blocking, three-way conferencing; multi-ringing or call-forwarding to multiple other phone numbers; Google Voice extensions; and free calling to Canada. The annual fee option includes one free number porting (normally $39.95). The Premier plan’s enhanced voicemail includes voicemail-to-text, Caller ID, number-blocking, and other handy features.

So while it's not exactly true that Ooma offers 100% free calling, once you purchase the Ooma Telo device, you can get away pretty darn cheap. If your calls are all within the USA, and you don't need any of the optional features mentioned above, your monthly cost drops to around $6. That's a lot cheaper than Vonage and other VoIP competitors which typically charge about $25 per month. In fairness, those competitors don't have the $99 upfront cost of the Telo device, but that washes out after a few months.

Ooma does provide emergency 911 service, and if you make international calls, they offer some of the best rates available anywhere. Ooma has been named “best home phone service” by Consumer Reports for several years. That’s based on reported overall customer satisfaction. It’s certainly a top-tier option for home VoIP service.

Have you tried Ooma or some other VoIP service as a replacement for your home phone service? Post your comment or question below...

https://askbobrankin.com/free_phone_service_with_ooma_telo.html

David Goldfield,

Blindness Assistive Technology Specialist

If you need help using your assistive technology learn about my training services by visiting

WWW.ScreenReaderTraining.com <http://www.screenreadertraining.com/> 

Am Yisrael Chai

The Nation of Israel Lives!

JAWS Certified, 2022 <https://www.freedomscientific.com/Training/Certification/> 

NVDA Certified Expert <https://certification.nvaccess.org/> 

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