We love Vonage!

[MosMom]

Awhile ago, I had asked if anyone used this and a few people asked me to post our experiences with it once we tried it. We have had it for about 3 months now and we love it. For those who don't know, Vonage is a company that offers your phone service through your high speed internet connection. So here are the pros and cons...

PROS -

- Having local, long distance (even to Canada), caller id, call waiting, voice mail, call forwarding for $34.99 a month. Before Vonage we were paying $62 for our local and $60 or more for long distance. We are saving about $100 a month.

- Being able to check my voicemail over the internet

CONS -

- If my cable modem is interrupted, my phone doesn't work (obviously). That is the only downside and it has happened twice in 3 months. In these cases though, they will transfer all incoming calls to your cell phone so you can still receive them.

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So that is what we have experienced so far and we love it. I will never go back to the phone company and pay out the wazoo. We highly recommend it!

 

[UncleKyle]

Since I'm in college right now I only need my cell phone. But when I get out and get my own place I plan on signing up with vonage. I think it's one of the hidden gems of the internet.

 

[vhoffman]

This post is some time after the original thread started, however, I'd like to share my experiences with trying to set up an account with Vonage. Like everyone, I was intrigued by a $40 flat fee for all phone service. However, there are some glitches with Vonage which made me decide not to use them.

Their website is not as informative as it should be. It states that you can keep your existing phone number, and that 911 service is available. However, it was only after placing the order (and having my credit card billed for $78) that I found out their shortcomings. First, after placing the order for service (and paying for it) they then informed me that I couldn't keep my existing phone number. I was just assigned a new one. I was not offered to opt out. Since keeping my existing phone number was a deciding factor, I felt I should have been given the opportunity to terminate service without penalty. However, they slapped a $39 disconnect fee on, even though I had terminated the phone service within an hour of ordering it. They then said they would refund the $39 fee when I returned their equipment. What equipment? There wasn't time to ship it. I can't return something I never received. They didn't offer to pay return postage, either. Also, there's no mention of set up or disconnect fees at any time during the application process. You just find out later when your service is started. There's a $29 set up fee, and $9.99 to send the equipment (but they expect me to ship it back at my expense!). Also, I wasn't made aware of any termination fee during the application process.

The 911 service is a joke. If you dial 911 using Vonage, you are routed to another operator who is not EMS. This operator then routes your call to the 911 service in your area. You provide your address to Vonage so they know what 911 provider to route you to, however, when the 911 provider receives the call they don't know your location, since the call didn't originate with you, it came from Vonage's system. You must be able to give your address and location. If your phone number and location are stored in the 911 system your location and directions come up on their screen. However, using Vonage, you must not only tell them your address, you need to give them directions because they don't have access to that information. Vonage's 911 system is difficult and at times impossible to use. What if you didn't know the address? What if it were a confused child calling for help? My grandfather had a stroke which left him unable to talk. He dialed 911, couldn't communicate, and an ambulance and police and fire truck all came within five minutes. What if he had Vonage? Don't think you'll never need 911, and if you do, you don't need to be all day on the phone directing them!

Also, in the event of a power failure, your Vonage phone system won't work. That was another fact that wasn't disclosed in the application process. Then you couldn't call the power company to report an outage. I really think there's serious flaws in the service Vonage provides and in their customer service. I've spent all day communicating with them, and now I've got a $39 disconnect fee for service I never received and was misrepresented to me. You get what you pay for!

 

[vhoffman]

Oh, another problem with Vonage, our Brinks security system wouldn't work in the event of a power failure.