BajaNomad

VOIP Service

Wally - 1-25-2013 at 10:31 AM

The VOIP service provider we've been using for a long time was just purchased and will no longer provide residential service. I need to make a move.

The service we had was pretty robust but 2 of the features I used all the time were PSTN to VOIP and VOIP to PSTN. The basic Voip providers don't offer this.

So I'm wondering if anyone has a service that does and/or what people are using and what they like about it.

Riom - 1-25-2013 at 12:48 PM

I currently use Localphone.com. Other similar budget but flexible prepaid providers include Callcentric.com and Callwithus.com.

All of these offer incoming numbers (for a monthly subscription of a dollar or two), which is what I assume you mean by PSTN->VOIP, and either pay-by-the-minute or bundles for outgoing calls (VOIP->PSTN).

They all assume you have your own hardware. I use Obi100 boxes with line 1 set to Google Voice for free US/Canada calls, and line 2 set to Localphone for incoming numbers in US/Canada/UK, and for calling outside North America at low rates.

Rob

Bajaboy - 1-25-2013 at 03:19 PM

I use Google Voice when traveling and couldn't be happier. Great sound and value.

Wally - 1-26-2013 at 09:04 AM

Thanks. I hadn't heard of any of those companies except Google's offering. Will check them out.

PSTN to VOIP is a handy feature in which the VoIP ATA is connected to the Internet AND your local land line.

For example:'if the ATA is located in your Mexican home and someone calls your US or CAN phone number, and your aren't there to answer, you can program it so that it will forward to another local number via the land line. I have mine setup so that if we don't answer the VoIP call within 4 rings then the ata bridges the PSTN line and sends the call to my Mexican cell phone. I have it also setup that any calls from my inlaws' area code forward to the wife's cell phone.

Conversely, if I'm away from the house and want to call the US, I call the house and hit the pound key which instructs the VOIP line to provide a dial tone and then can dial a VoIP call.




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[Edited on 1-26-2013 by Wally]

[Edited on 1-26-2013 by Wally]

Riom - 1-26-2013 at 01:50 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Wally
PSTN to VOIP is a handy feature in which the VoIP ATA is connected to the Internet AND your local land line.

For example:'if the ATA is located in your Mexican home and someone calls your US or CAN phone number, and your aren't there to answer, you can program it so that it will forward to another local number via the land line.


In Mexico I have the Obi110 ATA box which does connect to the Mexican "landline" (actually fixed wireless) and also Google Voice plus Localphone SIP.

The Obi110 (not the Obi100, which I have in the US) does do call bridging as you mention above - route an incoming call on the Mexican landline to somewhere else such as a mobile using one of the VOIP lines for outgoing (or, as you say, to get a VOIP dial tone for an incoming local call - with an optional PIN for security. Some of the Sipura boxes have similar features.

Both boxes can be configured various ways with dialplans for outgoing calls, for example to route 10-digit numbers starting with 1 via GV. But for simplicity I've set it to dial on the landline normally, route via GV with a **1 prefix, route via Localphone with **2 prefix (and **9 prefix to route via Obitalk for free calls to a relative overseas with the Obi app on their iPhone).

I haven't bothered with the bridging of incoming calls to landline, because on the VOIP incoming numbers (on Localphone) I've seperately set "failover" - redirect if unavailable or no answer. So it never gets as far as the landline, just goes straight from the various incoming numbers to my mobile if the internet is down or if there's no answer. Being able to set redirects for incoming calls from the VOIP providers web page like that is I think an essential feature to look for (GV can only do forwarding to US/Can numbers, not to Mexican mobiles, so isn't a complete solution).

Rob

[Edited on 2013-1-26 by Riom]