T-Mobile PrePaid Phone

I tried ordering the 'T-Mobile SIM Card Activation Kit' from www.t-mobile.com for $6.99(comes with 10 minutes pre-added).
However, the online ordering process was not very efficient.

After I entered my details, address and credit card, I got the following error:

Order Incomplete

We are currently reviewing your order number xxxxxxxx and may require additional information. To complete your order, please start an online chat session with a T-Mobile sales support agent, or call 1-800-672-5390 at your earliest convenience. Our customer service agents are available Monday through Friday, 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. PT, and Saturday and Sunday, 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. PT. Holiday hours may vary.

Needless to say, I had to call T-mobile to make sure they didn't charge my card!

Free Incoming calls with SIPGATE service

Would you like to have a real U.S phone number and free incoming calls and a low rate for outgoing calls ?

Then, I would highly recommend SIPGATE

If you have an old VOIP phone adapter and a decent internet connection then you can convert it to receiving free incoming calls.

Ooma international bundle, 70 countries, 500 minutes, $4.99

Update: Considering this offer is only for premium customers, you'll be paying $15 monthly for this service and IMO, you'll find better rates with traditional VOIP providers...

Link: http://www.ooma.com/premier/international-bundle

Ooma is offering an international bundle, which includes 500 minutes of calling to 70 countries for $4.99 per month. You are required to be an Ooma premier customer to subscribe to this service.

ooma up and running.

Setting up is pretty simple.

I have a Westell 7500 modem(with in-built router) and have dry-loop DSL service at home.

Here is the quick set-up.

1. From wall jack, wire goes to Westell 7500(to port E1)
2. From Westell 7500(from port E2), wire goes to Ooma(Modem port)
3. From Ooma(Phone port), wire goes to my cordless handset and I hear the dial-tone.

I'll test Ooma for another week and if everything looks good then port the number and be done with paying for US local and long distance calls(however, will still have to pay for international calls)

Ooma

Earlier this year, I switched from Verizon to VOIP service from ALLVOI and was paying about $20/month for local and long distance but now am done with the promotional period and the cost has sky-rocketed to $32/month, am switching to Ooma to lower my monthly phone costs.

I just placed an order to buy Ooma on Amazon and Amazon.com is offering a free Ipod Shuffle until July 31st.

Link here

I hope once I install this phone system at home then I won't have to pay for U.S local and long distance calls for the next few years.(I'll still be paying for International calls ;))

The lifetime of the device is about 3-5 years but I would have recouped the costs within the first year...

I'll post another update once I receive the device and my experience with it...

"NEW" DSL Plan from Verizon

I signed up for Verizon DSL about a month ago and I was browsing thro' verizon.com and noticed that Verizon is signing up new customers for an outrageous deal...

Here is the new promotion:
Basically, you are forced to have a home phone service to get the $75 cashback and if you want to get a "dry-loop" dsl, you are going to pay about $55 to get a wireless router. Yikes!

If you had signed up only a month ago, you could have gotten the wireless router for free!!!

Review of Verizon DSL services

I ordered Verizon DSL about 2 weeks ago and am disappointed with the DSL so far.

Verizon shipped me a Westell 7500 modem and the modem needs to be re-booted every 3-4 hours since my internet connection keeps dropping.

The model looks like this:



I called Customer Service both here in the US and in INDIA but both of them want me to run thro' the standard checks( reboot modem, wait for 15 seconds then try to connect..yada..yada). Custome Reps in INDIA were forthcoming with information such as what line-tests they were doing and what the results are etc...

Finally, after several tickets and talking to several reps, I'll be getting another modem in the mail in about 5 days and will post my experiences again.

Anyone having issues with Westell 7500 modem?

Review of ALLVOI VOIP

Am pretty disappointed with the ALLVOI VOIP service so far.

Received the phone adapter(model: KTA2110) 3-days ago in the mail and have spent about 5-6 hrs on the phone with customer service and tech support but to no avail.
Read all the manuals I could online but I suspect they sent me a defective adapter.

Am sending back this adapter and requested another one be sent! ALLVOI is sending another one in about 5-days...

In the meantime, I was able to use the Soft-Phone that I downoaded and I would say call quality is good but several times the calls were disconnected. Not sure if it was related to the internet connection I have at home or something else...

Signed up with ALLVOI

For the last several years, I have been paying Verizon for local service and Sprint for long distance and my monthly bills average between $45 - $60

To cut down on my phone bill, I have been considering switching to VOIP.

As a first step, I signed up with ALLVOI today and I get unlimited local and long distance calling within the US and also several other countries for $24.99($14.99 for first 6 months) with taxes will be about $32

Ordered Verizon DSL for $17.99 - 2 year contract

I currently pay about $26 for Verizon local phone service and am considering switching to VOIP.

As a first step, I signed up for Verizon DSL and it will cost me about $17.99 + taxes and this will go upto $19.99 when I cancel/port over my existing number.

Currently, Verizon is offering a free wireless router if you order online.

Here is the plan offering:

Am also considering Vonage or ViaTalk or Teleblend for VOIP services.

Any recommendations?