Vonage - My Experience

[bilal]

I have ntl 4mb with 40kb upload.
Well i have not seen many threads about vonage and how it works with ntl broadband. When i first got the service 3 weeks ago i wasn't sure how it would perform on an ntl line even after looking around here and had seen a few questions asking about vonage and how it worked on ntl so i decided to give it a try. The first annoyance was having to change my number but that didnt prove to be as much of a problem as i thought it would be telling everyone my new number. Was able to get a new number in the same area code but i couldve chosen any area code in the UK if i wanted to for my new number

The package i ordered is for £7.99 and i get free calls anytime to UK, Ireland, USA, Canada, France, Italy and Spain. I have also cancelled my bt line so all i pay per month is this fee of £7.99 a month.

I ordered vonage on a sunday and the package came to me on a wednesday. The package came with a box, 2 connects and an ethernet cable (ethernet cable didnt work, lucky i had a spare).

Connected it all up and in the space of 10 minutes it was all setup and ready to go.

I first tried experimeneting with the bandwidth saver which is supposed to reduce bandwidth used while there being barely any difference in call quality. When it was on lowest bandwidth (30Kbps) the call quality on the other end was very poor. When on 50Kbps the call quality was moderate and talkable but i sounded a bit like a robot. On full quality (90Kbps) the call quality was perfect so i left it on this.

While browsing the internet there is no difference in phone quality.

Now to test with downloads on. If i put bittorrent on the call quality drops drastically and it stutters to the person on the other end. Even if i drop the upload speed to very low (10kb) you can still tell.

When using newsgroups there is also a drop in call quality as well

Did a bit of research and all the problems with the downloads/uploads and bittorret can be sorted by purchasing a qos router according to basically everyone on the vonage forums (as long as you get a decent one which will cost you around £50) which i havent bought yet but will do in the future.

So Vonage overall... I would say it is 100% perfect when not using bittorrent or uploading. If you are a frequent bittorrent user and you are thinking of getting vonage, i would only recommend it if you can be bothered to pause ur download everytime a phone call comes or if you want to fork out £50 for a qos router.
If you are just a normal user who browses the net i would recommend this 100% as there are a lot of savings when u get vonage as well as lots of features.

Any other questions about the service feel free to ask :)

[Matthew]

Another one here for Vonage, I use it with PlusNet and have had no problems and it gets some heavy use at times.

[bean999]

Any other questions about the service feel free to ask :)

I too have been looking for a voip thread, hope no-one minds me reviving this one.

I've been trying to find out about porting a number to a voip provider, but have come across mixed info; it may be possible, needs to be originally a BT number, depends where you live etc. I'd basically like to kill off my ntl rental and move the number to a voip service, vonage or someone else. Has anyone tried doing that?

[paul11974]

I too have been looking for a voip thread, hope no-one minds me reviving this one.

I've been trying to find out about porting a number to a voip provider, but have come across mixed info; it may be possible, needs to be originally a BT number, depends where you live etc. I'd basically like to kill off my ntl rental and move the number to a voip service, vonage or someone else. Has anyone tried doing that?


me 2 im thinking of vonage and keeping ntl bb and tv ntl want £13.99 plus £11 line rental for talk unlimited 24 where vonage only want £8 do ntl do tv and bb only ?

[Shaun]

me 2 im thinking of vonage and keeping ntl bb and tv ntl want £13.99 plus £11 line rental for talk unlimited 24 where vonage only want £8 do ntl do tv and bb only ?

Yes :)

So Vonage overall... I would say it is 100% perfect when not using bittorrent or uploading.

I find it great even with bit-torrent going at full tilt. Perhaps it's an Ntl thing as I've found it great on both Sky and Bulldog. Perhaps it's the larger upload they both give me over Ntl? :shrug:

All in all though I can highly recommend them. Their support in is Nebraska too which is a bonus over India for most. :)

[Ignatius]

I had the same issue with vonage & BitTorrent. Couldn't get the QoS settings on the supplied D-Link router to make any difference or get their support team to answer an email so I eventually sent it back during the trial period.

Also, so far as I'm aware, NTL bundle the phone line with the TV, so you can't have one without the other. You CAN, of course, drop TU24 if you have it, which should at least cover the cost of the vonage subscription.

HTH

---------- Post added at 15:55 ---------- Previous post was at 15:45 ----------

another issue with vonage (just a "to be aware")

last time i checked, there's no CLID to the 999 service, which means that whereas from a standard phone the emergency services know exactly where you are when you ring, with vonage you have to spell it out, which can delay the arrival of the emergency services. 999 is also unavailable if your BB is down. (e.g. power cut)

for this reason it's usually recommended that you keep a standard landline for emergency use only

[greyfox1974]

oh you can have the tv without the fone line when ur 12 month is up cos i have the fone without the tv so i would fone up and ask

[Shaun]

I had the same issue with vonage & BitTorrent. Couldn't get the QoS settings on the supplied D-Link router to make any difference or get their support team to answer an email so I eventually sent it back during the trial period.

I'm surprised as I found the support centre really good. :)



Also, so far as I'm aware, NTL bundle the phone line with the TV, so you can't have one without the other. You CAN, of course, drop TU24 if you have it, which should at least cover the cost of the vonage subscription.

HTH

You can have wither TV and BB and dump the phoneline if you like. Recent change but I checked it with the sales team recently. :)

999 is also unavailable if your BB is down. (e.g. power cut)

for this reason it's usually recommended that you keep a standard landline for emergency use only

You could always use your mobile. :)

[jrhnewark]

You really do need good QoS to make sure it all works okay. If you can sort that, then you won't have a problem. :)

[Richy99]

Also, so far as I'm aware, NTL bundle the phone line with the TV, so you can't have one without the other. You CAN, of course, drop TU24 if you have it, which should at least cover the cost of the vonage subscription.



they havent done that for years, i only have broadband and phone from ntl and am with sky for the tv, have had this setup for a few years

[tabatha]

I am seriously considering this service..

Can anyone answer some questions, please..

Will I still pay a ...5p ?... connection fee to NTL.[NTL phone line].

Do I need another number,? I was told I could still use my present number for incoming calls, presumably on the NTL line...

Why would I need a different number ?

Anyone....Please :)

[jrhnewark]

No, you won't pay any charges to NTL - it's nothing to do with them because it's over the internet.

You will need a new phone number for the Vonage service because it's a different telephone line. I suppose you could still use your present NTL line for incoming calls and therefore keep your number, but you'll have to carry on paying them the line rental which sorta defeats the object.

[tabatha]

Thanks for that....

The phone line is in with the package, I do not think they will deduct ..£11 ?.., cos they say it is "free" !!

[jrhnewark]

Depends. Do you have the digital TV service? A lot of the time, it's very hard to have TV without the phone line bundled into it. :(

[tabatha]

Yes...DTV.

Trying to find out how this will work with only one phone..

Needs to be plugged into NTL for incoming...but adapter for outgoing.

I get through to Honolulu :Yikes: , not easy to understand the Lady.....

[cnewton2k]

I had the same issue with vonage & BitTorrent. Couldn't get the QoS settings on the supplied D-Link router to make any difference or get their support team to answer an email so I eventually sent it back during the trial period.

Also, so far as I'm aware, NTL bundle the phone line with the TV, so you can't have one without the other. You CAN, of course, drop TU24 if you have it, which should at least cover the cost of the vonage subscription.

HTH

---------- Post added at 15:55 ---------- Previous post was at 15:45 ----------

another issue with vonage (just a "to be aware")

last time i checked, there's no CLID to the 999 service, which means that whereas from a standard phone the emergency services know exactly where you are when you ring, with vonage you have to spell it out, which can delay the arrival of the emergency services. 999 is also unavailable if your BB is down. (e.g. power cut)

for this reason it's usually recommended that you keep a standard landline for emergency use only

The goverment and BT are looking into fixing this @ the moment.

If you have a BT VOIP i.e an 05 number then the 999 op does know your location so i dont think it will be to long before the other VOIP providers are forced into providing address info etc.

[alferret]

Just dragging up an old post :erm:

Just signed up to vonage, excellent service as long as NTL\VM continue with excellent BB.
Voice clarity is great, none or very little delay, works well when Dl'ing @ full tilt.

If your looking for no cost UK landline and European landline calls 24\7 you couldnt do any better than vonage IMO of course :)

[Shaun]

Take a look at the control panel too.. every option you could ever want. the fixed line companies could learn SO much from their selfcare site :)

[alferret]

Take a look at the control panel too.. every option you could ever want. the fixed line companies could learn SO much from their selfcare site :)


Yup agree the dashboard is great, you can see made and received calls, time, date, duration just about everything is there, wouldnt it be nice if you could log on to your VM account and see the same.

[paul11974]

why is when i go here http://allyours.virginmedia.com/html/bundles/2for20.html and click the middle deal for just tv and broadband when the link is clicked it then says broadband and phone ?

so can i get 2mb broadband and medium tv for £20 ?

[Shaun]

Did you mean to post that here Paul?

[jrhnewark]

Got Vonage today - you literally plug it into the router, fire it up, and then it just works. All of it's preset with your account settings. How bloody wonderful and easy is that! :)

It's fantastic. :)

[paul11974]

Did you mean to post that here Paul?


yes because i am thinking of the 2 for £20 deal and vonage

[paul11974]

yes because i am thinking of the 2 for £20 deal and vonage

bump

[markjohn777]

Just ring em up and tell them you want to drop your phone package. I've dropped my phone after moving to Vonage - my NTL line still accepts incoming calls as well (but obviously can't make outbound calls).

[Shaun]

bump

You may need to start your own thread to get those that are in the know to look at it mate :)

---------- Post added at 12:04 ---------- Previous post was at 11:53 ----------

Got Vonage today - you literally plug it into the router, fire it up, and then it just works. All of it's preset with your account settings. How bloody wonderful and easy is that! :)

It's fantastic. :)

It's great - and the options for setting diverts and the like are great. I love the reassurance that should my BB go down my calls will be diverted to my mobile.

I also love the fact that if I take it on holiday with me to relatives in the states I can just plug it in and it costs me nothing to call my friends and family and a the costs of a UK land line call to phone me.

Searchable billing - being able to add an additional line (with a dialling code of many countries) for phone or fax - online payment/credit requests.

Even if it was more expensive than BT or 1899 I'd still keep it.

I recommend it to all my friends and to be honest I never do taht with products as I don't want them to go wrong and get the blame but Vonage really is one of those things that once you get it you'd never go back.

The CS/TS is generally good too, you get the odd one that's not so brill but on the whole. I've had two upgrades no my Vonage box to fix faults with their service. Small faults that other companies would have just left.

They upgraded my black D-link adapter to a wired Linksys router because of Caller ID issues. Then they upgraded that to a D-Link wireless router because there was an intermittent issue (one in every 100 tried I'd guess) with it connecting calls.

Both they did for free and paid the postage. The addition of free calls to much of Europe and the USA was a bonus too. I already got free calls to Ireland so it's just the icing on the cake.

They'd need to do something really stupid to make me leave them now!

[garybuk]

I've been using Vonage for about 6 months now. I got the £7.99 service with FREE calls to some European countries and the USA (Including Cell calls).

I also have a £2.99 pm Virtual Number so my friend can call me on a NY number and its then free to him on his Spring PCS plan. Amazing!

I have it ringing my home vonage phone AND my cellphone at the same time, so when i'm not at home i can accept the calls and i just get charged at uk rates (the same as calling Vonage -> UK Cell).

I do have some problems when running Bit Torrnt and some games when on the phone, i can hear them but thy can't hear me, quit Bit Torrent and it's fine...... i'd rather have the phone.

One bad thing is; it's a closed platform, you can't buy a VOIP phone and have it working with your vonage account, you have to use their equipment.