#1
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Is Skype a good replacement for a landline?
I'm wondering if I should replace my landline with Skype. For $60 a year I can get a package with a phone number, voicemail, etc.
I haven't used Skype much, but a phone call the other day was problematic. The problems could be due to the cheap old microphone I'm using, however. I had to turn up the volume, I think I missed some chunks of the other party's conversation, and they reported imperfect sound quality. I'd get a better microphone if I were going to use it more. I'd prefer a microphone on my desk to a headset, and I'd probably get a Skype phone later if I used it instead of my landline. Questions: - is the quality good enough that you'd recommend it as a replacement for a landline? - what microphone should I get? Is an inexpensive Logitech like this good enough? Or a more expensive one like this? |
#2
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Re: Is Skype a good replacement for a landline?
in case of emergency, i wouldn't want to rely on skype to get an ambulance to my house
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#3
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Re: Is Skype a good replacement for a landline?
Skype is computer software right? You can't just buy a skype device and plug a normal phone into it like vonage?
Do they make wifi skype phones? That might be an option. |
#4
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Re: Is Skype a good replacement for a landline?
[ QUOTE ]
in case of emergency, i wouldn't want to rely on skype to get an ambulance to my house [/ QUOTE ] QFT. I probably wouldn't recommend skype as your sole or primary option. However, if you really got your stuff together, i bet you could use it as your primary if you had a cell phone or two as a backup with a cell phone plan that only allows like 30 mins/year or something in case of emergency. |
#5
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Re: Is Skype a good replacement for a landline?
[ QUOTE ]
Skype is computer software right? You can't just buy a skype device and plug a normal phone into it like vonage? Do they make wifi skype phones? That might be an option. [/ QUOTE ] You can buy a telbox usb adaptor for like $25-30 (IIRC). I have had both vonage and skype and vonage seemed to have slightly higher voice quality (this was like 2 yrs ago on the vonage side) but overall skype is decent. Generally, skype is reliable (recent outage not withstanding) and the price is right. I would recommend having a backup cellphone, plus, skype explicitly states that it cannot be used for 911. OP, my experience has been that speaking from phone+adapter-->skpye results in much clearer call quality then microphone+speakers. Call quality in general is quite good though and I would consider it a replacement with the above caveat. Occasional robotic voice and other weirdness can occur although this has become rare. |
#6
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Re: Is Skype a good replacement for a landline?
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I would recommend having a backup cellphone, plus, skype explicitly states that it cannot be used for 911. [/ QUOTE ] One thing most people don't know is that you don't need a land-line phone plan for 911 service. Any landline that is hooked up to the phone grid is REQUIRED to let you call 911 even if you're not a subscriber. If all you're worried about is 911 then you can cancel your phone service and still have access to 911 without relying on Skype (something I would never do) |
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