VOIP: can u ring anyone/ do u still have 2 pay BT?

VOIP: can you ring anyone (UK)or do they also need to have it? and will you
still need to pay £10.50 to BT like you do if you switch to another phone
company? TIA.

Robbo wrote:
> VOIP: can you ring anyone (UK)or do they also need to have it? and
> will you still need to pay £10.50 to BT like you do if you switch
> to another phone company? TIA.

You need a broadband connection, either using a BT line or a cable TV
company. Then you sign up for a service such as Sipgate (see
www.sipgate.co.uk) and away you go.

Calls to other users of Sipgate and some other VoIP providers (see
website) are free, as are calls to 0800 numbers. If you want to call
ordinary phones, you need to add credit to your account in a similar way
as you would with a PAYG mobile.

Ivor

Thus spaketh Robbo:
> VOIP: can you ring anyone (UK)or do they also need to have it? and
> will you still need to pay £10.50 to BT like you do if you switch to
> another phone company? TIA.

If you are using a BT line for your broadband service, then at the moment you
will still pay BT for line rental.

If you have a VoIP service from Sipgate for example you pay no further rental,
just for calls you make on it if those calls are standard landlines or
mobiles, calls are free to other VoIP numbers. The added advantage of Sipgate
is they offer a real geographical number other people without VoIP can, plus
you can choose any location area code.

Call 1899 also offers an out going VoIP service.

You could therefore get rid of a BT phone line, and have a cable broadband,
and get a VoIP number, thus having no line rental only broadband rental.


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{{{{{Welcome}}}}} wrote:
> Thus spaketh Robbo:
>> VOIP: can you ring anyone (UK)or do they also need to have it? and
>> will you still need to pay £10.50 to BT like you do if you switch
>> to another phone company? TIA.
>
> If you are using a BT line for your broadband service, then at the
> moment you will still pay BT for line rental.
>
> If you have a VoIP service from Sipgate for example you pay no
> further rental, just for calls you make on it if those calls are
> standard landlines or mobiles, calls are free to other VoIP
> numbers. The added advantage of Sipgate is they offer a real
> geographical number other people without VoIP can, plus you can
> choose any location area code.
> Call 1899 also offers an out going VoIP service.
>
> You could therefore get rid of a BT phone line, and have a cable
> broadband, and get a VoIP number, thus having no line rental only
> broadband rental.

One important point is that *at the moment* Sipgate and presumably other
VoIP services do not offer a 999 service, so you would really need to
ensure you have another phone (either BT/cable line or mobile) to make
emergency calls. Also, the system will be unavailable if there is a power
failure.

Ivor

Thus spaketh Ivor Jones:
> {{{{{Welcome}}}}} wrote:
>> Thus spaketh Robbo:
>>> VOIP: can you ring anyone (UK)or do they also need to have it? and
>>> will you still need to pay £10.50 to BT like you do if you switch
>>> to another phone company? TIA.
>>
>> If you are using a BT line for your broadband service, then at the
>> moment you will still pay BT for line rental.
>>
>> If you have a VoIP service from Sipgate for example you pay no
>> further rental, just for calls you make on it if those calls are
>> standard landlines or mobiles, calls are free to other VoIP
>> numbers. The added advantage of Sipgate is they offer a real
>> geographical number other people without VoIP can, plus you can
>> choose any location area code.
>> Call 1899 also offers an out going VoIP service.
>>
>> You could therefore get rid of a BT phone line, and have a cable
>> broadband, and get a VoIP number, thus having no line rental only
>> broadband rental.
>
> One important point is that *at the moment* Sipgate and presumably
> other VoIP services do not offer a 999 service, so you would really
> need to ensure you have another phone (either BT/cable line or
> mobile) to make emergency calls. Also, the system will be unavailable
> if there is a power failure.
>
> Ivor

Yes, very valid points, I should have stated.

On Wed, 9 Feb 2005 20:07:39 +0000 (UTC), "Robbo" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>VOIP: can you ring anyone (UK)or do they also need to have it? and will you
>still need to pay £10.50 to BT like you do if you switch to another phone
>company? TIA.

VOIP is internet based, you don't have to pay any POTS carrier to use
it.

However if you're using ADSL you'll still have to pay BT for your
line, which is presumably 10.50/month. You can't avoid that without
swapping to cable (in which case you'll pay NTL or telewest
instead...)

>However if you're using ADSL you'll still have to pay BT for your
>line, which is presumably 10.50/month. You can't avoid that without
>swapping to cable (in which case you'll pay NTL or telewest
>instead...)

Unless... you find consenting near neighbour, share his ADSL via wifi link,
share the cost,
you can still make VoIP calls (softphone of wifi IP phone),
and laugh all the way past the BT exchange to the bank :-)
Regards,
Martin