As many people trim costs from all areas of their lives, the monthly phone bill is coming under closer scrutiny.
With the recent price reductions in internet phones, combined with improvements in technology, more and more people are abandoning or adjusting their traditional home phone services. Companies like Skype, Vonage, MagicJack, among others, are putting internet phones on the map and knowledge of such phone services is becoming more widespread. With the right purchasing decision the savings can be substantial - somewhere in the order of a few hundred dollars per year or more for most families.
There are many potential missteps you can make when selecting the best internet phone service for you and since switching a second time can be a major nuisance here are some questions that you should consider before your choose.
Here are 11 Questions you should ask when selecting an Internet Phone:
1) Does your computer have to be running?
A lot of the very cheap services need to be running off of a computer. Not only are most consumer computers not designed to be always on - they can clog up with dust and heat can build-up and cause premature aging of important components, but the electrical costs in running the computer 24/7 can range from $10 - $30 per month. In the end your savings are lost to constant repairs and high electricity bills.
2) What type of tech support should you be paying for?
Usually once things are well set-up there is no need for tech support, so you may want to go with the much cheaper companies that provide email support vs. having a number to call.
3) Should you rent equipment or purchase it?
Again a trade-off. When they provide it you are dealing with a more expensive company - and when you provide it - you use a little more elbow grease at the beginning but you save money in the long term.
4) Do you need 911 service?
Or maybe your cell phone provides it, so you don't need it?
5) Can you transfer your present phone number to your new internet phone service?
6) Are you locked into a long-term contract?
There are setups that are impossible to make work - probably caused by the local network, but not always. If you get frustrated to the point of pulling the plug - are you locked into a multi-year contract?
7) Are they going to charge you extra for any service?
The great thing about most internet phone deals is that they throw in all the extras at little or no cost. If the company that you are considering going with wants to charge you for voice mail, caller id, three-way calling,etc. you are not getting the best deal out there.
8) Does the internet phone company have divided loyalties?
Are they trying to stop the cannibalization of one of their main profit centers?If you are considering internet phone service from a company that also provides regular phone services, they may actually be working against you having a fantastic experience with internet phones maybe through not resolving issues, lousy support, etc. Likewise for internet service providers who may take steps to inhibit the portability of your phone service (see next question).
9) Is it easy to take your phone somewhere else?
One of the truly exciting possibilites is that you can take your phone service with you to anywhere you have internet service -the cottage, moving to another city, etc.There are some technical considerations to make your service truly portable (beyond the scope of this short article), but the first step is to ensure that the company you are buying internet phone service from doesn't effectively ban you from taking it to another location.
10) Is long distance free?
Certainly long distance to USA and Canada should be included for North American phone numbers.
11) Do they actually have phone numbers with an appropriate area code?
Some companies claim that they do, but then you must wait to get them after you've ordered. Before you give them your money, ensure that there is no waiting for the area code you want.
As you can see there are a ton of little details to consider when getting an internet phone service.
