For almost two years now, I’ve been using VOIP telephone technology for my home phone. At first, it was through the local cable company, Grande. We got a small discount, since it was part of a package for cable TV, internet, and telephone service.
But then, I heard of Vonage, and loved the idea that if we moved, taking our home phone service with us was as simple as carrying a small adapter and plugging it in at the new location! And being in the military, we figured we’d be moving at least a few more times. If you’re not familiar with VOIP telephony, basically it gives you standard telephone service, using the normal telephones you’re used to, but the signal goes over the internet instead of the phone company’s wires. (which is the only downfall: if you lose internet connectivity or electricty, your telephone no workie, either! Better have a cell phone as a backup!!)
Sure enough, it worked out great! We were temporarily accommodated at a hotel, and later a furnished, weekly rate studio apartment, and were able to keep our home phone service with us as each location. The price wasn’t bad, either: $24.99 per month for unlimited nation-wide long distance service (with Caller ID), and they even have free calls to certain foreign countries!
I became frustrated, however, when I found out that Vonage would be increasing their rates, due to added-on fees and taxes. I paid $31 per month for baseline service, and knew there had to be a better deal out there. I began searching for alternatives, and came across Sunrocket. They basically give the same service for approximately half price! The only catch is that you have to pre-pay for one year of service. That may sound scary, but you can cancel any time you want, and they will refund the unused portion of your service. I was sold!
I’ve been using Sunrocket for about a month now, and have been pleased with the service. So far, I haven’t had a need to contact Tech Support, so I can’t compare that with Vonage. The few times I did call Vonage for support, I had a very hard time understanding the representative from the overseas call center, due to the heavy Indian accent.
Long story short: Sunrocket is as good as Vonage, and costs half as much. (and they gave me two 5.8 GHz cordless phones when I signed up!)
Hi there! Why only selecting between Vonage and Sunrocket? There are many other VOIP providers which offers better prices and better services. Both - Sunrocket and Vonage are quite expensive and I personally never will understand why so many users choose one of these both companies which such high prices …
Thomas-
I actually compared many different VOIP providers before switching, and settled on Sunrocket for several reasons. They seemed to have the best service and consumer reviews for the price, and I really liked the fact that they included the adapter (which they refer to as a “gizmo”) and even threw in two free 5.8 GHz cordless phones! They also have a $3 international service credit each month, which I expect to utilize, which brings the perceived cost down to approx $13 per month!