VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[Bish]

Due to popular demand, I'm forking my home network thread to raise the issue of VoIP and Google voice.

My phone problem was primarily driven by the fact that mobile reception in my basement studio is awful. This is a common problem, but for me, T-Mobile wasn't cutting it as a publishable business number and a single point of contact.

Google Voice offers a single number that can be configured to ring any number of phones. I could set it to call the computer (if I was running GV in the background), the house phone, and a mobile phone. One number to rule them all! Getting a GV number is easy, and setting the options up is pretty straightforward. The voicemail works well, and the transcription service, although a little funky, can work OK. GV also delivers text messages to both the computer and a designated mobile. Calls in the US (& Canada?) are free, international calls are very competitive and get charged to a prepaid GV account (just throw 10 bucks in there to get started).

Problem 1:
I wanted to use GV as my main voicemail. Unfortunately, the T-Mobile line picked up before GV, so all voicemail went to the mobile number. The pickup was 20 secs on the mobile, 25 secs on the GV, so T-Mobile always won the race.
Solution 1:
A little known fact - You can call your mobile carrier and have ringing time extended from 20 to 30 seconds before voicemail activation. I can only say for certain with T-Mobile, but I've heard that it's the same for others. No issues, they did it on the spot and now GV always wins the pick-up race.

Problem 2:
I didn't want the house phone ringing as my business line. I needed a dedicated business land-line as mobile reception was so bad.
Solution 2:
VoIP seemed the way to go. A dedicated business line with no monthly charges that would work with GV's multiple delivery system. I researched, and found that there was a well-reviewed (free) service provided by http://obihai.com/. You need to purchase an interface box that connects to your router. I opted for the basic OBI 100 - it's available at Amazon for $50. You connect to the obihai site and establish the service via the box's unique ID. Obihai's web site has really good instructions for the initial set-up, and (more importantly) how to configure the service to use your GV line as the attached number.

I've had no problems with the system at all. If I'm in the studio, I can just pick-up on the VoIP line, if I'm out and about, the mobile rings as well. It beats the pants off my cable provider's phone service which is $35 a month. If I could do a regular number transfer to GV, I'd seriously consider one of these for the main house line.

The basic OBI 100 box works for the dedicated line... There is a different box (OBI 110 around $70) which provides a bridge port so you can interface with your regular phone system. I'm assuming that this will let you use a 2-line phone to make and received calls via either your regular, or the OBI system. I didn't investigate this at the time, but it may be a better solution for anyone who wants to integrate their phones.
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

[todd ellis]

great info bish!
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"i know philip banks": todd ellis
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[bransom]

Excellent! Thanks for taking the time to explain how you worked it.
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Bob Ransom
"I really need a pithy quote here."

[DougVox]

Never before have I appreciated having a consistently strong cellular signal in my house and my studio, as much as I do right now.


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Doug Turkel (tur-KELL)
Voiceover UNnouncer®
UNnouncer.com

[georgethetech]

Due to crappy T-mobile in my house, I got the OBI100 for Google Voice and it's performed flawlessly with a Uniden DECT cordless phone for the last few months. I have my wife's mobile set to forward to it after 6 rings, and then it goes to her Google Voicemail box.
In my office it's Skype, but I have it set to forward to my mobile and then to Google Voice. I don't have a voicemail battle like Bish described with T-mobile, has worked well for a few years now. Only downside is the number of rings it takes for a Skype caller to reach voicemail. But then again, that's what email is for!
I love getting my voicemail via email, by the way. I can manage so much communication in Gmail now. I even have the SMS messages from my Android phone forward to Gmail for archive/search purposes.
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