how-to block ads
|
next review in page
Review by real_goose 
member for 12.1 years, 2084 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 319 days ago
 Grosse Pointe,Wayne,MI
 Contract price not specified.  about 1 days "Reasonably priced BYOD; very helpful support" "call quality can be so-so but premium trunks are available at higher cost" "Perfect backup option no cost unless you use them"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
I switched to CWU as my only outgoing provider in July 2007 because their rates to Greece were good. They were essentially my only outgoing provider registered on my ATA. I've always had good luck using CWU when traveling from my laptop.
After about a year of good service I discovered my wife had stopped calling on the VOIP line because calls were not connecting. I reported the problem and Sergey had me precede each call with *33 with gave us the premium trunk (for higher cost). Calls were acceptable again. Sergey had to tell me how to change my SPA dialplan to accept *33. He reported that he would "work with the first route provider, if they can't fix the problem soon I will remove them from call routing to Greece." I've seen forum entries that this is common among the lower cost VOIP providers. They don't know something wrong unless a customer complains.
Now I have set up an asterisk server and am using someone else as default for calling to Greece to keep my 'wife acceptance factor' rating up. But I do use CWU as a backup and as my primary for calling from my laptop. A no cost backup is good to have. Lately I have noticed CWU outages that last a few hours.
If my Grand Central number ever goes away my plan was to buy a DID from CWU. Unfortunately they no longer offer DIDs to US residents because of mandatory e911 requirements. I'm just so impressed with the honest classy effort from CWU, that I wanted to buy more from them.
4/3/2010 The majority of my long distance calls to the US and most of Europe go via CWU. I had my default switched to premium trunks, but periodically calls to Greece were unacceptable. To fix that problem I now route calls to Greece via a Greek VOIP provider. Sergey tried, but I conclude that reliable Greek trunks at reasonable prices are essentially nonexistent. We had very similar problems with other providers.
CWU is just so flexible and reasonably priced, that I am happy to continue to doing business with them.
7/3/2012 Still working fine for us. I still route multiple calls per week (mainly to the US and France) via CWU. We have 2 physical lines active in the house and multiple 2 line phones. When calls are made on line 2 which is PBXes, calls not to Greece go via CWU. This calling pattern goes back to the days when line 1 was analog and my wife is in the habit of making long distance calls on line 2. As Mango says, it really is part of a complete dial plan. I'll keep adding money to my CWU account to make sure I have more than one option to complete calls.
Comments:
 | next review in page (previous review)
 Review by wcweaver
member for 11.2 years, 3554 visits, last login: 28 days ago
lodged 322 days ago
- Fort Myers,Lee,FL
- $1 per month
- about 1 days
- "Great voice qualiy for cheap price especially international"
- "Only eleven digit dialing for local calls, and they do not port numbers in"
- "Use only for outbound and international"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
Great quality service. Only use for outbound calls Would probably switch to them for inbound if they would port in my number. May get a second number as they do offer 239 area code numbers.
Comments:
| next review in page (previous review)
Review by Mango
member for 4.3 years, 2574 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 337 days ago
- Alberta
- Contract price not specified.
- "Configurable routing, Direct Media, LRN Lookup, SMS, VPN"
- "Part of a complete dial plan(TM)!"
| Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
If I ran a VoIP provider, I would run one just like CallWithUs. Fortunately, this has already been done - by CallWithUs - so I don't have to.
CallWithUs has several features that I haven't found from any other provider I like:
- Configurable routing: Many VoIP providers let you choose between a couple of routes, but when I entered my phone number into the simulator, it came up with a dozen or more! Being more than slightly obsessive, I evaluated all of them. All but two had excellent audio quality. I tested further and discovered that two of them correctly passed Caller ID Name to Canadian destinations.
- Direct media: CallWithUs gives you the option to have their media gateway proxy audio, or, if you're not behind NAT, set up a direct media path between their carrier and you. In some cases, this can lower latency.
- LRN Lookup: This is their newest feature, and my absolute favourite one. Now I can look up the carrier of any North American number. This will be especially useful in troubleshooting DIDs. I know of no other inexpensive source to look up LRN of Canadian numbers.
- SMS and VPN: Since CallWithUs is the only provider I know that offers these, I mention them here. I have never used them but it's nice to know I can if I need to.
CallWithUs's technical support is very very fast. I wonder, does Sokhapkin WEAR his computer?
CallWithUs is not a full service VoIP provider - for example, they do not offer e911. This is actually a good thing; by limiting their services to those required by advanced users, they can keep staffing cost low - in fact, the company is run entirely by its owner.
Conclusion: I highly recommend CallWithUs and I think it is Part of a Complete Dial Plan(TM).
Comments:
| next review in page (previous review)
 Review by ymhee_bcex
member for 7 years, 727 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 356 days ago
- Tarzana,Los Angeles,CA
- $20 per month
- "Good connection, low price, US access number"
- "some contries unrechable"
- "Excellent provider"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
UPDATE May 2012:
Still awesome service. With smartphones proliferating, I have a SIP client on my Android phone, and I am calling through WiFi - SIP client more often than through access number.
Neither CallWithUs nor Betamax prices changed in the last several years, but with Euro getting more expensive - CWU prices are now consistently less than those of Betamax.
Highly recommend!
---------------------------------------------
I've used Call With Us for about a year now. Can't say enough good things about them. Excellent voice quality, and ease of connection. Prices are very competitive. I use it along with VoipDiscount, so it is easier for me to compare the two.
VoipDiscount (as well as other BetaMax companies) has free calling to US - so web calls and external PBX solutions where provider makes calls to both destinations don't add any cost. CWU is 1.5c/min for US.
On the upside, I could never get a response from VoipDiscount; whereas CWU responds in less than 24 hours (sometimes in a few hours). Also, you can pay through PayPal and Google Checkout.
About the website. While the site is intentionally very simplistic, there is a feature that I haven't seen anywhere else. It has well-defined APIs, so you can retrieve data programmatically. Also, you can specify "VoIP accounts", so I know, which of the sources the call originated. I have two ATAs, and two cell phones that use one CWU account - so it's a nice feature.
CWU does not allow incoming SipBroker calls, but you can forward IPKall numbers to sip.callwithus.com - so it can be used as DID - if you are OK with Washington State phone number. They stopped offering DIDs, but frankly, their DID prices were not very competitive to begin with.
Last, they have access number (in Ohio) - so I can use it as an old-time "prepaid card" call if I want to call abroad from my cell phone.
Two annoyances that I had this year. For some reasons couldn't reach Ukraine and Belarus on default trunk. The calls showed connected but the other party didn't even hear the phone ringing. Which was annoying, since these are more expensive countries (Ukraine - 9c/min, Belarus - 20c/min). For Ukraine Sergey suggested to force a different provider (a penny more, but I never had a problem), and for Belarus I am using VoipDiscount.
Overall - great provider
Comments:
 | | comments CWU is presently $0.0095/min. to US. For click-to-call, etc., you can usually have the originating leg go VoIP, so a PSTN call is not needed at all.
CWU does offer US DIDs, but you must order from a non-US IP address (because they don't offer 911). IMO, the cost (typically $4.50) is not unreasonable, given that you get several channels and 3000 minutes, with business use permitted, etc. You can also use e.g. a free Callcentric DID, forwarded to CWU by SIP URI.
For Belarus (and possibly Ukraine), you might give Voxbeam a try. You get a small credit at signup, so you can test without making a payment. | |
|
| |
| next review in page (previous review)
Review by Steeler Fan
member for 1.4 years, 0 visits, last login: 1.4 years ago
updated 1.4 years ago
- Wexford,Allegheny,PA
- $8 per month
- (month by month)
- about 3 days
- "Great Prices, very responsive Tech Support..."
- "Audio on calls frequently dropped. Caller ID is almost NEVER correct..."
- "Budget plan for those not needing reliabiliity."
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings below consensus)
|
Finally switched off CallWithUS,
The outgoing Caller ID is almost never correct. I tried using their premium rate plans, etc. and still people would tell me that my caller ID was something weird from many states away... I would get it fixed with Tech Support then the next week the people I call would tell me they don't answer my calls because they don't recognize the Caller ID. This is pretty poor.
Also, with increasing frequency, the audio on the other party's side would frequently go out, requiring me to call them back. I could hear them, but they couldn't hear me.
It would also frequently take 2 tries to get through.
Now, some of the audio issues and connectivity may be due to living in Asia and having sub-par internet service. Still, that should never affect the Caller ID.
Was a CallWithUs customer for maybe 2 years.
Tech support was very responsive and I could get an answer very quickly.
Something to note: CallWithUs apparently stopped providing USA DIS's?
Ultimately, the inability to keep CallerID correct caused me to switch carriers. Since switching, I have
Comments:
| next review in page (previous review)
Review by kentoc
member for 7.9 years, 215 visits, last login: 1.7 years ago
lodged 1.7 years ago
- Schaumburg,Cook,IL
- $4 per month
- "Low Cost, E911 Not Required"
- "Reliable provider of the absolutely lowest cost outbound VOIP service"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
So far, I have found CallWithUs to be a reliable low cost provider that fits my need for outbound VOIP services. I haven't found any SIP providers who charge less than 1 cent per minute for US calls. Since I maintain a basic PSTN phone connection for inbound and local calls, I have no need for the redundant cost of E911 service that some service providers are forced by the US Guberment to provide for some reason (Provisioning of US DID numbers?) without regard for those of us that still have a basic PSTN service. While CallWithUs may not have all the bells and whistles that some service providers offer, the services they offer are sufficient for my needs.
Comments:
| next review in page (previous review)
 Review by signmeuptoo
member for 11.4 years, 5634 visits, last login: a few hours ago
lodged 1.7 years ago
- NanoParticle
- Contract price not specified.
- about 3 days
- "Fantastic rates, fast tech support response, great service"
- "website lacks neophyte friendliness, serivce is oriented towards more knowledgable people."
- "My gateway was giving problems with the service, had to figure it out on my own but service is great once you've got it working."
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
I live on a VERY sparse budget. For me, mere pennies are a big deal, no kidding! There are some terrific VOIP outfits, and they each have their pluses and minuses. CWU has excellent rates, better than just about anybody for where I call, and you have the choice of grade of service and which trunks you will allow.
HOWEVER: I haven't found on their site HOW to figure out how to identify each trunk so that I can enter it into my settings. They pronounce the fact that they keep a simple site, and that is true, in my humble opinion, to a fault. They need to hire someone to work with them to make the site easier to use and give better instructions on how to set up an ATA. My ATA is a very common one and their instructions didn't tell me I had to set up a couple settings I needed.
I would have given them a 100% A+ if setup was easier with more detail and better help getting my particular gateway to work with them (crappy ATT 2wire). After a great deal of searching I found out there is a way to get into the 2wire and change settings ATT people can do and I resolved the issue, and then I asked them how things were then and they said all was good now.
The cheapest tier trunk did not work for me to the country I call, but then I set my settings for premium and all was good. I still would love it if they included instructions on some easy to find link on how to find and set trunks.
IF you have the skills and patience to use their service, it is about as good as it gets, rates are great, call quality is decent. But not a service for someone new to VOIP, not until they improve their website.
No US DIDs provided, just something to note.
I would love to know how to set what trunks I use, embarrassingly, I don't know that stuff.
There is no sign up fee, no monthly charge, no contract, no commitment past what you purchase, which is fantastic.
Note that there is a purchasing service fee for orders under 25 dollars (and within a time period), but this is the case with some other competitive services, and if you order 25 bucks after 24 hours of not ordering, it is waived. They use both google and paypal as ways to pay, google is faster, but there is some wait time before the funds are updated.
If you are tech savvy and patient, and have the right hardware, this is just about the best there is from what I can find.
I would love it if they would improve their website and add better tutorials and more detailed instructions on setting up the ATA (analogue telephone adapter). Be aware that this is a bring your own and set up your own, ATA service.
My settings issues were:
Set up STUN properly
and more important:
SIP ALG in the ATT Gateway.
They could explain that better, when I needed help on it they set me to a link on a webpage using tech terms and it didn't help me figure out how to set up the 2wire, but after a bunch of searching online I found out how to fix it.
One service with lower rates is EasyVoip, but they offer a lot less help with setup, have large purchase fees, and calls aren't as good.
Future 9 is easier to set up, didn't have an SP ALG or STUN issue, and rates for me are just a few cents more a minute, and they offer a phone number/incoming calls (for a monthly fee).
But I want to be clear: callwithus is excellent, you just have to put in some effort to use it.
Comments:
| next review in page (previous review)
Review by OmagicQ
member for 9.5 years, 1009 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 1.9 years ago
- Bakersfield,Kern,CA
- Contract price not specified.
- about 1 days
- "Great per minute rates, Multiple routing choices, Ability to set CID"
- "No inbound INum maybe"
- "One of the best PayG providers available"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
Update 05/21/2011: Still using CWU occasionally for outbound calls with no issues. It just works. As long as I make a call every once in a while to keep it from going dormant, I expect it will keep working great.
I've been using Callwithus for outbound calling for a few weeks now and so far its been great. I have not had any call quality issues that were not due to my dsl line. I like the ability to set the outbound caller id to my google voice number or another number I control. Although I have not made or used sub accounts, I like that the capability is there, so if in the future I need to, its there.
I didn't see a way to get an INum did for free incoming calls, regular dids are available however. If I had to name one bad point that would be it but it's not a dealbreaker though.
I would not hesitate to recommend Callwithus to anyone who needs an alternative or standalone outbound provider for their PSTN calls. With no monthly charges or fees like "Regulatory Recovery Fee" or "Federal Excise Tax" or whatever. You just pay for what you use, plain and simple.
Comments:
| next review in page (previous review)
Review by thegreatfixe
member for 3.6 years, 35 visits, last login: 88 days ago
updated 2 years ago
- Los Angeles,Los Angeles,CA
- Contract price not specified.
- "Great no nonsense Voip"
- "None"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
i use this overseas and its been great i use it on my PAP2 and desktop (X-Lite 4.0)
i am a basic PAYG user and i like the simplicity of everything
CWU offers everything i want in a voip provider
GREAT rates:
Free (USA 800) calling:
works well with IP-Kall
and good customer service through email
i only wish they would have some OEM soft-phone so i can use X-Lite for another account
i was with F9 but they started to get gimmicky and CWU has lower rates
Comments:
| next page (previous review)
Review by kenja00
member for 4.3 years, 835 visits, last login: 2 days ago
updated 2.2 years ago
- Brooks,AB
- Contract price not specified.
- "Cheap, straight forward, quick support"
- "Little confusing at first with selecting route"
- "Two thumbs up, no suprises.... Recommended"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
I was a little hesitant to sign up with Callwith us, after reading reviews here, I thought I'd give them a chance...
No problems, very straight forward and quick response on support tickets!
Two thumbs up!
Update: Oct 4/09 - After using them for calls to Canada, I've found many of the cheaper routes do not pass on caller id. I started using route 093, but the audio quality was very poor then... Lots of "Blip, bleep, bleep" in the conversation.
Update: Jan 6/10 - What more can I say, just works and does what it's supposed to! No surprises here...
Update: Aug 13/10 - Still using them, no problems! Very straight forward system and no surprise fees!
Update: 3/22/2010 I had them move me to the "premium plan" which essential allows me to skip all the "grey routes" which has made a difference on my outgoing calls... Tech support has gotten back to me, and usually resolves issues within the hour!
Update: 11/15/2010 - Figured out how to properly setup the different routes on my dialplan and have found CWU even better than before!
Update: 2/23/2011 - At times some of my cheaper routes don't go through, but it's easy enough to select a different route. Although lacking features of some of the other companies, CWU makes up for it in selective routes and reliability.
Comments:
|
|
·
·
·
·