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Review by sarah1967 
UPDATED: a few hours ago
member for 1.3 years, 4 visits, last login: a few hours ago
 Oakland,Alameda,CA
 $14 per month (24 month contract)
 about 3 days
 "easy order and install. u can pick your telephone number"
 "solid reliable service from someone who's been on a while now."
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
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ordering and install was simple. I like the fact you can pick your number from a list of 20. I wish they had toll free numbers to choose from. But a customer service rep said they will soon. I've run my business from the service for a couple months now and it's been a good service. I originally signed up on the cheapest plan, but was happy enough to switch to the annual. They will let you upgrade to one of their other new customer promotional plans, but only in the first 30 days.
UPDATE: Its been quite a while and I'm still happy with choosing Phone Power. Call quality is at least as good as my old telco line. When they started offering toll free numbers (one of my original griefs), I got one for $5 per month. Very pleased customer. I upgraded the website from 4 to 5. The web-based call routing options are very helpful.
I Recently received an email that they are giving everyone one hour of international calling for free every month now. Thanks for the holiday gift Phone Power!
Followup comments: | Forums » comments on review of PHONE POWER |
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Review by dragonartist
Posted: 1 days ago
member for 63 days, 15 visits, last login: 1 days ago
Monterey Park,Los Angeles,CA
$16 per month (24 month contract)
about 3 days
"Good Quality for a great price and lots of features"
"Can't beat the price"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
I recently switched from charter VoIP to Phone Power. The number transfer was fast and free. The support staff is great and they all speak English and actually know what they are talking about. They go far beyond what I've seen any other company go to to make sure I'm a happy customer. The only time I ever had a call problem, it turned out to be an internet line issue which my ISP was able to solve quickly using the advise from the Phone Power techs.
Can't beat the price though, especially the new international calling plan. I rarely call out of the country, but when I do, its nice to know its a free call (at least 60 minutes of it).
Great service and a good price, I'd recommend them.
Followup comments: | Forums » comments on review of PHONE POWER |
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Review by chdyoung4
UPDATED: 3 days ago
member for 1.9 years, 17 visits, last login: 3 days ago
undisclosed location
Contract price not specified. (24 month contract)
"Good value for the money with easy setup and lots of features"
 "Affiliated with voip-rebates.net which is a scam company that falsely promises rebates"
"Will probably stay with them even though I am very disappointed about the rebate."
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
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Supposedly if you link to phone power from voip-rebates.net, you receive a $30 rebate in 30 to 45 days. I recommended Phone Power to my daughter who bought the 2 year service through voip-rebates.net. It has been almost 90 days since she got the service, and now voip-rebates.net says they cannot give her the rebate because she canceled the service. Why would someone pay over $250 for a 2 year deal and then cancel after the cooling off period and forfeit their $250?
Since voip-rebates.net offers the largest rebate for phone power, it seems that the two companies have a close relationship. Even if not, Phone Power should not allow this scam company to link to them and make false rebate offers.
I had been telling other people about phone power. Most of them commented about the excellent call quality, and besides my daughter who got the service, at least one other person was on the verge of buying the two year service. The rebate denial does not change the quality of service, but certainly changes my view of the company. I will not be promoting them in the future.
AT&T also had good reliable call quality even though their customer service was poor. I left AT&T because I realized they were just a scam company when they told me that they could not prevent other scam companies from adding third party charges to my phone bill. I thought that I had found a real phone company that was not a scammer, but now I am disappointed in Phone Power.
-------------
From: VoIPRebates
Subj: Re: Rebate Request
Date: Sun Jul 26, 2009 7:39 pm
Size: 633 bytes
To: @gmail.com
Since you canceled PhonePower service within the first 60 days,
VoIP-Rebates.net is unable to offer you a rebate.
Sincerely,
The VoIP-Rebates.net Team
-------------
Followup comments:  
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
|  Voip-Rebates.net
| |
| 
PhonePower
Premium
join:2007-07-20
Winnetka, CA
1 edit | Please PM me your daughter's username and or phone number Please PM me your daughter's username and phone number and I will review. | |
|
PhonePower
Premium
join:2007-07-20
Winnetka, CA | Mystery solved :) This person put an existing customer (her father) as the referral thus overriding voip-rebates.net. The referrer and referred each got a $10 credit.
You can't be referred by two sources at once. | |
| | chdyoung4
join:2007-12-06
 ·PHONE POWER
3 edits | Dirty Dealing :( The $10 referral credit and the $30 rebate are two different things.
The $10 referral credit is worth nothing until the customer renews service at the end of the prepaid period or otherwise incurs charges.
The $30 rebate is for signing up for service by linking from voip-rebates.
Nowhere does it say that claiming the referral credit cancels the rebate.
The Email from voip-rebates said nothing about the $10 referral credit -- it said the customer canceled service which is not true.
If it said anywhere that taking advantage of the referral credit would cancel the rebate, then she would have chosen the $30 rebate over the $10 credit.
»Re: www.voip-rebates.net $30 rebate is invalid!
On 7/14 said by Phone Power :
These rebates are offered solely by VoIP-Rebates.net and are given above and beyond the providers' own offers.
Today Phone Power says that voip-rebates is just another referrer. said by Phone Power :
You can't be referred by two sources at once.
It is sad that a company that offers a good service at a reasonable price thinks they have to stoop to such confusing and dirty business practices. AT&T also offers reliable service with good call quality. That does not mean that everyone is happy with AT&T.
It is the little things like this that anger people. This is certainly not the way to cultivate customer loyalty.
Phone Power, If you think your wacky explanation and smiley face makes us feel any better about your company, you are very mistaken.
I used to feel good about my decision to sign up with Phone Power, and I bragged to several people about the money I was saving and the extra features I had. Phone Power saved $30 by denying the rebate, but is that really worth destroying the company's reputation? | |
| | |
PhonePower
Premium
join:2007-07-20
Winnetka, CA
2 edits | Re: Dirty Dealing :( Just reporting the facts. | |
| | | |
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
1 edit | Re: Dirty Dealing :( said by PhonePower :Just reporting the facts. Also PP has mentioned "That said, they are not a very powerful contributor to our sales and I'm getting a bit tired of the extra work they are causing."
I understand where you are coming from and that voip-rebates should be held responsible. Especially since VoIp-Rebates gave you a bogus reason for not honoring the rebate.
As PP stated before voip-rebates is affiliated by selling PP services. However I don't feel PP should have to pay you for their mistakes. It is no different then ordering Direct TV from an affiliate and after them not paying, trying to get money from Direct TV.
Lastly, if you feel you getting a good value and have recommended them to several friends. why cry so loud over 30.00. Would it have been nice to get it sure, but it you don't get it will you still be able to put food on the table? PP is saving me about 1k in time in money over Verizon. | |
| | | | chdyoung4
join:2007-12-06
·PHONE POWER
2 edits | Let's look at the "facts".
Fact: You can get a $10 referral credit from Phone Power plus a $30 rebate from voip-rebates.net when you sign up for a 2 year plan because as Phone Power says, "These rebates are offered solely by VoIP-Rebates.net and are given above and beyond the providers' own offers." »Re: www.voip-rebates.net $30 rebate is invalid!
Fact: If you get the $10 referral credit from Phone Power, you will be denied the $30 rebate from voip-rebates.net because as Phone Power says, “You can't be referred by two sources at once.” »Mystery solved :)
Fact: A 2 year prepaid Phone Power plan costs $200 »www.phonepower.com/services/voip···cts.aspx
Fact: A 2 year prepaid Phone Power plan costs $253
»www.phonepower.com/services/voip···x?pid=71
Comment: Why is it so difficult for Phone Power to get their rates straight? It seems like bait and switch – show one price on the first page you see, but then you find out that the plan is not really available for that price.
Fact: A 2 year prepaid Phone Power plan costs $353 if the customer is unable to return the adapter at the end of the term. »www.phonepower.com/services/term···tos.aspx
Comment: I applaud Phone Power for plainly stating up front that they will charge an extra $100 for not returning the adapter. Even though that fee seems a bit excessive, at least the “terms of service page” is legible – unlike many other companies that use a small almost-white font on a white page.
Fact: Several people have complained that they have not received their rebates from voip-rebates.net. Copy the following line and paste it into a Google search box:
+"voip-rebates" +scam
Fact: Phone Power says about voip-rebates.net “I can not confirm or deny whether they actually pay, but there really nothing for us to honor.” »Re: www.voip-rebates.net $30 rebate is invalid!
Comment: Doesn’t this sound like Phone Power is saying that they have nothing to do with voip-rebates.net and it is not their problem if you don’t get your rebate?
Fact: Phone Power says about voip-rebates.net “I have reviewed with the accounting department and they have confirmed that we get minimal complaints.” »Re: www.voip-rebates.net $30 rebate is invalid!
Comment: Now it seems that Phone Power may be denying that there is a problem with rebates. If not receiving your rebate is not Phone Power’s problem, what good would it do for you to complain to Phone Power?
Fact: Phone Power says “This person put an existing customer (her father) as the referral thus overriding voip-rebates.net.” »Mystery solved :)
Comment: If Phone Power really has nothing to do with voip-rebates.net, why are you defending their rebate denial, and why would it matter if Phone Power provided a credit in addition to a rebate from voip-rebates? If voip-rebates.net is not your problem, why even bother to try to explain it? I think it is your problem, and since you are having a problem that you are unable to fix or even acknowledge, that you should end your affiliation with voip-rebates.net.
I really like the fact that the Phone Power plans are simple with no nickel and dime options that could double your basic rate. However, after actually using the service and interacting with Phone Power, I can see that there is certainly some room for improvement. With a little effort Phone Power could eliminate some points of confusion which would improve their appeal to those of us who like to keep it simple and who expect a company (and its affiliates) to deliver what they promise. | |
| | | | | 
ptrowski
Got Helix?
Premium
join:2005-03-14
Putnam, CT
clubs: | Re: Dirty Dealing :( chdyoung4 does have a very good point. | |
| | | | | chdyoung4
join:2007-12-06
·PHONE POWER
| Update: After the above public complaints, a few PMs, Emails and a phone call, and after some confusion and miscommunication among the Phone Power staff, Phone Power refunded $30 to compensate for the denied rebate. They also rescinded the $10 referral credit for both parties. At first I thought they took back my initial referral credit for my friend Larry referring me to Phone Power, but perhaps they never gave me that credit, and what I thought was Larry's referral credit was actually the credit for referring my daughter.
I feel somewhat better about Phone Power now. It took a while for them to decide to do the right thing regarding the rebate, although they still have not given me my initial credit for Larry referring me. Larry has forgotten his Phone Power password, so he does not know if Phone Power gave him his $10 credit for referring me.
Partial timeline:
My daughter bought the Phone Power service in mid May,
was promised a rebate $30 in 30 to 45 days,
at the end of July was denied the rebate, and
a week into August was credited the $30 rebate by Phone Power.
For those who could not understand why I expected Phone Power and VOIP-rebates to honor their promised $30 rebate, and why I was so upset when they would not, maybe this explanation will help.
The reason I left canceled my AT&T phone service and went to Phone Power was because of dirty dealing on AT&T's part -- they were passing along bogus charges from third parties on my AT&T bill, and could not promise to block those in the future. That was unacceptable, so I went with a phone service that would save me money and I thought that would be an honest company.
When I learned that Phone Power denied the promised rebate for a bogus reason, I was indeed upset to see that Phone Power was not the honest company I had hoped them to be. And yes, we contacted voip-rebates and Phone Power about this. It was only about 2 weeks after I first exposed this on dsl reports and after some helpful feedback from others to Phone Power, that Phone Power changed their mind and decided to make good on the rebate.
Thanks to my friends on dsl reports who took the time to understand the problem and contact Phone Power on our behalf.
Some people could not understand why I blamed Phone Power for voip-rebates' failure to make good on the rebate. Here is why: the reason voip-rebates gave for refusing the rebate was because Phone Power refused the referral fee to voip-rebates due to "the customer canceled the service". Phone Power denied this. Somebody is not telling the truth, and either way the customer is being scammed by somebody.
If Phone Power is telling the truth about this, Phone Power should not affiliate with or allow rebates to be offered by a company that does not fulfill it's rebate offers. Even if voip-rebates is the party at fault, to affiliate with a dirty company dirties Phone Power.
Based on other reports that I have read, this rebate refusal for a bogus reason is not an isolated incident.
It would be interesting to know who actually owns Phone Power and voip-rebates, and how the two companies might be related. I have noticed that voip-rebates does not include any of the companies that offer cheaper prices than Phone Power.
I still think that Phone Power should forget the rebates and credits since they have so much trouble getting that right. Also they should stop their bait and switch tactics, and advertise the real price on their rates summary page »www.phonepower.com/services/voip···cts.aspx
instead of initially showing a price that is more than $50 cheaper than the real price for the 2 year pre-paid deal. | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | chdyoung4
join:2007-12-06
·PHONE POWER
1 edit | Re: Dirty Dealing :( Re: Dirty Dealing 
Maybe you don't mind doing business with dishonest companies, but as you read in my previous comments, that is the very reason I left AT&T. You also read that Phone Power finally made it good after much complaining on my part.
Maybe you expect dishonesty from the companies you do business with, but if there is a choice, I choose to do business with honest companies. Whether it is $30 or $3, cheating the customer out of a promised rebate is just wrong.
Probably most people would not go to the lengths that I went to in order to get the rebate, but I think some of them would have a poor opinion of the company -- maybe enough to make then look elsewhere for future service.
I recently received a refund check for $4 from Power Net Global Communications. Now that is an example of an honest company.
BTW, I am happy with the call quality provided by Phone Power. I have made some suggestions to improve their business practices and their web site. Perhaps one day they will act on those suggestions. | |
| | | |
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Review by xlr8ingfun
Posted: 4 days ago
Fair warning: reviewer joined this week
Topeka,Shawnee,KS
Contract price not specified.
"They're not the only voip service."
"Too many issues with them to list"
"Based on other reviews I was surprised at how backward this company was"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings well below consensus)
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First I have Fios so speed and reliability of a connection weren't an issue. For some reason I ended up spending several hours on the phone with tech support to no avail. Ultimately, after a few weeks of dealing with their ineptitude I gave up and went with itpvoip. That was easy and effortless. I'll be writing a positive review for itpvoip.com.
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Review by Judy Star
Posted: 15 days ago
member for 15 days, 3 visits, last login: 8 days ago
San Diego,San Diego,CA
Contract price not specified.
"Great Bargain"
"N/A"
"Quality sound, excellent price, nice staff, and a great bargain"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
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My son told me about this product a few months ago. He lives on the east coast and it was getting expensive to talk with all of the long distance. I got the product 8 months ago. We started off on the month to month plan just to see if it would work out. We immediatley noticed the savings and jumped at the 2 year plan. We just got it out of the way and it's been great. I'm already saving money on a daily basis and I was able to keep my number. I will say that I was having a little trouble figuring out how to plug the thing in but I called them and they had someone right there to talk me through it. I have to say it was really nice to actually talk to someone rather than an automated machine... or someone that doesn't speak english.
This really turned out to be a good move... and we've saved alot of money. Plus there are some cool features and a free 2nd line. I'm just so used to the standard dial and talk that it's been neat to have the same feel of the land line but getting all of this other stuff and for less. I love finding the bargains. 
Followup comments: 
Wake up call
@qwest.net
|  BEWARE Bait and switch bast@#%$
$39.36 plus $1 plus $10 reconnect fee.
So a $ 199 "residential freedom" plan actually ended up costing me $302.62..
=============
SVC#81 10/1/2009 to 10/1/2010 -- Residential Freedom - Free Second Year $199.950 1.0 $199.95
SVC#81 10/1/2009 to 10/1/2010 -- Regulatory Recovery Fee $11.880 1.0 $11.88
SVC#81 10/1/2009 to 10/1/2010 -- 911 Cost Recovery $11.880 1.0 $11.88
SVC#81 10/1/2009 to 10/1/2010 -- Residential Freedom - Free Second Year Rebate $-199.950 1.0 ($199.95)
DTL#10602 --VoIP #10225..5054732820 $0.000 1.0 $0.00
DTL#10602 --VoiceMail #7097..5054732820 $0.000 1.0 $0.00
TAX#1001 FSLS ($199.95 x 7.3%)
ETC, ETC.... | |
| |
mr me
@aacc.edu | Re: BEWARE Bait and switch bast@#%$ This is how all phone services work. I've never seen one that didn't. It isn't bait and switch, it's status quo. | |
| |
PhonePower
Premium
join:2007-07-20
Winnetka, CA
1 edit | Let me begin by suggesting you edit your phone number from a public forum. It can act as as telemarketer bait and can cause a flood of unwanted calls.
While it's nearly impossible to win a conversation with a client that feels like they were misinformed, I will simply state the facts:
The fact that we charge taxes and fees for the free 2nd year are clearly disclosed on the:
- product page prior to ordering
- in the email confirmation
- on the terms of service
I truly don't see how it can be more transparent. We even go as far as to bold the text in the confirmation email with this exact text and bolding:
"You will be assessed applicable taxes, surcharges, and fees at the start of the second year. These fees will be calculated based on the standard price for the service. Services are subject to suspension and termination if balances are not paid in a timely manner per Section 4 of Phone Power's Terms of Service."
Additionally, I see that we sent you a total of 6 credit card declined and suspend warning emails over a 10 day period prior to actually suspending your service.
As you know our billing department has already refunded any and all reconnection fees and late fees as one time client courtesy independently (not as a result of this) of this post.
You may be glad to see that you now get 60 minutes free international calling to over 80 countries every month, a free fax catcher service and 24 hour technical support. These are definitely features and services which were not included when you signed up but have been added as we continue to expand our service offering. | |
| | |
wake up call
@qwest.net
| MORE LIES
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Phone Power Confirmation of Your Order
Thank you for placing your Order for Digital Voice Service
Your Order Number is 60199. You will receive another email once we have your new Phone Number or have received a transfer date from your current provider if you are transferring a number.
If you chose to receive a new phone number you will receive a confirmation that will include your phone number shortly.
If you are transferring an existing phone number we will initiate the transfer request with your current provider. This process normally takes 3-10 business days. We will notify you of the transfer date at that time.
If you have any questions please email our Ordering Department:
sales@phonepower.com
For Your Reference:
Your Username: **Hidden**
Your Password: **Hidden**
We look forward to providing you with excellent customer service.
Thank you for choosing Phone Power.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Want transparency? Mention in plain English, (before the purchase is ever made) that at the end of the first year, there will be further charges of $38.36 in addition to the $253.26 you are about to pay for the "$199" plan. How hard would that be?
Here's what is now available on your site under plan details:
"Taxes and Fees on Free Service - Any plan that comes with free service will be assessed applicable taxes, surcharges, and fees periodically, based on the details of the plan selected. These fees will be calculated based on the standard price for the service. Services are subject to suspension and termination if balances are not paid in a timely manner per Section 4 of Phone Power's Terms of Service."
Ok, when I signed up, yes I did see this and figured it was why I was charged $253.26 instead of the advertised bait and switch $199. I just went through a mock sign up again and right up until the end there is no mention warning of more fees at the beginning of the second year period. Yes, agreed, there is a terms of agreement statement to click on, that is 15 pages long (microsoft word at size 12 font), and buried in part 7b (page 8) under the heading "TERM" there is this statement.
"If the Service Term is longer than twelve (12) months, additional taxes and fees will be charged after the initial twelve (12) months have passed."
Transparent? Hardly?
Do you know anyone who has time to read a 15 page service agreement these days? Maybe for a mortgage, but even then, it's highly doubtful. People just assume they are dealing with a legit business. Let's get real, the way you have it set up is clearly meant to mislead/deceive at best. Again, to answer your question, how could you be more transparent? By clearly stating up front before the person pays one dime, that there are going to be more charges for that "free" second year. Plain and simple. That was never the case for me. And I am a details person as you can see.
Last but not least, there still has been no "refund" or credit posted to my credit card. A credit to my phone power account does me no good as I am already paid in full for the term of my contract, and there is no way you will ever get further business from me. (Or any of the friends that I referred over the last year). They aren't gong to be happy either when they get wind of the hidden charges coming their way either. New laws of compliance for the internet are coming December 1, 2009. Expect to hear from the FTC, (deceptive/misleading advertising) my local attorney general's office, and the better business bureau if I don't see one by the end of my November statement. I MEAN it. I will do everything in my power to legally make this happen as a matter of principle. I'm just getting warmed up. The TRUTH matters to me. I see no integrity here so far.
I even have plans to create a blog and website regarding this. TAKE ACTION NOW or face an onslaught of TRUTH on every review website out there. How does the domain phonepowertruth.com sound to you? How about if I put of 100 blog sites with detailed articles stating only the facts? Is that what you want? Let's make it easy on both of us, I have said enough, and if you agree to actually credit back my credit card, and not my account, I will drop this now. I really don't have time for this petty bs. But if I am forced into it, believe me I will follow through. Hopefully by now you can see by now that I mean it. I already sent one email to your customer service with no reply so stating pretty much the same thing.
This not a threat, it's a call for justice. So far I have only stated the facts. People need to know the truth about your clearly deceptive practices. By no means is this type of deception "the norm." If I can save one person from getting ripped off it will be worth it.
I have all the proof I need to make my honest and truthful case known to the world and beyond.
Please forward my request to the owner or manager. Make them aware of the potential fines they face from the FTC beginning December 1, 2009.
Thank you very much for your time. | |
| | | |
PhonePower
Premium
join:2007-07-20
Winnetka, CA
4 edits | Re: Correct I can assure you that there was a refund when we said it was processed, it was not a store credit. It may take your bank a few days to process it. | |
| | | | |
Wake up call
@qwest.net
| Thank you. Thank you, I appreciate it. I have calmed down now, and spent more than enough of my precious time and effort making my point. Please know that I wish no ill to Phone power. I am over it. Furthermore, I apologize for my crude delivery.
In all fairness the service I am recieving is indeed excellent, never a problem as far as that goes.
And even at the $300+ price it's still a pretty darn good deal compared to regular phone service. All the best to you, and I hope this was not a wasted effort; and that your marketing department or CEO will take these aggressive criticisms into consideration to hopefully make an even better experience available for future customers.. And of course that's none of my business, just an honest opinion.
Best regards,
Kirk | |
| | | | | | | | | | kenandalison
join:2004-05-19
Salt Lake City, UT
2 edits | Not the service I'd Hoped for... I had the same rude awakening when PP started charging the taxes, and fees on the, so called, free service.
I have had PP for 18 mos. and feel that the taxes, and fees on the "free period," 6 mos in my case, were not properly disclosed, but for ~$24 I'm not going to bother spending a great deal of time fighting with PP over it.
PP fees are high, and for me the quality of the service has been less than acceptable, so I'll be leaving or putting my account on the "monthly metered" plan until I can figure out what to do with the line. "Metered Monthly" Plan is $7.95+ approx. 30% in Taxes & Fees... | |
| | | |
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Review by Network Guy
UPDATED: 16 days ago
member for 9.2 years, 3710 visits, last login: a few hours ago
New York
$18 per month
"Very good so far... Smooth migration from Broadvox"
"Very pleased"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
I was a Broadvox Direct customer for four years before Phone Power picked up my account. Having no prior knowledge of this company, my first reaction was feeling dumped onto a no-name corporate shell in the VoIP world. Hoping for the best, I called to confirm billing/address info, and the adapter was soon en-route to my residence.
The shipped Grandstream 502 adapter seemed cheap, but it works fine. Setting it up was easy using the voice prompts from the adapter. I was able to configure IP information using a cordless phone. I spent a total of 15 minutes from unwrapping the unit to making the first call.
Call quality is very good. The girlfriend can call her mom in Dominican Republic and it sounds as though she's calling next door neighbor. I'm also pleased that calling there only costs $0.03/min. Purchasing calling cards at the Arab convenience store is now likely a thing of the past.
I'm not much of a features user so I can't comment on that aspect. As long as I can get dial tone and can receive calls, I'm happy. And honestly for $18 per month, it doesn't get better than this.
Very smooth transition and comparable service to what I had before. I'm switching my parents to Phone Power from Vonage as well. Vonage works, but their service cost doesn't. Let's be real, it's a recession out here, and the monthly bills never stop coming.
Much kudos from me. Keep it up.
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Review by Fillimerica
Posted: 23 days ago
member for 1.2 years, 2 visits, last login: 11 days ago
Lake Hiawatha,Morris,NJ
$10 per month (24 month contract)
about 3 days
"Fast startup, small ATA, clear instructions, number ported on-time"
"none!"
"Just getting started, smooth sailing at this point!"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
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Just purchased PhonePower last month. On the east coast I was expecting the hardware to take a week or two to get here but USPS delivered it in 3 days. Set up the Grandstream behind my Buffalo router and it was plug and play. Dial tone in 15 minutes.
I had the number port delayed a few weeks because I wasn't home, but the port from Lingo happened right on time.
So far, so good. The few calls I have made sound okay. Will update this review once I have had time to use the features for a while.
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Review by fatuous
UPDATED: 23 days ago
member for 47 days, 9 visits, last login: 1 days ago
Eatontown,Monmouth,NJ
$12 per month (24 month contract)
about 15 days
"Great prices, good set of features, g.711 64Kbps codec"
"Echo cancellation, recent multi-hour outage (hopefully a one-time thing)"
"A tremendous VoIP value with a broad set of features."
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I'm a CallVantage refugee. So my review is mainly going to cover the difference I've noticed between PP and CV. I've had PP for almost 3 months now. It took about 15 days from my order date until PP ported my numbers over from AT&T, which I think is totally reasonable when moving a number from one carrier to another.
The PP Grandstream TA is plugged into my Verizon FiOS Actiontec router. I initially had the PP TA in front of the FiOS router, but later changed it because of my particular setup. The PP TA works just the same whether in front or behind the FiOS router.
Things that were better with CV than with PP:
• Tivo and fax worked fine over CV. Not with PP. In fairness to PP, they don't make any claims that this will work.
• PP has echo cancellation problems. As per PP recommendations, lowering the headset volume does typically get rid of it, but with CV, I never experienced echo at any handset volume, and CV was louder than PP, comparing highest volume setting to highest volume setting.
• PP plays horrible and annoying music to people that you put on hold. Currently they have no way to disable it. CV's hold was just wonderful silence.
• I've noticed 1 major and several minor outages with PP. I never noticed an outage with CV, and I've had CV since it was launched. Reading the forums, it seems like the recent PP outage was an anomaly, and I'm hoping that's true. But since it's me writing this review, and I've only had PP for close to 3 months, and they happened to have a major outage since I became a customer... I'll come back and update my feeling on PP reliability as time goes on.
• PP's account management website is functional, but not great. CV's website was much more intuitive and easy to use. Having said that, I get along fine with PP's website.
• CV had a softphone option. They charged an extra $5/month for it, but at least it was an option. I see in the forums that PP is developing a softphone, and I look forward to updating my review when it's released.
Things that are better with PP than with CV:
• PP is cheap if you get the 2 year upfront contract like I did. I'll have to pay some fees again when I reach 12 months like taxes and fees, but at worst, I'll pay less than $300 for 24 months. That's at most $12/month vs. the ~$31/month I used to pay for CV. Those prices are totals that include all the taxes and fees and such, not just the plan price.
• PP has the cloned line feature. I needed 2 numbers, so I got 2 lines and I haven't yet had a use for the cloned line feature though I did try it out, and it worked as advertised. So cloned line isn't a needed feature for me, but I could see how this would be great if I only had 1 phone number.
• PP uses a Grandstream TA that's very small, which is great. The DLink TA that CV provided was huge and generated tons of heat.
So considering the price, I'm happy with PP. But if CV came back tomorrow, even at the $31/month I was paying, I very well might choose to go back to CV. For me, phone service needs to be as reliable as possible, and I'll pay more for that. (Yes I know POTS is more reliable than VoIP for a whole plethora of reasons, but I'm in the business, and I want VoIP.) At the time I ordered PP, they seemed to be among the most reliable VoIP providers. Hopefully that will continue and the recent outage will go down as a one-time footnote in their hopefully long and successful history.
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Review by raderator
UPDATED: 36 days ago
member for 6.3 years, 1130 visits, last login: 9 days ago
Conklin,Broome,NY
$11 per month (24 month contract)
about 3 days
"Price, features, free cloned line"
"No Contact catagories, hidden fees"
"Great deal with all the features we need"
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We were switched over from Broadvox a few days ago (they gave up residential service) and things have gone smoothly. Everything works great, so far (Earthlink cable, 6 down, 1 up).
They did not charge us the $15 for shipping the ATA, unlike brand new customers. We got the $200/2 yr deal and they let us keep our free 2nd number from Broadvox. There is a $2/month fee and a 7.3% tax so our monthly cost comes to $11.53. We were paying $20 with Broadvox which had fewer features but was rock solid. No commitment tho. When the 2 yrs ends, we'll be back to paying something near $20/month, unless we go elsewhere.
Support has been good and is American based. I tested the QoS of the ATA and it actually works, yea! Does not seem to slow down overall speed either. We have one line in the computer room and the rest of the house is on the other. The ATA uses half the wattage of our old 24v Mediatrix and is a third the size. The sound is louder, which is good.
We have a month to try it out. Sometimes I think about Ooma and their cool new equipment but I don't think we need it. We don't screen our VM and if we wanted to have two lines on our phones, I could add the 2nd line to our home wiring and use a 2-line phone. The PhonePower website is ugly but functional. You can login without re-entering your user name and password. They put a big ugly sticker on the ATA but you can slowly peel it off once the unit is warm.
PhonePower also sells to businesses, which is a good sign for reliability and longevity. I doubt anyone makes money in the residential VOIP market.
Update: We just got a set of AT&T DECT cordless phones. They worked but there was a loud clacking sound during the dial-tone. I put back our old Mediatrix and there no problem. So I went to the live web CS and finally convinced them to lower the volume a bit and that cured it. I think that's what he did. I lost the chat window cuz of the ATA reboot. Vtech now owns AT&T and they look to be functionally the same.
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Review by analytic168
UPDATED: 40 days ago
member for 40 days, 0 visits, last login: 40 days ago
San Francisco,San Francisco,CA
$12 per month (24 month contract)
about 21 days
"Excellent customer service, excellent phone service, low cost"
"DIY setup works for me because I'm technically savvy but I imagine most VOIP users are"
"This is the VOIP provider to get. btw i'm in San Francisco"
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I set this up for my girlfriend. She is from Canada and needed cheap phone service because she calls home a lot. We live in San Francisco. I set her up with Skype initially (being the cheapest) but the phone service was extremely iffy and my gf wanted to use a real phone. After reading some reviews here of various VoIP providers, I decided to go with Phone Power. Other providers seemed to have higher ratings, but Phone Power seemed to have the most active users and the most established reputation based on the forum activity here and elsewhere. I had doubts because there weren't very many reviews in San Francisco, but I figured they're in California so it should be OK.
In the end, Phone Power has worked out so well that I am taking the time to write a review. I relied heavily on the other reviews here, for which I'm grateful. So here is my lengthy story:
I ordered the 2-year $199/year package. With taxes it came to $253. I read and believe there are some obligatory charges (maybe $40?) the second year (I think it's taxes or something). The first time I tried ordering their web site wasn't working. I had to do it again the next day. Before ordering, I chatted with a sales person on their web site, who was able to confirm for me that my first order didn't go through, and some specifics about the 30-day guarantee. My order went through the next day I received an email indicating they couldn't port my gf's old phone number (it was already disconnected, oh well) and that I needed to choose a phone number from the web site. I chose one and told them over e-mail which one I wanted. Then my order went through and within another day I received an email confirming shipment of my Grandstream.
They shipped my Grandstream via USPS. There was a little bit of delay on my part because I had this shipped to my work and they put my gf's name on it, which confused the people at my work. Plus I didn't check my packages for a couple weeks. That's all my fault. Their customer service however was EXTREMELY good about this and when I called them and briefly explained what happened they shipped me another Grandstream no questions asked. This time I followed the tracking number, hounded my company's mail room, and picked it up promptly.
Set up: I decided to set up the Grandstream behind my router. I am pretty technically savvy, but I still found this a little tricky. I made extensive use of the documents on their support web site / knowledge base, which I found helpful though a little tricky to navigate. I had a number of technical difficulties during set-up, I think these would have happened with any VoIP service and mostly aren't unique to Phone Power: For one thing, all their instructions say when putting the Grandstream behind the router, to plug the router into the WAN port of the Grandstream, but in the end I didn't end up doing that and I don't believe that's the right thing to do based on what little I understand about networking. I had to dig around their support web site before finding the default Grandstream password is 123. I went back and forth between putting it in front of and behind my router but couldn't get everything working. I finally thought I had everything connected properly (I could access the grandstream and my router and the internet from the computer), but the Grandstream still wasn't registering with Phone Power. After eliminating all possible problems from my side, I finally figured that they must have the wrong adapter registered at phone power due to the shipping mix-up.
I called them the next morning as soon as they opened at 8 am - I had to wait in the phone queue for maybe 10 minutes. The first support person just took my phone number so another support person could call me - I thought this was a nice way to do it. The next person called me back within 5 or 10 minutes. I told him I thought the problem was due to the fact that I had a second adapter shipped to me. He looked into it, verified that that was indeed the problem, and had it fixed in a minute. I re-booted the Grandstream and it was working within a few minutes. I made a test call and it was all working!
I was generally happy with the service I received from Phone Power - their support staff were super-friendly and local to California (one had a nice valley girl twang).
Since then, my girlfriend has made many multi-hour calls (she's a talker over the past couple weeks to Canada and within San Francisco. They are all perfectly clear and as good as her old landline phone service. A call has never gotten dropped. Maybe once every 3 hours of talking there's a brief fade, but that's the worst it ever gets. My gf has a crappy old router that I gave her and I was initially concerned because the ATA is behind the router, but the phone still works great. There's not much to say here, I'm no audio expert, but I think the calls sound great.
As a techie, I also appreciate their functional and full-featured Web site. I build Web sites for a living, and their web site is cleanly laid out, works well, and is easy to use. They have a ton of neat features (voicemail to email, ring down to other numbers, etc.) that I am chomping at the bit to enable for my girlfriend (although she's not as interested in the features). I do kind of wish they offered some kind of soft-phone (maybe they do? i can't seem to find out anything about it.)
All in all, we're super-happy with Phone Power, and it's going to cost us less than $15/mo! (Btw, they advertise their $199 2-year special as being a time-limited offer, but the timer seems to reset every time it runs down!) I heartily recommend them to everyone looking for VoIP service!!
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Skip the rest go with the best :)
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confused
