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Review by dlilly 
Posted: 267 days ago
member for 267 days, 3 visits, last login: 2 days ago
 Tucson,Pima,AZ
 $10 per month (12 month contract)
 about 3 days
 "Attractive annual plan. Support was responsive and friendly."
 "Good service, good price"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
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I had Vonage, then Qwest regular phone service before that. I havent been happy with the Vonage call quality recently. I had heard good things from a friend about Phone Power. I ordered the service and transferred my number to them. Unlike the transfer from Qwest to Vonage, this transfer was very smooth. They kept me informed the entire way, and the process took about three days. I couldnt use my Vonage box, but they sent me a new Phone Power box that is working fine. Setup was smooth. I did have some questions about setting it up prior to the transfer date. I called their tech support, they answered quickly and were very helpful.
Needless to say, the call quality is excellent, at least as good as my old Qwest phone service. I'm very pleased with the customer web portal (they call it "MyAccount"). I opted for the annual plan. I would recommend this service to anyone interested in a good quality phone service that you can save money with. In fact I already recommended this to another friend.
Followup comments: | Forums » comments on review of PHONE POWER |
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 Review by jsm107
Posted: 278 days ago
member for 8.3 years, 664 visits, last login: a few hours ago
Lake Worth,Palm Beach,FL
$19 per month
about 14 days
"Great Service"
 "None So Far"
"Great service At A Affordable Price"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
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Have Had Service now for A Period Of 1 Year A Few Minor Hiccups Along The Way Always Fixed promptly With A Knowledgeable Support Staff Great Features For The price Recommend them Every Chance I Get Keep Up The Great Work
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Review by mcastaneda
Posted: 279 days ago
member for 338 days, 13 visits, last login: 75 days ago
Miami,Miami-Dade,FL
$15 per month (12 month contract)
about 7 days
"Best support in the industry, good value, reliable"
"call quality even with best codec is not so good - lots of echo"
"excellent choice if you need support and don't mind some call quality issues"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
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(ratings match consensus)
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Installation was smooth. Tech support was stellar in helping with initial disconnect issues. Has been reliable (no drops) for over a month. Let's face it - call quality doesn't compare with regular telephone service- I don;t think this is unique to Phonepower. I get a lot of voice quality issues and the dreaded echo. However, most of the time it gets the job done at about half the cost of other VOIP providers and a fraction of POTS.
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Review by (hidden by request)
Posted: 288 days ago
(review was emailed from domain gmail.com)
Tracy,San Joaquin,CA
Contract price not specified.
"Now all VOIP providers are providing the same..."
"Need to educate yourself that No Contract = You can cancel anytime... not that you can break contract get full/prorated $back"
"No way with this company... I request everyone ... to ask many questions bef jumping on... else you get charged for one mth4sure"
| Web-site:
Reliability:
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(ratings well below consensus)
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1.
They say NO CONTRACT, it should be, when a user cancels service, he should
be get the money back proratedly, but it is not, after one month, you won't
get a penny....
2.
They charge 1 month of 22 USD charge for whatever the case...
I talked to them to use my own device, as I do not know the router password
and its working, I said, I'll take service and will find a way of using.. if
the device has problem or I cannot make use of it, can I cancel within 30
days... Kristen said, yes, but u get charged for one month.. don't get into
their traps...
the above two cases are clear how the new company like this is and how bad
their policy is...
Regarding the first once, I talked to the supervisor to convince, you should
change that not using "No Contract",... she explains that No Contract means,
you can cancel any time... I have to go school to learn the new basics... or
have ppl to teach her...
Hope the DSLReports pass this message to people and to Phone Power...
Thank you,
Chandra
Followup comments:  | | 
Done with DSL
@embarqhsd.net | Wanting to dump DSL Does this service VOIP work with a 3G network? Curious if anyone knows. I am thinking about dumping the DSL and going w/a 3G network since it is supported in my area. Cannot find anything on VOIP when working off of an aircard.... | |
| | | 
PhonePower
Premium
join:2007-07-20
Winnetka, CA | Re: Wanting to dump DSL Sorry not aware of any VOIP that works with a 3G network. | |
| | | | | | | | | 
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
| Re: Wanting to dump DSL said by ptrowski :said by PhonePower :Sorry not aware of any VOIP that works with a 3G network. I have used Viatalk on a 3g network via the iphone. It works. Sounded ok, some issues obviously but it worked. What about Skype? Have you tired skype? | |
| |
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
| Re: Huh? said by PX Eliezer :Your review lacks some important details. What issues did you have with PhonePower? Why did you decide to cancel? Did you work with tech support on any problems? Have you successfully used any other Voip service?! Some registered members of this forum have been around for several years. Their reviews have the most credibility. Some registered members have been around for a few months (like me). Hopefully we have a little credibility. If there is a brand-new registered user, it is more difficult, as there is no track record. And folks who are not only unregistered, but downright anonymous and posting by email, will face the most skepticism. I feel funny writing this, because I am not a big fan of this company. But your review raises more questions than answers. And most users of this forum would expect that, after 30 days, fees would be charged on a monthly basis (even a yearly basis), not prorated day by day. Agreed the person's grammar + lack of details + not justifying the low rating on everything besides "value for money" = buyers remorse? | |
| | | |
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Review by diver858
UPDATED: 298 days ago
member for 6.9 years, 211 visits, last login: 3 days ago
La Jolla,San Diego,CA
$30 per month (24 month contract)
about 18 days
"Cost, support, quality"
"some limitation on features"
"Great value"
| Web-site:
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(ratings match consensus)
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I operate a small home-based business, and ported 3 phone lines ($19.99 each) from to ATT Callvantage about one year ago. This reduced my typical monthly telecommunications cost from about $170 to $90. The service and reliability is great, with some very useful features, but I became concerned when CV stopped accepting new customers, and found that having three phone numbers was excessive.
I first found Phone Power on fatwallet, and was initially a bit concerned paying for 2 years service upfront. After reading all of the great things on this site and other places, and the free cloned second line option, I decided to port one line, and cancel a second one. This would leave the primary business line with CV, and two lines (paying for one) with Phone Power.
The online order process was quick and easy. The confirmation email of the order and number porting followed promptly. The adapter arrived about one week before the scheduled port date. There were issues with the adapter, caused by a conflict with the IP address and my router, but a quick phone call with technical support resolved the issue.
After confirming the quality of the voice lines, and compatibility with my phone system (Panasonic KX-TG4000B), I connected the cloned line to a fax machine and three test faxes were sent successfully.
The number ported on the date scheduled, and everything appears to be working as advertised.
When compared to CV, the only feature I would still like to see is the ability to send email notification emails to more than one address. My business line is configured to send a text message AND an email with message attachment (.wav file) of all voicemails, which is very useful when I am away from the office.
Total average monthly telecommunications cost is now down to less than $50!
Keep up the good work!
2 Dec 08 UPDATE:
One very useful, standard feature on Callvantage not (yet) available on PP is the ability to call a speed dial number remotely. This is good way to make international calls from your cell phone, where you only incur air time, and the international call is charged at low VoIP rates. The remote click2call is similar, but requires the call to be initiated from a computer - unable to access via the browser on my Treo 800W. Something that I hope PP adds in the near future.
Despite my initial success, I have begun to experience some difficulties sending faxes to SOME numbers. While not something PP guarantees, the numbers seemed to work with CV.
While the customer service is very good, the web site live chat is not always staffed during regular business hours.
2Feb09 UPDATE:
Have been noticing a deterioration in the ability to send faxes on a cloned fine. When issues arise, I am generally successful when temporarily switching fax machine to another VoIP (ATT CallVantage).
Chatted with Javier at PP Tech Support today, suggesting I reduce baud rate, and turn off error correction. he also advised that PP is migrating to a new network over the next few months, which should improve fax quality.
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Review by SamSk
UPDATED: 301 days ago
member for 315 days, 7 visits, last login: 201 days ago
Palm Beach Gardens,Palm Beach,FL
$21 per month (12 month contract)
about 5 days
"Quick and accurate responses to my questions, good features/quality for price"
"None really -- gave website a 4 because it doesn't document how to use 3 way calling"
"Good value and great technical service"
| Web-site:
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(ratings match consensus)
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Technical Support (January 2009 entry 2):
Last weekend the voice mail indicator issue came back. The technician recommended that I move the Grandstream in front of my router since that may be causing the seemingly random problem. When I was doing that I accidentally plugged in the power supply from my Westell DSL modem -- same size and geometry. I started smelling that burnt electronics smell and lights didn't come on. I "fried" the device. I was unable to find a compatible device in the stores in our area. When I called up PhonePower to explain the situation and ask for a new device they mentioned that the terms of service required a $99 charge for the fried device and a $14.95 shipping charge for the new device. I asked if I could just buy the same device via the internet and send that one back if I ever cancel. I also mentioned that it would be more convenient to me if they would just reduce the $99 fee and ship a new device already configured. The billing person took the initiative to talk with a supervisor and called me back later with a reduced fee. I really appreciate that the employees feel empowered to do what makes common sense and are not afraid to talk to supervision about it. That is customer service I'm willing to pay for !!
I received the new device today and put it in front of my Ativa router after getting live chat help to configure it properly for my situation. The voice mail indicator is working as intended so far. Hopefully that will permanently solve the issue.
Technical Support (January 2009):
People that called us noticed an echo when they talked and "loud" volume when we talked. Tech. support logged into the Grandstream device and reduced the gain which seems to have fixed those issues.
When we received voicemail, our caller id phone showed the text "Voicemail" and the light on the base unit blinked indicating new voicemail. Even after listening to the voicemail, the light still blinked and the "Voicemail" text still appeared on caller id. The website correctly showed that there was no new voicemail after it had been listened to (via the phone or the web). Tech. support fixed the issue and now the voicemail indicators are working as intended. The blinking light and text go away after the new voicemail(s) have been listened to.
Decison/Order process (December 2008):
I wanted a reliable VOIP and didn't really care about the advanced features. I just wanted to reduce my overall phone + internet bill. I considered Vonage; however, their price structure would not save me money unless I went with the 500 minute/month plan. I found PhonePower via the reviews on this website and noticed consistently favorable reviews. I called their sales line and asked them why I should go with them instead of Vonage. The sales person was very open and willing to answer all my questions. They made it clear that "virtually unlimited" outbound minutes means 3000/month. That was the biggest difference I saw between them and Vonage. Vonage had truly unlimited minutes at the time I was researching [see reply posting below]; however, we would have to talk more than 100 minutes/day on average to exceed the limit with PhonePower.
I decided on the annual plan which is usually $199.95+53.00 which averages out to $21.08/month. The Vonage unlimited plan is significantly higher. PhonePower was running a reduced price on the annual plan so I got the first year for less than this. The fine print says the plan will automatically switch over to monthly billing after 12 months; however, I notice that existing customers can purchase another 12 months at the $253 rate quoted above. As long as they keep offering that option, it's a better price structure for me assuming the quality remains.
They shipped the hardware the day after my order and it arrived quickly. They shipped a Grandstream HT502 device pre-configured to be plugged directly into my DSL modem. I immediately called tech. support and they walked me through the process of reconfiguring the device to work on the downstream side of my existing router. No problems there. I was able to start making outbound calls right away and just had to wait on my traditional phone company to finish the switchover so we could receive calls.
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Review by OntheHunt
UPDATED: 306 days ago
member for 317 days, 2 visits, last login: 240 days ago
Chicago,Cook,IL
$23 per month
about 7 days
"At first the Price ...."
"Phone Quality - Support Responses"
"For the Quality of Service & Price, Better off with Vonage or Comcast"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings below consensus)
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I have been with this service since the end of Aug 2008. My modem came quickly in the mail and it was easy to set up. The price for the first 3 months was the reason I decided to give this company a try. Can't go wrong at $12.66 a month. I figured this was the best route before I committed to the yearly special of $139.95. Thank GOD I went this route because in no time the problems would begin.
My first issue was my phone quality was horrible. There was a nasty delay of a few seconds, so you and the person you were talking with would just talk over each other because of the delay of the responses. The sound quality was just as bad with the choppiness and how faint the voice on the other line sounded. Even though this sounds bad, it just took a phone call to technical support and they made some changes and I just had to re-set the Grandstream device (HT502 that they send you) and all was fixed, Yay!!!! Happy! Happy! Joy! Joy!
Next problem that came up was that when on a phone call, I would get the sound of call waiting, but when I would click over, nobody was there. In the mean time, the person with whom I was trying to have a conversation with would tell me to stop pushing the buttons. At first I was confused at what the hell they were talking about, but after a few more times of this, I realized that every time I heard the call waiting like sound on my end, that the person on the other line heard a sound that made the noise of when somebody pushed the button. I even used my friend's phone to call myself to hear this sound and it's annoying. Of course my next move is to call technical support. Once again he said he made some tweaks and said I should be good to go (maybe not said in those exact words). Once again, Happy! Happy! Joy! Joy!
Well.....it did not take long to figure out nothing was fixed and that the call waiting noise was still there and along went my Joy with it. It was at this time I began to experience another problem. My phone would ring and nobody was there. The caller ID would read SIP. I had no clue of what SIP was, but it has something to do with the VOIP system works and SIP is some protocol that is used. Well, since the caller ID only shows the name of SIP and no number, I could not call it back. This became very frustrating as SIP would call me when it wanted and for however many times it wanted. I could get blasted for 5 minutes straight or have it call 5-7 times a day at all hours, and I mean ALL hours), then it would just stop for up to 5 days, then it would happen again. Since this was happening between midnight and 4am (time I am sleeping), I became pretty irate over being woken up and have this SIP calling me for no reason. I only would jump out of bed extremely quick to pick it up because the only time I wo7uld get a call at that time is if it were a emergency.
In went a call to technical support. This time did not go as good as the others as I was now calling about 2 problems, the call-waiting problem and the SIP problem. Pretty much I was being talked to like I was crazy and making this up and the blame came down to my phone. Yes, my phone. It was suggested that my phone is just old or is broken and causing the problems. This was not a acceptable answer to me. I have been using this phone on Vonage for a year with no problems and also with SunRocket for 20 months before they closed the doors and left their customers in the dark. I asked to speak with a Supervisor and was told one would need to call me back.
One day, two days, a week goes by and I still have not had my return call from a Supervisor. This Sip thing is going on, my friends are just ending the call when the call waiting thing happens, and I am getting pissed off. So now I try and call in to technical support and after being on hold for 30 minutes, I have to disconnect. I can't wait no longer as I have things to do and did not have the time to wait any longer. The next day I try to contact them on their web page live help, but it would just say I am number 1 in line and the wait time is less than a minute and would just sit there like that until I changed the page. This would keep happening, but yet I insisted to keep trying that web page chat. I tried to call numerous time in the following weeks, but once 20 minutes or more of holding happened, I would need to end the call and go back to the schedule of my day. This is quite annoying and my frustrations are building up.
Tired of this damn SIP waking me up and disturbing my sleep, I went off at 3am to the 24 hours Walmart and picked up a phone. Came home connected it and took a short nap before I had to wake up. Turns out the new phone made NO difference. Same problems. I can't believe I fell sucker enough to go out a buy a phone that I did not need to use with this service since that is what was thought to be the problem. I knew better that the phone was not the problem, yet so utterly pissed off about that damn SIP, I still went to buy it in hopes of a fix.
Well, one Sunday in the Wild Card round, I am sitting there saying to myself, this sucks that the Bears choked their way out of the playoffs and I'm stuck watching these guys play (not that I mind that much, but it's better when your team is playing :P ) I decided to call the technical support. I dialed the number and put on the speaker phone. It just had me on hold till the half way past the 2nd Quarter. The call was made 2 minutes into the game.......The kid I got this time would just say everything looks fine. Everything is not fine, so I asked to speak to a supervisor. He puts me on hold for 10 minutes and then comes back and says one has to call me back. Oh No! I been on the phone here for over a hour and been holding for a supervisor and been through the game of somebody will call you back, I'll wanted to keep holding. All during this conversation this kid would be pushing a HOLD button so I could not hear him talk to somebody, but would release it to early and still would be laughing. Well after a few times of that, I asked him what was so funny? He said nothing and that he was breathing and not laughing. The second time I am being told that I am a idiot (remember the SIP thing). Anyways, I just tell myself I will address that to the supervisor when I speak to him except now I am being told he is going to disconnect the call and he can no longer stay on the phone. Despite my frustrations, I found myself talking to the air on the line ....
20 minutes later I get a call from the supervisor and I tell him the problems with my phone and with the whole situation about the contact with technical support and the live chat issues. Anyways he explained what SIP was again to me and that there was a issue and that he had a update for my device. Basically somebody, I going to use the word hack), found a way to send some signal or something on one of their ports causing the SIP problem. Supposedly not many people were affected, but the problem was discovered and a fix was here. Happy! Happy! Joy! Joy! He logged remotely into my router and did what he needed to do. I had to re-set (about 5 minutes after we disconnected the call) and he called me back and he said all was good. He then heard the call waiting sound and my craziness was not considered crazy anymore. After talking for awhile, it came down to he needed to look into that call waiting noise and that if I had a issue with a operator, call Customer Support. My call to Customer Support was not successful....they are not open at that time!
It's Monday and I just got off a early morning phone call and the call waiting thing is happening......but there was no SIP to wake me up  Despite that, I am just sitting here going I am paying for a service that is just a nightmare. I'm being treated like a bald headed step child and the service is now a few $$$ less than Vonage. Upset at the whole thing, I mean why should you even be wasting energy over being upset over a phone?) I call the Customer Service and ask to speak with a Supervisor. I was then connected with ------. She's a feisty cat too, but understanding and VERY helpful. She charged me the promotional rate for the months that the regular rates went into effect and gave me a Credit with them. The call waiting noise happened ....She then said she would go talk to a Supervisor and he would call me soon. And within 15 minutes ---- calls me back.
----- turned out to be one cool cat too. He had looked over what was going on and I told him what was happening so he knew exactly the problems. The call waiting noise happened ......He explained SIP to me and then asked if he could try a few things. After a few phone calls and re-sets of the device, they pretty much disabled call waiting, lowered my codec, and made me go to port 2 on the device and test it out. We would give it a few days and see how it goes. ------ and somebody else did try to call the next few days, but unfortunately I was not around since we had a ton of snow come in and I was busy trying to make some $$$$ and it was also Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I did not make calls and was not around to test anything. There were no more calls after that from them.
I continued to test out the way it was set up. No more SIP ....but, my call quality was like when I first started, choppy and delayed with a echo. The sound was very faint as I could barely hear people. The call waiting noise continued. And now my internet is down. After a day of no internet, I call Comcast and they say there is no problems and had me bypass the Phone Power Device (not use it) and try to connect to the internet. Sure enough my internet works. That ends my call with Comcast. I then connect the phone power device back and no internet....I reboot the device a few times and do the same with my Comcast too. I changed out cables and still no internet....Well, I have a new problem and I tested out the new settings on the phone .....RING RING RING Technical Support (since I can't connect to Live Chat as I sit in queue 1 with a wait time of a minute and it sits there for a hour like that and since I had no response from my e-mail I sent).
------ answered and I explained the situation. He then asked me to wait a minute while he did something and then asked me to try the internet. BAM! I had the internet, but it's seemed slower. He said for some reason my router did not show online there and he had to reset something. Anyways, he then went on and made adjustments and I had to reset my router a few times. He called me back every time. We did this for over a hour. Towards the end of our call, the call waiting noise happened and I got a e-mail from Technical Support. Daniel asked if I could wait as he looked into that noise. I said fine and read the email. Surprised at what I read, I asked ----- to listen to the response. He was surprised himself and asked who responded to the e-mail. I told him ---- did and that seemed to confuse him more. He is suppose to be one of the top guys (if not the top guys) when it comes to the equipment and stuff and he was not sure why he would say that. ---- said that if I can't connect to the internet, to call my ISP and not to say that I have VOIP? Comcast knows I use VOIP from other people for years as I was with Vonage and Sun Rocket. I don't need to lie or hide anything. I was not happy with that but thank GOD I had ------ on the case. He was by far the best operator I had. He spent the time with me and called me back and stayed with it till he fixed it all, except the call waiting noise. I have tried both phones with the settings Daniel has and all is good except that damn call waiting noise.
I am now looking back and saying what is this now, 4-5 months that I am paying for a service that seems like it's a BETA of something. I should be getting this for free till they work out their kinks so they can charge. Isn't that the way it usually goes. I don't even use 150 minutes a month unless I am on the phone with Phone Power and their technical support. These problems are just ridiculous and I have tried to help as much as I can, but I can't justify paying for this service. I then look at Vonage and consider them again as they are only a few dollars more a month. I would never pay Phone Power for a year of service in advance till it is improved, so I am going by monthly rates. I then look at AT&T and see their package and was going to make of switch of both my internet and phone over to them. Nice package deal. I then call Comcast to give them a disconnection date and I get this guy who gives me this AWESOME deal! I have been with them since they had internet, so he did not want me to go and gave me my high speed internet at a discount of like $30 a month and then gave me the phone at a discount of $20 for a total of $52.60 a month. I pay $2 more for internet alone. Needless to say, that is the way I am headed. I then call ------- back to let her know what was going on and to give a disconnection date. She did ask me to do this and I left a message and asked for a return call. Few days have gone by and I have not heard back from her, which I am surprised. I will call back in a few days. Comcast will be here and then I don't need these guys. I had notified my Credit Card Company to refuse payment from these guys and told them the problems. They asked if I wanted to do a Chargeback for services not given. I told them no and just said don't let them take money out. I actually have a credit on my account .......
While I see others are ok with this service, I wonder how many of them work for the company. I find it hard to believe that everybody is running smooth when I try to call in and Technical Support is so busy that you are on hold forever. I can't be the only one with problems for that to be or there is a staff of 1-2 operators at a time. Who knows. I have not even said some of the other things they did to me, but I am letting go and just posting my experience with this company. While I was hoping to find another SunRocket, I found what I was afraid of before I found SunRocket, a service that does not work the way it is suppose too! It's not right to look at your phone and get all pissed off about it. That's when you know it's time to go. If you are intent on VOIP, consider th small price difference for a service that works in Vonage. Otherwise look for a bundle from your local phone company. Hell try Comcast and see what they can do for you :P Best of luck in your choice and if you go this route and have problems ....I TOLD YOU SO!
Followup comments: OntheHunt
join:2009-01-14
Chicago, IL
 ·PHONE POWER
| Vonage Reccomendation Please read about them as things seem to have changed there. I had service there about 3 years ago and they were fine then. Best bet is to look for a bundle package. While I do believe in supporting the little guys, they have to provide a decent service or be on their issues instead of always trying to pass the buck on the issue. This service is like in it's last beta stage, is that what you want to pay for? | |
| nitzan
Premium,VIP
join:2008-02-27
·ViaTalk
 ·Comcast
| SIP It sounds like "SIP" was just the VMWI (Voicemail Message Waiting Indicator). This works properly ONLY with phones that support VMWI - and most phones don't. We turn it off by default because if it's on for a REGULAR phone you will get rings at all hours or the day (or night) when you have a waiting message. | |
| |
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
| Re: SIP Thanks for the info That was probably it, I betting the guy got a new phone and it fixed the problem and he is to ashamed to come back and comment? I don't work for PhonePower and have a set of Panasonic KX-TG5422 5.2 Ghz phones and they work just fine. I know that some people have old s#$t and since VoIp can be touchy it may not work as good as other brands\models. | |
| | |
GulabJamun
@comcast.net
| Re: SIP Hey @ hack4fun,
You probably missed the following in nitzan's post:
quote:
We turn it off by default because if it's on for a REGULAR phone you will get rings at all hours or the day (or night) when you have a waiting message.
Did it occur to you that one of phonepower's reps sneaked in, rectified the setting and then did not bother to own up ?
If it is a simple setting, they should have fixed that the first time he called them instead of feeding him BS about his phones being too old.
I use phonepower with phones that are around 8 years old... everything works fine. In my case, I am sure they setup my GrandStream device right the first time around.
Let me reiterate: old S#$t is not the issue here, the setting in PP's Grandstream device is !!!
By the way, phonepower's customer service sucks. They have hired a bunch a condescending, arrogant jerks that refuse to acknowledge that there could be an issue with their settings. After all, it is easier to blame customer for everything, isn't it?
By the way, I got no help from them setting up my router. They wanted me to call my router's manufacturer to fix something that started happening after I added Grandstream to my existing, perfectly working configuration. Real Smart...asses !!!
The solution in my case was very simple... set my existing wireless router's network mode to "bridge". If these customer service reps are so smart, why didn't they know that? let me guess, it was not in their script.
They are smart ONLY when they read answers from their script !!! Bunch of morons. | |
| | | |
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
1 edit | Re: SIP said by GulabJamun :Hey @ hack4fun, You probably missed the following in nitzan's post: quote:
We turn it off by default because if it's on for a REGULAR phone you will get rings at all hours or the day (or night) when you have a waiting message.
Did it occur to you that one of phonepower's reps sneaked in, rectified the setting and then did not bother to own up ? If it is a simple setting, they should have fixed that the first time he called them instead of feeding him BS about his phones being too old. I use phonepower with phones that are around 8 years old... everything works fine. In my case, I am sure they setup my GrandStream device right the first time around. Let me reiterate: old S#$t is not the issue here, the setting in PP's Grandstream device is !!! By the way, phonepower's customer service sucks. They have hired a bunch a condescending, arrogant jerks that refuse to acknowledge that there could be an issue with their settings. After all, it is easier to blame customer for everything, isn't it? By the way, I got no help from them setting up my router. They wanted me to call my router's manufacturer to fix something that started happening after I added Grandstream to my existing, perfectly working configuration. Real Smart...asses !!! The solution in my case was very simple... set my existing wireless router's network mode to "bridge". If these customer service reps are so smart, why didn't they know that? let me guess, it was not in their script. They are smart ONLY when they read answers from their script !!! Bunch of morons. I'm sorry you had a support issues with them being "arrogant". I have had nothing but good luck them besides one comment by one rep which I thought was kind of arrogant? I emailed the top support supervisor and I'm sure it was taken care of.
On another note whenever you get bad customer service be sure to get the name and ask for a supervisor. From talking to various people and from my own personal experience that can be the flip side of coin when trying to hire qualified people. It may not be the person's dream job, are tired from being yelled at all day, etc. and it could be misdirected anger or frustration. Remember they are only human and some of them are going to be in their 20s fresh out of high school or college with little life experience.
As for as the comments regarding being morons and reading from a script. Being a remote tech I can not stress how hard it can be to work remotely without seeing the person's configuration. Then to make it worse you are relying on someone else that may not be tech savvy to relay information to you that may not be accurate?
I can feel how much the experience has upset you and what I said above is not an excuse for the way you may have been treated. However, if you would be willing to clear the air in a professional manner I could possibly put you in touch with senior tech that could help rectify the situation? If this sounds reasonable please PM me. Thanks | |
| | | OntheHunt
join:2009-01-14
Chicago, IL
·PHONE POWER
| Not to be rude, but if you re-read my post, you will see that I was told it was my phone and I went out of my way to fix a problem and spent extra money for no reason and no fix. It was not till after Thanksgiving did they find out THEY did have a problem and fixed it. In the end it was not my phone.
Understand this, I am a tradesman and I have always had a phone that was easy to use until I met these guys here. Personally I like all the tech people and Maggie, when I am talking the sh@t with them while they are on the phone with me. But the problem is when "THE PROBLEM IS NOT FIXED." I paid for 1/4 of a year just to help work out problems that were never resolved. Do you know how hard it is to get Comcast to run a NEW cable line from the alley to my building? I mean my line was outdated and old and needed to be replaced and it was and it did not fix the problem. There comes a time when you can only bend over and take it up the arse for so long. Then you realize after 100 high blood pressure pills that this is not worth paying for and not worth the anger that develops over a phone.
BOTTOM LINE: If trying to save money, try a different company. Till then stick with the bundles and let retention be your friend. They give some GREAT deals to keep you. But just in case, have a back-up in case they don't offer you a deal...........Thanks Comcast ------Can't believe I just said that because I have had my share of problems with them in the past too. They seem go through phases where things are great for years and then one year they can stink it up!
......and this looks like a SunRocket in the making. I do hope that if that happens, they learned from SunRocket and will not just disappear in the night and give their customers a chance to get new service and worry about the money after that. For me, it's important to have a working phone.
I am not around sitting in forums all the time, especially now since I spend most of my efforts trying to find a job in my field. Wish everybody the best no matter which path they choose. | |
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44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
1 edit | Re: SIP said by OntheHunt : Not to be rude, but if you re-read my post, you will see that I was told it was my phone and I went out of my way to fix a problem and spent extra money for no reason and no fix. It was not till after Thanksgiving did they find out THEY did have a problem and fixed it. In the end it was not my phone. Understand this, I am a tradesman and I have always had a phone that was easy to use until I met these guys here. Personally I like all the tech people and Maggie, when I am talking the sh@t with them while they are on the phone with me. But the problem is when "THE PROBLEM IS NOT FIXED." I paid for 1/4 of a year just to help work out problems that were never resolved. Do you know how hard it is to get Comcast to run a NEW cable line from the alley to my building? I mean my line was outdated and old and needed to be replaced and it was and it did not fix the problem. There comes a time when you can only bend over and take it up the arse for so long. Then you realize after 100 high blood pressure pills that this is not worth paying for and not worth the anger that develops over a phone. BOTTOM LINE: If trying to save money, try a different company. Till then stick with the bundles and let retention be your friend. They give some GREAT deals to keep you. But just in case, have a back-up in case they don't offer you a deal...........Thanks Comcast ------Can't believe I just said that because I have had my share of problems with them in the past too. They seem go through phases where things are great for years and then one year they can stink it up! ......and this looks like a SunRocket in the making. I do hope that if that happens, they learned from SunRocket and will not just disappear in the night and give their customers a chance to get new service and worry about the money after that. For me, it's important to have a working phone. I am not around sitting in forums all the time, especially now since I spend most of my efforts trying to find a job in my field. Wish everybody the best no matter which path they choose. Sorry you had a bad experience dude.  Since Verizon would want to take me for least 50.00 a month and has nowhere near the feature set, even if I just stick around for a year I would save at least 360.00 not counting 600.00 for my free year. I can buy a few phones for that savings? How come you just did not bring back the phone if it was not the issue? Wal-Mart = 90 day take it back no matter what it is policy, lol. Let me know how your Plan B works out. Good Luck | |
| replaytv1
join:2008-04-12
Miami, FL
1 edit |  PhonePower vs Callvantage Call Quality
PhonePower Call Quality 4 of 10
PhonePower Reliability 5 of 10
Callvantage Call Quality 8 of 10
Callvantage Reliability 9 of 10
Callvantage features Reliability 9 of 10
PhonePower features Reliability 2 of 10
Reference: PSTN Call Quality 9 of 10
PhonePower "Do Not Disturb Feature" does not work with Grandstream HT502.
»support.phonepower.com/Home/tabi···ult.aspx
Also, HT502 does not forward "Wake on Lan" Magic packets. (Linksys and D-Link Yes) | |
| |
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
1 edit | Re: PhonePower vs Callvantage Call Quality That is hard to believe since Phone power uses a higher codec:
G711u uses approximately 128kb/s of bandwidth, G729a uses approximately 16kb/s.
vs AT&T
G726 normally or G711 with Fax and Modem support turned on
P.S. Also listen to the voice mail on my review? Sounds pretty good to me? | |
| | | nitzan
Premium,VIP
join:2008-02-27
·ViaTalk
·Comcast
| Re: PhonePower vs Callvantage Call Quality IMHO the codec is not really what will make or break sound quality. It's the PSTN termination and the path it takes to get there. If there's packet loss, jitter, or the PSTN gateway are misconfigured or overloaded... problems!
The codec by itself is really just a small portion of overall quality. | |
| | | |
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY
1 edit | Re: PhonePower vs Callvantage Call Quality said by nitzan :IMHO the codec is not really what will make or break sound quality. It's the PSTN termination and the path it takes to get there. If there's packet loss, jitter, or the PSTN gateway are misconfigured or overloaded... problems! The codec by itself is really just a small portion of overall quality. I agree with jitter and latency being the overall biggest
problems facing VoIp. I have problems with jitter on Verizon messing up a few phone calls here and there. Anybody that says they have perfect VoIp service 100% is FOS and needs to be called out! What I can grasp is why Skype which I talk for hours on sound better then all the VoIp services I have used with an ATA such as Vonage, Viatalk, and even PhonePower. Skype is so crystal clear! | |
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| Forums » comments on review of PHONE POWER |
| »next review in page (previous review)
 Review by schipperke
UPDATED: 312 days ago
member for 10 years, 777 visits, last login: 16 days ago
Potomac,Montgomery,MD
$19 per month (12 month contract)
about 5 days
"Reliable, Price , OK to Good Sound"
"Sometimes choppy"
"So far, Good"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
First, I was with Sunrocket (they were right across the river from us) which was great until they went poof in the night. Went to ViaTalk, and actually left some service time on the table, getting way too buggy for me.
PhonePower sign up was easy, and I never had to contact anyone for the service progression to finally getting my number ported (about 2 weeks) The Adapter came 3 days after the order, and I was able to dial out after I installed. It is a nice Grandstream ATA. With the 12 month contract, you get a cloned line which is nice. (seldom if at all used though for us..) The sound is good , but sometimes you get some chop, but not too bad. My spouse has not complained , so it must be OK. You can not go in to the admin section of the ATA, but if they keep it working like they have, you don't need to bother anyway. I contacted support by email for firewall settings on a Saturday, and received a reply on Sunday, with the correct answers, not bad. Not sure why they do not post these settings on their site, they just give the blanket "DMZ" your ATA advice. The web interface is simple , but pretty good for what most people really need. Call forward, and blocking, speed dials etc. So far 2+ months, it appears to have been rock solid connectivity, keep it up....
Followup comments: | Forums » comments on review of PHONE POWER |
| »next review in page (previous review)
Review by neilsid
Posted: 319 days ago
member for 319 days, 1 visits, last login: 205 days ago
Pacifica,San Mateo,CA
$12 per month (12 month contract)
about 5 days
"Awsome, good quility"
"none so far"
"recomend it."
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
I went form AT&T $45 a month to phone power $10 a month on a 12month contract.
I cant be happier, install was a snap, and they have the ability to clone a line, it gives you two lines for the price of 1.
Phone quality has been great. not a single dropped call, and people cant tell the difference from a regular Telco.
It has a ton of options and its website is really easy to use.
I have no idea why I didn’t switch earlier…. I will recommend to anyone looking for a good voice over IP.
Followup comments: | Forums » comments on review of PHONE POWER |
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Review by sandyworks
UPDATED: 321 days ago
member for 321 days, 1 visits, last login: 320 days ago
Clifton Park,Saratoga,NY
Contract price not specified. (24 month contract)
about 21 days
"Clear, Great Service, 2 year prepaid contract for $199.95."
"None!"
"Huge savings. Still Clear in 3rd month. Super extras. Just Do it.!"
| Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
|
I've had VOIP for about 6 years. First I had Time Warner Road Runner but the price was too high for my little phone use. 39.99+ $4.00 for voice mail before taxes.
I switched to Vonage and had huge problems with phone dropping out. Switched back to RR and problem continued. I needed a new box and that took care of all the problems...except now I was paying too much.
I researched voip on this and several other sites and was intrigued by Phone Power. When I first looked at the reviews back in Sept/Oct there were only about 5 or 6 reviews at the site I went to. I was really wary since there was not that much out there on PhonePower. I was concerned that they did not have live 24 hour phone tech support.but I have never used it...except to hook up my Grandstream (I needed hand holding). Besides, I realized that I'm not making phone calls in the middle of the night. They also have phone support on Saturday and Sundays.
The Sales Department answered questions and I ordered. I had to wait the 21 days for RR to port my number to phone power. I received the Phone Power Grandstream HandyTone 502 box in less than a week! I hooked up my box the moment my phone was ported. I needed some help since my entire wiring is in the basement with wires for computers, cables, sound etc and I was nervous about getting it right. . CS was amazing. The guy hung in there and when I accidentally disconnected he called me back immediately. He was incredibly patient. It worked immediately. He guided me through everything as I held a flashlight and telephone while following his instructions.
I was very careful to use the phone a lot more than usual to see how well it worked. It was clear, reliable, no dropped calls. After about 45 Days. I was so pleased that I went with an online special they had and paid $199.95 for 24 months. WOW. and I haven't looked back. I have Road Runner as my internet provider and I have fast reliable internet service. My last go round with their voip was great..just way too expensive!
I get tons of everything with their services and they email me my messages when I get a phone call. So when I'm away or at work, I just hit the message and it plays on my computer. Really cool.
Their "unlimited phone use" package is for 3000 minutes a month. Unlimited incoming. Very clearly spelled out on their website. I would have to talk more than 1 1/2 hours a day to go over this. Remember this is for residential use.
They have cloned phone service and a 2nd virtual number for $5 a month. I don't need it though.
I am now thinking about looking into this for our office phones. It looks like it could be a huge savings.
Followup comments: ed56
join:2008-01-13
Cincinnati, OH
·Vonage
| Your VOIP is only as good as your ISP and bandwidth Before you move to VOIP for critical services like work, I would do more research, such as 411 and phone book listing, bandwidth - latency-packet loss at your work location, how many lines your bandwidth will support, phone line roll over, etc.
The primary consideration is your quality of internet at work and how many concurrent lines it will support. VOIP is only as good as your internet connection, as you learned when you had Vonage and switched back to the cable company only to have the same problems.
The next big consideration is if you move to VOIP, most likely you will no longer be listed in the local phone book.
I am sure some of the B to B providers and cable providers will make this possible, but the "primarily" residential pure play VOIP services providers do not. | |
| |
PhonePower
Premium
join:2007-07-20
Winnetka, CA
4 edits | Re: Your VOIP is only as good as your ISP and bandwidth We offer free (optional) Directory and/or 411 listing standard on every plan
said by ed56 :The next big consideration is if you move to VOIP, most likely you will no longer be listed in the local phone book. I am sure some of the B to B providers and cable providers will make this possible, but the "primarily" residential pure play VOIP services providers do not. | |
| | |
44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY | Re: Your VOIP is only as good as your ISP and bandwidth Yes, and don't forget 1-800-FREE-411 | |
| | | |
PhonePower User
@verizon.net | Re: Your VOIP is only as good as your ISP and bandwidth use 1-800-goog-411 (18004664411)
(from Google.) Its a lot better...and NO ads!! | |
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44402812
Hack The Planet
Premium
join:2006-08-28
Plattsburgh, NY | Re: Your VOIP is only as good as your ISP and bandwidth said by PhonePower User :
use 1-800-goog-411 (18004664411)
(from Google.) Its a lot better...and NO ads!!
Yeah if you only want businesses, lol! | |
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Too good to be true
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Blinking Voicemail lights
Unlimited