dslreports logo

Review by lmartin12 See Profile

  • Location: Potsdam, Saint Lawrence, NY, USA
  • Business customer Business customer
  • Cost: $8 per month (24 month contract)
Super good customer service. Good price
Problems with call completion, poor simul ring, and trouble with their adapter.
Switched to a different provider.
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

I had Voipo for my provider for over 1 1/2 years. Over all it was good. It worked most of the time. Sometimes calls to certain areas would not go through. I would call customer support and they would change "routes" and then I could call that area again for a little while. Then I would have to do it over again.

Their simul ring works only on in network calls. Some of my famliy has Voipo so simul ring would not work when they called me.

Then lately we had an audio issue with calls to and from my family that has Voipo. They tried for a few weeks to get it fixed. I decided to go shopping for something more reliable. I purchased an Obi 202. I tried Google Voice, Phone Power, Callcentric, and Anveo. While testing the different providers I decided to disconnect Voipo's adapter and put them on the Obi and it cured the audio issue. The rest of my family ditched their Voipo ATAs and are now using other ATAs. That took care of their audio issues also. They still have the other problems I listed above.

The last problem I had with them is that after porting to Anveo and canceling my Voipo account my Voipo family members could not call me. They got a busy signal every time. Other people could call me fine. Again thanks to super good customer service, I called Voipo and they fixed the problem.

member for 9.2 years, 472 visits, last login: 2.7 years ago
lodged 9.2 years ago

snic
join:2009-10-14
usa

snic

Member

Same here.

I had a similar experience with VOIPO. It worked great for more than a year, then lately I had months of non-stop problems with calls not going through. It seemed like every time I called a new number, there was a good chance that it wouldn't work and a "route treatment" was required to make it work. In other words, to call new numbers I often had to contact customer service and wait at least a day for them to fix the problem. Totally unacceptable.

I canceled and switched to CallCentric, and for the past few weeks their service has been *flawless*. I hope it continues that way; if it does, I'm more than willing to pay the extra few dollars per month. I'll write a more detailed review after a few more weeks.
lmartin12
join:2014-12-19
Ezel, KY

lmartin12

Member

Re: Same here.

You made a wise choice. Callcentric and Anveo both seam to work every time. No more "route treatments" needed. I went with Anveo because they are a wee bit less money than Callcentric and they have more features.

Review by snic See Profile

  • Location: Harrison, Westchester, NY, USA
  • Cost: $8 per month (24 month contract)
  • Install: about 10 days
Used to work great; has some great features but they are pointless if the basic service doesn't work
Have had some problems with call completion lately. Service is almost non-functional
Not worth the aggravation
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

I've had VOIPO for about 20 months now. For the first 19 months, I was an extremely happy camper. The Grandstream device arrived quickly and there were no major problems with connecting it and porting my old number over - I recall some issue that developed during set-up that was fixed within a day or two by responsive customer service. Over the ensuing months, occasionally there would be a problem with a call not completing or some issue with the person at the other end of the line not hearing me. And once in a while (less than once a month) there's no dial tone, which is immediately fixed by rebooting the Grandstream. These problems were few and far between, and the low cost and great list of features more than made up for them. I particularly like being able to blacklist an unlimited number of spam numbers by routing them to the "this number has been disconnected" message. Recently they added nomorobo support, which is great. Also, the 60 minutes of free international calling is an excellent feature as well (but beware - some numbers are not included - especially cell phone numbers in certain countries. Be sure to check before calling!)

Recently, however, I had a big problem with calls to certain (domestic) numbers not being completed. I contacted VOIPO customer service by e-mail (the only option on weekends or outside of West Coast business hours) and they typically replied within a few hours. They blamed the problem on the carrier they were routing the call through and changed the carrier. That didn't work the first time they tried it but now it seems fine. Then I had a problem with not being able to hear the other party when I called certain numbers, but that is now fixed as well (for now). I'm not sure why there has been such a proliferation of problems lately, but they have been very aggravating. VOIPO says they can't force other carriers to connect their calls, but then why did my cable company's VOIP service never, ever have this problem? And despite multiple e-mails about these problems, I have never once been offered anything to compensate me for the fact that I have paid for something that then was not delivered. The monetary compensation isn't really the issue, as the monthly cost is so low that a few days of lost service amounts to pennies. It's more that I'm annoyed at the absence of even a token of understanding that they did not provide the advertised service, and that maybe they should not simply take my business for granted.

In all, it might be a case of "you get what you pay for". VOIPO is currently among the lowest, if not the lowest-cost VOIP provider. I'd be absolutely thrilled if the last month had been like the first 19 months. I'll see how the service goes over the next few months, and if the recent problems don't recur, I'll probably renew for another 2 years. But I'm not willing to put up with constantly contacting customer service because calls won't complete.

UPDATE - just a few hours after posting this reasonably positive review, I tried to make a call to a new number and it would not go through. It worked fine from my cell phone. Customer service will probably fix this in a few hours, but at this point, that hardly matters any more. What is the point of a phone service where you regularly have to contact customer service and wait 6 hours just to place a call to a number you haven't called before? I've changed my review to very negative and will keep it that way until the service works like it's supposed to. And I'm most certainly going to cancel it if it doesn't improve. It's really too bad, as it was very good while it lasted.

UPDATE 11/1/14 - I am going to update this review every single time I have a problem with my Voipo service, until I cancel my service or the problem is fixed to my satisfaction. Today, yet again, I get the dreaded one ring and busy signal when calling a number I can reach with my cell phone.

UPDATE 11/3/14 - After another "carrier route update", the problem still isn't fixed. Dreaded one ring plus busy signal this morning, yet the number is perfectly accessible via cell phone.

UPDATE 11/10/14 - VOIPO asked me to place their device in my router's DMZ, which I did. This morning I called a number and got one ring plus busy signal yet again.

UPDATE 12/15/14 - I've continued to have problems with outbound calls not connecting, but haven't had time either to contact VOIPO about them or post here. I've decided to cancel my service and move to another voip provider.

member for 14.4 years, 416 visits, last login: 1.9 years ago
updated 9.2 years ago


FarmerBob
join:2000-12-21
Littleton, CO
Calix 716GE-I
Netgear Orbi RBK853
Netgear RAXE500

FarmerBob

Member

Just ported my 2nd personal (Family) line . . .

I have had VOIPo for my main personal line for over 6-8 years, gotta think in two's. And as I have said here many times, there are problems inherent with any VoIP product. But although I have had and am having new installation hiccups with the Family line we just moved, that will save us $600 a year, a few hiccups are worth it. As far as service, I submitted a ticket and first got the same tech that confirmed my somewhat uncommon set up would work and it has. So he was familiar with my set up and is able to deal with it more effectively. The only major problem is that we have too many people working on this, that ticket replies are getting stepped all over. I have put things on hold and am going to let it settle for a couple of days. For a new install, that is usual.

Now a couple of weeks ago they had a provider problem that caused issues for a short time. But that's long since taken care of. So what the cause of your current issues, could be just about anything and might not have anything to do with VOIPo. If VOIPo wasn't solid, I would have never moved the family line over, nor many neighbor and friends home and business lines. It is a "mission" critical line, medical and whatnot. But mostly if it doesn't work, Grandma will have my head. Although VOIPo has a prorated refund policy, without a head, it'll do me no good.

I have been testing newer router gear for the past year and of all the things that can be really messed up, it's a VoIP line. My VOIPo line has been solid all through the mayhem. Except when a setting needs to be changed and I am on the phone and reset it and lose the line. Then that's my problem of not thinking about what I am doing or doing too many things at one time.

Most all issues I have seen with VOIPo seem to mellow out over a short amount of time. And now ones are usually third parties that they have to use to get us the product.

Yes! I am a VOIPo Fanboy, Apple and Tesla too and darn proud of it.
snic
join:2009-10-14
usa

snic

Member

Re: Just ported my 2nd personal (Family) line . . .

I used to be quite a fan of Voipo, too. But with the recent problems, I can't reach about one out of 3 new numbers I try to dial. I've already given it a "short amount of time" (the original support ticket was created 3 weeks ago), but the problems haven't mellowed out at all. There were a few days where everything seemed back to normal, but in hindsight that is probably just because we weren't calling very much.

Finally, as for the idea that the problems "might not have anything to do with VOIPo," ummm, well, it's their service that isn't working. At one point they blamed the problem on other carriers, saying they can't force them to accept Voipo's calls. I can accept that if it happens once or twice. But for it to happen consistently means that something is fundamentally wrong. And because it means a Voipo customer can't use the Voipo service that he paid for, it most certainly is Voipo's problem.

FarmerBob
join:2000-12-21
Littleton, CO
Calix 716GE-I
Netgear Orbi RBK853
Netgear RAXE500

FarmerBob

Member

Re: Just ported my 2nd personal (Family) line . . .

Even these days the VoIP's have to interact with telco's, other providers and entities and they do not and don't have to play fair. That's how I lost SprintION, 1998-2002, the best Internet and telephone service ever. They decided it was cheaper to go out of business than to fight USWest at the time. And as far as them not being able to force other carriers to take their calls, they can't. No one can. That's a major problem with the FCC and our telco system. So yes to that.

I've had some issues over the past couple of days. They were gone before I could submit a ticket. It seems to go in spurtz when the telcos want to be pissy. I use to work for one and have contacts there and access to info. Have you tried another service? If you haven't, then how do you absolutely know it's VOIPo? When I had the same problems, I got Vonage for a couple of days and no problems, and we found it was a setting that was buried in my ATA that kept resetting itself that caused the problem. But if I hadn't tried another service I'd have never have known and would have never have had the proof. So until you do, I can't see how you know that it is VOIPo. WHICH, it could very well be. But there are a billion variables these days. I've had routers that would just not let any VoIP services work. There's a ton that can go wrong with you use these types of services and until it's be around and as strong as the telco's, there will be problems. And the more you yell, the more I'd yell back. Proof gets results.

I have 9 families in my areas with a minimum of 2 lines each. And due to the nature of the beast, there will are going to be problems. Even Comcast has theirs. (The worst)
snic
join:2009-10-14
usa

snic

Member

Re: Just ported my 2nd personal (Family) line . . .

Haha, I'm not yelling. I understand your point that there are many things that can go wrong with VOIP service. Some of them might be out of Voipo's direct control, but the bottom line is that they are charging me for a service that they are not providing. That makes all those problems Voipo's problems: if Voipo is going to sell a service, it is their absolute responsibility to make sure that it works reliably. Yes, it could be that other telcos are being "pissy". Not my problem; Voipo needs to find a way to connect to them because they are charging me money for "phone service," which by any definition means the ability to call whomever I want without having to contact customer service first. It could be that there's something wrong with my ATA. Not my problem; Voipo needs to figure it out and fix it. It could be a million things, all of which it is Voipo's responsibility to fix, and as of today it has been more than three weeks and after multiple interactions with their tech support, the problem STILL is not fixed.

FarmerBob
join:2000-12-21
Littleton, CO
Calix 716GE-I
Netgear Orbi RBK853
Netgear RAXE500

FarmerBob

Member

Re: Just ported my 2nd personal (Family) line . . .

The yelling part was a "metaphor" and also a call out that it's a two-way street. You know for a fact that there is nothing on your end that could be "contributing" to this? To prove this, I got a second provider on a trial basis where their gear worked a bit differently and I found the problem. Come to find out there was a router setting that was getting in the way. Once set right, all was good.

Yeh, try your train of thought with a telco and see what they say. Yes, it is a responsibility of a provider to "provide". It's in the word. And the rules that govern this "provision" are all over the place favoring the big guys. We all know that VoIP is a fledgling industry and the telcos do not want them around. So they are going to make it difficult to do business. Even to the point that I know that the telcos have threatened third party carriers that the VoIP's need to be able to provide to you. And here it comes, BUT when going into this we all know that it's not going to be a smooth ride. That's a given with VoIP. And with that there are going to be problems.

Some friends of mine wanted VoIP, to get away from their telco, and went to Comcast. WOW! BIG mistake. Their phone barely works anymore and Comcast really doesn't care and under the rules that Comcast has to play by, they don't have to care and my friends are stuck in a contract that they have to prove that there is a problem before they can get out. And they can't because it's all on Comcast's end and the big C won't help. As soon as they can move they are coming over to VOIPo.

If VOIPo is not working for you, there's a ton of other providers out there and VOIPo has a prorated refund policy. Go take a look, maybe you'll find a provider that is exactly what you want. Ragging on VOIPo isn't going to get anything accomplished. I know, I have been in your place a couple of times and will be again in the future. BUT I know that they will go to the ends of the Earth to work with me to fix whatever it is that goes wrong. That is within our power though. Just the other day I had to shut down a ticket because there were too many people getting involved on it. And the problem went away on it own.

Go take a look, you might be surprised to find VOIPo is just what you want. No VoIP company's perfect. No telco is perfect. But they have been at it longer, have the rules skewed in their favor and have a proven technology that VoIP is just getting together. While dodging shots across the bow.
snic
join:2009-10-14
usa

snic

Member

Re: Just ported my 2nd personal (Family) line . . .

"Ragging on VOIPo isn't going to get anything accomplished."

Sure it will. It will let prospective Voipo customers know what kind of experience I've been having, which will help them to make an informed decision. Isn't that the whole point of online reviews?

Red Hazard
Premium Member
join:2012-07-21
O Fallon, IL

Red Hazard

Premium Member

Re: Just ported my 2nd personal (Family) line . . .

said by snic:

"Ragging on VOIPo isn't going to get anything accomplished."

Sure it will. It will let prospective Voipo customers know what kind of experience I've been having, which will help them to make an informed decision. Isn't that the whole point of online reviews?

Concur.

FarmerBob
join:2000-12-21
Littleton, CO

FarmerBob to snic

Member

to snic
When you find the perfect VoIP provider let us know, so we all can move to it.
lmartin12
join:2014-12-19
Ezel, KY

lmartin12

Member

Re: Just ported my 2nd personal (Family) line . . .

So far Anveo works every time for me. Non of this "call route" problem.
snic
join:2009-10-14
usa

snic to FarmerBob

Member

to FarmerBob
So far (3 months and counting) CallCentric works every time for me. None of this "call route" problem.

Red Hazard
Premium Member
join:2012-07-21
O Fallon, IL

Red Hazard to FarmerBob

Premium Member

to FarmerBob
I find PhonePower's service to be equal to VOIPO's using OBi202(s) for both services after having PP for over a year.

Review by Kill4Speed See Profile

  • Location: Ashburn, Loudoun, VA, USA
  • Cost Contract price not specified.
voice quality has been excellent
there are a few missing features but I'll take stable service/reliability over features any day
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

I've been beta-ingVOIPo since it was offered (1yr+)
despite the fact that it's still in beta, I've rarely experience unannounced outages
voice quality has been excellent

08/04/2008 update
VOIPo is not publicly launched yet; however, I've been very happy during the (generously long) beta that I've ordered (1yr) service for my parents (nontechies, who live out of state)

10/09/2008 update
Still impressed with the VOIPo stable service; decided to port my own home number to VOIPo as well

10/22/08 update
Outstanding Customer Support! Here are some examples:

1. I submitted a ticket regarding audio quality issue with the 1st ATA sent via VOIPo (to my out of state parents). Despite the hardship caused by the hurricane, VOIPo quickly replaced the defective equipment
2. I expressed issue with audio delay of 2-3 ms in answering incoming calls with the HT-286, VOIPo promptly resolved it by upgrading my ATA to a HT-502. Thanks for saving my ears (from the wife's complaints)
3. I submitted a ticket regarding answering machine recorded busy/reorder tone after callers hung up. The support team thanked me ,"VOIPo appreciates your dedication and involvement in advancing our service and features.", and informed me that they've forward the issue to their developers

For those that want to obtain reliable, plug and play VOIP service, I highly recommend VOIPo

I'll try to update the review as time permits

03/13/09 update
Since I've learned VOIPo 'fixed' the 30 min. session timer problem with ATAs which do not support RFC4028, I've started using my own SPA-1001 (instead of the VOIPo provided/provisioned HT-502)
AFAIK, we did not experience the infamous "lost registration" that many have experienced; Our audio quality has been excellent; my parents ,OTOH, experienced occasion audio and registration issues; BTW, they're still using the VOIPo provided/provisioned HT-502. I've asked them (my parents) to keep me informed so that I can submit problem ticket to VOIPo support team

05/16/09
I'm happy to report that VOIPo has added CallerId+Location to "Call History"

10/13/09

1. the 15th of this month marks our 1st year anniversary with VOIPo - yes, time flies while we're ...
2. I've paid for another year of service (for our residence and our parents)
3. Needless to say, I'm still happy with the service provided via VOIPo

04/18/10

Experienced a brief outage - promptly addressed by support
While I read others have/had experienced stability issues with VOIPo,
I'm still happy with the service.
One has to realize that VOIP over public network will never be as reliable as POST...
lost my thought there, but I hope everyone get what I'm trying to convey

05/16/09
I'm happy to report that VOIPo has added CallerId+Location to "Call History"

10/13/10

I'm still happy with the service provided via VOIPo, signed up for another year of service (for our residence and our parents)

01/10/14 - Still with VOIPo - enuf said

11/16/14 - just renewed service for another year

member for 17.2 years, 2890 visits, last login: 3.1 years ago
updated 9.3 years ago


JAza
@76.15.217.x

JAza

Anon

What's missing?

I'm curious what features you felt were missing? I'm considering VIOPo so I'm curious. Simultaneous Ring is on feature I'm hoping for.

thanks,
J.
Kill4Speed
join:2007-01-12
Ashburn, VA

2 edits

Kill4Speed

Member

Re: What's missing?

Sim. ring is not currently offered by VOIPo

below is my feature wished list:
1. Intelligent Call Forwarding that detects the incoming call originated from the "forwarded" phone and rings the original destination instead
2. Call History that makes use of CallerID/Custom CallerID+Location
3. Scheduled sim. ring with a twist (see #1)

JAza
@76.15.217.x

JAza

Anon

Re: What's missing?

Thanks Kill4speed.

Much appreciated.
Kill4Speed
join:2007-01-12
Ashburn, VA

Kill4Speed

Member

Re: What's missing?

np,
c&p from VOIPo forums
quote:
Sales Questions/New Customers
If you are not an existing VOIPo customer and have questions about VOIPo services or would like to place an order, please contact sales@voipo.com for assistance.


Review by matthias8 See Profile

  • Location: San Bruno, San Mateo, CA, USA
  • Cost: $6 per month (24 month contract)
call quality, reliability, new VPanel
nothing, really
it's cheap, and it works.
Web-site:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

It's been a year since I signed up with Voipo. I am using the service with the adapter they provide and a plain old wireless phone. I also use it with a Bria 3 softphone under Windows 8. Either way works fine.

At the time I signed up, I was debating whether to choose Ooma, instead. But Voipo has a few nice features that would have cost more with Ooma (in included 2nd line and 60 minutes of international calls included per month, most importantly). The hurdle was that with Voipo I had to sign up for 2 years in advance. Thinking back, I think that seeing their CEO respond to criticisms on this board (he still does that - amazing!) is what gave me confidence to try them out. Anyway, I am glad I did sign up. The billing has always been correct, the setup has been straight-forward, and the service is reliable. To me, that's what this is about. At a time, where more and more of my calls are done through the cell phone, I just want the landline to be cheap and hassle-free. Voipo is that. I also tested Vonage before signing up with Voipo. Vonage call quality was outstanding. Their customer service is fantastic. But their bill is also 4 times as high.

Since signing up, the Voipo service has also seen some improvements. They have redesigned the account control panel. and it does look much more professional, now. And new (free!) features were introduced: Integration with Nomorobo to ward off unwanted sales calls, for example. And a free iNum phone number to make no-cost international calls with subscribers of other IP phone services.

For me, Voipo just hits the spot.

member for 23.2 years, 41 visits, last login: 101 days ago
updated 9.5 years ago


Review by macaholic See Profile

  • Location: Jackson Heights, Queens, NY, USA
  • Cost: $15 per month (12 month contract)
  • Install: about 5 days
The service itself once setup is solid. quiet on the telemarketer front. unlike timewarner.
phone device is not upnp, customer service is off weekend and has email service only
would be better with more CS and upnp devices.
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

Good so far. Did not do number transfer because somehow my number while at Time Warner became tainted. Lots of marketing. Word to the wise. Make the primary number your cell number and use your new voipo number for the quiet family only knows phone. Works great. Price is total 135 + 50 fee/ 12 .

The 2 year folks pay less for sure but I want to try this out before the full commitment.

Main issue. The Voipo folks send out a non upnp compliant adaptor. This is why if you have a router you MUST read the provided instructions sent with the device (if they print it.. it's for a reason. m-kay? ) and set your router according to that:

1. assign a static ip for the voipo device mac address.
2. forward 5004-65000 UDP bi-directional to that ip address.

If Voipo could figure out how get these babies flashed to be upnp which talks with your router so you don't have to do all the above nonsense yourself. Or they get a supply of upnp phone adaptors for new folks. They would be perfect. Otherwise you need a network geek in the house or be prepared to relinquish control to voipo tech support.

Minor peeve: time for a control panel beautification project. Perhaps an app?

member for 20.5 years, 4034 visits, last login: 4.4 years ago
updated 9.5 years ago


topgun
join:2011-01-31

1 edit

topgun

Member

That is not enirely true!

Click for full size
You can put the adapter behind the DMZ although I have not had any problems with it just plugging it in and leaving it alone. Or use this software like I do with many clients just to make life easier for then and me. »portforward.com/store/pf ··· nfig.cgi

FYI I have talked to the CEO they made they Cpanel the way they did for a reason. Beautiful means more load time, not as straightforward, and ends looks up looking cluttered. JMHO if you want eye candy play Bejeweled?
macaholic
Premium Member
join:2003-08-31
Jackson Heights, NY

macaholic

Premium Member

Re: That is not enirely true!

dmz is same thing. you still need to put the device on a statiic pre-assigned ip. DMZ to this device is a bit overkill. And using third party software to do the settings... uhm no. That should be provided by the company. Your post makes my other point clear.... for now this service is for geeks only. Other folks will have to muddle through.

get a upnp device.

the website can still be its simplistic self... the left navigation is where some real thought needs to happen. Too much pecking to figure out where things are.

topgun
join:2011-01-31

topgun

Member

Re: That is not enirely true!

Click for full size
Looks pretty simple to me My friend who is not a techie had it figured out within 10 minutes. To each their own.
macaholic
Premium Member
join:2003-08-31
Jackson Heights, NY

macaholic

Premium Member

Re: That is not enirely true!

"My friend who is not a techie had it figured out within 10 minutes. "

good for them. still a fugly navigation.

XANAVirus
Premium Member
join:2012-03-03
Lavalette, WV

XANAVirus

Premium Member

Why are you having to forward so many ports to your ATA?

You should not need to forward any ports at all for VOIPO service to work.
And, you don't need UPNP to make it work, either.

The outbound registration your device makes should be enough to have VOIPO do the NAT hole punching for you.

I don't know what instructions that VOIPO sent you, but those can't possibly be right. If you are making an outbound registration your device should be able to communicate to VOIPO what ephemeral port to use for RTP (and especially the same for incoming calls).

UPNP is a Microsoft invention, and is not meant to be used on the WAN side in place of port forwarding. It is supposed to be for internal network use only because it has no authentication at all.

Have you checked with VOIPO support to see if their ATA supports the STUN protocol (and has a STUN server defined)?

In the absence of session border controllers STUN should provide the requisite NAT help that VoIP needs to connect properly.
I have Callcentric service, and I have never needed to forward ports.

Review by topgun See Profile

  • Location: Plattsburgh, Clinton, NY, USA
  • Cost: $8 per month (24 month contract)
  • Install: about 3 days
Awesome Support Reps, Great Call Quality, CEO invovlment in forums, Price
It's not Free :D
Solid budget phone service that will fit 99% peeps needs. :)
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

Ordered the 2 year promotion on 8-20-14 the adapter arrived from Cali to NY on Sat the 23rd. Talk about fast! My friend Marguerite was having problems with PhonePower. We did everything we could from putting adapter in DMZ, SIP ALG was off, etc. Apparently the route calls take through Fairpoint then over to Cali is horrible? Other people in the forums have experienced the same issues. They were awesome helping as much as they could but I needed to try another VoIP company to help with the process of elimination.

Went over to see Marguerite on Sunday with my friend Mary and brought the HT-702 with me from VoIPo. It was as easy as unplugging 4 cables from the old adapter and plugging 2 of them back into the new adapter along with power from the included adapter. Within a couple of minutes she had dial tone and the rest is history.

Put in for a number port on Monday and got a port date that Wednesday for the following Monday. September 1st (my birthday) came and went but on a positive note her number ported without a hitch sometime in the early morning. Here is the form for anyone that needs it »www.voipo.com/Porting.pdf

Call quality has been awesome and so far no hiccups that either one of us has noticed in reliability. Only thing I would suggest doing ASAP in Device Control is turning down the gain. Most headsets are capable of cranking up the volume loud enough to blow your ears out. By default it is set to Extremely High maybe it is to compensate for all the old ladies using VoIPo? Anyway, I first experienced the static\echo they described when playing back a voice-mail. Went into the Cpanel really quick and nuked it to normal and that was that.

CEO is one of the nicest peeps you would ever want to meet. He offered to help me out of a possible jam without me knowing until he emailed me. Although phone support hours are not as broad as PP their email support is manned 24\7 and is very fast (within hours) to reply.

Both are excellent choices depending on what your needs are. Variety is the spice of life and would encourage anyone who sees this review to compare both of them and make an educated decision based on your needs.



Attachments:
Click for full size


member for 13.1 years, 610 visits, last login: 9.1 years ago
updated 9.5 years ago

Henderson
join:2014-09-21
New London, CT

Henderson

Member

Great call quality

Thank you for sharing this information.

topgun
join:2011-01-31

topgun

Member

Re: Great call quality

My pleasure

Review by ivansjunk1 See Profile

  • Location: North Babylon, Suffolk, NY, USA
  • Cost: $199 per month (12 month contract)
  • Install: about 1 days
cheap, at least for a while
bad service, bad equipment, bad customer service and mediocre service
not worth it! Look elsewhere.
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

I've had voip phone service for the past 10+ years. Nothing is perfect but this one takes the cake. Paid $149 for 2 years and put up with the mediocre service because it was cheap and was using as secondary house line. Before the 2 years were up, noticed a charge on my CC for $199. Researched and found it to be an UNREQUESTED renewal for a year. Tried calling several times but they are in Cali and Iam in NY so it was hard to get anyone to talk to for awhile. In the mean time, the service stopped working.. After many calls, emails and reading on troubleshooting, it looks like the adapter (piece of crap) finally gave up. They say they can replace, for $50. the thing is 2+ years old, worth $10 new on eBay but they want $50!!! I call to cancel and request refund but they say that the refund will offset the price of their old equipment. AVOID THIS COMPANY!! Crappy service, Crappy equipment, Crappy customer service and only care about taking your money!!

member for 9.5 years, driveby review (so far)
updated 9.5 years ago


ctaranto
join:2011-12-14
MA

ctaranto

Member

VOIPo is great...

For what it is. Cheap phone service.

I've had them for many years. A few issues here and there, but customer service has been fantastic and has resolved every issue. They are responsive and competent.

My primary service is with another provider who offers far more features, but they also are not as cheap. I keep VOIPo as a backup and primarily use them when I know an outbound call is going to last for more than 10 minutes (unlimited outbound).

I highly recommend buying a voip phone, and not an ATA. The Panasonic KX-TGP550 (or 551) is awesome.

Unhappy
@50.121.98.x

Unhappy

Anon

Re: VOIPo is great...

I just experienced the same thing as ivansjunk1. Won't be using this company nor referring others to it in the future. I have no way of getting to my equipment to obtain it let alone get it back to them and they said my account will not be cancelled until I do and they are charging me the $49.50 fee. BEWARE!!! All nice until you go to drop the service. My advice to anyone that has signed up discontinue the charge card you originally signed up under otherwise they will automatically bill you for the next year and for the equipment.

ctaranto
join:2011-12-14
MA

2 recommendations

ctaranto

Member

Re: VOIPo is great...

Did they provide you a pre-configured ATA *for free* when signing up? If so, then don't you think cancelling the service warrants them to want it back to give to a new subscriber? I already gave them back their ATA as I ended up buying my own.

Also, if you have phone service and don't renew, your phone service, *and number*, will be cancelled. Personally, I wouldn't be pleased if my primary phone number was lost because I forgot to renew phone service.

Red Hazard
Premium Member
join:2012-07-21
O Fallon, IL

Red Hazard to Unhappy

Premium Member

to Unhappy
To the OP: Thanks for the "heads up". I'll be sure to port my number about 30 days B4 my contract expires. $199/yr for my light usage (under 300 mins/month) is excessive and far more than what I am paying now ($185/2 yrs).

And regarding the VOIPo ATA, I'll mail it back at least 3 months B4 contact end as I am BYOD and I never liked their GS502 but need it if I loose my BYOD registration password.
VOIPoTim
VOIPO.com
Premium Member
join:2006-06-06
Irvine, CA

VOIPoTim

Premium Member

VOIPO

Hello,

Sorry to hear your weren't happy with your service.

Since our service is subscription based, it's automatically renewed until cancelled.

In terms of equipment, we provide the adapter for free for using during your subscription, but it must be returned to us if you cancel service.

We try to be as fair and reasonable as possible. If you don't feel like something was handled fairly or in accordance with our policies, please contact me directly at tim @ voipo.com and I'll be happy to look into it for you.

Thank you for your past business and good luck with your new provider.

Best Regards,

Timothy Dick
Founder/CEO
VOIPO.com

FarmerBob
join:2000-12-21
Littleton, CO
Calix 716GE-I
Netgear Orbi RBK853
Netgear RAXE500

FarmerBob

Member

Best VoIP Service I have had the pleasure to use ever . . .

I have been with VOIPo since their early days and have moved many people over to them. Every so often there are issues that are inherent to anything that is Internet based. The price you can't beat. The features, as few as they may be, they have are great and allow you to do all kinds of incredible things. The previous company (ViaTalk) I was with had some great toys, but horrible phone service. VOIPo, in time I hope will have more toys, but up front has great phone service.

Tech Support has been the best I have ever encountered. I have an issue or any of the many people that I have brought over, submit a ticket online and within 10-15 minutes I have contact, if not the answer to the problem. Then a couple days later I get and eMail asking if I am OK. WOW! Sometimes I think I'm having problems and all of a sudden it's gone, making me wonder if there was one at all. Later I read somewhere that there was an issue and it was found and dealt with immediately without me having to do anything. They are on the ball all the time. Their up time has been great. Other companies I have dealt with didn't even know what the term meant.

AND if I have had an issue, that a few were on my end, they started looking on their end first. Then if it were traced to me, we dealt with it. But they start on their end. The first time this happened to me I wasn't sure how to handle myself. Everywhere else, it's all your fault, it's your hardware, it's the way you were standing, ballet poses, that made the problem and you need to fix it. Even though they know the issue is on their end (ISPs).

With VOIPo, you can't go wrong. If there are reasons that you think that you need to go elsewhere, then it is your problem not theirs.

Oh, P.S., VOIPoTim, the CEO has some insane amount of posts online helping anyone that needs it, just like he posted here. At one time I swear I saw a number under his avatar somewhere and it was like over a billion posts to his credit. Now that's customer service.
VOIPoTim
VOIPO.com
Premium Member
join:2006-06-06
Irvine, CA

VOIPoTim

Premium Member

Re: Best VoIP Service I have had the pleasure to use ever . . .

Thank you! I really appreciate you (and everyone else too of course) posting. It's always nice to see positive feedback. We really do try to provide the best service we can at the budget pricepoint and work very hard to do it so it's always nice to get feedback that our effort is paying off.

Thank you for your business!
said by FarmerBob:

I have been with VOIPo since their early days and have moved many people over to them. Every so often there are issues that are inherent to anything that is Internet based. The price you can't beat. The features, as few as they may be, they have are great and allow you to do all kinds of incredible things. The previous company (ViaTalk) I was with had some great toys, but horrible phone service. VOIPo, in time I hope will have more toys, but up front has great phone service.

Tech Support has been the best I have ever encountered. I have an issue or any of the many people that I have brought over, submit a ticket online and within 10-15 minutes I have contact, if not the answer to the problem. Then a couple days later I get and eMail asking if I am OK. WOW! Sometimes I think I'm having problems and all of a sudden it's gone, making me wonder if there was one at all. Later I read somewhere that there was an issue and it was found and dealt with immediately without me having to do anything. They are on the ball all the time. Their up time has been great. Other companies I have dealt with didn't even know what the term meant.

AND if I have had an issue, that a few were on my end, they started looking on their end first. Then if it were traced to me, we dealt with it. But they start on their end. The first time this happened to me I wasn't sure how to handle myself. Everywhere else, it's all your fault, it's your hardware, it's the way you were standing, ballet poses, that made the problem and you need to fix it. Even though they know the issue is on their end (ISPs).

With VOIPo, you can't go wrong. If there are reasons that you think that you need to go elsewhere, then it is your problem not theirs.

Oh, P.S., VOIPoTim, the CEO has some insane amount of posts online helping anyone that needs it, just like he posted here. At one time I swear I saw a number under his avatar somewhere and it was like over a billion posts to his credit. Now that's customer service.


Review by PCInTech See Profile

  • Location: Massena, Saint Lawrence, NY, USA
  • Cost: $18 per month
  • Install: about 2 days
Full featured, reliable calls, knowledgable staff
none yet
as good as it gets for a good price
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

I've been through quite a few providers, and was with my last for 10 years. However, they seemed to be paying less attention to small residential users, like my previous provider of several years as well, so I went shopping for another service that provided equally stable service and similar full features. I came upon VOIPo through recommendations here in the forums. Boy, am I glad I did! Not only am I saving money, but I'm getting an even better service than before. The Grandstream HT702 ATA was shipped immediately, receiving it in just 48 hours, pre-provisioned. All I had to do was plug it into my router and it just worked. But even before I got the ATA, I had a chance to use the FAX service through the personalized control panel to send my number porting paperwork in. I was seriously impressed!

The call quality is better than any landline I've ever had, the second cloned line is a God-send, and everything works as-advertised. Their CEO is an active member of this forum, and one of the nicest guys you'd ever want to do business with. Right now, I'm doing month to month, which is still cheaper than my previous service, but as soon as I have some extra cash, I'm going for the 2 year plan, where you can get the service for under $6.50/mo. everything included! There is no activation or shipping charges, and your order gets immediate attention. GET THIS SERVICE! I've seen 'em come and go, and this one is a keeper!

member for 19.8 years, 4436 visits, last login: 8.9 years ago
updated 9.5 years ago


Review by dwangel See Profile

  • Location: Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA
  • Cost: $8 per month (24 month contract)
Great Tech Support, Price and Voice Quality
none so far
Great Company and Product!
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

8.23.2014. Another great year of service. Small hiccups here and there. No big deal. With today's tech, everything has hiccups. Tell me one thing you did not have occasional hiccup on. I-phone? Plenty. internet outage? sure. Car (expensive car)? let's not even go there. Almost 4 years running now. I see Tim Cook is still tirelessly taking care of his customers on this board.

11.21.2013. It's been over three years now. I just thought of checking the reviews and found some unhappy experiences by other VOIPO customers. I thought to present an opposite point of view. For the last three years, I am happy to say my VOIPO service has been in smooth sailing almost all the time. I occasionally had issues with international calls. But after a short exchange with customer service, they were always able to fix it. I am also happy to say the customer service level has not dropped since I joined three years ago.

VOIPO is a perfect service for me. I am like everyone else, have a cell phone, email, Skype, facetime, etc. So I don't use my phone very much. A couple of my friends canceled their land line and carry their mobile phones on their belt clips in the house. It is so inconvenient. I pay VOIPO $8.0 a month and have six wireless phone handsets. I can pick up a phone from just about anywhere in my house. I love the features it offers. My most commonly used ones are blocking unwanted calls and forwarding calls when I travel.

Keep up the great work and great price VOIPO!

5.22.10. It's been four days since I hooked up VOIPo. I had been busy testing it. Calls to the USA works great. Today I placed two International calls. The call to China is crystal clear but very echoy. The other side needed to wait till my echoed voice stop before she could talk. For many people this maybe a problem. For me I can live with it because I use various internet services (such as Skype) to call China and they all echo to some degree. Maybe it is because of the distance. The call to England, however, was excellent. It is almost better than the calls domestically. It was crystal clear and no echo at all. It is like my dad was standing next to me. More update later.

5.17.2010. After 5 years, I finally said good bye to Vonage. I just could not take the ever increasing price any more. It is getting a bit of comical. But company got to make its decisions to stay financially viable. So as a consumer, I got to make my decisions to stay financially viable myself. The decision is VOIPo. My number was officially ported to VOIPo today.

So far my experience has been really good with VOIPo. Received adaptor quickly. Installation was a non-event. Plug in and I had a dial tone. Emailed support regarding number transfer. Answer was prompt. That was refreshing.

I was an early VOIP service adaptor, first as an employee user at Time Warner Cable for 2 years. Then after I left Timer Warner, I signed up with Vonage for 5 years. So far I am pleased with VOIPo. I already recommended to a friend of mine who is currently on Time Warner's triple-play plan. He is thinking about it, waiting to see how I fare with it.

Someone was saying VOIPo's website was un-professional. I think it is just fine. It's got everything I need. The most important thing is making sure phone works. I don't care if it does not have a fancy website.

I read a lot of reviews from here and it made me confident enough to sign up for two years. To repay the debt, I hope my positive review will help another as well.

I will keep updating this as time goes on.

member for 13.8 years, 4 visits, last login: 9.6 years ago
updated 9.6 years ago


Cristina
@69.127.181.x

Cristina

Anon

Happy with service

I signed on 08/10/2013 for two years. I reboot it twice in all this time. I can't ask for a better deal. I am very happy and highly recommend it. There are people that are always finding something to complain. We all know someone like that.
Give it a try, nothing to lose and a lot to be satisfied.

Review by Leahjennings See Profile

  • Location: Canton, Stark, OH, USA
  • Cost: $7 per month (24 month contract)
Inexpensive phone service
Unreliable phone service- substandard equipment
A cheap phone that doesn't work isn't saving you any money.
Web-site:
Ease of Installation:
Call Quality:
Reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:

I purchased the 2 years for $149 which after taxes etc. became $165. After several issues we finally got the phone working. Within a few weeks the phone had a dial tone but wouldn't dial out. VOIPO changed the server and it worked for a few weeks again, and then wouldn't dial out or receive calls.

After a few months of no problems I chalked the earlier issues up to just getting everything up and running and decided to take advantage of their "renewal offer for existing customers" where they rewarded their loyal customers by charging them more than new customers. This was 2 years for a total of $185. This should have been a HUGE red flag for me.

4 months ago my adapter wouldn't power on. That's when I found out they wanted me to pay an additional $50 for a new adapter- remember I've paid $350 already. After a few days my adapter seemed to work again.

2 weeks ago my adapter died completely. VOIPO sent a replacement power cord- despite the fact that the power cord wasn't the issue. I have paid for phone service through March 2016 and refuse to give them another penny so my "money saving" phone doesn't function.

This is the quote on the home page of their website "We actually care- It may sound crazy in this day and age, but we care about your experience with our VoIP service and appreciate your business. Really."

Yeah, absolutely. More like- we take your money and don't care if we provide a service, and please pay us more money.

Update 8/2014- After posting my review and contacting the owner of the company- he sent out a new adapter and it's working now.

member for 9.6 years, 1 visits, last login: 9.6 years ago
updated 9.6 years ago

VOIPoTim
VOIPO.com
Premium Member
join:2006-06-06
Irvine, CA

VOIPoTim

Premium Member

Response from VOIPO

Hello,

I'm the owner of VOIPO. Sorry to hear about this bad experience.

Please contact me at tim @ voipo.com with your VOIPO phone number and any ticket numbers for this so I can look into it for you. You shouldn't have been charged for an adapter replacement unless you damaged it.

Please contact me directly so I can review everything and make sure everything is handled appropriately.

I was able to locate your account based on your username here and I have already put a free replacement adapter in our shipping queue to go out today for you.

Please contact me at tim@voipo.com to discuss this further so I can make sure you're all taken care of.

Best Regards,

Timothy Dick
Founder/CEO
VOIPO.com
VOIPoTim

VOIPoTim

Premium Member

Replacement

Hi Leah,

I'm glad we were able to get this resolved for you.

I agree that support should have replaced the adapter without hassle and am going to address that internally to make sure faulty adapters are diagnosed earlier without so much back and forth and hassle. We have to do troubleshooting to make sure an adapter is legitimately bad, but in your situation that could have been determined long before it was. Sorry again for the delay in that.

Thank you again for your business!

Best Regards,

Timothy Dick
Founder/CEO
VOIPO.com