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(More customer reviews)As a former Vonage customer (for a year-and-a-half), I must say that I am mightily impressed with the service I now receive from Packet8. As soon as I received my Adapter 410 device from Amazon.com, I opened the box, read the short instruction card, and was talking VoIP in under 10 minutes.
I live on the West Coast (Portland, OR) and began making a number of local calls and calls to Maryland, Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and one call to Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada). Each call had, to the best of my perception, identical quality ... and the quality was nothing short of superb.
On the billing end of things, they told me there'd be no activation fee and my first month was free. In actual fact, however, I'll end up getting close to 45 days free since customers signing up in mid-month are apparently given the "benefit of the doubt" on this issue. I called up their customer service department to make sure (3 minute wait only). Mind you, I only mean free of Packet8 charges. Until my first paid billing period starts on February 3rd next year, I still have to pay the $1.50 monthly regulatory recovery fee (Federal) and starting in January, a monthly $1.99 fee for e911. So, assuming my math is correct, this will be the makeup of my first normal bill from Packet8 - and subsequent bills that do not include calls outside the US/Canada:
$19.99 - Packet8, unlimited US/Canada calls
__1.50 - regulatory recovery fee
__1.99 - e911 fee
___.60 - Federal Excise Tax
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$24.08 - total monthly cost of plan
I suspect Vonage's "total monthly cost" has gone up since I left them in July ... but compare that with Vonage's $27.24 "total monthly cost" I paid before I left them. Vonage does have one benefit over Packet8, though. You can call numbers in Puerto Rico free. With Packet8, I'd have to pay 3-4 cents a minute for such a call (assuming I knew someone in Puerto Rico to call, hehe).
There is one complaint I have about Packet8, though ... but it's kind of a funny complaint. When I called up their customer service department, I was appalled at the quality of the call. The automated menu voice wavered in and out and I thought the call might drop. But, when I hung up and dialed them up again, I noticed that the wavering was consistently in the same places. In short, it was not a "call" quality issue. They just have lousy automated-voice menus that need to be re-recorded, hehehe. When the human customer service rep answered (3 minute wait), the wavering magically went away. Every other call I've since made from my Packet8 phone has been fantastic and, at this point, I have no complaints whatsoever.
Some closing comments. For VoIP to work properly, you must have a true "high-speed" connection. I have 3-megabit broadband. If you have a more marginal broadband connection (like most DSL providers give you), your results may vary. The slower a connection speed is, the more 'artifacts' you'll hear. In short, don't blame Packet8 because you've chosen a cheap broadband provider. Electrical (radio, TV, computer, etc.) interference near your modem or router could be another culprit causing marginal quality. Again, a personal issue, not a Packet8 issue. Finally, I've seen a number of complaints regarding the porting of an existing number to Packet8 ... that it takes a long time. Again, this is not a Packet8 issue. While competing phone companies are required to surrender an existing number to a competitor when asked, they take their own sweet time about it. I suspect they're hoping users will blame the NEW provider for the delay and throw up their hands in frustration, choosing to stay with their CURRENT provider. In fact, delays in porting an existing number to a new service are largely the fault of the CURRENT provider, not the NEW provider.
Solution? Dump your old number and get a new one. Problem solved. In the future, I hope the FCC will address the issue and impose a porting "deadline" on providers. Complaints on porting time delays are inherent with many providers, not just Packet8. And, like I suggested, customers blaming the "accepting" service provider for the delay are blaming the WRONG provider in most cases. It's basic consumer logic. Who is more likely to give you the worst customer service ... a new provider eager to have your business ... or an old provider you're abandoning? Think about this.
P.S. One thing you may notice. All VoIP calls are routed through hubs. Vonage's hub is in New Jersey so caller-ID stamps are Eastern time. Packet8's hub is in California so caller-ID stamps are Pacific time. This can also create some confusion with people who dial "region-based" toll-free numbers. Example.
I occasionally call into the Coast-to-Coast AM radio show, originally done by Art Bell. They have two toll-free lines. One is designated for callers East of the Rockies, another for callers West of the Rockies. When I was with Vonage, and even though I live in Oregon, I could only call in on the "East" of the Rockies line (because Vonage's hub is in New Jersey). But now I'm with Packet8, I can call in using the proper line.
If you normally dial "region-based" toll-free numbers as a matter of business, you'll probably have to start dialing a non toll-free number (which is free with Vonage or Packet8 anyway) if your provider's hub is located outside the region specified by the business's phone.
BTW, if you're wondering why I left Vonage, it was because I was paying (in part) for 911 service I was NOT getting ... and found out I wasn't alone. Three state attorneys general, so far, have filed deceptive marketing practices suits against Vonage for 911 "irregularities" (Texas, Michigan, Connecticut). And, I waited until after the November 30th FCC deadline mandating e911 coverage to start shopping around for a new provider. Packet8 is e911 compatible.
One final cautionary note. If you have a power failure or if your broadband ISP has a service interruption, your VoIP phone will not work. This can be dangerous if you need to make a 911 call during such a time. The solution is to buy a $19.99 Nokia 1100 TracFone which comes with 20 minutes of airtime (through TracFone.com or at local Target and WalMart stores). Just keep it charged up and, if you NEED to make a call during downtimes, you can. Also, keep this in mind. Once, I had a power failure but needed to make a call. I went next door to my neighbor to use her landline phone - but it was out, too. The same falling tree limb that cut our power also cut her phone line. So, I recommend ALL users of landline or VoIP phones to have this cheap alternative handy. Between the time I dumped Vonage and enabled Packet8, it was my only telephone. And, I still use it as an emergency backup phone on the rare occasion it's needed.
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8x8 Packet8 Broadband VoIP Service with Adapter 4108X8 Inc. (BPA410) Broadband Phone Adapter
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