Questions before signing up, can anyone help???

Posts: 82

Hello,
I have a few questions before i sign up that maybe some of you have an answer for.
1. Can i sign up getting a new number and at a later time if i like the service, switch my current number?
2. Anyone on the prolog cable service have vonage and what have your experiences been?
3. Is there any advantage over buying the equipment from a store with rebates than receiving the equipment they send you. features etc?

Thank you to those that can supply some answers....

Posts: 3198 · Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2005 3:21 pm Post subject:

1. yes
2. try the link on the left hand side of this page and testyourvoip.com, detailed results. if you don't understand it, post the results here.
3. the one that's free is usually the PAP2. you need a network (at least a router anyway) to use it. the one vonage sends (linksys RT31P2) is a router. see this thread for more info.
http://vonage-forum.com/ftopic2322.html

Posts: 82 · Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2005 3:33 pm Post subject:

I do currently have a wireless network using a linksys befw11s4 wireless router. can i use their (vonages) router with my router as well? I cannot give up the wireless. also my results on that test are :
Download 962,392 bps
Upload 141,784 bps
QOS 98%
RTT 67 ms
MaxPause 31 ms
Vonage VoIP Analysis
Given your current Internet speeds, we estimate that your Internet connection can support a maximum of 1 simultaneous high quality Vonage® VoIP connections.

thanks again

Posts: 3198 · Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2005 3:43 pm Post subject:

yes you can. I have a wireless network also. the first link is how I have it set up (which is the recommended way so that the vonage/linksys RT31P2 router can provide Quality of Service {QoS} which basically gives your voice traffic priority over your network traffic).

http://vonage.com/help_knowledgeBase_article.php?article=61

http://vonage.com/help_knowledgeBase_article.php?article=88

Posts: 429

jim2766 wrote:

Can i sign up getting a new number and at a later time if i like the service, switch my current number?

Yes, and it's the probably the best way of doing it before committing to an LNP of your POTS line.

jim2766 wrote:

Is there any advantage over buying the equipment from a store with rebates than receiving the equipment they send you. features etc?

It's a wee bit cheaper (in my case $13 overall, when figuring in rebate, free month with a buddy referral, etc.) and you can activate service the minute you walk in the door, as opposed to waiting several days for the UPS truck. But, you're responsible for the equipment. If it breaks, you pay to fix or replace it. Be sure to check the replace/refund policy of the store where it was purchased. If you get it from Vonage, you simply call them up, tell them it's broken, and they send out a replacement. As for your other question, the service features are the same no matter how you sign up; it's just the adapters (PAP2 vs. RT31P2) which are usually different.

jim2766 wrote:

also my results on that test are :
Download 962,392 bps
Upload 141,784 bps
QOS 98%
RTT 67 ms

Depending on how reliable your upstream data rate is, you may have to drop the bandwidth saver to the "Higher" (50 kbps) quality setting to avoid dropouts or choppy calls. I've messed around with all of the bandwidth saver settings, including the "Normal" (30 kbps, lowest bandwidth) option and to my ear it sounded just as good as a typical POTS call. "High" (90 kbps) quality can be marginal on 128k upstream, if your link cannot support it reliably throughout the duration of the call. http://www.vonage.com/help_knowledgeBase_article.php?article=301

I don't know if "Normal" quality translates in the literal sense to what a "normal" POTS line provides (if anyone knows for sure, please post), but if it does then there seems little reason to use High quality and waste all that bandwidth if most/all of your calls are to POTS lines that can't take advantage of it. FWIW, I have two of our lines set to Higher (50 kbps) quality. Line 3 is set to High just because we use it for fax also.

My $0.02.