Out in the boonies of Alabama

After a long time of getting shafted by the local telco (35 for local service, only 200 minutes per month.), we decided to go Vonage.

I've been looking into Vonage for over a year now, but suddenly, our local Wal-Mart started carrying Vonage adapters. I had the choice of a Linksys cable modem/router/voip unit, another wireless/router/voip unit, and the PAP2 adapter. Since my network already has a 'tweaked' (read modded w/Linux) WRT54G wireless router and a Motorola 5100 Cable Modem, I decided on the Linksys PAP2 Adapter.

Installation was easy as pie. Plug it all up, plug into a spare port on the router (Not as easy as it sounds, I have 8 computers on my network). Next, I set a static IP on the PAP2, then configured port forwarding on the router to the adapter. While I was there, I also setup QoS on the port the PAP2 was plugged into.

Next, I went to the Vonage site, signed up for the 24.95 unlimited plan, chose a number (Nothing local, but no big deal), and was up and running after a few minutes.

Everything works. I maybe an exception on this board, but I had not one issue that perusing the Guides wouldn't fix. I can call anywhere, and anyone can call me. My network/internet is fast enough (786 down, 786 up)not to bother us when using the phone, and no stuttering or echo on the voice calls.

Overall: Saving $15 per month, unlimited calling, no long distance, and sound quality is excellent. I would mark that as "A " in my book.

Added: June 11th 2006
Reviewer: cwwilson
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