Answering The Home Phone In 2015 - How do you do it?

[GloryDayz]

We all know most of us have at least one cell phone (perhaps two), and we increasingly communicate via SMS and MMS texts, and email. With that in mind the percentage of legit calls to your house from friends and family is WAAAAAY down compared to stupid calls from vendors so, in the day-and-age of all this technology and caller ID (that can be faked) how do you answer calls on the home line (if you still have one)?

Do you ever answer?

Do you pick up and hang up without saying "hello" (because the robots on the other end know the word "hello" (and some say it's an invite to talk in some legal sense of the word)?

Do you pick up and tell whomever to "**** off and fist their mother" then hang up?

Do you give the phone to your 3-year-old to talk to them for as long as they'd like, or place the phone in front of the family parrot or TV (tuned to an infomercial)?

Do you let the answering machine pick up?

What do you do?

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by DaFace

What is this "home phone" you speak of? Seems like I had one of those 10-15 years ago, but I can't remember for sure.

With young ones in the house it's sort of a must. And I also require all my teleworking staff to have a land line/phone if they want to work from home more than 3-4 times a month.

My staff and I live on the phone, and it's still hard to beat a good speaker phone. And if that's not to your liking, a home phone set that allows for a wireless phone with tethered or bluetooth headset.

We've tried any number of softphones (Cisco, Avaya, you name it), and even LYNC, but in the end a "real' bridge with PRIs with "real" phones work the best. Yes, the soft phones "work" (you can hear people a lot of the time!!!), but with no QoS on the Internet, VPN tunnels, corporate gateways that are never enough (!!!!), when the kids get home from school, we can tell because the calls sound like crap.

All i know is that I'm not using cell minutes when folks spend 4-5 hours a day on the phone, and often time 6-7 a night on technical conference calls.

[Pablo]

My grandma has a home phone still. She's 75. She usually just answers with 'hello'.

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by BucEyedPea

I keep my land line because cells do not cover all areas and I prefer it for faxes over efax. I rarely use a fax but when I have gotten rid of it, someone always has to send a fax. So I have all bases covered.

I'd love to get rid of the land line. It's nearly always telemarketers despite being on the Do Not Call list, robo calls by politicians during elections but occasionally it's a valid call. So I do answer. I tell telemarketers that I wll report them for calling me when I am on the Do Not Call. They apologize and promise to scrub their lists. The robo calls I usually just hang up. Though I mostly use my cell now.

It pisses me off when someone gives out my cell to others without asking me. Now I have persistent caller I want nothing do with. Thanks to my sister who has moved here.

I fax a lot, and I've never had an issue with TWC's service. There's always a warning, but I can fax 10-20 pages and it's never failed.

[Mr. Laz]

Originally Posted by GloryDayz

Make and model?

I've had it for a long time. Don't even know if they make them anymore

Interceptor ID is the name i think

[Donger]

Originally Posted by Just Passin' By

Why? The whole point is to be on something other than your internet. Diversify, don't consolidate.

Cost.

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by Frosty

I don't know why she gave them our home phone instead of her cell. It's fun having the phone ring at 5:45 am on Friday, the one day I can sleep in (it's funny how often people are sick on Friday ).

Welp, if you had been at the gym for the last hour-and-fifteen at 5:45am like the rest of us this wouldn't be an issue...

Hint hint!!!

[Mr. Laz]

Originally Posted by Donger

http://www.nettalk.com/

Yea, but the land line still works if the power goes out.

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by Mr. Laz

I've had it for a long time. Don't even know if they make them anymore

Interceptor ID is the name i think

Will look into...

Does it look like this?

[big nasty kcnut]

I say welcome to the brad essex report or if it family. Welcome to pizza hut!

[Frosty]

Originally Posted by GloryDayz

Welp, if you had been at the gym for the last hour-and-fifteen at 5:45am like the rest of us this wouldn't be an issue...

Hint hint!!!

I normally have to be at work at 5 am. If I can sleep in, I am going to.

Also - "gym"

[listopencil]

Originally Posted by Donger

Nettalk actually emails a .wav file of the voicemail and translates it to text in the body of the email.

Yeah, Magic Jack does that too. I don't know about translating it to text though. I don't think it does that.

[Mr. Laz]

Originally Posted by GloryDayz

Will look into...

Does it look like this?

http://interceptorid.com/products/p2p.htm

[srvy]

Dropped ooma 3 years ago and got a obihai box a free google number. no taxes only thing i pay is 6 bucks a year for 911 service. It uses google voice and had excellent call screening. Box was 30 bucks ts very clear and very reliable.

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by Frosty

I normally have to be at work at 5 am. If I can sleep in, I am going to.

Also - "gym"

That's it, **** THE GYM!!! I'm done with it!

[Frosty]

Originally Posted by listopencil

Yeah, Magic Jack does that too. I don't know about translating it to text though. I don't think it does that.

My folks had MagicJack for awhile. It was really annoying to talk to them as you had to talk like you were on walkie-talkies. If you talked at the same time, it cut out.

I'm assuming that was an internet speed thing, though.