What is the best VoIP + VDSL2 bundled package in the market right now ?

Forums › VoIP › What is the best VoIP + VDSL2 bundled package in the market right now ?

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meow
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#895968 15-Sep-2013 17:28

What does VoIP do for you that the PSTN network doesn't? It sounds as if you're just needing VDSL in general. Telecom's VDSL packages are good and competitive and come with a PSTN line (so during power outages you're able to use it) - For general family use PSTN does everything you're needing, in my opinion you're not really needing VoIP.

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BlueToothKiwi

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#895996 15-Sep-2013 18:29

michaelmurfy: It sounds as if you're just needing VDSL in general. Telecom's VDSL packages are good and competitive and come with a PSTN line (so during power outages you're able to use it)

Yeah - that is why I started this thread to doubly make sure it is compelling enough reason to switch. The answers above from existing customers give a pretty good litmus test of different providers.

The reality is as far as VDSL is concerned - there is not much difference - they are all selling the same thing (except for the price - you get more GB per $ with Snap). As for Telecom Voice - I am on an old exchange - so they cant give me any nice features - e.g. I cant even have Caller ID!!!

I guess the bottom line is service. While I have had good service from Telecom for voice, I have had appalling customer service from broadband helpdesk during the last three times I have had a problem with my modem / my line or outages. I got nothing against Telecom having the call centre 7000km away - but every time I rang them I somehow ended up with an idiot.

With choosing a VDSL provider, I dont want this drag on any further - I want to provision this today (Sunday) - so I just rang the four main providers this afternoon.

- Telecom Sales (the first one I rang) put me on hold - and eventually I hung up after about 35 mins.
- The (09) number for 2-Talk went to voice mail - which is a shame - as I wanted to talk to them before I signed up with anyone else.
- AS for WxC that coffeebaron suggested - The 0800 number went to a message saying it is outside their business hours which is fair enough given they primarilly serve business.
- SNAP on the other hand, answered their 0800 number within 2 rings, answered all my queries arising from the discussion above, and a guy called James walked me through the different packages and what my options are based on my needs. He provisioned a Naked plan put through the Chorus request, took my order for the free VDSL modem, charged my first payment by direct debit - all within 15 minutes). Now I just have to wait for Chorus to install the VDSL splitter and await the courier for the modem. I give them 10/10 for customer experience so far.

So now that I got the VDSL sorted - I still have to provision voice / VoIP. I still cant make my mind up between the shortlist.

The choice I have is:
- $10/month extra to get Snap Plus - lets me use my existing phone and plug it into the modem. The offering is too basic for me.
- $35/month Bus value plan from 2Talk - seem really good value considering what you get for it.
- $11.50/month VFX Primary Line from WorldExchange looks really good.... especially if I add the VFX advanced features @ $6/month.

Tim M, Auckland
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RunningMan

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#896002 15-Sep-2013 18:57

BlueToothKiwi:
- $11.50/month VFX Primary Line from WorldExchange looks really good.... especially if I add the VFX advanced features @ $6/month.

This. Particularly if you don't want to muck around with any config.

chevrolux

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#896032 15-Sep-2013 20:27

Honestly I wouldn't touch Snap VoIP. Like CoffeeBaron said before, they didn't even have a decent dial plan sorted as well as some massive DTMF issues. They are an excellent ISP but haven't quite figured out the VoIP thing yet.

Not sure why would you get the $35 business plan from 2Talk. The $10 plan would service a home just fine. Once again, and I must stress this, you will get no support from them to set up your device. Don't be surprised they don't answer the phone. It is just how they work things and it works fine as long as you are confident with VoIP set ups.

Again, WxC would be my choice. Get yourself a Cisco SPA112 (i assume these are supported), plug it in and done. You will never ever have to worry about your line being registered (which I can assure you is something that will happen, especially when bring a FritzBox in to the picture lol). WxC will take care of the whole thing.

As for @michaelmurfy's comments in regards to not needing VoIP. I think moving to VoIP is not so much about what it can offer it is just about moving in to the next generation of communications. Something Telecom hasn't quite done yet to the mass market. And the features are nice though... why should we have to pay extra just to get caller ID and voicemail?!

sidefx

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#896061 15-Sep-2013 21:41

BlueToothKiwi:
Which Fritbox did they give you? Was it the FritzBox 7340 or the 7390? They dont have any pricing on the Fritzbox - I am assuming it is part of the monthly fee even on 'BROADBAND & SNAP PLUS' the regardless of which Fritbox I get?

Just curious - why did you not sign up for their 'BROADBAND AND PHONE' with SNAP and have just one provider?

I got the 7340, they weren't offering the 7390 at the time, but the 7340 has been absolutely fine. I would probably still go with it or the 7360 if it's equivalent. The 7340 only has 2 network ports, but put a gigE switch behind it and that's no problem. The other differences were fairly minimal IIRC. I've found wifi to be fine with it.

I didn't sign up with snap for VOIP as they didn't offer it at the time. I'm quite glad they didn't seeing the issues some folk have had with snap VOIP since then.

As for 2Talk:

You could sign up for a 2talk free number to have a play with their platform. Or just a local number for 11.50 for a single month. That's what I did. I'm no expert but had little issue setting it up on a couple of android phones (using SIPDroid as the SIP client) and the fritzbox.

I've heard how terrible their support is (particularly by phone) so I've never bothered trying to phone them. I have logged 2 tickets through their online issue system in the past though and both times got a good, helpful response online within a reasonable timeframe.

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billgates

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#896080 15-Sep-2013 22:24

Have had Snap VOIP line since January 2013 with 0 issues. It just works without any issues that I have experienced.

Do whatever you want to do man.

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DonGould

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#896094 15-Sep-2013 22:44

sidefx:
As for 2Talk:

You could sign up for a 2talk free number to have a play with their platform. Or just a local number for 11.50 for a single month. That's what I did. I'm no expert but had little issue setting it up on a couple of android phones (using SIPDroid as the SIP client) and the fritzbox.

I've heard how terrible their support is (particularly by phone) so I've never bothered trying to phone them. I have logged 2 tickets through their online issue system in the past though and both times got a good, helpful response online within a reasonable timeframe.

2Talk have a bunch of resellers which can and do provide reasonable front line support.

I agree with the suggestion to get an account for a month and have a play. People just forget this stuff is not like a fixed line phone where you have to pay for connection and then there's an early disconnect fee.

Grandstream have a very simple, single line ATA that is less then $100 or you can go with the 2 Line Cisco or one of the other Grandstream products.

Phone support at 2Talk has got much better recently, but they are only generally there during business hours. Resellers can be found out side of those hours though :)

D - 2Talk Reseller.

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chevrolux

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#896102 15-Sep-2013 23:18

We are 2talk resellers as well and personally I find the service to work very well.

I simply recommend WxC as I dont think the OP is going to have a fun time configuring the VoIP service themselves. The fact they had to ask who to use tells me perhaps they just need something that will work first time. WxC will allow that to happen.

DonGould

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#896104 15-Sep-2013 23:34

chevrolux: We are 2talk resellers as well and personally I find the service to work very well.

I simply recommend WxC as I dont think the OP is going to have a fun time configuring the VoIP service themselves. The fact they had to ask who to use tells me perhaps they just need something that will work first time. WxC will allow that to happen.

ya I half agree and half don't.

These days I send out ATA's and they 'just go' without drama. But having said that, when the customer logs in and changes their 2Talk password without realizing it also needs changing in the ATA at the same time then they get stressed and confused, so yes, you have a valid comment.

With respect to alarms and faxes, it really is old technology and time to turn it off.

I had the whole alarm discussion a while back on Whirlpool and they all laughed at me that we're not all just using GSM alarm systems - people cut phone lines you know ;)

Personally I looked at WxC and 2Talk when I started out. I just liked the feature set that 2Talk provides for the price. At first I thought I'd never use a fraction of it... now I run our own PABX in house.

D

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michaelmurfy

meow
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#896110 15-Sep-2013 23:48

chevrolux:
As for @michaelmurfy's comments in regards to not needing VoIP. I think moving to VoIP is not so much about what it can offer it is just about moving in to the next generation of communications. Something Telecom hasn't quite done yet to the mass market. And the features are nice though... why should we have to pay extra just to get caller ID and voicemail?!

I do use VoIP with 2talk, but also have a PSTN line, it's more most people don't need VoIP and don't understand what it /really/ is. For me it's a way to contact my parents but without broadband it doesn't work, broadband is a best effort service and most of the time is not as reliable as the PSTN network. It does have some cool features but 99% of home users don't know what these are or how to use them, the other issue being Naked VDSL + VoIP isn't normally cheaper than having a PSTN phone which for me was very valuable during the earthquakes in Christchurch due to the fact my broadband went down.

In my opinion for your home user the Telecom PSTN network offers unmatched reliability in comparison with VoIP and functioned well during the Christchurch Earthquakes, and since I now live in Wellington after both big quakes I lost both mobile and broadband but had PSTN and was able to make calls.

It's a safety thing for me which most people don't understand, it may be old but it's got proven stability which is the reason why I keep a landline, Telecom has done a very good job in keeping the PSTN network up to standard which is why I don't understand the need to all the sudden switch to VoIP for your standard homephone. This is just my 2c.

richms

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#896114 15-Sep-2013 23:56

PSTN, where you can pay telecom or whoever is reselling an absolute absurd amount for basic features like caller ID, call waiting and an offsite answering service - all which come free with most voip.

Limit yourself to a single concurrent call because that's all it can do, vs the at least 2 and often more that a voip solution will offer.

Hell, chorus resold PSTN cant even deliver caller ID on call waiting still, even if you are paying for both services you still dont get to see the number when on a call already.

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BlueToothKiwi

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#896146 16-Sep-2013 07:52

sidefx: .. but the 7340 has been absolutely fine.... The 7340 only has 2 network ports,

Good - that is what I just ordered. It was free with the contract. I could have paid $50 more for the 7390 - but I dont need any more LAN ports, I dont need the double n Wifi - as I will be using my Cisco Wi-fi router plugged into the GB ethernet port. Even the extra memory in the 7390 is useless as I will never plug in a NAS drive into the ADSL modem's USB port.

Tim M, Auckland
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BlueToothKiwi

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#896148 16-Sep-2013 07:55

richms: PSTN, where you can pay telecom or whoever is reselling an absolute absurd amount for basic features like caller ID, call waiting and an offsite answering service - all which come free with most voip.

chevrolux: As for @michaelmurfy's comments in regards to not needing VoIP. I think moving to VoIP is not so much about what it can offer it is just about moving in to the next generation of communications.

Spot on richm and chevrolux.

michaelmurfy: Telecom PSTN network offers unmatched reliability in comparison with VoIP and functioned well during the Christchurch Earthquakes

If you are going t have movement in earth, the underground cables are vulnerable. Thanks for sharing your experience re CH WLN earthquakes - but after a national disaster in Auckland, I wont rely on your land line to be up!! I got a couple of VHF radios in the house fully charged - I will be relying on that if the five mobiles (from three carriers) that the kids have are all down!

Tim M, Auckland
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BlueToothKiwi

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#896151 16-Sep-2013 07:59

chevrolux: Not sure why would you get the $35 business plan from 2Talk. !

I like the fact that this plan has five DDI's - so I can give the kids one number each - so they all have a local land number so we are not constantly taking messages for each person. Snap does not have an equivalent of that. The WXC equivalent of that is way more.

Basically I came up with the best value plan from each providers that had the best cross section of features per unit dollar. It is not comparing apple with apple, and in the case of Snap - they just have one basic offering.

To help anyone else going through the process - this is what I quickly put together while choosing between the three providers [Please dont complain if it is not 100%accurate (e.g. the $35 for 2Talk is GST exclusive others include).... - but you get the gist of it):

Tim M, Auckland
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BlueToothKiwi

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#896177 16-Sep-2013 08:51

chevrolux: We are 2talk resellers as well and personally I find the service to work very well. ... I simply recommend WxC as ...

Thanks for all your comments - Can I ask the VoIP resellers who responded to this thread to answer just one question:

If I was to use the VoIP SIP client from my iPhone5 (either Goundwire / Acrobits or Bria for me (and the free Zoiper SIP Phone for the kids)),

(1) Will it work with all all three providers above (2Talk / WorldxChange / Snap Plus)?
(2) Which one has the best sound quality

Tim M, Auckland
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