mocycler

Premium Member

join:2001-01-22 7 recommendations mocycler Premium Member And even that 50.8% figure is artificially low... ...because it does not account for those who have a fixed POTS line but only because it is free/part of a package deal.



My wired phone line is free as part of my AT&T internet/TV deal. I don't even have a phone plugged into the line and if it broke down I probably would never notice. I sure as hell would never pay for a wired line.



So although I am technically in the 39.4% that have both, in reality I am a cellphone-only guy.



FlatWorld

join:2016-07-11

US Alcatel-Lucent G-240G-A

6 recommendations FlatWorld Member Emergencies I still maintain a POTS line for emergencies.



1. E911 location is extremely inaccurate on cell phones. A fixed line delivers addressing info immediately to police.



2. I have weak cell reception at home and experience frequent power outages. My landline typically becomes my only form of communication during those times.



trparky

CYA! I'm gone!

Premium Member

join:2000-05-24

Cleveland, OH 5 recommendations trparky Premium Member Ooma I've gone to Ooma for phone service at my parent's place. It's easy to use and maintain but it has lots of features including the ability to customize what caller ID shows and extensive call blocking functionality. Traditional telco doesn't provide this level of functionality.

microphone

Premium Member

join:2009-04-29

Parkville, MD 5 recommendations microphone Premium Member I prefer keeping a "landline" at my address. My calls are clearer, I don't have to worry about poor reception, and it provides a redundant communications option. I put "landline" in quotes because I am getting it over FIOS. But it's still traditional once the signal is converted to analog at the ONT and put over the copper wiring inside the home, however.



It's easy to leave behind your cellphone and not realize it until you're in your home, alone, and something bad happens.



va176thunder

join:2001-09-14

Columbus, OH 3 recommendations va176thunder Member Driven away from POTS by Telco I'd bve curious to see what percentage have been driven away from POTS to something else. I know in my area, AT$T tries everything it can to steer/sell their U-Verse offering.



I tried recently to get one as I work from home, and want the reliability of it, and couldn't get one.

b10010011

Whats a Posting tag?

join:2004-09-07

Bellingham, WA 4 edits 3 recommendations b10010011 Member They can have my POTS line when they pry it from my cold dead fingers



In general if all you need is the ability to send dick-pics to female acquaintances then just having cellular is fine.



But if you require reliable communications during an emergency POTS has your back. As I said here » They can have my POTS line when they pry it from my cold dead fingers In general if all you need is the ability to send dick-pics to female acquaintances then just having cellular is fine.But if you require reliable communications during an emergency POTS has your back.



Anon913ab

@2600:1017.x 3 recommendations Anon913ab Anon Location All good until your choking and call 911 and they can't pin point you location.

rradina

join:2000-08-08

Chesterfield, MO ·Charter

2 recommendations rradina Member POTS Margins If the POTS infrastructure is now maintained with half the subs, is naked DSL revenue making up the difference? If not, are the telcos losing money or are POTS margins crazy good? There are interconnect fees paid to the terminating system but that goes both ways. Perhaps there's a statistically significant chunk of terminations skewed by mostly inbound business calls (i.e. ordering pizza???)? There has to be a critical breaking point where new revenue is needed to keep the lights burning.



Cat Scratch

join:2005-06-27 2 recommendations Cat Scratch Member POTS? What POTS? My neighbor and I had our POTS lines disconnected last month.



It wasn't by choice, a tree that borders the property fell over and took 'em out. Hasn't been replaced yet as we both have cell phones.



Does that count?

margegenever

join:2010-08-19

USA 2 recommendations margegenever Member Not clear if I can switch I've got a POTS line with 5 extensions in my house. I use the POTS daily for business conference calls with a speaker phone and thus require reliability and call clarity. I've not been able to get a straight answer from Verizon as to whether their "Wireless Home Phone" box will connect into my home wiring and support the 5 extensions. Multiple calls to Verizon and visits to a local Verizon store have gotten me 2 'yes' answers and 3 'no' answers. None of my queries had instilled any confidence that this is a well-supported Verizon product.



I've tried 2 VOIP services and have found both unreliable, likely due to poor internet provider options in my area - the only option is 3 Mbs fixed wireless.

Corporate

join:2014-10-04 2 recommendations Corporate Member Convenience of landline With cellular, one has to carry their phone throughout the house, as cellular lacks the ability to have multiple phones connected to one line.



With landline, you can connect as many phones as one wants.



For this reason, among others, I fail to see the appeal of using a cellular phone as a home-phone.

Stewart

join:2005-07-13 2 recommendations Stewart Member Survey facts, please.



The CDC's report is at »



The key question asked was "[Is there] at least one phone inside your home that is currently working and is not a cell phone?" The 50.8% of respondents that answered "no" (and had cell phones) presumably had none of: POTS, ISP-supplied digital voice, independent VoIP such as Vonage, Ooma, etc., BYOD VoIP, or wireless home phone, i.e. they had only their cell phones for making and receiving calls.



IMO, the vast majority of those who still have some form of "landline" don't use it for routine communication. It's only there for:

Reliable access to emergency services.

Alarm system, medical alert, fax, TiVo or other non-voice applications.

A backup in case the mobile has a dead battery or is otherwise not working.

A number to give contacts you don't really want to hear from.

A way to keep the number that you've had for many years.



It is a shame that fixed phone providers of all kinds have made little effort to make fixed phones as easy to use as mobiles. They should sync with (mobile) contacts and allow voice dialing by name or number. On incoming, they should accurately display (and announce, if desired) who is calling and who is being called.



A question for the readers here: When you are home and call a friend, family member or business, do you use a home phone or your mobile? Why? There is lots of misleading information in this thread. Unfortunately, Karl posted "news about news", referring to a Fortune article that didn't link to the data.The CDC's report is at » www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nh ··· 1705.pdf ; A good article about it, including an interview with the author, is at » www.npr.org/sections/all ··· ing-them The key question asked was "[Is there] at least one phone inside your home that is currently working and is not a cell phone?" The 50.8% of respondents that answered "no" (and had cell phones) presumably had none of: POTS, ISP-supplied digital voice, independent VoIP such as Vonage, Ooma, etc., BYOD VoIP, or wireless home phone, i.e. they had only their cell phones for making and receiving calls.IMO, the vast majority of those who still have some form of "landline" don't use it for routine communication. It's only there for:Reliable access to emergency services.Alarm system, medical alert, fax, TiVo or other non-voice applications.A backup in case the mobile has a dead battery or is otherwise not working.A number to give contacts you don't really want to hear from.A way to keep the number that you've had for many years.It is a shame that fixed phone providers of all kinds have made little effort to make fixed phones as easy to use as mobiles. They should sync with (mobile) contacts and allow voice dialing by name or number. On incoming, they should accurately display (and announce, if desired) who is calling and who is being called.A question for the readers here: When you are home and call a friend, family member or business, do you use a home phone or your mobile? Why?

CyberGuy

join:2006-08-21

Colbert, WA 2 recommendations CyberGuy Member History will call me a digital pioneer Dropped POTS and all things dial-up in 2003.