ooma Review :VoIP Review

VoIP ooma is a breakthrough technology start-up, based in Palo Alto, and founded by CEO Andrew Frame. The “phone company moguls” in this company’s mix come from companies such as Apple, TiVo, Cisco, Intel, Yahoo! and Napster, which is one reason why you might expect innovation from this group. They are busy creating a new experience for telephone users, and “ooma is filing patents so customers can reclaim their dialtone and live—without fear of huge phone bills and mysterious surcharges—happily ever after.”

One way to experience these changes is through the way you use your home phone with the ooma system. This system is designed to be inexpensive, flexible and unlimited in its possibilities. When you purchase an ooma system, you own your dialtone. It’s that simple. Your one-time ooma purchase eliminates monthly charges for unlimited US calling. Compared to other stand-alone VoIP providers, there are no monthly fees for US calling.

Installation and Interface
ooma partners with your high-speed Internet connection and home phones to deliver unlimited calling to any number in the U.S. And, according to ooma, “It takes the average customer less than 20 minutes to activate and install the ooma system.” Each ooma device can support a regular home phone or cordless phone set.

The ooma Hub device is the brains of the ooma system and must be installed for the ooma service to work. The ooma Scout device extends the power of ooma to other areas of your home. It also gives you access to the Instant Second Line feature. When you purchase ooma and your system is shipped, you will need to activate your new system online.

The ooma Hub device package will contain an Ethernet cable, a short phone cable, a long phone cable, an ooma telephone splitter and an AC adapter. The system must be installed in a location that has access to the modem and a power outlet. If you plan to install ooma Scout devices, you must also have access to a phone jack. The materials that come with ooma are very clear and easy to read and understand.

Online, you have access to the ooma Lounge, where you can listen to messages, manage your account preferences, prepay for international minutes, even set up voicemail notifications to email and mobile devices, 24 hours a day.

Features
With ooma, you have free access to voicemail from any phone, the option to create voicemail notifications to email and mobile phone, low-cost international rates, and the flexibility to keep your phone number or to choose a new one anywhere in the U.S., caller ID and call waiting. You also can place three-way calls and use a “do not disturb” function.

ooma will move your phone number from your current phone provider to ooma for a one-time fee of $79 (some exceptions apply). Porting typically takes up to three weeks, so you must keep your current phone service until porting is complete. Alternatively, you can keep your existing phone service as a back-up and continue to use your current phone number without interruption, and this might be a wise idea to have access to 911 and 411 (ooma offers 411 for a fee, so compare before you use).

Performance
The ooma system has been built to deliver exceptional voice quality and reliability, giving you the crisp, acoustic performance of a landline, without the associated monthly charges. According to current customers, ooma offers “excellent voice quality,” and it’s “better than landline.”

The ooma Hub is designed to function effectively anywhere in your network. There are certain locations, however, where it works best. If you can connect the ooma Hub in your network between the modem and all the computers in the house, the ooma Hub can intelligently prioritize your phone calls over computer data transfers (like large file downloads or uploads) and maintain the best possible voice quality.

Service and Support
ooma offers one of the most extensive support systems we’ve seen, with online explanations that are repeated in several places. They maintain a knowledgebase, a FAQ, and they support forums and a blog and offer email, chat and phone support. The latter is offered Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 6:00 pm and Saturday and Sunday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, PST.

All ooma devices come with a one-year limited warranty for material defects. You can extend the one-year warranty to three years for the one-time fee. This option is available any time during the first year of service.

List of Features Available on ooma
Support: Yes
Guarantee: Yes
Residential Plan: Yes
Small Business Plan: No
411 Service: Yes for a fee.
911 Service: No Call Return (*69): Unknown
Call Waiting: Yes
Caller ID: Yes
Click-to-Call: No
Fax Line (FoIP): Yes
International Calling: Yes IP PBX Solution: No
Keep Your Number: Yes
PC-to-PC Calling: No
PC-to-Phone Calling: No
Virtual Phone Numbers: Yes