Ooma Forums

Hi.

I eMailed ooma support this question, and they decided not to get back to me (it's been over a week), so I'll ask here:

I have read that it's possible to use ooma in 2-phone homes with the same number. Did I read correctly? Is the way to hook the 2nd phone up via a splitter? There is only one wall jack in my home.

Thanks,

ooma_thurman

If you have the Premier service, you can get an instant second line which is there when you need it. If someone is on the phone and you pick up the phone in another room, rather than hear them talking, you will get the instant second line and can dial out. Same goes for someone calling in. If someone is on the phone and there is an incoming call, it will go automatically to the second line and the other fine that is not being used will ring. Really very convenient.

The catch for this is that if you have one base for your phone and multiple handsets that are all work off that base -- and who doesn't these days -- the instant second line won't work. It has to be two (or more) SEPARATE phones in order for the instant second line to work. That was disappointing to me, with my Panasonic base and 4 handsets.

If I am wrong about this, please correct me, somebody, but I don't think I am. Says so in the manual. I am now setting about buying a new, separate phone for my talkative daughter. I'm not sure what kind to get, one of the 6.0 GHz phones that are not troubled by all the other digital stuff in my house.

"" It has to be two (or more) SEPARATE phones in order for the instant second line to work. That was disappointing to me, with my Panasonic base and 4 handsets. ""

While that must be disappointing, in ooma's defense this same situation would have been faced regardless of any phone service you might have chosen to work with. There are some wireless telephone models out there that do have provisions to hook up two separate 'phone lines' and dial out on either one at the same time, but I do not know if Panasonic's models are one of those.

If interference is a concern, you might ask if it is really necessary for that second phone-line to be a 'wireless' telephone, instead of a regular corded-model telephone. But chances are everyone wants that 'wireless' one.

That wasn't what I asked. In my posting, I mentioned that I had "one phone number" which I'd need for two phones, not two separate phone lines which = two phone numbers.

ooma_thurman

Robin S wrote:If you have the Premier service, you can get an instant second line which is there when you need it. If someone is on the phone and you pick up the phone in another room, rather than hear them talking, you will get the instant second line and can dial out. Same goes for someone calling in. If someone is on the phone and there is an incoming call, it will go automatically to the second line and the other fine that is not being used will ring. Really very convenient.

The catch for this is that if you have one base for your phone and multiple handsets that are all work off that base -- and who doesn't these days -- the instant second line won't work. It has to be two (or more) SEPARATE phones in order for the instant second line to work. That was disappointing to me, with my Panasonic base and 4 handsets.

If I am wrong about this, please correct me, somebody, but I don't think I am. Says so in the manual. I am now setting about buying a new, separate phone for my talkative daughter. I'm not sure what kind to get, one of the 6.0 GHz phones that are not troubled by all the other digital stuff in my house.

Just to clarify, read this...

1) My home has 1 phone jack.
2) I currently have 1 phone number for 1 telephone with ooma.
3) I want to hook up a 2nd telephone with the same phone number with ooma.
4) I don't see why this wouldn't work with a splitter hooked up to the 1 phone jack in my home.
5) I have no interest in 2 telephone lines via ooma or 2 numbers.
6) I don't want to pay for ooma Premeire.
7) One of the phones includes the base, while the other is a handset that goes with phone #1.

ooma_thurman

ooma_thurman wrote:That wasn't what I asked. In my posting, I mentioned that I had "one phone number" which I'd need for two phones, not two separate phone lines which = two phone numbers.

ooma_thurman

One wall jack is useless if your trying to spread Ooma's hubs dialtone throughout your home. Many people have multi-phone cordless sets with Ooma. The base plugs into the hub and additional handsets don't need a phone jack, just a power outlet. A splitter won't do anything on a dead wall outlet as well as sending a dial tone to a single outlet will do nothing unless your connecting a phone outside your home in the telco box.

" I have read that it's possible to use ooma in 2-phone homes with the same number. "

Definitely. It is done all the time with ooma. Either splitting the TEL output on the ooma Hub to two different phones, or plugging the WALL outlet over to a telephone wall-plate with an RJ11 telephone wire, and plugging the ooma Scout unit (which is included with the ooma package) into another wall plate in another room, which is matched up with the first wall plate's internal wiring. Then plug in a second telephone to the Scout unit. Doing this with the Scout unit allows for message playback with the second phone.