Calling with the Ooma skill on Alexa

[spunky]

Can someone please clarify what to expect when making a call with the Alexa app via Ooma? Will the Echo device act as a speaker allowing me to directly speak with the other person on the line? Or will it simply dial the number and have me complete the call with the phone that is connected to my Ooma?

Based on the answers written on this forum, the second explanation is what occurs (but some of the posts are somewhat old). However, after asking more than one Ooma representative, I'm told that the Echo device will act as a speaker allowing you to complete your call. Can someone please confirm one or the other?

Secondly, I'm having some difficulty making a call via the Ooma skill on the Alexa app. After asking Alexa to place the call via Ooma, I get the following response "calling your phone. answer it to be connected to (phone number)" and nothing happens after that. Does anyone know what should happen next and how to fix this issue? Do I need to be using a special "Ooma approved" phone for this to work? I'm using a standard landline phone.

I'd appreciate any help. I've been searching online for a solution and have been unsuccessful, the Ooma representatives have not been much help with this issue either. Thank you.

[Robek]

According to this other topic, Ooma skills no longer works with Alexa. The Echo device required an additional Echo Connect device connected to the Telo to make or receive hands-free calls. Otherwise, Alexa could only dial the number, and the caller needed to pick up the phone to complete the call.

[spunky]

Hi Robek, thanks for your reply and all the info. That makes complete sense. That’s too bad, I was really looking forward to using that functionality.

[adam2022]

You are incorrect about the echo having required any echo connect device to work. My mother used the echo by itself with the Alexa skill to make calls through her ooma for 3 years. It just stopped working out of nowhere in April. It acts like it's working but the Ooma servers don't accept the protocol anymore. It's as if they just closed the port that it uses. They still even advertise it as working with Alexa. I feel like someone made a mistake over there and they can't figure out how to fix it because of incompetence. You can still link your amazon account with ooma. It's just dumb and I'm really disappointed with them.

[Robek]

Re-read the questions in the initial post. The Echo could use the Ooma skill to dial a phone number, but it still required a linked telephone, (supplied separately), for the actual call. Or, instead of a telephone, users could plug an Echo Connect device into the Ooma Telo, and then use the Echo itself as a speakerphone.

Why assume that the Ooma skill stopped working because of something Ooma did, rather than because of something Amazon did?