Confused: Am I hearing ooma or the landline

[lesag002]

I have ooma connected with a landline. Upon reading other posts, I'm confused about whether the local calls I'm making/receiving are happening over the landline or the internet (via ooma). Which is it? The voice quality is very landline-like, so I want to make sure it's due to the excellent technology of ooma and not just because ooma is routing calls via my landline. Can someone clarify how calls are routed with a landline connection?

Thanks!

Mark

[murphy]

If you integrated your land line with ooma, all incoming calls are on your land line and all outgoing local calls are on your land line. Only the long distance calls go over ooma.

If you did not integrate your land line with ooma, all calls made on the phone connected to ooma are via ooma. In this case you would have a new ooma phone number in addition to your land line number.

[lesag002]

By the way, when I activated ooma, I didn't create a new ooma number. The only number I have is my landline number. The instructions made it sound like I shouldn't select a new ooma number if I wanted to use ooma with a landline. Maybe I misunderstood the instructions...?

How do I get an ooma number now that I've already activated things? I plan to drop my landline if I decide to keep ooma after the 30-day return window has expired (which I'm thinking I will keep it).

Thanks again!

Mark

[murphy]

You need to call customer support and ask them to switch your hub to use without a land line. You will then be able to select a new number for ooma. If you want to keep your current land line number, it can be ported to ooma for $39.99 if my old memory is working correctly or if you sign up for the annual version of Premier the port is free.

[lesag002]

Thanks Muphy!

So, since I've only made local calls so far, I haven't actually tested ooma and have no idea what the call quality is like, too bad....

If I make a long distance call, then the call will be routed over the internet, which will give me a sense of the VoIP call quality is like, correct? Is it safe to assume that local VoIP calls (after I drop my landline) will sound at least as good as the long-distance VoIP calls that I can make now?

[niknak]

...Is it safe to assume that local VoIP calls (after I drop my landline) will sound at least as good as the long-distance VoIP calls that I can make now?

Call quality using VOIP depends on the quality of your network connections, so all other things being equal the answer is yes

[bw1]

In the Ooma lounge under preferences -> system, you can enable or disable the Ooma Connection Tone. The default is Enabled. You can click on the speaker icon to hear what it sounds like.

That connection tone is played whenever you make a call that is using Ooma and placed through your internet connection instead of through your landline. You'll hear the tone twice, once when you first dial the number and again when the call is connected.

This allows you to know when a call is made through Ooma or not and you should probably keep it enabled while you're testing with an integrated landline.

[RN09]

Since I actived ooma and jointed this forum, there is one thing I have been confused when reading about "intergrate" stuff. I know this question was asked many times but still, confused . Hopefully, this time, someone please explain clearly for me. Thanks.

I don't remember what I did when activated ooma. At first I picked one number with ooma then a week later a picked another one (premium package). So now I have three numbers: landline and 2 from Ooma.

Look back to the instruction book when installed the system. I used the spliter connected to wall phone jack. Then one to the hub and one to the modem. On the book it's called "DSL & Phone on the same line)

I downgraded my landline to a very basic package. Only free inbound calls, I will get charged for any outbound calls eventhough they are local.

With the set up above, did I intergrate my landline with ooma? Would I get charged by my landline when I made call from ooma's line?

I know that everytime when I make a call, if I hear ooma sound that means I am using ooma system? Just want to confirm.

[niknak]

It sounds like you didn't integrate your landline with ooma since you chose a new number and then another new number while keeping your landline separate.

putting the most basic service on the landline is a good idea

a way to check would be to unplug the cat5 cable from the hub, then pick up the phone connected to the hub - if you have a dialtone then the landline is integrated, if you have no dialtone, then the ooma is stand alone

[WayneDsr]

My ooma is not setup WITH a landline. My landline is separate. However, ooma is connected to my wall jack through the wall port.
If I disconnect my hub from the internet and the light goes red, I am able to hear landline in place of the ooma dial tone.

That is my land line fail over.

Wayne