Glad to see VoIP Girl got around to posting some more stuff. (Is Dina Kaplan Video Girl?)
She’s got some tidbits about how her telephony habits differ from that of her parents. Check it out:
Is VOIP a generational thing? When I told my parents about my great scheme to use VOIP for my business line and long distance calling, Mom gave me that worried look that says “Are you sure that’s not illegal?” You should try it, I cry! Vonage, my service of choice at the time, was only $19.95 a month. A simple calculation on my phone bill told me I was spending more that that on long distance every month, so it seemed a no brainer.
Then Dad says, why don’t you just use 10-10-YAK? Only 5 cents a minute.
That’s what my parents use. YAK is a dial-around service you can use for long distance calling. The charges appear on your regular phone bill so there’s no subscriber contract to deal with.
But Dad (I’m deflated now), YAK isn’t VOIP, and VOIP is COOL. VOIP is the WAVE of the FUTURE…OK well whatever.
It’s really interesting how many of the people in my life are getting into VoIP phone replacement service at a rate like I’ve never previously seen. And it’s not just because they know a “VoIP Guy”. My mother-in-law, whom I NEVER expected to adopt VoIP, is now a card-carrying Packet8 customer. No generation gap there.
Now my mom, she’s in a different category. No sense trying to convince her to board the VoIP bandwagon. I’m not going to evangelize the technology for all the wrong reasons. Just like I gave up (several years ago) trying to convince my Windows-loving friends to buy a Mac. I’m not on Apple’s payroll, and I’m not on Packet8’s.
By the way, Time Warner “Digital Phone Service” is now being called “a bargain” at $40. Is that an easier pill to swallow than Packet8 for $20? Time will tell. The cable co’s are leading the VoIP phone-replacement service market right now, even for that 200% premium that buys you nothing vs. Packet8. Does that mean that Packet8 is leaving $20 a month on the table for each of its customers?
Let my BYOD and I *might* consider paying more. And I’m NOT cheap, seriously, I’m not.
