Home phone worth keeping?

[griffin]

I've been thinking of getting rid of my home phone since the start of the year, but am just hesitant, because I feel like I'm missing something that will leave me caught out someday needing it.
Over the last year or so, I've been paying for a home phone and a cheap $5 per month pre-paid mobile. But when Toyfair and BotCon earlier this year, I knew that I needed a better mobile plan (to use while interstate, and global roaming). The thing that bothered me though is that I rarely make phonecalls, and yet, I would now be paying for 2 phones every month.
I had to get rid of one, but it couldn't be the mobile.
The question is, is it possible to be without a home phone. I hear about people doing it, but how practical is it? Like, when you call up an automated number, does it recognise keying in number options like the home phone (the number tones), and more importantly, does it mean I will have to rely on the post office to send faxes (at the moment it is just one a year with BotCon registration, but when I was importing comics 5 years ago, I used a program on the computer to send faxes through the home phone line).
And the more selfless issue that worries me, is that other people will now have to pay more to call me.

First, has anyone else gotten rid of their home phone, and only have their mobile?

Anyway, the facts:
- The Monthly minimums: $49 (mobile), $20 (home phone, but goes up to $21 from November)
- Call Credit: $350 (mobile), $0 (home phone)
- Additional call charges: $0-20 (Not likely to go over $350 in a month on the mobile, but international calls are extra), $10-40 most months (home phone, and call costs are going up from November).

So the Mobile is more expensive to pay for each month, but seems unavoidable, and $49 looks to be the cheapest plan I could get to suit my needs, from a major (reliable long term) carrier who has global roaming.

Am I just wasting my time thinking about this, and should just go ahead and disconnect my home phone, or is there a reason I need to keep it?

[STL]

I think u should. I was living up in Sydney for several months a few years ago now and I saw no need to have a fixed line no. I think its more relevant where u've got an entire family to look after and more o/s calls. Well that's how it seems these days

[MV75]

Possible? Yea, naked dsl has made that a reality now. I personally never use, hardly ever, our fixed line. Then again, I never use my stupid mobile either, I'm nearing the end of my 6 months prepay and still have the $15 I put on it. I can order pizzahut online these days. :D Yea, I just don't have the need to stay plugged into everyone else through a phone. Online is my communication link.

What has changed your mind since yesterday when you used fax as a justification excuse and to end the discussion? ;)

[Pulse]

If you're basically not using it & people ring you on your mob when they want to find you, then there's really no point in having a fixed line... (it just goes to waste)

[jacksplatt11]

one positive will be no more telemarketers ringing haha..

i use our home phone for all my calls to anyone, but that's only because i'm living at home so mum pays and it doesn't effect my bank balance.. if i was living away from home i would have to way up whether its worth having a mobile and home phone, or having a mobile plan big enough to cover all your calls and still be less than a home phone plus mobile, bearing in mind mobile calls are usually more expensive..

on another note, do you need to have a home phone plan to be able to have the internet? or as long as you have a connection from your house to the phone lines and have no home phone plan you can still have the net... i am imagine dial up would be out (who has that nowadays anyway) but what about adsl etc..

[GoktimusPrime]

As others have said, it depends on your personal usage. My wife and I use our home phone to call other land line numbers (calling land lines from mobiles is more expensive for us) and yeah, for overseas calls too.


one positive will be no more telemarketers ringing haha..
I have fun with telemarketers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZhqL4pDryE). :D

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Transfandom%20Comic/transfandom13.jpg
^true story

Funnily enough I haven't had one call my land line in nearly a year (now they target my mobile).

:D :p

[kup]

I no longer use a phone mainly because I would never use it.

- Mobile
- Internet

That is all that I need for communication.

As a result I only spend $30/m for mobile and $50/m for Internet (which work pays for anyway :) )

[griffin]

Since someone pointed it out, the internet was something I forgot to mention - it is a broadband cable, not dialup, and not requiring a phone line.

As for the personal usage bit, well with $350 credit on the mobile for all local, SMS, Mobile and National calls, I should only have to pay for International and any numbers that have additional call costs. And since I never get above $50 on the home phone on any month, I can't see myself going over that credit amount. And even if I did make that many calls in a month, it would be still be less than the home phone at its cheaper rate. But with line rental and a number of call costs going up in November with Telstra, it's probably a good time to get out of it. And the biggest money grab is they are going to revert back to charging by the 30-second block from home to mobiles, instead of per second. Plus, they are getting rid of the Saturday night STD cap, which would be when it is most used, and both changes affect me. :mad:


What has changed your mind since yesterday when you used fax as a justification excuse and to end the discussion? ;)

Nothing. I just said I needed more time to think about it, and getting other people's opinions here now will help me think about it better.

[Tober]

I'm on Direct DSL so I have to have an active phone line, however my landline phone isn't plugged in and forms part of the DSL package.

Mobiles can be used to pay bills. I barely use my mobile either but have to have one so I have a Direct Plan (http://personal.optus.com.au/web/ocaportal.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=personal_mobile_producttypeMOB_marketSe gmentres&productpath=/personal/mobile&FP=/personal/mobile/plansandratesmobile/directplans&site=personal) which can now be as cheap as $10/month for 24 months and includes a decent phone and various calls/SMS per month - I hardly ever go over it.

I refuse to use Telstra. :p

[Kyle]

I refuse to use Telstra. :p

+ 1.

I agree it's a good time to get out of it.

[roller]

no no keep your homephone, the radiation in the mobile will keeeeeeeel you if used in excess

[iceburn]

Personally i don't think it's worth keeping since you don't use Dial-up (nor does most of us nowadays). Moreover, if you seldom use the home phone like i don't... it's simply a waste of money that could be redirected to your mobile usage.

My home phone is still active because my fiancee and i (including her sister) usually calls back Malaysia/Singapore to speak with our parents, hence we still have it. Otherwise I think it's unnecessary.

[1orion2many]

no no keep your homephone, the radiation in the mobile will keeeeeeeel you if used in excess

:oGod forbid I actually agree with Roller. This could explain why there are so many morons living in society this day and age:D.

[Saintly]

the only reason you would keep a land line is when you get to an automated voice menu and have to wait hours to speak to a real human.... those hours can really add up on the mobile air time..

If you don't have that issue, then you don't need the land line.

Those automated number works the same with mobiles as with land lines... besides most bills can now be paid online.

you could always try the all-in-one plan (I know Optus & 3 has them), not sure about Tel$tra though

[dirge]

If not for the fact that I need a landline for DSL (naked isn't an option for me, sadly), I'd ditch it. I have a silent number anyway, so I don't get calls from Hyderabad selling me cr4p. I pretty much only use the home phone to call family locally, so the usage is very low.

If you can get awya without home phone, I say do so.

[llamatron]

I got rid of my landline in April and now have naked DSL. It's the best thing I ever did. No more Telstra and no more telemarketers.

The only downside is that if you ever have to call 000 and your internet is down and your mobile is out of battery then you're screwed. So just make sure to keep your mobile charged at all times!

[roller]

is having a home phone really that expensive even if you never use it?

[MV75]

The only downside is that if you ever have to call 000 and your internet is down and your mobile is out of battery then you're screwed. So just make sure to keep your mobile charged at all times!

Introduce yourself to your neighbours. This country would be a lot better off if people learnt that small skill again instead of hiding behind their 6ft fences in their McMansions. ;)

[jacksplatt11]

Introduce yourself to your neighbours.

if you lived next to my neighbour, you wouldn't want to haha.. the most annoying family on the planet.. well they aren't that bad, but they are always coming over to asking to use our printer, our internet, ask for change, and even to do their kids homework :confused:

[STL]

if you lived next to my neighbour, you wouldn't want to haha.. the most annoying family on the planet.. well they aren't that bad, but they are always coming over to asking to use our printer, our internet, ask for change, and even to do their kids homework :confused:

Whoa! Now that's extreme.

I'm all for being helpful but that does seem going too far. Maybe I should be your neighbour. I'd only ask to play with your TFs and borrow them for just a few decades. :p

[llamatron]

is having a home phone really that expensive even if you never use it?

$20 - $30 a month probably.


Introduce yourself to your neighbours. This country would be a lot better off if people learnt that small skill again instead of hiding behind their 6ft fences in their McMansions. ;)

I've tried, they don't speak English. Seriously.

[MV75]

What? You all only got like one house next door to you all? I know my whole street. :) Admittantly my whole street is only ~11 houses, but it's more than enough if I really needed to borrow a phone or something. :)

Plus we don't have any trouble either. I make sure of that. :)

[i_amtrunks]

I dont see the point in paying for something you dont use.

If you need to make calls to places that put you on hold (so banking, insurance etc) you can always use friends and family phones I suppose.

Then again the main reason why banks and other institutes have the practices of making you wait on hold for ages is to push you into using the internet to contact them instead! :p

[Saintly]

i can see where this discussion is going to head down before too long and let's stick to the subject :)

and no, I'm not a mod :P

[kup]

i can see where this discussion is going to head down before too long and let's stick to the subject :)

and no, I'm not a mod :P

Agreed although what I wrote is more of a general social issue when it comes to modern society some people could take it out of context so I am editing it out.

I guess that at the end it comes to this: How often do you use your land line and would a mobile phone be enough to replace it's use?

[roller]

now wait a minute

Forums are for discussion, and if the discussion was originally about phones, and then suddenly branched off into something else-so be it.

Ive been to Roman forums :cool:

[jaydisc]

I'm on Naked DSL and never looked back. I get free Australian landline calls from my phone plugged into the router (VoIP for idiots) and make all other calls via my mobile.

I also don't deal with Telstra.

Cheapest landline I've heard of is Telstra's Home Budget which was $18.50 per month and had expensive calls. So, if you did want a line just for emergencies or extremely limited use, pretty sure that's the cheapest.

[STL]

my phone plugged into the router (VoIP for idiots)

Thanks for keeping me in mind. :mad::rolleyes::)

[jaydisc]

Thanks for keeping me in mind. :mad::rolleyes::)

Actually, that reads wrong. I'm trying to say that I use VoIP, but just with a regular handset. My router does all the heavy lifting.

[Saintly]

Actually, that reads wrong. I'm trying to say that I use VoIP, but just with a regular handset. My router does all the heavy lifting.

You can't possibly use a PSTN (regular) handset for VOIP??

[jaydisc]

You can't possibly use a PSTN (regular) handset for VOIP??

You most certainly can. My router has an integrated ATA (analog telephone adapter), so the router implements the SIP protocol and gives me a PSTN port on the back. So while it is indeed VoIP, no one at either end would know the difference. Any "VoIP" router can do this or you can get a standalone ATA.

[Saintly]

yep... just wanted to make sure there was an ATA, otherwise I was thinking... no way!