Question for those who still have land line phones

[disneysteve]

What long distance carrier do you use?

For years, we've been with Covista. They charged 3 cents per minute with no other fees so we only paid if we made a call. Most months, we didn't since we use our cell phones for long distance but occasionally either we'd forget or just no think about it and grab the house phone and get a bill for a few cents.

Covista was recently bought out by another company (can't think of the name right now - starts with a B - Burch maybe). The letter they sent out originally said nothing would change. Turns out they lied. They are now charging a $2.50 monthly fee plus the per minute charge for calls made. No way am I paying $2.50/month for a service I rarely use, so I called and cancelled it. So right now, we have no long distance service on the land line.

Can anyone recommend a long distance provider that only charges for calls made with no monthly fee?

[LivingAlmostLarge]

obihai. Nothing. It's internet phone.

[Wino]

I only have a landline because my provider also provides my internet. I don't even know the number, and the phone is not even plugged in. My total bill is $25 per month cheaper than internet without the phone, which is the only reason I have it.

I use Skype and Facetime for all my LD calling, and I'm calling internationally from Dubai to the US. I pay about 2.1 cents per minute for those who don't have Skype and force me to call their cell phones.

[bjl584]

I have Verizon because they provide the internet and because they have a partnership with Direct TV that gets me an additional discount.

[disneysteve]

I have Verizon because they provide the internet and because they have a partnership with Direct TV that gets me an additional discount.

How much do you pay for the long distance service? Is there a monthly fee or is it just pay as you go?

[MonkeyMama]

I suppose we primarily use skype and cell phone for long distance, but the long distance is included in our landline plan. Like, they throw in so many long distance hours. Heck, I don't think our local calls are unlimited.

I just throw it out because you may want to shop around land lines to see what else is out there. I do remember the days of finding cheap long distance, but it's been so many years... We do have fiber optic/VOIP for our landline.

Something like MagicJack has free long distance.

[disneysteve]

long distance is included in our landline plan.

I guess I should give them a call to see what they offer.

I realize that everyone uses other sources for long distance today - so do we - but I still want to maintain some type of long distance access on the land line just in case. I just don't want to pay for it if I don't use it.

[JoeP]

When we had a land line, we used SpotTalk. The deal was something like 5 cents a minute up to a maximum cost of $2 per call. Not sure if they still have that.

You have to dial an access number, and then the 10 digit number you wish to call. We preset them all into our phones so we didn't have to punch them all in.

[feh]

Is there a reason you're keeping the land line Steve? You can get unlimited calling for $12/month using your internet connection...

[JoeP]

Is there a reason you're keeping the land line Steve? You can get unlimited calling for $12/month using your internet connection...

Or less. I think we pay something like $25 a YEAR for Nettalk. Unlimited local and long distance, although you do need to dial 10 digits for every call.

[feh]

Or less. I think we pay something like $25 a YEAR for Nettalk. Unlimited local and long distance, although you do need to dial 10 digits for every call.

Yeah, I tried nettalk and had a very bad experience. I'm now using Vonage's Basic Talk service, which is $10/month before taxes.

[Like2Plan]

We have a Verizon bundle which covers the TV, fios internet (speeds around 43mbps download and 38mbps upload) and phone (includes local and LD). We pay 119/month (all in).
I have been thinking of dropping the phone and signing up for VOIP (I would like to keep the home phone number as I don't like to give out my cell phone #), but haven't really done much research on the pricing on a bundle without the phone, yet.

[JoeP]

Yeah, I tried nettalk and had a very bad experience. I'm now using Vonage's Basic Talk service, which is $10/month before taxes.

Yeah, it is not the best. We sometimes get delays that make conversations difficult, and other times you have to say "Hello" a bunch of times for the person to know someone actually picked up. Then other times, you'd get the busy signal when it is a fact that the line you're calling is not busy.

Vonage is showing the same service as $10/mo for 3 months, then it ratchets up to $25/mo, all plus taxes and fees.

[feh]

Vonage is showing the same service as $10/mo for 3 months, then it ratchets up to $25/mo, all plus taxes and fees.

As a returning customer, I've been given $10/month forever. I don't know if that deal is available to everybody.

[bjl584]

How much do you pay for the long distance service? Is there a monthly fee or is it just pay as you go?

It's all part of a bundle. I will find out and let you know.