Cisco PAP2 Phone Adapter for Vonage Internet Phone Service
by Linksys
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Category: CE
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Digital Photo Product Details
Manufacturer: LinksysModel: PAP2
Product features:
- Unlimited calling to the U.S. and Canada only $24.99 per month, other plans as low as $14.99
- All plans include call waiting, caller ID, voicemail, call forwarding, and many more features
- Voicemail can be checked online or by phone or forwarded via email
- Use your current phone; keep your existing phone number or choose a new one
- 2 Ports for analog phones or fax, so you could have 2 separate phone numbers
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Cisco PAP2 Phone Adapter for Vonage Internet Phone Service
Customer Review: Good VoIP service
Summary: 4 Stars
I've had Vonage service for a few months and it's been fine. I bought the PAP2, registered on the Vonage website, plugged it in behind my router and had a dial tone. After testing it for a few weeks, I was confident enough to port my home number over. The port process took about 2 weeks and now 100% of my land line service is through Vonage.
Reliability has been great - with the exception a voicemail problem that lasted a few hours the first weekend we had it, there's been no service issues at all. Voice quality is fine - indistinguishable from the POTS line it replaced. Call quality to the UK (I'm in Texas) has been superb - better than the land line. I'm using a cable broadband service that provides ~5mb down and 380k up, which has very good ping times and reliability.
Feature set is good, too. You get Voicemail with email notification (which is my favorite feature, by far), CallerID, Call Waiting, Call Forwarding, etc. There are lots of other features that I don't use - 3 way calling, call hunting, etc. E911 service is active in my area. The only feature that's missing is Name on outbound CallerID. This may not be a problem if you port an existing number to Vonage, but on new Vonage numbers, when calling others, their CallerID will not show your name - only your number. This is a gap Vonage needs to close - I don't usually answer calls without names on them, so I imagine people aren't answering mine.
There are some shortcomings of Vonage and voip in general, though. First, it will -never- be as reliable as your old POTS service. If you expect it to be, you'll be disappointed. POTS is probably the most stable consumer technology ever invented. It's built on a system of very expensive, redundant networks which are constantly monitored, and the providers are regulated to provide specific levels of up-time. VoIP has no regulation. It's dependent on your broadband connection - which is nowhere near as stable as a typical land line phone line, and it runs through cheap consumer level adaptors like the PAP2, which offer no redundancy or fail-over. It's dependent on your power being up and doesn't provide any backup power source (unless you provide it). There are many more points for failure on voip than on a standard POTS line, and it will be down more often than POTS due to that even if the voip provider is perfect. That doesn't mean that it's down all the time - or even often - but if you're the type of person that freaks out anytime something doesn't work perfectly, stick with POTS.
Secondly, Vonage spends a lot of money advertising this stuff as requiring no intelligence to set up. That's incorrect. The adaptor may be plug and play, but if you don't understand the technology, you'll likely be disappointed. If your PC is full of spyware that's hogging your upload bandwidth, the service will perform poorly. If you have a mis-configured router, the service will perform poorly. If your broadband connection is poor, this service will perform poorly (voip doesn't consume a lot of bandwidth - ~90kb/sec up and down stream max - however, it does require a stable connection with low latency to work well. If you don't know how to test your latency, then you probably shouldn't get voip). If you have a very narrow broadband connection (ex: 128k up), you won't be able to use the internet and maintain good call quality.
Thirdly, 911 works differently. If you think you'll be calling 911 a lot, you probably shouldn't be using voip.
Vonage gets a lot of knocks on outsourced customer service. I haven't had to call in to talk to them, but responses to email questions have been handled well. This service is sold primarily on price, though - so I wouldn't expect stellar customer service. I can only hope I don't run into any issues that require me to call in.
We're on the 500 minute plan, which works perfectly for us. Inbound calls, calls to toll free numbers and calls to voicemail do not count against the 500 minutes. Vonage does tack on a few fees and taxes, increasing the price from the much advertised $14.99 to ~$17 a month. This is still substantially cheaper than I was paying for the POTS line it replaced. There are cheaper voip providers out there if you want even more savings.
All in all, I'm pleased. It has exceeded my expectations so far, and the cost savings are nice. The only issue I have is the lack of Name on outbound callerID.
If you have a good broadband connection, a decent understanding of technology and are cognizant of the inherent differences between voip and POTS, you'll likely be satisfied with this device and Vonage's service.
Description of Cisco PAP2 Phone Adapter for Vonage Internet Phone Service
The Linksys Phone Adapter enables high-quality feature-rich telephone service through your cable or DSL Internet connection. Just plug it into your home Router or Gateway and use the two standard telephone jacks to connect your existing phones or fax machines. Each phone jack operates independently, with separate phone service and phone numbers -- like having two phone lines. With an appropriate Internet telephone service provider, youll get clear telephone reception and reliable fax connections, even while using the Internet at the same time for normal data operations.With Vonage, you can make calls through the Internet, potentially save on long-distance charges, and access a rich assortment of call features. Plans start as low as $14.99 per month, and the Premium Unlimited plan offers unlimited calling to the U.S. and Canada for only $24.99 per month. And it's easy to use: For making and receiving calls, Vonage works just like a traditional phone service; no special access codes or account numbers are required.
Easy Hardware Setup |
All Vonage plans let you enjoy the call features you've become accustomed to?call waiting, caller ID, voicemail, call forwarding, three-way calling, call return, repeat dialing, and reliable long distance?plus other features that may be new to you. For example, you can receive your voicemail as an email attachment, and you'll have a phone number that travels with you. Visit http://www.vonage.com/amazon to see which plan is best suited to your lifestyle and budget. The low monthly rates are quite reasonably priced, in our opinion, and with them you may save considerably compared to traditional phone service. International calls are available for additional low fees, with one economical exception: calls from the U.S. to Canada are treated like domestic long distance calls, rather than international. Vonage also supports short-form emergency 911 services, where available. (Dialing 911 requires activation and operates differently than traditional 911. See Vonage's website for details.)
This Vonage Internet Phone Service Starter Kit is quick and easy to install in your home or business. All you need is a high-speed Internet connection (cable or DSL modem) and a touchtone phone. Setup is simple: Just connect one end of the included Vonage-certified Linksys PAP2 phone adapter to your Ethernet router or gateway and the other end to your telephone. Then sign up for Vonage phone service. An extra port on the adapter allows you to attach an additional phone or fax machine. You'll have instant access to both phone lines, each with a separate number, and you can even assign them different area codes (subject to availability). You can still surf the web while talking on the phone or receiving faxes. The phone adapter includes a generous three-year warranty from the manufacturer.
What's in the Box
Linksys phone adapter, power adapter, user's guide on CD-ROM, network cable, quick installation card, Vonage Internet Phone Service Starter plan, support information and promotional offers, registration card
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