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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:13:59 AM EDT
[#1]
Haven't had a landline since 2006
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:20:35 AM EDT
[#2]
What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah.
I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:25:14 AM EDT
[#3]
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:25:46 AM EDT
[#4]
We gave up our landline years ago and I have never regretted doing so. The only calls I ever received on my landline were from solicitors.
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:26:55 AM EDT
[#5]
Quote HistoryQuoted: What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:27:14 AM EDT
[#6]
Your late.
I seriously don't know anyone who still pays for a land line. |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:29:14 AM EDT
[#7]
Can satellite TV work without landlines?
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:33:37 AM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Your late. I seriously don't know anyone who still pays for a land line. Your username is ironic. I assume you misspelled "telemarketer" like you misspelled "you're". 
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:39:16 AM EDT
[#9]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Car charger. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. And this will fix the dead cell tower ...how? |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:39:39 AM EDT
[#10]
They still have those phones with the wire that goes to the wall?
We had a nasty storm here last summer and the pole that feeds my house's electricity, cable and phone was taken out by a tree. Cable company got there first, but couldn't do anything until the power company got there. They fixed their stuff, but the phone company never showed. Now I have a 60' length of "outside phone line" that I don't know what to do with yet. Tripwire, zip line, extra long cat leash. I just don't know. I remember a time when my family got an extra long phone cord. One of those curly suckers from the base to the handset (a bit before cordless really caught on) it was about 20 feet long at full stretch and it was the best thing evar!!1!11!. I could talk to friends and not even be in the kitchen. SCIENCE!!! Just go with cell phones, screw the land line. |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:47:37 AM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryQuoted: And this will fix the dead cell tower ...how? Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. And this will fix the dead cell tower ...how? |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:47:42 AM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Car charger. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. If your car charger can run the local cell tower, have at it. |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 10:53:15 AM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryQuoted: And this will fix the dead cell tower ...how? Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. And this will fix the dead cell tower ...how? |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 11:00:06 AM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Central Offices don't run on unicorn farts, either. Like cell towers, they require generators, batteries, etc. True, but for the most part they are well more maintained than a celltower 10 miles from the nearest major road In a city it's a problem because there's just so damn many. In the country it's a problem because they're so spread apart. COs at least generally have staff coming in and out...
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Posted: 4/24/2014 11:15:16 AM EDT
[#15]
Celphones get jammed up during an emergency a lot quicker than landlines. Also, when the lights go out, and you're not getting any bars or the lines are flooded, chances are good your landline will still be working (as long as it's JUST a phone).
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Posted: 4/24/2014 11:27:45 AM EDT
[#16]
I have a good old fashioned land line. Handy to have after a tornado knocks down all the cell towers.
<== lives in Moore, OK |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 12:17:28 PM EDT
[#17]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. Landlines don't magically create power. The phone company lights up that line. If backup power is starting to fail, your landline which magically works without power will quit working. That being said, landlines probably have more backup juice than the cell towers. |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 8:36:52 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Landlines don't magically create power. The phone company lights up that line. If backup power is starting to fail, your landline which magically works without power will quit working. That being said, landlines probably have more backup juice than the cell towers. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. Landlines don't magically create power. The phone company lights up that line. If backup power is starting to fail, your landline which magically works without power will quit working. That being said, landlines probably have more backup juice than the cell towers. This is my point...and it isn't "probably"  Last time my parents had a major outage, they were out for more than a week...they had to drive down into town just to shower (no electricity = no well pump = no water at their house). They ate out a lot that week.
The only thing that still worked, other than gravity, was their landline.... |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 8:38:34 PM EDT
[#19]
What about your alarm system?
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Posted: 4/24/2014 8:43:53 PM EDT
[#20]
Shameless copy and paste from the "People that don't answer their phone" thread today
I suppose you've never been in a situation where your cell didn't work? Its worth having one just to be able to call 911 if needed. Landlines don't need reception, a charge, or have menus to fuck around in during an emergency. I leave my landline number to people when I want to screen their calls. My cell only goes out to friends, family, and close co-workers. Same idea of a business vs personal email address. It was able to reach my loved ones on their respective landlines when cell service was down during 9/11 and later Sandy. Sure was nicer knowing they weren't dead |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 8:44:01 PM EDT
[#21]
Buy an Ooma. Cheaper than the cell and it offers a different source for phone calls.
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Posted: 4/24/2014 8:58:55 PM EDT
[#22]
As a child of the early 80s, I'm a member of what's probably the first generation to never have a land line. When I was a kid there was a phone in my parents bedroom and one in the kitchen, with the 50' coiled cord that was a total mess. We had an answering machine, too!
I've never had a land line in my name. Cell phones were expensive when I went off to college and when my parents found out that I wasn't going to pay for a landline, they sent me a cell phone. I even had a cell phone in high school, although it was AMPS and may or may not have actually had a contract associated with it... Anyway, sub is completely right, cell phones sound like shit. Problem is, in a lot of areas what's being offered as "POTS" is actually low quality VOIP and doesn't have any of the benefits of an actual POTS line (high quality, separate power from the rest of the house). One of my main hobbies is caving. There's a field house I've stayed at in the precise middle of absolutely nowhere, West Virginia that has a mid 60s era bakelite wall phone with rotary dial. It's the sort of phone you could easily knock someone's teeth out with. It's there for emergencies since cell coverage starts about 50 miles away. Anyway, last time we we out there, it actually rang. The room had about 15 people in it (it was a caver event so naturally we were all a bit drunk) and the party froze for a few seconds as 15 people heard a mechanical ringer for the first time in years. Conversations stopped, movement stopped, then everyone looked at the phone. The nearest person gingerly lifted the receiver off the hook and then passed it to the intended party, who heard some unpleasant news. This resulted in the handset being slammed down which rang the bells inside the phone - that's the biggest thing the current generation of phones lacks. When you're pissed off, slamming the receiver down on an old school phone produces a delightful 'DING' that resonates for a few seconds. You can't hit 'END' on a cell phone and experience the same satisfaction.... although that does give me an idea for an app. |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 9:02:18 PM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Landlines don't magically create power. The phone company lights up that line. If backup power is starting to fail, your landline which magically works without power will quit working. That being said, landlines probably have more backup juice than the cell towers. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. Landlines don't magically create power. The phone company lights up that line. If backup power is starting to fail, your landline which magically works without power will quit working. That being said, landlines probably have more backup juice than the cell towers. I can personally attest to this fact. I was able to get a trickle out of my phone jack for some time when I was out of power for 14 days during Sandy save running a generator sparingly due to dwindling gas supply. Cell reception near my home was either non-existent or dogshit until a few months after the storm. Quite an eye-opener that experience was, in more ways than one. |
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Posted: 4/24/2014 9:12:17 PM EDT
[#24]
Havent had a landline in years.
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Posted: 4/25/2014 12:35:54 AM EDT
[#25]
Quote HistoryQuoted: What about your alarm system? Another factor in the equation is my home security system. If I "cut the cord" I will have a one time charge to update my equipment, my bill will go up $4 per month, and I will have to extend my contract. |
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Posted: 4/25/2014 12:59:03 AM EDT
[#26]
Been almost 10 years since I have lived in a place with a land line and not just cell phones.
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Posted: 4/25/2014 1:03:18 AM EDT
[#27]
Wish I could get rid of my LL.
Most of the time I have no cell coverage in my home. Sometimes living in the boonies sucks. |
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Posted: 4/25/2014 1:04:18 AM EDT
[#28]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. You can buy solar cell r echargers . I have 2 of them 
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Posted: 4/25/2014 1:07:24 AM EDT
[#29]
gave up the landline years ago...simply stopped using it and it was one less bill to pay...
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Posted: 4/25/2014 3:03:12 AM EDT
[#30]
Quote HistoryQuoted: They are handy In some places. My brothers house apparently straddles the border of a cellphone Bermuda Triangle. Half the house has perfect 4g coverage. The other half has zero coverage.  Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Why do you need a dedicated phone just for your home? My wife and I each have our own cellphones with no home phone. They are handy In some places. My brothers house apparently straddles the border of a cellphone Bermuda Triangle. Half the house has perfect 4g coverage. The other half has zero coverage. |
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Posted: 4/25/2014 4:25:52 AM EDT
[#31]
I just renewed my Magic Jack yesterday. It actually expired the day before, so I was without home phone for a day.
Anyway, I went with the 5 year plan which is $99.75 and there's like $7 worth of administrative fees. So that's like $21.50 per year for phone service, and the hardware is all under warranty for the entire period. As long as I have electricity and data, my phone works. I can't even get true POTS phone service where I live. It's a new development (6 years old) and they ran Fiber to the house. They didn't run copper to the house, so I figure the fiber isn't backed up as much as copper would be. Even if I can run power for the customer premise equipment, not sure how long service would last for me. |
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Posted: 4/25/2014 2:54:14 PM EDT
[#32]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
This is my point...and it isn't "probably" Last time my parents had a major outage, they were out for more than a week...they had to drive down into town just to shower (no electricity = no well pump = no water at their house). They ate out a lot that week.
The only thing that still worked, other than gravity, was their landline.... Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
What if the power goes out for more than a day or two? The 2003 power outage in the NE pretty much killed cell service after a day...between cells running out of generator gas and cellphones themselves running out of juice and not being able to be recharged...yeah. I still have a landline, and don't particularly have a problem paying the $20 or $30 for it per month. If I ever need it, I have it. Landlines don't magically create power. The phone company lights up that line. If backup power is starting to fail, your landline which magically works without power will quit working. That being said, landlines probably have more backup juice than the cell towers. This is my point...and it isn't "probably" Last time my parents had a major outage, they were out for more than a week...they had to drive down into town just to shower (no electricity = no well pump = no water at their house). They ate out a lot that week.
The only thing that still worked, other than gravity, was their landline.... 40 dollars a month should keep you set up in a good sat phone - though the initial costs might be prohibitive. You'd then have a phone even if the disaster in question tears your house down or floods it out. Seems eminently more practical than paying barely less than that for a landline. Heck, I pay only $130 for 6 months - and I have a phone that works globally. |
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Posted: 4/25/2014 9:23:09 PM EDT
[#33]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
40 dollars a month should keep you set up in a good sat phone - though the initial costs might be prohibitive. You'd then have a phone even if the disaster in question tears your house down or floods it out. Seems eminently more practical than paying barely less than that for a landline. Heck, I pay only $130 for 6 months - and I have a phone that works globally. How often do you use it though; it is per minute, or...? Their landline, they use all the time. I use mine for %99 of my calls. In any given month for every minute used on my cellphone, I'll have more than 10 recorded on the landline...not that that's saying much; any given month I'll have maybe an hour logged on a landline, and far less on a cell
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Posted: 4/25/2014 9:31:30 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I haven't had a landline in 10 years. Ive never had one as an adult. (In my thirties) |
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Posted: 4/25/2014 10:07:55 PM EDT
[#35]
I ditched my land line in 1997
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Posted: 4/25/2014 11:08:37 PM EDT
[#36]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Why do you need a dedicated phone just for your home? My wife and I each have our own cellphones with no home phone. Because POTS works without power in an emergency. |
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Posted: 4/25/2014 11:13:34 PM EDT
[#37]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I know AT&T has what you want. Who is your provider? http://m.att.com/shopmobile/wireless/devices/att/wireless-home-phone-silver.html Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
I know AT&T has what you want. Who is your provider? http://m.att.com/shopmobile/wireless/devices/att/wireless-home-phone-silver.html AT&T does, pretty inexpensive. BUT, it can get funny. If you don't use the phone number for a few weeks, it gets logged off until you make a call from it. And if for some reason the SIM is not the one the company thinks is there you are up shit creek because they don't have a clue why things aren't working. If you take it to an AT&T store, they can check it in about 5 minutes. I'm not sure why mine worked with the wrong SIM but it did until I got back from vacation |
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Posted: 4/26/2014 5:38:19 AM EDT
[#38]
I'm getting ready to dump mine, but I don't have a mobile plan either. I'll be porting to voip, starting next week.
At 36, I've never not had a landline. We'll see how it goes. |
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Posted: 4/26/2014 5:42:18 AM EDT
[#39]
Well, I need to keep my alarm system running. If not for that, I have zero use for a landline.
Any suggestions? When it comes to technology, I'm a troglodyte, so use simple words and concepts. |
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Posted: 4/26/2014 6:11:46 AM EDT
[#40]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
How often do you use it though; it is per minute, or...? Their landline, they use all the time. I use mine for %99 of my calls. In any given month for every minute used on my cellphone, I'll have more than 10 recorded on the landline...not that that's saying much; any given month I'll have maybe an hour logged on a landline, and far less on a cell Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
40 dollars a month should keep you set up in a good sat phone - though the initial costs might be prohibitive. You'd then have a phone even if the disaster in question tears your house down or floods it out. Seems eminently more practical than paying barely less than that for a landline. Heck, I pay only $130 for 6 months - and I have a phone that works globally. How often do you use it though; it is per minute, or...? Their landline, they use all the time. I use mine for %99 of my calls. In any given month for every minute used on my cellphone, I'll have more than 10 recorded on the landline...not that that's saying much; any given month I'll have maybe an hour logged on a landline, and far less on a cell Pre-paid. I used to be able to do 2 years a chunk, now it's 6 months. Still way cheaper than a landline. If you use your landline all the time, however, that's clearly a different story. I was addressing the argument that maintaining a landline is key for disaster communications. There are alternatives that cost the same per month (again, the phone itself coasts a lot more up front, but no more than most of us pay for rifles), and those alternatives are not only portable, but global. My only point was, the "well, landline is all that works in the event of disaster" strikes me as very short-sighted and inaccurate. |
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Posted: 4/26/2014 6:21:58 AM EDT
[#41]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
What's a landline?
For real. What are you a 100 years old.
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Posted: 4/26/2014 6:23:39 AM EDT
[#42]
I haven't had a land line in years
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Posted: 4/26/2014 8:55:15 AM EDT
[#43]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Is he on AT&T? If so, get a Microcell. One of the AT&T stores GAVE me one. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Why do you need a dedicated phone just for your home? My wife and I each have our own cellphones with no home phone. They are handy In some places. My brothers house apparently straddles the border of a cellphone Bermuda Triangle. Half the house has perfect 4g coverage. The other half has zero coverage. Is he on AT&T? If so, get a Microcell. One of the AT&T stores GAVE me one. He has a Wilson booster, but he is about to sell the house anyways. |
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Posted: 4/26/2014 8:58:29 AM EDT
[#44]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I have a good old fashioned land line. Handy to have after a tornado knocks down all the cell towers. <== lives in Moore, OK That depends on the area. Hurricanes have blown down power poles and wiped out the phone lines that were on them. Then only cell would work. IIRC, Moore is mostly buried cable in the newer areas. Well shit , it's Moore. At any given time, the oldest part of the town is only 4 years old or so.
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Posted: 4/26/2014 9:02:11 AM EDT
[#45]
We have a land line to give to those people who insist that they call us for their specials and sales. Many of those "institutions" will "share" yoiur phone number with their "affiliates." (BTW this sounds like any insane asylum)
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Posted: 4/26/2014 9:03:28 AM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Pre-paid. I used to be able to do 2 years a chunk, now it's 6 months. Still way cheaper than a landline. If you use your landline all the time, however, that's clearly a different story. I was addressing the argument that maintaining a landline is key for disaster communications. There are alternatives that cost the same per month (again, the phone itself coasts a lot more up front, but no more than most of us pay for rifles), and those alternatives are not only portable, but global. My only point was, the "well, landline is all that works in the event of disaster" strikes me as very short-sighted and inaccurate. No, fair enough, that works. It's no more a "key" for disaster comms than having a ham radio setup is...sure, it helps, but it requires infrastructure and knowledge. The main difference is, a 4 year old can pick up a handset and dial 911, vs fire up a generator and start working a ham set The entry bar is much lower for a landline.
I'd love to have a satphone...just, I can't justify it. Honestly, if I make one call a month on my cell, it's a lot. I'd love to cart one around but I'd pretty much never use it, and the people I'd try to reach wouldn't be in equatorial Africa or somewhere else inaccessable...they'd be in a major metro area, with plenty of avenues of communications. Having a satphone would be like owning a giraffe for me
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Posted: 4/26/2014 9:07:14 AM EDT
[#47]
I moved out on my own right after HS in 1998 , right about the time cell phones were becomming more affordable. I had a cell phone and saw no need for a land line. I didn't get my first computer till 2004 , cable internet was readily available , so still no need for a land line. To this day I have never had a land line in my name.
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Posted: 4/26/2014 9:19:43 AM EDT
[#48]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Haven't had a landline since 2006 Scrapped landline phones in 2000. |
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Posted: 4/26/2014 10:00:23 AM EDT
[#49]
Go buy a NetTalk Duo.
It's so much better than a land line. It works on wifi, includes 1 year of service, comes with unlimited minutes, and you can hook them up to cordless phones. Additional years are around $30. You can also port your old number. It comes with voice mail, caller ID, call waiting, e911, and more. I love mine. |
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Posted: 4/26/2014 10:26:09 AM EDT
[#50]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Well, I need to keep my alarm system running. If not for that, I have zero use for a landline. Any suggestions? When it comes to technology, I'm a troglodyte, so use simple words and concepts. I had an alarm guy out to a remodel I'm doing and he said the new systems are 100% cellular, no landline at all. Has a battery back up too. Call your alarm company. |
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