Cell Phones

[Harold Brantley]

Over the years, cell phone services have increased and prices have decreased. I have now heard of some people dropping their land lines altogether and using only cell phones for their home and business use (separate lines). Have any of you done this or considered doing it? If so how do you handle FAX and internet lines? I would save about $120.00 per month roughly but wonder about the overall convenience of the cell phone alone.

What do ya'll think of this, good, bad, etc? What are the pros and cons of this idea?

PS: One plus is that it would stop all of those tele-marketing calls.

 

[the_GUNN_man]

I have a nextel which cost me $50 a month and my home phone cost $50 a month. My home phone is also my fax number. I have cable internet. Do you use a seperate fax number?

 

[Mike Hughes]

If you're in business, I think you should have a real business telephone number. Doing so gets you a free, small ad in the Yellow Pages.

Bad idea to have a cell phone be your only business line, the number will change over the years............your business phone would stay the same.

I forward all of my calls to my cell phone. When I get a new cell phone, I simply reprogram the forwarding.

 

[melsmobile]

Harold,

shop around , i was with SOUTHWESTREN BELL MY PHONE BILL WAS AROUND $140 , then i switch to Birch telecon its around $50 now still get the free ad in the yellow pages. swbell still main tanes the phone lines.

MEL

 

[john orr]

I have always used my cell phone for my business and it works fine. I pay Ntelos (used to be PrimeCo) $39.95/mo for 900 anytime and 4000 night/weekend.

I have land lines (home # and fax #) with Cox Cable (also internet) and pay 1/2 of what I used to pay Verizon.

Starting last year, Verizon allows ads/listings with cell #'s. Beginning this Fall, cell #'s will become "portable" - you'll be able to keep the same # if you change service.

 

[Harold Brantley]

Thanks for the replies. I'd like to hear more ideas on how you currently operate and your thoughts about the future of cell phone usage for businesses and personal.

Steve, I use three lines now, 1) personal, 2) business- voice and 3) business- FAX/internet. Also my wife and I each have a cell phone that shares minutes that roll-over.

Mike, this thinking is what me, you and everyone has been thinking over the years because there were no alternatives. I think that with new cell phone technology and lower costs, that in the future we will have other options. I just don't know if the time is now or a year or two away. I think our cell phones will soon go to satelite phones which should drasticly improve voice quality and cut out dead areas..... I don't understand why your cell number would change unless you move or change providers. I've had the same provider for 25 years and the same cell number for 12 years, which changed only when I moved 300 miles.... I like your idea of forwarding your business calls to your cell phone. I know I have that service but haven't used it. I just leave a message on my business line that says you can leave a message or call me on my cell phone at xxx-xxxx. Mike, how do you handle your FAX and internet?

 

[the_GUNN_man]

I don't know how old fax machines work but I bought an hp all in one print center. When I receive phone calls the fax machine listens in the background for the fax signal. It detremines whether to answer or not. I still have an answering machine hooked up all to the same line. It does not interfer with anything and I can keep it all on one line. I do not receive a ton of faxes so I keep my home phone and fax all on the same line. I can still forward calls to my cell phone but if it is a fax my fax machine takes it and doesn't forward the call. It is nice just having one #. Even if I am on the phone I can click over to the other line to answer when someone beeps in and if it is a fax machine all I do is click back over to the other line and hang the phone up and my fax machine takes care of it for me. Like I said I am not familiar with other fax machines. This is the first one I ever owned. I paid about $600 for it but it also copies, scans, and prints. I can also send and receive colored faxes.

 

[the_GUNN_man]

One more thing I use Nextel for my cell phone I pay $39.99 a month for that( $50 with taxes and phone ins. included) I get 500 any time minutes, 2500 night and weekend minutes, caller ID, call waiting, basic internet, free long distance to any where in my state plus parts of Ohio and 2500 two way minutes a month. The internet is nice because you can access maps, yellow pages, white pages, etc. from it. The two way is the thing I like best over all the other phones. Most of the people I know use nextel so I don't use very many any time minutes at all. Most of the time I have someone answer my phones for me and they have the two way for them to beep me. I never like my answering machine to answer a call. I just have my girlfriend answer the call or have the calls forwarded to my dad's house. If I can't get anyone to answer phones for me I forward them to my cell phone.

 

[Mike Hughes]

Originally posted by Harold Brantley
Mike, how do you handle your FAX and internet?

Fax is on a seperate phone line, which I also used to use for my computer modem.

I now have a cable modem for internet access..........and would never consider a dialup connection again!

 

[the_GUNN_man]

I agree with Mike. If you have ever used cable access you would never go back to dial up again. If you have access to cable you should get it. Since everyone on here says time is money then cable should be worth it's weight in gold. You save so much time with cable access internet. My dad had dial up and if we both started our computers at the same time I could check my e-mail, sports scores, weather, and log off before he started looking at his e-mail. I don't see no reason for poeple to have seperate fax lines. Why not just use the phone your using for your business as your fax line too. I have one phone for personal, business, and fax. I have call announce on my phone. That means when a call comes in that I have programmed into my phone it announces a recording I made. Say if my parents call me from there home phone, it will say "It is mom and dad". That way if a call comes in that I am not sure who it is I will always answer my business name. It saves me from having 3 lines. I save $80 a month by not having 2 extra lines.

 

[reedsterstl]

WE got rid of Verizon or CentryTEL, who ever owned it at the time. Switched to Charter Telephone, got the charter digital cable for the boob tube, and HS internet with the cable modem.

In getting rid of the regular phone company for the house phone, I went from 120.00 a month with two lines to 50.00 amonth with two lines. One line being the house phone and one the business line.

I am impressed with the high speed cable internet, but don't really like the price.

I wish I could bring myself to get satellite tv, but still not convinced it's any better than what I have.

Cell phone is Cingular, my phone, Cat's phone and my package runs 80.00 a month, 49.00 of which is business expense.

Some company always out there to get their hands in my pocket.

Spring HURRY UP

Reed

 

[Bill B]

Land lines - use distinctive ring on a residential (2nd) line. Allows me to have a separate fax number. 2nd tone rolls over automatically to the fax machine. Will check into the all-in-one fax concept.

Just purchased another business. Have their main land line RCF'd (Thanks Mike!) to an answering service because it is biz line. Will decide whether to have multiple lines feed answering service for a period of time, or to convert my residential line to a biz line.

Part of contractor network here, so need to use Nextel phones. Last nite I got rid of one phone and recontracted 3 phones for one year on Optimizer plan - got 650 minutes per phone - all shared. Have two other phones - one on same Opt plan, and one under contract for 2 way only thru August. Pay $45 per month, including tax, for each.