VOIP SunRocket Internet Phone Service $199 for 15months = $13.27/month

[ericboo]

My plan with Vonage ends April 11th, so I will wait a few days to order SR.

 

[georgepa]

GTFan-

The problem with "unknown caller" block is that international calls usually come in that way. I have family in Europe, and whenever they call it shows as "unknown caller." A block like that would make it impossible for them to reach me. I registered with the No-Call list and if there is a pesky telemarketer that calls a lot I put them on the individual block list. I get some telemarketer calls, but I just let them go to voicemail. They usually don't leave a message.


Good luck, FrankyJunior. Let it not be the v.5.

BTW, be sure to activate voice message screener for BOTH numbers so you can screen your voicemails as they are being left from any computer. You can set up the proggy that shows up in your download area or/and download USCREEN from UREACH, which also works fine and has a few more advanced call forwarding and call intercept features.

Here is the lowdown on that proggy:

http://www.ureach.com/1300cb8606/help/unothlp2.htm


Here the download:

http://www.ureach.com/1300cb8606/help/unothlp2.htm#dload

 

[RideFree]

Originally posted by: georgepa
GTFan-

The problem with "unknown caller" block is that international calls usually come in that way. I have family in Europe, and whenever they call it shows as "unknown caller." A block like that would make it impossible for them to reach me. I registered with the No-Call list and if there is a pesky telemarketer that calls a lot I put them on the individual block list. I get some telemarketer calls, but I just let them go to voicemail. They usually don't leave a message.

I must have one telemarketeer (like racketeer) who has at least 15 numbers (at least so far).
As it is a "charity", there is no way (i.e. via the no call list) to get rid of them except to block every one of their numbers. At least I'm down to getting only one call a month instead of about two per week.

And yes, I know that they will supply a "number" that you can call to get them to quit. However, I quit that after the first couple of tries that resulted in about a dozen "press 9 if you want to hold for another half hour", messages. :disgust: It was like that with POTS, only with that, if I wanted to disable one of their numbers, I had to pay Qwurst extra for the privilege.

 

[HankD]

I saw someone mention something about known routers that don't work in the Modem --> Router --> Gizmo setup. Is there a known list at all?
For now I have an SMC 7004BR router ....

I have that router in that setup, works like a champ.
I originally had Modem --> Gizmo --> Router but that was a mess, DL speeds dropped and sometimes webpages loaded WAY SLOW, not what I pay for cable for so switched to Modem --> Router --> Gizmo and it is much better.

BTW took about 2-3 weeks from UPS delivering stuff (Gizmo, Phones) to total porting of number. I could make outgoing calls immediately on random signature #, then incoming about 12-14 days then about 2-3 days for my 'old' number to show up on other folks caller ID. Figure at Verizon rates those 14 days cost about $35 at SR rates about $10.... for the cost of 3 months Verizon I get a whole year of SR. Worth the wait.

If you take your Gizmo to your friends house and hook it up after his router (next to his Gizmo) you have your number whereever you are.

Customer service is slow to answer, average 19 minutes listening to hold, but the call is free... and the handsets do speaker so no phone pressed against my head, and they sometimes do and sometimes don't have a clue. My guess would be that it is the individual CS rep, sometimes you get a good one sometimes not, but that is true for every company who farms their CS out.

And my old wired (Jabra) headset from my cell phone hooks into the jack on the handset so I have handsfree.

All said and done worth the wait and the hassle for nice service at a nice price.

Hank

 

[Kelemvor]

So If I hook it up in the Modem -> Router -> Gizmo setup, which port on the Gizmo do I use? ANd do I need a crossover cable or is a normal cable good enough?

Also do I need to forward certain ports and things to make sure the GIzmo works as it's supposed to?

 

[Jlensbo]

Originally posted by: daweeze02

Originally posted by: Jlensbo
To anyone who has renewed their one year service with SunRocket:

I received an email that my one year service was over on March 11, so I followed the link and told them that I wanted to go another year (13 mos. actually). I got a response that an "email will be sent to you confirming" my choice.

But now when I log onto the website under my account I still see the notice that my service will expire on March 11 and that I should enter my renewel information. I'm afraid to enter it again: either I'll confuse them or be double-billed? Anyway, I hope that, come March 11th, they'll know that I chose the one year continuance (instead of automatically enrolling me in the month-to-month plan).

Has anyone had this experience?

Same here I called 2 weeks ago and renewed and got my 4 new phones, but have yet to be charged the $199.

You got 4 new phones for just RENEWING??? I got 2 phones a year ago when I first signed up, but you got 4 NEW PHONES FOR RENEWING????

 

[Jlensbo]

Originally posted by: georgepa
jlensbo-

If the order didn't go through as of yet (still some time left) it may not be a bad thing. I think daweezy mentioned that if you call them directly they will throw in another pair of Uniden phones with the renewal. So, instead of using the link I will call them next week directly to get the 2 phones as well as the extra month.

Call them up at 1-800-786-0132. I would probably try their SALES department in Canada (instead of CS in the Phillipines.) So, choose SALES instead of TECH SUPPORT or BILLING. Then ask them about the status of your renewal request. If they see it ask them for the extra phones. If they don't see it tell them to scratch it and enter the renewal order with the 2 free phones. Might as well take advantage of the extra value they are willing to throw in with the renewal.

Thanx for the advice, but I just called them. They had no record of my email asking to renew, so I held the line for someone who could take my renewal. He said that he could, indeed, give me an extra month (13) but that the two free phones were for only new subscribers. When I implied that I would rather "switch than fight" he just said, "OK", leaving me to wonder if they are really giving more free phones to those renewing their service.

Does anyone have any insight into this? I only have 4 days until I must renew!

 

[ttown]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
So If I hook it up in the Modem -> Router -> Gizmo setup, which port on the Gizmo do I use? ANd do I need a crossover cable or is a normal cable good enough?

Also do I need to forward certain ports and things to make sure the GIzmo works as it's supposed to?

cable/dsl ==> modem --> (wan)Router(lan)-->(wan)Gizmo(line1)-->phone

edit: crossover cable depends on your router -- but probably not needed. No port forwarding needed for me -- but read my post a page or so back regarding Denial-of-Service settings, if applicable to your router.

hth

 

[azoomee]

Is Porting taking alot longer now? Its been 2 1/2 weeks and counting.....

 

[HankD]

All the cables you need come with the package. Depends on your router, but as I said before I have the SMC and no port forwarding is required.

Hank

 

[RideFree]

Originally posted by: azoomee
Is Porting taking alot longer now? Its been 2 1/2 weeks and counting.....

It took two months for mine to get done...months!
Qwurst drug first one foot and then the other foot and finally, both feet!
Took three phone calls with my having been told on each call that it would be another twenty days.

 

[georgepa]

FrankyJr-

The setup you describe:

The cable that comes in the package is a crossover cable, but you can use any. Plug one end into the WAN port of the gizmo, the other into an available router port. I would shut everything down, then (in sequence) turn on the cable modem (wait until all lights are up,) then the router, then the gizmo. Should give you a voice light and calls.

jlensbo-

I haven't renewed yet, was going to do that before the weekend. I just read that some had that experience. I am not sure what the difference is. Maybe daweezy can enlighten us? Was it the CANADIAN sales person or the PHILLIPINES customer service that gave the free phones upon renewal?

azoomee-

2 1/2 weeks is still short. It took me about 30 days from Verizon. Are you with POTS? Perhaps you can call your landline provider and find out if they are showing a disconnect order, then ask what date it is showing.

 

[agrall]

My package has shipped!

Looking forward to trying it out and comparing to my Vonage service.

 

[Kelemvor]

Well I got mine up last night. I have my house wired so I just used a normal Cat5 cable and plugg the gizmo in intothe LAn jack in my bedroom for testing. It connected right up and after a few minutes all the lights were on as normal. I could make an outgoing call andit worked fine. Now I just have to wait until the inbound calls start working.

Also, does the WAN light turn color sbased on the connection speed? My light was green but someone said it'd normally be orange to signify 100Mbps instead of 10Mbps.
Ans is the Ready light supposed to flah all the time because mine never comes on solid.

 

[georgepa]

franky-

The ready light always blinks, so that's normal.

Color: Dunno. must be a new thing with the innomedia's. The gizmo has just one light color. If you are with FOCAL communications as your CLEC, incoming calls could take a little while before they start coming in. Could you post your area code and SR # exchange so I can look that up?

 

[Kelemvor]

Oh, I should say that I have the Telco one, not the Innomedia. So maye the peron I ehard say it should change colors had the Innomedia one.

Ah well. as long as it works I don't reallly care what color the light is.

 

[astrosfan90]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
Well I got mine up last night. I have my house wired so I just used a normal Cat5 cable and plugg the gizmo in intothe LAn jack in my bedroom for testing. It connected right up and after a few minutes all the lights were on as normal. I could make an outgoing call andit worked fine. Now I just have to wait until the inbound calls start working.

Nice! Do you mean you have it wired through hard lines in your house as opposed to the cordless phones?

 

[Kelemvor]

Originally posted by: astrosfan90

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
Well I got mine up last night. I have my house wired so I just used a normal Cat5 cable and plugg the gizmo in intothe LAn jack in my bedroom for testing. It connected right up and after a few minutes all the lights were on as normal. I could make an outgoing call andit worked fine. Now I just have to wait until the inbound calls start working.

Nice! Do you mean you have it wired through hard lines in your house as opposed to the cordless phones?

I have my house wired with CAT5 cable. Eventually the Gizmo will end up in the basement by my cable modem and router and such but for now it's just plugged into my LAN in my bedroom. The phone is still connected to the Gizmo Phone 1 port as normal. And eventually I'll plug my home phone wiring into the Gizmo so I can still use all thep hone I normally use.

 

[astrosfan90]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior

Originally posted by: astrosfan90

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
Well I got mine up last night. I have my house wired so I just used a normal Cat5 cable and plugg the gizmo in intothe LAn jack in my bedroom for testing. It connected right up and after a few minutes all the lights were on as normal. I could make an outgoing call andit worked fine. Now I just have to wait until the inbound calls start working.

Nice! Do you mean you have it wired through hard lines in your house as opposed to the cordless phones?

I have my house wired with CAT5 cable. Eventually the Gizmo will end up in the basement by my cable modem and router and such but for now it's just plugged into my LAN in my bedroom. The phone is still connected to the Gizmo Phone 1 port as normal. And eventually I'll plug my home phone wiring into the Gizmo so I can still use all thep hone I normally use.

That's not a bad way to do it.

If I ever get motivated I might do that--at the omoment I have coax and Cat-5 strung around my house for various computers and TVs. The phones are at least wireless, so one less hassle, but if I get bored one weekend I might try to run all that through the walls, and if I do, I'll try to do that with my SunRocket as well.

 

[ZeroBlank010]

Well. I finally took the plunge and decided to try it after reading how much most of you are enjoying the service. Now just waiting for the equipment.

Hopefully Sunrocket will work well for me and I can finally ditch my expensive landline that I don't use.

 

[Kelemvor]

Originally posted by: astrosfan90

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior

Originally posted by: astrosfan90

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
Well I got mine up last night. I have my house wired so I just used a normal Cat5 cable and plugg the gizmo in intothe LAn jack in my bedroom for testing. It connected right up and after a few minutes all the lights were on as normal. I could make an outgoing call andit worked fine. Now I just have to wait until the inbound calls start working.

Nice! Do you mean you have it wired through hard lines in your house as opposed to the cordless phones?

I have my house wired with CAT5 cable. Eventually the Gizmo will end up in the basement by my cable modem and router and such but for now it's just plugged into my LAN in my bedroom. The phone is still connected to the Gizmo Phone 1 port as normal. And eventually I'll plug my home phone wiring into the Gizmo so I can still use all thep hone I normally use.

That's not a bad way to do it.

If I ever get motivated I might do that--at the omoment I have coax and Cat-5 strung around my house for various computers and TVs. The phones are at least wireless, so one less hassle, but if I get bored one weekend I might try to run all that through the walls, and if I do, I'll try to do that with my SunRocket as well.

Back when I did this, the best place to get the keystone jacks and wall plates and such (cheapest I could find) was at http://www.lanshack.com

Not sure if they are still good but that's where I got all my stuff from.

 

[georgepa]

wow, it DOES work. Thanks, daweeze, for the tip. I CALLED SR to renew. I made sure to call SALES in Canada, not CS in the Phillipines. I told the lady that I wanted to renew, that I heard that they can ship 2 free phones in addition to the 13th month. She said "We can certainly do that." It was done in 2 minutes. I called back again to confirm that the phones were included. The guy said that he didn't know what she included, but "let me send you the 2 phones." Then he said "Ok, they're on their way." From the looks of it I may be getting 4 phones, like daweeze. They must have bought them for next to nothing to give them out like that.

jlensbo-

CALL SR back. This time be sure to talk to CANADIAN support, which is SALES - they also double as customer service. I was told tonight, btw, that ALL tech support will be moved back from the Phillipines shortly. When you call from your SR phone they see your number with their caller ID, so SALES is not an option you have access to from your SR phone. Call from another phone (cell?) and go to SALES (which gets you to CANADA) or, alternatively, hide your Caller ID by typing *67 before you dial SRs number. Then go to SALES and request the renewal with the 2 phones.

 

[azoomee]

Well, numbers ported today according to the SR website. Havent checked to see if they work at home though........

If they work, can I cancel my wireline phone (verizon) right away?

 

[Kelemvor]

Originally posted by: azoomee
Well, numbers ported today according to the SR website. Havent checked to see if they work at home though........

If they work, can I cancel my wireline phone (verizon) right away?

Pretty much yes. Once your number isn't going to the other line any more, you have no use for your other phoen company. Might want to give it a day or two just to make sure nothing goes wacky, but then send them packing.

 

[astrosfan90]

Originally posted by: georgepa
I was told tonight, btw, that ALL tech support will be moved back from the Phillipines shortly.

Do I read this correctly in assuming that asking for Sales will no longer get you to a Canadian support center?

ZeroBlank--Good choice. Let us know how it goes.