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

[idea]

Quality is great, I haven't had any issues yet. All the features work. They shipped me 3 phones in total, the 2-handset set and one additional handset. I may pick up another one for about $30 (Froogle).

The phones look/feel cheap but they do what they have to do perfectly. I setup all 3 handsets and trained them to the base. I added a small phonebook list on one phone and then distributed it to the other 2 handsets. The buttons are way too small, even for my skinny hands.

But then again, they were free!!!! I'm having a lot of fun with this VOIP stuff.

 

[idea]

If I'm not mistaken... I think I am able to actually spoof phone calls now, right? I just go to the config page of the gizmo and enter any phone number/caller ID name that I want and thats how it shows up on the person's phone call. This doesn't seem very safe. I should have fun with this before they cancel it

 

[imported_fatman]

Originally posted by: idea
If I'm not mistaken... I think I am able to actually spoof phone calls now, right? I just go to the config page of the gizmo and enter any phone number/caller ID name that I want and thats how it shows up on the person's phone call. This doesn't seem very safe. I should have fun with this before they cancel it

How do you get that number's Authentication User Name and its password?
Are we talking about the same page?

 

[Drizzy]

Ahhhh crap I waited a little too long cause the 3 month free promo code seems to not be working.. says its invalid now. anyone confirm?

 

[DoozerM]

Drizzy -

Did you call up sales and ask if you could still have the promotion? I think some of the earlier comments stated that you might have better luck with phone sales vs. Internet.

 

[georgepa]

drizzy-

Yeah, the 3-month promo does not work anymore. Ridefree reported that he called SR directly and was told they would give that to him. I called their yesterday, and was told it had expired. Maybe worth a try to call. If not, the $199/12 month deal comes with the free phones. You could sell those on ebay and get the 3-month value back into your pocket.



idea-

3 handsets? Lucky. I believe you can order the extra handset from SR for $25. I am not sure how you can setup fake numbers and dial out with it?

 

[TheTony]

I'm getting interested in trying out VOIP, and have narrowed my choices down to SunRocket and Vonage. SunRocket seems a bit more stable than earlier this year when I first looked into them, and like their promotions.

A few questions:

I realize it's expired, but was the 15 month promotion in addition to the phones? Does this promotion run every so often or is the consensus that it's gone and there won't be something equivalent around the corner?

I've also heard about a promo that offers the unlimited monthly service at a reduced $19.99 (with promo code) monthly . Is this still available and, if so, is the promo for the life of the account or for the 1st year?

 

[georgepa]

Tony-

Nobody knows what promotions Sunrocket will come up with next. They are by far the most promotion-happy VOIP provider. It is probably because the powers-that-be are former MCI executives and, even more, the ones responsible for successful MCI promotions at the time (5 cts. per minute flat rate deal, MCI Neighborhood, etc.) So, chances are there are other promotions around the corner.

I for one believe that by the end of 2006 the price for unlimited calling in the US will be under $10. So, IMO there will be a promotion for $199 for 20 months to bring that price under $10. That may not happen until late next year, though. For now the 15 month/$199 deal is gone. It was NOT in conjunction with the 2 free phones deal. For many the $199/12 month with 2 free phones is the monetarily better deal of the two.


The code to bring the monthly unlimited deal with the 2 phones included to $19.95 is WBFOGQ. That would be for the lifetime of your contract, so it could be forever. However, as I mentioned before, you'll probably be looking to change that sometime next year as prices should be dropping further.

Vonage vs. Sunrocket: I had posted a monetary and feature comparison between the two a few pages back. For the same service type you pay at least double with Vonage, and, if you consider that second number and various extras like 2 free 411 calls, $3 int'l call credit, the value of the two free phones with SR, you are paying almost triple to Vonage for the first year of service. Vonage is the better known "brand" but at almost triple the price (at least all in all considered for the first 12 months of service) and with less features than SR IMO not as good a value. The saving grace for them was some uptime problems Sunrocket had this year, but that appears to have been resolved by SR installing "better" hardware early September.

 

[TheTony]

Thanks for the quick reply. I've seen you on the VOIP board at BBR as well and you're very helpful.

I fully realize any future promotions are mere speculation at this point. However, I wasn't aware if the 15 month promotion has been going on for some time or phased in and out like some of their other promotions tend. Though, it appears that it has been runing for some time. I find your speculation about 2006 and forward very interesting. I'm not quite sure what price points will settle at as VoIP matures, but even the $199 or $19.99 monthly are compelling in their own right. I assume you're speaking about Joyce with regards to MCI, though there must be others that joined her.

Personally, I liked what I saw with both SunRocket and Vonage. However, I was first finding out about SunRocket right before their reliability lapse this fall, so I've held off on VOIP in general and did look into what Vonage offered, in the meantime. I agree - the featureset with SR cannot be beat at the current price. For me, the phones would be put to use immediately (and get a third), so I view them as more of a savings than monetary bonus and as such I suppose the fifteen month promo isn't as big of a deal to me. I don't view the int'l calls as a huge boon, but it is nice. All in all, the price plus features plus offers have sold me and I'm just biding my time before I jump in.

I've got a friend who just signed up with Vonage, so the comparison of our personal experience should be interesting. He's very pleased so far and I look forward to the same with SR.

 

[bulletpr00f]

I'm sure if you squeeze yourself little more you can find many more excuses. Unfortunately non of these excuses do anything good for the business.

BTW, It is very normal and disrespectful of you george to mention something like "Bostonkarl made his brief appearances here and is now nowhere to be found for discussion. "Don't get this, it stinks" in SRs case has got to be the single most stupid advice in VOIP history". I guess we should not expect anything more than that from you.

Originally posted by: ttown

Originally posted by: bulletpr00f
vonage vs. sunrocket:

I'm neither a vonage person nor do I recommend it. However, common sense to me answers it all. Just check thislink where there are ton of reviews and SR literally ranks 3rd at the bottom with 130 reviews. With company being this new and this many bad reviews clearly proves one simple fact, SR is not a good VoIP program nor will ever be one. (sorry for the analogy but it truly explains my thoughts) SR is like a football team that does not have a single win, rank at the bottom of the league and yet they claim that they are a good team.

Do not waste your money on SR.

my 0.02$

To put things in perspective, keep in mind the date the review is posted, relative to the well-known service outtages of early-July and mid-October. I'm not saying outtages won't happen again (since I'm not a psychic), but everything I've read from SR indicates they have fixed those specific problems. Clearly, those instances are too much for some.
Regarding the above link at dslreports: my favorite review is by "Champer" who rates all but the website at the lowest possible rating -- AND NEVER EVEN TRIED THE SERVICE. (His valid gripe is: SR dropped the ball on delivery).
I don't know why I have an overwhelming urge to keep responding to bullet's repeated "warnings". I thought he was done with SR for good... and hoped he'd be done with this thread for good, too. Meh. In the early days of electricity, there were a lot of problems -- so you shouldn't sign-on for the obviously passing fad. Electricity was no good, and never will be. Just my $0.02.

 

[astrosfan90]

Originally posted by: DoozerM
Hi all... So far my wife has rated SR an 8 out of 10... (Her rating system is very simple - voice quality, no funky quirks while on phone). One time she got disconnected twice, but I am not sure if they are SR related or my router. I'm doing some research now......

Glad to hear the wife approves!

Let us know what you find out about your connection--I've never had a disconnect personally, so I'd be curious to hear what you find out.

 

[RideFree]

1st yr. aniv. Anybody gotten any renewal info?

Tony,
I hesitated a long time before porting my # over and it only cost me an extra $199 or so at Qwurst rates. I coulda had a v-8 or two years of S/R.

 

[TheTony]

Originally posted by: RideFree
1st yr. aniv. Anybody gotten any renewal info?

Tony,
I hesitated a long time before porting my # over and it only cost me an extra $199 or so at Qwurst rates. I coulda had a v-8 or two years of S/R.

I haven't been waiting that long. I've known about Vonage for awhile, obviously. SR only caught my attention this fall, but reliability scared me away for a bit. However, what I saw was appealing enough to keep me checking back, which I have. I'm planning to make the move this time, and have informed myself on VoIP more in the meantime. Fortunately, between improved service since then plus the new Level 3 announcement, now's a great time.

That said, I'll be moving from Qwest, too. How was the # transfer, from them to SR?

 

[DoozerM]

Originally posted by: astrosfan90

Originally posted by: DoozerM
Hi all... So far my wife has rated SR an 8 out of 10... (Her rating system is very simple - voice quality, no funky quirks while on phone). One time she got disconnected twice, but I am not sure if they are SR related or my router. I'm doing some research now......

Glad to hear the wife approves!

Let us know what you find out about your connection--I've never had a disconnect personally, so I'd be curious to hear what you find out.

After further analysis, I believe the issues were with my router not with SR. (Hooray for SR, Booo for my DI-624). I think the router periodically resets itself (very random) and anything on the connection at the time (computer or otherwise) just gets dropped. I was on the computer at the same time my wife was on the phone one tine, and both her call and my computer lost connectivity. Luckily it does not happen often, so I am not looking to replace my router yet.

BTW - I am VERY impressed with SR support still. I had one computer chat recently and only waited for 10 seconds to get on the queue; And another phone call to support at another time, only waited a minute to speak with someone.

 

[UltraWide]

I signed up today. I used my parent's number as a referral to get the free phones since I only have a cell phone. I am hoping this will work out for me since my cell phone reception is poor inside my condo. I have 2mbps/5mbps so voice quality should be great. It sounded good on my parent's 384kbps/5mbps connection. I signed up for 1 year plan for $199 since it's the cheapest option and once I pay it I can just forget about it for the rest of the year.

 

[astrosfan90]

Yeah, I've always had good experiences with the support. Better still, I haven't had a reason to call them in a long while.

 

[RideFree]

Originally posted by: TheTony
That said, I'll be moving from Qwest, too. How was the # transfer, from them to SR?

Brutal to the max!
I had separate LD carriers for both intra and interstate. Pick locks on both from years ago.
It took 2 solid months of back & forth to resolve it. Qwest drug it out to the nth degree.

 

[Drizzy]

Sweet called them up and told them I had the code and they said "well the promotion ended but if you have the code we can still give it to you" signed up easily. Service was great and fast and friendly. So far good image of the company.

 

[DoozerM]

I am trying to determine if another one of my issues is router related... Some of my incoming calls are randomly dropped. They ring my phone and then drop before I can answer them. Has anyone heard of this issue? Out of curiosity, what wireless router do people recommend. I currently have a DI-624 D-Link which is recommended by Verizon FIOS, but I am sure others would work as well. If I continue to have issues, I may have to replace my router...

 

[TheTony]

Originally posted by: RideFree

Originally posted by: TheTony
That said, I'll be moving from Qwest, too. How was the # transfer, from them to SR?

Brutal to the max!
I had a separate LD carriers for both intra and interstate. Pick locks on both from years ago.
It took 2 solid months of back & forth to resolve it. Qwest drug it out to the nth degree.

I don't have LD (calling card) so hopefully that bodes well for the transition. At least better than 2 months, I hope.

Originally posted by: Drizzy
Sweet called them up and told them I had the code and they said "well the promotion ended but if you have the code we can still give it to you" signed up easily. Service was great and fast and friendly. So far good image of the company.

I'd prefer the phones and know the two promos don't overlap. However, if it's still possible to get the fifteen months with a little CSR roulette, I'm curious - is the fifteen month offer a promo price (for year one) or is this also for the life of the plan?

 

[StumbleBum1]

Got my kit today:thumbsup:..plugged the gizmo in my router behind my cable modem + Vontage gizmo ..Works like a champ..+ the free phones are cool..Now i just have to wait to get my # transfered from Vontage

Big thanks again..OP

 

[georgepa]

ultrawide-

I think you made a good choice. With that bandwidth you should have good success.


DoozerM-

If you had voice AND the computer internet cut out at the same time you definitely have a router issue. I have the same Dlink router with my FIOS, and it hasn't behaved like that. However, routers go bad all the time, especially Dlinks. I have a graveyard of "finished" routers from my clients, and they span from Linksys to Netgear, Dlink to Belkin. Get another router that does not "cut out" on you, put the gizmo on it and that's it.


VERY GOOD NEWS, guys: I called Sunrocket and was told that they can still accomodate BOTH of the expired promos, the 15 month for $199 deal and the deal for the $100 international minutes. Of course it has to be done by phone. The person said that all they need to sign up is a referrers phone number to make it happen, but apparently they give it even without that (as per drizzy and Ridefree.)

 

[ttown]

Originally posted by: DoozerM
I am trying to determine if another one of my issues is router related... Some of my incoming calls are randomly dropped. They ring my phone and then drop before I can answer them. Has anyone heard of this issue? Out of curiosity, what wireless router do people recommend. I currently have a DI-624 D-Link which is recommended by Verizon FIOS, but I am sure others would work as well. If I continue to have issues, I may have to replace my router...

That symptom is similar to what happened to me when I had my Denial-of-Service settings at their default values on my SMC router. I bumped the settings up to their max (but still "ON") in my router and the problem was resolved.
Since it's only "some" calls -- this probably won't help you -- but it's worth a shot. It could be that an inbound call hits your router right on the borderline of triggering the DoS settings.

Also, regarding your random router outtages.... I also had THAT symptom a couple years ago, again with my SMC router -- and it was resolved with a firmware upgrade from the manufacturer. In my case, it would drop every 20 minutes exactly -- but only for a couple seconds.

hope that helps

 

[DoozerM]

ttown -

Thank you. The more I research this, the more I think my router is to blame as well... I am doing some tweaks to the router now (based on other forums mentioning dropped connections with my router type as well) to see if that helps. If not, I will be changing routers shortly....

 

[MaluMan]

I have my Gizmo coming in today, will be a weekend project....was wondering if anyone else is using the WRT54G + dd-wrt w/QoS? And also is there any benefit in using the VoIP version of dd-wrt over the generic version?

thanks