Ooma Telo Review (from infoNOTmercial.com)

[clouisd]

Skype is way better.. and a lot cheaper

[clouisd]

Ooma is a revolutionary device that allows you to call anywhere in the U.S. for free. You pay only applicable taxes and fees

HOW IN THE WORLD IS THAT FREE..

[Bobster986]

Magic Jack, not $300, it's $99 (Jack plus first year. Look on line for deals as low as $69), No computer needed and $20 every year there after. ROCK ON!

[VideoGuyNC]

I don't get how people think VOiP saves anything! I have CenturyLink real Landline with a great DSL connection, and both only cost $60/month. The cheapest cable internet connection I could find costs around that (after their 12 month intro rate). I get 100% up time, no bad connections, no dropped service, and the reliability of a real landline with unlimited local and long distance!

[unlucky13tattoo]

@VideoGuyNC I pay about 60 dollars a year for skype and 40 dollars a month to 24 meg cable internet and never have a single problem unless we have a bad storm and my cable cuts out. And if that happens I have a tracfone in my pocket. you pay 720 a year if you don't make any long distance calls and don't get jacked with fees. I pay 540 a year, free long distance, and have a pretty damn fast connection. Surf, netflix, and talk all at once with no problem.

[DaveyTut]

What if Ooma goes out of business and you are not signed up for premier, can't your Ooma work independent of the Ooma business itself?

If you know, send me a message. Thx

[wizard7132]

You should review the netTALK duo.

[TELETIMNM]

Great Video and great point made on the Business model of this Ooma Company...............Uhmmm...­............

Will probably stick with Vonage!!!!!! $12.50 per month plus +tax+=Free email voicemail and lots of free features!!!!!

[alozzzy1213]

No you do have to pay 3.50 cents a month for taxes or 9.99 a month if you have premier

[stockjonebills]

the regulatory fees are nothing. This thing is the best value for an IP phone. Yes a magic jacl is cheaper but it has to be connected to a PC thats on and sound quality is so so. Vonage, comcast etc all charge way more per month than you'll ever spend for the ooma. Really happy with the device. Even with the premiere service its cheaper than a landline or other IP services. Vonage might be better if you make a lot of international calls.

[MrsScatCat]

@erminthon It's for state & federal taxes which everyone has to pay regardless.

[MrsScatCat]

Opting out of Premier Service ($9.99/mo) is EASY. It's a simple box to check.

Actually, the monthly fees have nothing to do with Ooma - they are state & federal taxes which everyone has to pay regardless.

[zaphod9977]

Costco has the Ooma for $179 in the store and $199 online. With the online version you get the Bluetooth dongle ($30) included and $50 of international long distance credit. You can put Ooma before your router or plugged into your router. You do not get charged an "unexplained fee", it is the government taxes. I have had Vonage, T-Mobile@home, Broadvoice, and Ooma works fine, just as well as the others.

[Voodeux]

Thanks for this review. Price has dropped quite a bit, which makes it more attractive. Thanks for mentioning the pitfalls and business model. As with all things tech, there is a risk of owning a useless gadget with the passage of time.

[japierce15]

does the ooma telo assign an internal IP address to a computer and provide firewall protection, like as though it were a router? And what other things can you configure in ooma -setup-com?

[RhunDraco]

There's a good comparison of Ooma vs Vonage vs MagicJack vs Skype on Michael Bluejey's site, do a google search for 'michael bluejay ooma'

[RhunDraco]

@RhunDraco I haven't decided between Vonage and Ooma yet, myself, but CostCo does have the Ooma Telo currently for less than $200 USD (179, I believe).

[MrsScatCat]

@RhunDraco I've had Vonage which is a monthly fee. It's okay but Ooma is cheaper and the call quality is much better. Do a search on: Ooma named the best home phone service by Consumer Reports. Posted: 2:30 p.m. Friday, April 22, 2011 by Clark Howard Website.

I also have Magic Jack as a backup for traveling. It's easier to pack.

[wingnut4427]

@erminthon regulatory fees, state taxes, & so on.

[mikebed96]

I've had Ooma for about 2 years. It's a great device. I purchased the Ooma Premiere plan, and even though it is still $10/month, it is much cheaper (in most cases) than paying for a regular home phone service (I switched from AT&T). Also, the customized dial tone that plays when the callee picks up can be turned off in the online settings. You can also change the entire dial tone.

[jackburton2009]

I've tried Magic Jack, it's a very niche device, good for people overseas like soldiers to make calls home. However it's not for a primary phone line, as its quality is subpar, you need a computer on all the time, the software pops up interrupting what you're doing on outgoing and incoming calls and sometimes it doesn't even work. Also it has no built in packet priority, so if you're doing other things on your internet line it disrupts the call. Ooma looks promising as it does have QoS.

[MacroStuff]

I have the Ooma Telo. It's PERFECT! Way better than anything else I've tried!

[Xstation20]

www3(dot)ooma(dot)com/referral­/?referral_code=RAZM3491 get it for only 229.00 with a free HD handset!

[meltdownmelanie]

This was a very informative product review - thank you!

[BetoTheButcher]

Im thinking of dumping AT&T Uverse VOIP phone and saving those $30, or maybe putting those towards the premium channels (HBO, Starz, Showtime). My mother didnt like the way the Ooma sounded.... she said it sounded a bit distand and dull. Not as sharp with little high.

How does the call quality compare between Telo and regular Ooma from a few years ago? Thanks.

[simpsonstewie]

@BetoTheButcher I came from Uverse voip. I had ooma since january/2010. I bought mine from costco for only $250 and it came with $100 in ooma credit which you can use to purchase ooma features like premier or intl calling. . IF you want to keep your old number ooma charges $40 to port your number as a one time fee. So basically i paid $290 for this and since att charges $360/yr for their service. So basically this thing pays for itself within the first year. THe call quality i thought was better

[BetoTheButcher]

@simpsonstewie Right. I have Ooma for my bedroom. I was wondering about the call quality between Ooma Hub vs. Ooma Telo. I have the older model (white one with pink lights), but the new Ooma Telo has the black finish.

Ooma vs. Ooma Telo (fight!)

The main house has AT&T Uverse Voip. My bedroom has Ooma. Im thinking of getting Ooma telo for the house and keeping my Ooma (old model) in my bedroom with its own dedicated line. The original Ooma sounded dull and my mother didnt like it.

[simpsonstewie]

@BetoTheButcher oh. well i wouldn't know the call quality between telo and hub, but compared to uverse quality, it sounds exactly the same if not better. So if your uverse sounds better than the hub, get the telo.

[craigcreationz]

nettalk is much better

[TriniMD]

I have $50 off coupons email me for a code

[DJTEVAdotCOM]

heres link to old ooma core system

[DJTEVAdotCOM]

Magic Jack is crap compared to Ooma. I wouldn't recommend the new Ooma telo though. This new model takes away all the features that was free from the 1st gen system and charges an arm and a leg. Get the orignal model. I have the orignal model and it worked like a charm.

[CuTaoDen]

@DJTEVAdotCOM

can you give me the old Ooma Model? i'm interesting ... thank you

[cdfgh1111]

What about data mining ? What info do they  collect and sell ?

[CoasterCloud]

This is the best review I've seen. Great job Morty.

[arthill07]

The ooma tone can be disabled and you will never hear it, its in the my ooma account. I have been using the original omma system for over a year now. I dont have the ooma premeer and have no use for all the extra features. Its not about the cool features. For me its about saving $100 per month on my local, long distance and international calls.

[wadeLAS]

Very thorough review. I think I'll order the Ooma. Thanks!

[Donflorgon]

Great Review!

Thank You!

[jon4lakers]

Great review.

[ctsfiddler]

excellent review but i vote for Magic jack. Ooma may be gone in a few years.

[TranceScene]

It's the other way arround. Magic Jack has a huge flaw.

Magic Jack is fully dependent on a computer that must be on every time. Computer crashes, no phone. Lots of people like myself don't want to deal with that nonsense.

International calls with Magic Jack? The person in the other country must also have a Magic Jack, a pc with it installed, and left on when you call.

If you're working on your pc, that stupid Magic Jack screen pops up over your windows EVERY time a call comes in.

[BuffyHunt]

Magicjack is complete garbage. I like my Ooma, the only thing I am not happy with is the second line requires the handset

[thisguyb]

its 249.99 now

[Zermelo]

Also if you buy the older Hub+Scout combination you don't have to pay the regulatory fees and get more voicemail options w/o buying premiere service. They should tell the full story.

[TranceScene]

WRONG. That's for people who bought the hub early on. New hub customers still pay annual regulatory fees like Telo users.

[Zermelo]

Not quite retard, considering I ACTUALLY OWN the hub/scout and have read the terms, I know.  Look here smartguy:

w-w-w (dot) ooma (dot) com / blog / how-oomas-terms-conditions-aff­ect-current-new-ooma-customers

& you will see that NEW hub/scout owners don't pay regulatory fees. Get your facts straight before opening your mouth.

[TranceScene]

$226 with free ship at Amazon.

[86pacer]

Now $199 free ship from Amazon.

[AceLockCo]

Excellent review, but I have to agree, the MagicJack is the way to go!!

[Zermelo]

Magicjack is complete garbage. Who wants to keep their computer on 24/7 to make calls and install crappy software on you computer.

[TranceScene]

installed one of these for somebody. That Magic Jack window will pop up over your windows every time a call comes in when you're working on your computer.

So annoying that a "magic jack blocker" has been developed to keep this stupid thing from popping up on your screen ever time a call comes in.

[Deviantial]

That was an excellent review!

[guy990]

hey nice review and happy new year!

[TFiPW]

wow didn't magic jack patent it already?

[theboarman]

this is a rip off, get magicjack

[infoNOTmercial]

We have a magic jack review and we're putting our Ooma Telo vs. Magicjack video up next week.

[afgfam786]

@theboarman magic jack sucks

[thadizoc]

@theboarman Magic Jack sounds like crap and doesn't work half the time. You also have to leave a power hungry computer on to make it work..

[ndhudecz]

@thadizoc I agree

[thedarkyobo]

@theboarman Magic Jacks get their internet via usb- so they don't work when the computer isn't on. How annoying.

[theboarman]

@thedarkyobo wow people are still responding to this lol, i sent this almost a year ago

[alozzzy1213]

@theboarman Ooma doesnt need a computer to be on though.