Beware Vodafone VOIP

kleefarr

We have just discovered that we have no home phone.

We got the texts saying that we would be changing to the VOIP system, as I discovered today after ringing up customer service and we have been swapped over, but as our internet is not stable anyway and my TP-Link VR900 doesn't support VOIP then I am now waiting to get reverted back to the normal phone line. Could take up to 2 weeks. Great.


You will need to make sure that your Modem can handle VOIP.
I am not binning my €180 TP-Link VR900 to use their inferior modem, so now waiting to be changed back to the old way.

Would have been nice to have been told what was required and asked if we wanted to change in the first place. :mad:

kleefarr

Well two weeks gone, still no phone.

When I phoned up two weeks ago, the order got rejected. Now waiting until Tuesday28th for a landline.

Mr. G

I wonder if they support using your own SIP device? Ask them for the sip account details and use an ATA

kleefarr

No point now, even if they could.
Engineer coming tomorrow to install my "home fibre broadband" with new 18 month contract.
I did wonder though, if changed to VOIP, or VOB as they call it, would that mean no more call charges or cheaper ones anyway?

snaps

So to get your home phone back to normal you have had to sign a new 18 month contract?

kleefarr

Yep, well didn't sign anything but it's what was at the end of the notification text that the 'Vodafone at Home' service had been installed.
It sound have said reinstalled.

kleefarr

Ok, just got bill through and since the new contract I have been put up €5 a month.
I am going to steam into them tomorrow!! Then get onto Comreg!!

kleefarr

kleefarr wrote: »

Ok, just got bill through and since the new contract I have been put up €5 a month.
I am going to steam into them tomorrow!! Then get onto Comreg!!

Ok, so price increases were posted on website last Nov. I just missed it.

Sam Russell

I was put on VOIP last year. In the last month, we have 'lost' incoming calls - the caller told us they could not get through, but phone was active and not in use. We have also had live calls die mid call, some being lost several time during the one call.

Anyway, they agreed to reinstate the POTS line, so am now back to normal.

The VOIP causes the following problems:

1. If there is a power outage - no phone.
2. If you do not reset the modem, it begins to degrade performance (according to Vodafone)..
3. You get no financial incentive from Vodafone, but they do.
4. There are two phone lines on the modem, but only one works - if at least you could use the second line, it would give the user something.

Anyway, all done now.

flaneur

None of these issues should be issues.

If the service is degrading, there’s something wrong with their gear!

Also why can’t they just give you a server address, username and lassoed and let you connect your own equipment?

I’ve been happily using VoIP from Blueface as my landline for years and years at this stage and I’ve no problem whatsoever.

The audio quality is superior and it’s vastly more flexible.

I’ve a really nice Gigaset system with several handsets.

Also on power failures: most of us only have a DECT cordless and they won’t work anyway without power.
Also, how often do you have power outages? The last one I’ve experienced was about 15 years ago! If you’re prone to them for some reason, maybe just get a UPS and you can keep your broadband and phones up.

Also POTS lines aren’t flawless either. They regularly get knocked out in storms if there’s any overhead wiring and while telephone exchanges are very reliable, they can very occasionally have software and hardware glitches just like any thing else. If a fibre or radio link fails, the exchange somehow has a major malfunction you can end up without service.

If you’re concerned about emergency access in bad weather, an charged non smartphone GSM mobile is pretty much the best solution.

Sam Russell

flaneur wrote: »

Also on power failures: most of us only have a DECT cordless and they won’t work anyway without power.
Also, how often do you have power outages? The last one I’ve experienced was about 15 years ago! If you’re prone to them for some reason, maybe just get a UPS and you can keep your broadband and phones up.

I have a pots phone next to the bed, but I have a 4 phone DECT system for normal use.

Power faults (ELCB) on my internal setup caused power shutdowns - not the whole house but usually included the modem. Happens randomly and impossible to isolate to date - maybe once a year.

POTS = Simplicity.

xraylady

We have had no caller ID on our home broadlink system since changing to Vodafone 1 yr ago. Numerous calls to customer S who told us that 'yes' caller ID was switched on our line and that it must be a fault in our phone system. Today, one year later I was told that the VOIP package that we were put on does not support caller ID and that the POTS package would be €50/ month where as we are paying €40 now.. Eventually they agreed to revert to POTS for same price. It will take up to 15 days but we will have caller ID back. They've told me no disadvantage to me but I'm a little nervous that change will affect broadband ? not tech savvy so don't know.
Im annoyed that I wasnt told about the VOIP and caller ID problem, when I first found the problem. 1 year ago.

flaneur

I wonder if they have the Caller ID protocol set to the wrong system or something weird like that? It's an analogue protocol using FSK modem signalling to send the display number. Ireland's landline network standardised on the same protocol as France and Germany, not BT which actually used a weird system. There's a slight difference where UK lines transmit the signal after reversing the line polarity to alert the phone / device to listen. The Irish landline system works by sending a ringing pulse then the blast of modem signals.

I wonder if the Vodafone modems are set to UK mode for VoIP?
If they're set to France, you might find the caller ID works.

It would be very, very strange for a VoIP package not to support Caller ID at the network side, but they could be screwing up the analogue bit by using the wrong local settings for Ireland on the ATA in the router. There's more to it than just the ringing tone sounds.

Some phones would understand any of the Caller ID protocol as they're made for the broader European / international market, some will only understand the national standards they were designed for.

The Caller ID protocol should be ETSI FSK type with ring pulse.
It should *not* mention PR or polarity reversal, DTMF or Bell 202.

Is there any access to the ATA configuration in the menus of the Vodafone device?

Sam Russell

While I had VOIP on my phone, the caller ID worked perfectly.

I have a Vodafone modem HG658c, and a Gigaset DECT phone system. The Caller ID was working on the POTS system before transfer to VOIP and continued to work on VOIP and when transfered back.

flaneur

The problem is that some phones may be happy with all Caller ID protocols and others will be fussy and only accept ETSI FSK with ring pulse, as used by Eir on landlines.

So you could find most modern DECT phones will work on this device but then a more obscure piece of equipment might just not.

You'll find some UK phones can only accept BT protocols and will not work with caller ID on Irish landlines or some UK Virgin Media or ATA delivered lines.

I would still strongly suspect that the Vodadone device is probably set to BT UK protocols as often people just assume that the Irish system is identical to the UK one because we use the same ringing tone and speak English, use 3 pin plugs etc.

I've seen this a few times with gear sold in Ireland that is incompatible with Eir Caller ID before and I wouldn't be at all surprised if there's an issue.

I'm not even sure that Caller ID is properly regulated as it's a "supplementary service" - I know for example in England, BT used their own system while Virgin and its predecessors used the same system as Eir and most of the continental telcos.

Unfortunately, analogue landline systems were never really designed to be an open standard for some of these things. The Irish networks tended to be more likely to follow ETSI open standards though for most things whereas BT often broke the standards and the US uses its own FCC standards / Bell originated systems. Historically, the landline network here and in the UK share very little in common and used different equipment and vendors for exchanges and so on and Eir and its predecessors tended to always try to stick to whatever the European standards were to avoid being locked into one supplier and reduce their operating costs. The UK historically was locked into British equipment made by GPT/Plessey and tended to ignore international standards. All that's changed and they have an open market and now embrace very open standards too but, they're still stuck with some quirky old systems that originated decades ago.

You could also try seeing if there are any settings in the Broadlink phone system. They were built by Lake Communications in Dublin and used in several markets, including the UK often sold under different telco brands. But I would assume you still might be able to adjust the Caller ID protocol.

If you're trying to save money though, maybe look at moving to a normal VoIP provider like Goldfish or Blueface? You can get your own ATA

I think there was even an 'advanced internet module' for some of those Broadlink systems that allows them to be upgraded to support VoIP, so in theory, you might be able to connect it directly to an SIP provider like Blueface or Goldfish etc.

Whether you can get it or not is another question as I think Eir stopped selling those systems some time ago. They were manufactured by Lake Communications in Dublin and I can't seem to find any reference to them anymore, so maybe they were acquired by someone else or are no longer around?

xraylady

kleefarr wrote: »

Ok, so price increases were posted on website last Nov. I just missed it.

I changed back recently too but they waived the increase. They also honoured the €40/month, which was a reduction I had been offered to renew my VOIP package. Paying 40€ for the 'old' type line.

xraylady

Just a quick question.As I’ve said in earlier posts, I am changing back to old system from VOIP and just been phoned by Vodafone to say that an Engineer will call to house next week to change over.. is there much involved? I assumed it was just a remote switchover. Worried that it will affect other things, broadband ,Sky..? ? Possible drilling was mentioned.
Anyone any knowledge of this procedure?

Sam Russell

xraylady wrote: »

Just a quick question.As I’ve said in earlier posts, I am changing back to old system from VOIP and just been phoned by Vodafone to say that an Engineer will call to house next week to change over.. is there much involved? I assumed it was just a remote switchover. Worried that it will affect other things, broadband ,Sky..? ? Possible drilling was mentioned.
Anyone any knowledge of this procedure?

I changed back and they told me an engineer would call, but that never happened - the work was done at the box in the street. I had to plug the line back into the phone socket and all returned to normal. They also said I would be on a new 18 month contract but that would not apply.

I have yet to get onto them to make sure that is not so.

Mr. G

Just a quick question, did you try a different handset to connect to your modem? Vodafone would pass on the CLI to the modem