Does new Vodafone Gigabit FTTH Broadband Support WiFi Calling ?

CreativeAnto

Does new Vodafone Gigabit FTTH Broadband Support WiFi Calling ?

Our rural area qualifies for FTTH... two providers are offering 1,000MB FTTH Broadband... Eir is €74.97 for 1,000MB Unlimited Broadband with Unlimited Calls to landline to mobiles in Ireland (12 Month Contract)... while Vodafone is also 1,000MB Unlimited Broadband with Unlimited Calls to landline to mobiles in Ireland for €25 for 6 months and €80 afterwards (18 Months Contract).

I have been told that Eir's FTTH support WiFi Calling... we currently have no mobile signal where we live and we have been using the Vodafone SureSignal system for about 6 years now... and it's good but not great... ideally we would love the WiFi Calling Service... just wish I knew if Vodafone's new Gigabox supports this service or will do in the very near future... as have been loyal Vodafone customers for our mobile phones and landlines for many years now.

Anyone know any solid info on this... ?

tsue921i8wljb3

CreativeAnto wrote: »

Does new Vodafone Gigabit FTTH Broadband Support WiFi Calling ?

Our rural area qualifies for FTTH... two providers are offering 1,000MB FTTH Broadband... Eir is €74.97 for 1,000MB Unlimited Broadband with Unlimited Calls to landline to mobiles in Ireland (12 Month Contract)... while Vodafone is also 1,000MB Unlimited Broadband with Unlimited Calls to landline to mobiles in Ireland for €25 for 6 months and €80 afterwards (18 Months Contract).

I have been told that Eir's FTTH support WiFi Calling... we currently have no mobile signal where we live and we have been using the Vodafone SureSignal system for about 6 years now... and it's good but not great... ideally we would love the WiFi Calling Service... just wish I knew if Vodafone's new Gigabox supports this service or will do in the very near future... as have been loyal Vodafone customers for our mobile phones and landlines for many years now.

Anyone know any solid info on this... ?

It is not that the routers support WiFi calling as such. eir have an app (Android, iOS) called eir Talk that allows you to make and receive calls if you have their voice over broadband (VoBB) as part of your package. I have used the Android version to make calls and it works well.

https://www.eir.ie/apps/

As far as I know Vodafone have no such app.

CreativeAnto

Cheer Navi for that update and info. I would like to go with Vodafone if possible as they have been a great company to deal with, but I can't find any official info stating that they have this VoBB feature on their new Gigabit Broadband... but sounds like it's all working for you with Eir... so do you have to make and receive those calls using your own official mobile number and using this dedicated app...?

I know Vodafone support VoIP, so my landline will be able to run without issue on their new Gigabit product... but it's my mobile phone and that of all my families mobile phones is what we are struggling with.

tsue921i8wljb3

CreativeAnto wrote: »

Cheer Navi for that update and info. I would like to go with Vodafone if possible as they have been a great company to deal with, but I can't find any official info stating that they have this VoBB feature on their new Gigabit Broadband... but sounds like it's all working for you with Eir... so do you have to make and receive those calls using your own official mobile number and using this dedicated app...?

I know Vodafone support VoIP, so my landline will be able to run without issue on their new Gigabit product... but it's my mobile phone and that of all my families mobile phones is what we are struggling with.

VoBB is just eir's name for VoIP.

I assume you don't currently have a copper landline. If so, what will happen with eir if you order FTTH with a phone bundle is you will be assigned a geographic landline number associated with your area e.g. 01 if in Dublin.

You can then register up to five (I think) separate devices using eir Talk. If you make a call using the app the caller ID is set to the geographic landline number, so it is essentially an extension of the landline. You can also block your number if you wish for no caller ID. It works fine over WiFi, I did not try it over 3 or 4G so can't really comment on that.

The eir Talk app is basically a SIP VoIP client that you can install on your phone.

With Vodafone none of this is available. They don't have an app that can do this so you simply get a landline that is using VoIP if you opt for a calls bundle.

WiFi calling is a completely different product that is provided by the mobile networks.

CreativeAnto

So Navi, if you were given a choice of having WiFi calling or not having it... which would you go with..?

The Vodafone deal of €25 for 6 Months is a much better deal than the Eir deal... the only thing I can see the Vodafone deal is lacking is the WiFi Calling.... other than that... I have interacted with Eir's Customer Service and it's the worst I have ever experienced... not a worry if the FTTH works flawlessly... I have had issued with Imagine Broadband... so I have had to interact with Customer Care a lot to get issues resolved.

I current have VoIP from Imagine that works great during the earl;y day when the speeds are very fast... but not as reliable in the evening when the speeds dramatically drop.

I also have a landline, originally with Eircom, but with Vodafone for about a decade now. SureSignal with Vodafone also to get our mobiles working.... but again, can be a little unreliable when speeds reduce.

tsue921i8wljb3

CreativeAnto wrote: »

So Navi, if you were given a choice of having WiFi calling or not having it... which would you go with..?

The Vodafone deal of €25 for 6 Months is a much better deal than the Eir deal... the only thing I can see the Vodafone deal is lacking is the WiFi Calling.... other than that... I have interacted with Eir's Customer Service and it's the worst I have ever experienced... not a worry if the FTTH works flawlessly... I have had issued with Imagine Broadband... so I have had to interact with Customer Care a lot to get issues resolved.

I current have VoIP from Imagine that works great during the earl;y day when the speeds are very fast... but not as reliable in the evening when the speeds dramatically drop.

I also have a landline, originally with Eircom, but with Vodafone for about a decade now. SureSignal with Vodafone also to get our mobiles working.... but again, can be a little unreliable when speeds reduce.

I'd probably go with the cheaper option but calls are not very important to me. I actually cancelled the phone part of my bundle after the initial 12 months were up. Only you can answer how important they are to your family.

Also be aware that the eir price is a discount for 12 months. After 12 months expect to pay ~€100 per month for 1000Mb plus calls.

You should not have to worry about speed drops anymore whoever you go with.

ED E

1. Loyalty to an ISP is silly, unless you've an account of 50 users+ it counts for diddly squat.

2. What you want is formally called (usually) VoWIFI. There's VOLTE which is easy enough to deploy and VoWIFI that gets messy and is thus low on an MNOs priority list.

3. There are other ways to solve this:
- Repeaters are now legal, if theres signal on your roof you're golden.
- Use a SIP provider with a divert after 5 rings or whenever you're home it'll just failover

CreativeAnto

Hi ED E

Excuse my ignorance but I don't understand how I could even deploy VOLTE as I'm not technically experienced in such matters... I heard about Signal Repeaters becoming legal all right for sure... but I have zero bars anywhere around the house unless I go outside onto the road... so I reckon that won't work.

Maybe my existing SureSignal will just perform better overall with my new 1000MB speeds... and maybe that will be the interim solution until Vodafone officially roll out VoWiFi calling...

ED E

The SureSignal is old and uses old radio tech. There are newer femtocells (what the SureSignal is) but Vodafone aren't interested.

Unless your house is very far from the road if you have signal there you are very likely to have it on your roof. Ten minutes with a ladder will tell you. You don't need signal in the house, just within 30-40ft foot of the ground on your property.

You wouldnt deploy VOLTE, Vodafone would. But as its messy they're dragging their heels was my point.

Marlow

First of all, there are a lot more providers than just Eir and Vodafone offering FTTH. A list can be found in this thread: https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057927096

As for WiFi calling, there are a couple scenarios:

- If your provider offers this feature (currently only Eir).

OR

- If your provider offers VoIP and supplies you with a router, that lets you install an App on your phone. This works for all providers that use the Fritz!Box:

Airwire, BBNet, Digiweb and Westnet all use that specific router and offer VoIP, so you can use your mobile phone to make calls via WiFi. And all of these offer 1000 Mbit/s FTTH, the same as Eir and Vodafone. To still receive your mobile calls, you can then forward your calls to your VoIP landline, if your mobile is out of signal. Works a treat.

As for the SureSignal, Vodafone have abandoned that. So not even that is an option anymore.

/M

babelfish1990

CreativeAnto wrote: »

Does new Vodafone Gigabit FTTH Broadband Support WiFi Calling ?

Our rural area qualifies for FTTH... two providers are offering 1,000MB FTTH Broadband... Eir is €74.97 for 1,000MB Unlimited Broadband with Unlimited Calls to landline to mobiles in Ireland (12 Month Contract)... while Vodafone is also 1,000MB Unlimited Broadband with Unlimited Calls to landline to mobiles in Ireland for €25 for 6 months and €80 afterwards (18 Months Contract).

I have been told that Eir's FTTH support WiFi Calling... we currently have no mobile signal where we live and we have been using the Vodafone SureSignal system for about 6 years now...
Anyone know any solid info on this... ?

WiFi Calling offers a much more seamless mobile experience than VOIP/VOBB. WiFi calling basically turns your WiFi router into a mobile base-station but using WiFi instead of mobile spectrum. Voice calls and texts work seamlessly.

If you use VOIP you will need to remember to forward before you enter the house, as you say that you have no mobile signal inside. You will also need to remember to unforward after leaving. Your Calling Line Identity will be incorrect, which will confuse people you are calling. Texts wont work over VOIP. VOIP apps need to be left in always-on mode and tend to kill the battery...

VOIP has some advantages for enterprise/PBX scenarios, but for normal mobile usage, WiFi calling wins hands-down.

Marlow

Very little Wifi calling support in Ireland atm. At least not Vodafone and Three. Vodafone had the sure signal box for a while, but have shut that down.

Also, you don't need to enable or disable the call-forwarding at all. Just set the one forward option "when out of coverage" to your home number.

And if your signal just is iffy, but not completely gone, when you're home .. then you can always engage airplane mode, when at home. Wifi can still be engaged in airplane mode.

As for the caller-id. A good VoIP operator will actually be able to enable you to use your mobile number as caller-id, if that's what you want.

/M

chris_ie

Why dont you just go with VF for BB and eir for mobile if you wanted VF BB?

tsue921i8wljb3

What Chris says to do is definitely an option.

You could have your FTTH with Vodafone and a suitable eir mobile plan, with a compatible phone for eir WiFi calling.

https://www.eir.ie/wificalling/

https://www.eir.ie/support/mobile/eir-WiFi-Calling/