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JoiPhone Review - VoIP Service Review !!

Published by kishore July 24th, 2007 in SunRocket, VOIP, Cheap VOIP, JoiPhone, Gizmo Unlock and Voip Review. 1 Comment

Is Joiphone sound quality is good?

Is JoiPhone an good replacement for SunRocket users?

How’s the Customer’s service?

Which Plan should I choose when sign up with JoiPhone?

JoiPhone Review VoIP I am getting lot of emails from last 4-5 days full of the queries mentioned above regarding JoiPhone. So, I decided to check their quality of service and opted for JoiPhone trial signup to test their service 3 days ago (They offer 30 days Risk Free Guarantee). As an existing SunRocket Gizmo user (After unlocking It), I opted for BYOD (Bring Your Own Gizmo) scheme and signed with them.

I might be lucky one and got the password and other settings with in 6 hours from them and my service was up and running with in another 10 minutes, so overall it took 6 hours and 10 minutes to get connected to world through JoiPhone VoIP Service. Some of my readers are reporting that it was taking more than 18-24 hours in getting their password and setting details, looks like it depends on the workload they are getting due to sudden demise of SunRocket.

One thing we need to admit that presently every VoIP company is performing under pressure and not able to provide their quality of service as they suddenly got truck load of customers after the SunRocket died suddenly. It will take some time for these companies to adjust and serve these customers in well managed manner.

Facts about JoiPhone Plans are:

a) JoiPhone Unlimited $8.95 Monthly Plan (More Details):

When you Sign up with JoiPhone Unlimited Monthly plan you need to pay:

$8.95 Monthly service for the First 2 Months then $17.95 for rest of Year.
$30.00 One time set up Fee
$14.95 Shipping and Handling Fee (Presently this is waived when you use Gizmo)
$0.95 911 Emergency fee
$0.55 Universal Service Fund (Federal tax of 6.16%)

Final Bill: $55.40 (1st month), $10.51 (2nd month) and $20.01 (For Rest of Year) = $266.01 for 12 months


b) JoiPhone Unlimited Yearly Plan (More Details):

When you Sign up with JoiPhone Unlimited Yearly plan you need to pay:

$107.40 JoiPhone Unlimited Yearly Plan ($8.95 X 12 months)
$30.00 One time set up fee
$14.95 Shipping and Handling fee (Presently this is waived when you use Gizmo)
$11.40 911 Emergency fee ($0.95 X 12)
$6.62 Universal Service Fund Tax (Federal tax of 6.16%)

Final Bill: $170.37 for 12 months

JoiPhone is currently not charging any fee to get your number ported unless it is a virtual number or an 1-800 number.

Tip: If you are going to sign up with JoiPhone then you should use their BYOD scheme and use your Unlocked Gizmo to avoid shipping charges and secondly you will also get your service activated fast, looks like they are facing equipment problem after SR burst.

Pros:

1) No Yearly Contract commitment, you may cancel at any time and get back the prorate refund.

2) Overall Sound Quality is good and does not break. Due to the SunRocket burst they are getting lot of new customers and you might face some problem for little span of time. (We hope that JoiPhone will increase their capability as well so that customer continue to get the same quality of sound).

3) Customer Service is biggest asset of JoiPhone before SunRocket brust. They are good and quite responsive to customers except some cases as reported across internet, I don’t know why?, this might be some marketing tactics of competitor companies? Presently have an slight delay in taking calls, responding to emails due to the fact that they got truck load of customers after SunRocket burst. (This fact they have accepted over their website in BOLD RED letters (We apologize if we cannot accommodate all your calls), At least they are honest with this fact.

4) You can use your Gizmo to signup with JoiPhone and will get Free shipping (i.e. an saving of $14.95)

5) Good Pricing Plan as of today among its competition.

Cons:

1) SunRocket users over different forums reporting that the customer service is not functioning properly and very late in responding to the queries. As I mentioned earlier JoiPhone providing good service (One of my friend using their service from last 4 months and never had any problem), but as we all know due to SR brust they are getting truck load of customers and might be due to this they are not able to respond to the consumers query propely. But another fact also we have to accept that when consumers are paying for any service then they should get that without any excause and due to this reason I put their customer service under questionable category. But I am hopefull that they will improve the customer service soon.

2) International charges to some countries like India, Pakistan and other Asian countries etc are high as compare to SunRocket and other providers. They should have to revisit these and make it at par with competition.

3) More Competitive Pricing structure , so that consumers will get maximum benefit.

Finally, I want to say that JoiPhone is good service provider when we look at the options available to us as of today in cheap VoIP providers category (ViaTalk, JoiPhone, voip etc). You can Sign up with JoiPhone using your Gizmo and avoid shipping charges and also go for their Yearly plan to get cheaper price as you can cancel the service any time (No contract, you will get money back on prorated base).

Request all of you to carefully study the terms and conditions before sign up, so that you will not got in any trouble at later point of time.

If you want to go for high end VoIP provider then you can choose from Vonage, Lingo, Packet8 etc.

I will update more on JoiPhone after some more days of use of their service. Keep watching this space…

Also invite all of you to leave comments with your feedback, queries and reviews on JoiPhone so that other readers will get benefit from this.

More Reading:

Ex SunRocket Users: Use JoiPhone and Start making calls within the same day!

Unlock SunRocket’s Gizmo in 5 easy steps…

Why not try to get money back from SunRocket?

Ooma Puts Unlimited Phone Calls in a Box: Peer-to-Peer Telephone Service?

Published by kishore July 22nd, 2007 in VOIP, Cheap VOIP, Free VOIP Calls, Free International Calls, Voip Review and ooma. 0 Comments

ooma VOIP Provider ReviewVoIP community has some good news to share after the bad news that arised due to the sudden brust of SunRocket, Just within 3-4 days after the death of SunRocket comes the launch of Ooma, a new Internet telephone company. Life must go on !!

Ooma, the newly launched VoIP service, uses a routing system similar to the peer-to-peer sharing data community online to allow normal phones to bypass call costs.

Ooma Inc. announced an innovative consumer technology dedicated to transforming home telephony from being service-oriented to device-oriented and delivers a new way of calling that brings significant long distance cost savings to consumers. The ooma™ system provides a better phone experience, by enabling unlimited U.S. domestic calls via a broadband connection to any wireless or wireline phone number. A nationwide invitation-only White Rabbit BETA program also begins today and general availability of the ooma device is scheduled for the fall of 2007.

ooma HubTo use the ooma service, consumers needs to buy the ooma Hub for $399. Except this one time charge There are no monthly bills when you use the Ooma service. You just buy an Ooma Hub, a small device that looks like an answering machine. You plug it into your Internet connection and attach a phone, and you get free, unlimited domestic calls, local or long distance, as long as you keep your Ooma.

Each ooma system comes with a suite of innovative features including:

  • Instant Second Line™ – gives users access to a second line in their home, with no installation or new phones
  • Broadband Answering Machine™ – combines the power of voicemail with the convenience of the Internet and ease-of-use of a traditional answering machine
  • ooma Dial Tone™ – delivers unique tonality through an audio interface, creating a new dial tone
  • ooma Lounge – provides consumers with the ability to manage their voice mail and call settings online

Ooma will combines the VOIP and regular phone service. If you keep your standard phone service, Ooma uses your current phone number. And, if you dial 911, it always places that call over the traditional phone network. During an Internet outage, the device seamlessly switches to use the regular phone service, but you still pay no fees to Ooma.

So you need to pay your local phone company an monthly fee to maintain your base service and one time fee to ooma and enjoy unlimited calling with 911 service. Hope this makes sense.

Ooma works using the peer-to-peer Internet system popularized by file-sharing sites. Each Ooma box is part of Ooma’s network. The box in your home, for instance, might carry someone else’s phone call, though you can’t hear that call, and this doesn’t interfere with your own ability to make and receive calls whenever you want. In my tests, the Ooma didn’t seem to affect the speed of the Internet connection used by our computers.

To build its network, Ooma will be seeding the country with 1,500 boxes over the summer. These will be provided free of charge. But the only way to get one, if you aren’t on the initial list, is to know somebody who has one. Each recipient gets three tokens — redeemable for a free Ooma — to give to others.

I will write an review Ooma service in coming days and will discuss the technology behind the Ooma, Wacth this space for more detail.

If you have any ideas/ views on Ooma, then leave your comments below..

More to explore on ooma:

Read Interview of Andrew Frame, the CEO of Ooma

Watch ooma’s review by WSJ’s Walter Mossberg

Om Malik’s Take on Ooma

Configure Innomedia Gizmo for ViaTalk

Published by kishore July 20th, 2007 in SunRocket, VOIP, Cheap VOIP, ViaTalk, Port SunRocket Number and Gizmo Unlock. 4 Comments

ViaTalk Innomedia Gizmo ConfigureViaTalk is getting truck load of new consumers these days due to the brust of SunRocket, To get your line activated sooner, signup with Viatalk under “Bring your own device” (BYOD) option. Use your Sunrocket Innomedia Gizmo and signup with ViaTalk and get your line activated almost immediatly. Don’t forgot to port your SunRocket Number to new provider.

Here I am providing the information about unlocking and provisioning instructions for the Sunrocket/Innomedia MTA6328-2re Gizmo device to work with Viatalk.

Hot Offer: If you use the BYOD option and signup with Viatalk, then they will waive all activation fees and shipping charges. As part of special offer ViaTalk will also Buyout the 3 month of SunRocket Contract, Hence you will get Free Activation, Free Shipping and 3 Free Months of Service.

Instructions on how to set up ViaTalk to you SunRocket Innomedia Gizmo with ViaTalk Service:

1) Disconnect your WAN port from the gizmo (i.e. no internet)

2) Open your browser and Go to http://192.168.251.1/Voice_adminPage.htm

3) Login using your admin password.

If you do not know the password, try USER: admin PASSWORD: 7UprUtew or username: admin password: IM_Yass@Sun

4) Turn off provisioning if you have not done this already.

To do this, go to NETWORK -> Provisioning setting. Uncheck the “Enable Provisioning” box and hit the “Save and Reboot” button. After rebooting, you may not be able to login to the admin account since the reboot will default to index.htm. Hit CANCEL, and go to http://192.168.251.1/Voice_adminPage.htm to login.

5) Go to VOIP -> SIP Proxy and enter these settings:
a) SIP Proxy - Enter exactly what was sent to your email from ViaTalk. Remove any white spaces at the end.
b) Check “Use Outbound Proxy” box
c) SIP Local Signaling Port: 5060
d) SIP Domain: vtnoc.com
e) Registration Expiration time: 60
f) Preferred Codecs List: PCMU/800 for the first Dropdown
g) Choose “NONE” for all others.
h) Click “Save” button.

6) Go to VOIP -> User Account.
a) Choose Line 1 from dropdown
b) User ID: Your 11-digit phone number from ViaTalk email (starting with country code 1, Example: 1-xxx-xxx-xxxx)
c) Password: From email
d) User Name: Same as User ID above 6(b)
e) Authentication ID:
f) Use Hot Phone Number: NO
g) Hot Phone Number:
h) Use T38 FAX: Yes
i) Click “Save” button
Reboot your cable/dsl modem, then reboot your gizmo, and power-cycle your phone (if it is a powered phone).

You can verify this by going under the “information” to see if line 1 is registered.

With these easy 6 steps you are ready to connect to the world again !!

Related: Unlock the SunRocket Gizmo and Use it with JoiPhone VOIP

Want Free Phone? Try G3 –> Gizmo + Grand Central + Gizmo Project

Published by kishore July 20th, 2007 in SunRocket, VOIP, Cheap VOIP, Free VOIP Calls, ViaTalk, JoiPhone, Port SunRocket Number and Gizmo Unlock. 1 Comment

Phone GizmoEveryone including me loves Free stuff… then why not Free Phone Service … Yeah thats true ! You can convert SunRocket’s Gizmo into Free Phone with the use of Grand Central (an service of Google) and Gizmo Project.

What I need to do to get Free Phone up and running ?

1) Go to Gizmo Project and signup (Free Account), this will give you an SIP account (SIP is an protocol that VOIP phone uses). From layman prospective it allows you to chat with other online instant messengers (like Yahoo, MSN, Gtalk etc), In addition to this it also has SIP capabilities.

2) Now configure the SunRocket Gizmo with the Gizmo Project Servers (Gizmo internally uses the SIP protocol to communicate).

To configure a device you need the following information: ( Gizmo Project Configuration help )

SIP Proxy : proxy01.sipphone.com:5060
STUN server : stun01.sipphone.com:3478
Username : Your SIP number, found by dialing ** in Gizmo
Password : Your password
Codecs : iLBC, GSM, g711a, and g711u (Gizmo Project uses other codeces as well, but you won’t find them in your hardware settings)

3) After this, we need to Configure Grand Central to forward all your calls to your Gizmo Project account. Follow the directions as mentioned here. To use Grand Central you need to signup with them, its the service launched by Google and you will get an Phone number after signup.

4) Finally, Configure your Sunrocket account to forward all calls to your Grand Central number. You need to login into your account and forward the calls.

Now, you are all set to get the Incoming Calls for Free when your nears and dears call either your old Sunrocket number or your new Grand Central number, it goes to your Gizmo, which rings finally to your normal home phone.

During Grand Central’s Beta period you can also make the outgoing calls for Free, to do so you need to go to your Grand Central account and need to add the person into your address book (To whom you want to make an call) and then by clicking the “Call” button. This way Grand Central call the person and calls your phone to connect both, so it counts as an incoming call both way. So, by this way during the Grand Central beta period you can make all outgoing calls for free, or you can either pay $0.019 per minute for the outgoing calls.

Hope this helps in getting some use of SunRocket Gizmo and maintain your phone line till you decide your new VOIP provider…

If you want to signup for some commercial VOIP provider then you can signup with any of these providers:

a) ViaTalk - Special Contract Buyout Promotion

b) JoiPhone (You can even Unlock Gizmo and use with their service) Read More..

c) voip

d) Lingo

c) Packet8 Check this –> SunRocket Preferred Provider after they closed

Let me know in case you have any other query or need any help…

More Reading:

Configure Innomedia Gizmo for ViaTalk

Ex SunRocket Users: Start making calls within the same day !

Why not try to get money back from SunRocket?

Published by kishore July 20th, 2007 in SunRocket, VOIP and Gizmo Unlock. 5 Comments

Get Money Back from SunRocketIn my earlier article titled “Now That SunRocket Is Gone, What Should You Do?“, I asked the SunRocket users to call their Credit Card companies and file an dispute of charge with them as SunRocket is not able to keep the promise. Finally I am getting success stories from lot of my readers that they are able to get their money back on prorated basis from Credit Card Companies. This is good news for frustated SunRocket Customers !!

Joe Writes “Thanks for your information, it really came in handy!
I called my credit card company, and they immediately said they’d credit my account with a prorated amount for the months of service that I will not be getting from SunRocket……… so your suggestion saved me about $100!“.

So I request all of you to make an try, might be some of you are unsuccessfull, but what’s the harm in trying…

Most credit card companies will allow you to dispute a charge within 120 days of the charge, so check with your credit card company quickly before time runs out. Some will allow a dispute even more than 6 months back, but call and ask them to send you a dispute form. If the Customer Service turns down your request then I suggest you escalate your complaints to a supervisor, as some time this trick worked well. Don’t take no for an answer easliy after all its our hard earned money.

Here are phone numbers of some Credit Card companies to complain:

American Express : 1-800-528-4800
Capital One : 1-800-955-7070
Chase : 1-800-945-2000
WaMu : 1-800-356-0011

If you have any other card, that is not listed here, then look at the back of card and you will find the number of your Credit Card company.

Don’t forgot to share your experiances, so that other SunRocket users can take benefit from that…

Related:

Tips & Tricks: How to Port your SunRocket Phone Number ?

SunRocket Brust ! Explore other options now…

Ex SunRocket Users: Use JoiPhone and Start making calls within the same day !

Published by kishore July 19th, 2007 in SunRocket, VOIP, Cheap VOIP, ViaTalk, JoiPhone, Port SunRocket Number, Gizmo Unlock and Voip Review. 3 Comments

JoiPhone Offer for SunRocket UsersLooks like finally little good news are on the way for frustated SunRocket customers…

JoiPhone, “the Best Service at the Best Price company” today announced that SunRocket users can signup with them and use Organs of SunRocket (i.e. Gizmo) with JoiPhone and can start making calls within same day of ordering the service. JoiPhone is an US based company and does not outsource anything overseas. Their customer service is far better then Vonage and respond promptly as far as I know.

JoiPhone is offering 2 special packages for SunRocket users (Unlimited Plan):

i) $8.95 A Month When You Pre-Pay For 12 Months i.e. only $107.40 for one year.

ii) $ 14.95 A Month When You Pre-Pay For 24 Months, With this you will get 2nd Line for Free.

For more information on these offers please refer to JoiPhone website.

Offers look promising when we compare these with what Vonage, Lingo, voip, Packet8, ViaTalk (I signed up with ViaTalk as JoiPhone offer is not available at that time) are offering to SunRocket users.

To start with signup with the JoiPhone and then setup Gizmo with your JoiPhone account, here are the step by step instructions to setup Gizmo with SunRocket alongwith steps to unlock the Gizmo.

Instructions on how to set up JoiPhone to you SunRocket™ Gizmo.

1) Disconnect your WAN port from the gizmo (i.e. no internet)

2) Open your browser and Go to http://192.168.251.1/Voice_adminPage.htm

3) Login using your admin password.

If you do not know the password, try USER: admin PASSWORD: 7UprUtew or username: admin password: IM_Yass@Sun

4) Turn off provisioning if you have not done this already.

To do this, go to NETWORK -> Provisioning setting. Uncheck the “Enable Provisioning” box and hit the “Save and Reboot” button. After rebooting, you may not be able to login to the admin account since the reboot will default to index.htm. Hit CANCEL, and go to http://192.168.251.1/Voice_adminPage.htm to login.

5) Go to VOIP -> SIP Proxy and enter these settings:
a) SIP Proxy - Enter exactly what was sent to your email from JoiPhone. Remove any white spaces at the end.
b) Check “Use Outbound Proxy” box
c) SIP Local Signaling Port: 5060
d) SIP Domain: joiphone.com
e) Registration Expiration time: 3600
f) Preferred Codecs List: PCMU/8000
g) Choose “NONE” for all others.
h) Click “Save” button.

6) Go to VOIP -> User Account.
a) Choose Line 1 from dropdown
b) User ID: Your 11-digit phone number from email (starting with country code 1
c) Password: From email
d) User Name: Same as User ID above
e) Authentication ID:
f) Use Hot Phone Number: NO
g) Hot Phone Number:
h) Use T38 FAX: Yes
i) Click “Save” button
j) Repeat steps b-i for line 2, changing C) from 5060 to 5061

Reboot your cable/dsl modem, then reboot your gizmo, and power-cycle your phone (if it is a powered phone).

With these easy 6 steps you are ready to connect to the world again !! For more information on JoiPhone Visit JoiPhone now !!

Related:

SunRocket Brust ! Explore other options now…

Configure Innomedia Gizmo for ViaTalk

JoiPhone Review - VoIP Service Review !!

Unlock SunRocket’s Gizmo in 5 easy steps…

Published by kishore July 19th, 2007 in SunRocket, VOIP, Cheap VOIP, ViaTalk and Gizmo Unlock. 7 Comments

Unlock SunRocket Gizmo Password

Every Penny Counts… Since SunRocket has closed its operations and no more going to serve its customers, you should unlock the Gizmo and use it with other provider like JoiPhone ViaTalk, Packet8 etc and save money on equipment and time.

Unlocking the SunRocket is easy and can be achieved in simple 5 steps.

Follow instructions listed here to unlock your gizzmo to use on other VOIP providers (might not work for all Sunrocket adaptors):

1) Disconnect to WAN i.e. Unplug cable from Gizmo WAN port (i.e. no Internet)

2) With the PC connected to Gizmo LAN port, Go to http://192.168.251.1 and Login to it using user Id

First try User Id: Admin & Password: 7UprUtew

If this is not working then try User ID: user & password: welcome

3) Now Cut and Paste the following url and press enter to Restore factory default
http://192.168.251.1/restore2.ssi

After about 15 seconds you should see a message about reset to defaults. Wait another 30-45 seconds.
Now close browser window. At this point your Gizmo should be in the same state as when SunRocket first shipped it to you.

4) Open a new browser window, go to

http://192.168.251.1/Voice_adminPage.htm (Do not open Gizmo home page first).

When prompted for user and password, Enter

User Id: admin & Password: slapshot (Valid for V3.0.77, V3.0.75)

5) Now Disable Provisioning, Go to
Menu –> IP Network —> Provisioning Setting and Uncheck Enable Provisioning
Click Save & Reboot. Click OK to warning.

At this point of time, your Gizmo should be unlocked and ready to be used with any service.

Let me know in case you find any problem or do you have any other suggestion.

Related: SunRocket Brust ! Explore other options now…

Update 7/20/2007: JoiPhone is offering their service with Gizmo now, you can unlock Gizmo and can activate your phone service the same day!

Packet8 Selected as Preferred Replacement VoIP Service by SunRocket

Published by kishore July 18th, 2007 in Uncategorized, SunRocket, VOIP, Cheap VOIP and Packet8. 0 Comments

Packet8 offer for SunRocket CustomersCreditors of SunRocket Inc., a failed Internet phone company has selected Packet8 as “Preferred replacement VOIP provider” for SunRocket’s 200,000 customers whose service has been disrupted by SunRocket’s sudden demise.

As per agreement Packet8 will provide following to SunRocket Customers:

  • No Startup Costs
  • FREE activation
  • FREE equipment (BPG510 Adapter)
  • FREE shipping
  • FREE first month of service to Freedom Unlimited, Freedom Global, and Freedom Fax plans customers.
  • Quickly port your number at no charge

    • If we look from customer point of view then what they will get in return from their lost money that SunRocket has eaten….. Nothing But yeah the Creditors of SunRocket will get an “undisclosed amount” per customer who signup with Packet8. It means they will get profit from sale of SunRocket Orphans. So SunRocket is screwing the customers, even in death!

    Packet8 is no doubt an good VOIP provider and their services are also great. Packet8 delivers consistent, clear phone calls that match and surpass the quality of normal landline phone lines. The service includes many useful features in the basic package: voicemail, call forwarding, 3-way calling, caller ID, and more. If you look at all these positive points then you can signup with them and take benefits from service.

    Related: SunRocket Brust ! Explore other options now… & Tips & Tricks: How to Port your SunRocket Phone Number ?

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