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Free VoIP just for incoming calls?

I am suffering with daily nuisance calls, sometimes several a day on my landline, I have a call blocking phone but they just use another number..

I was thinking of getting a new home number but have seen suggestions of using VoIP with the coming of the PSTN switch off.

I already pay for my landline which is used for my Broadband, our phone calls are made from our mobiles.
I need to keep a landline for friends, relatives and others that want to ring us on our landline.

Is it possible to have a free VoIP with a new number that doesn't incur a monthly charge but maybe only if we make any calls via VoIP?

I have heard of VoIP over the years but have never really found out much about it as it wasn't really necessary before.

Any info would be appreciated..
 
Is it possible to have a free VoIP with a new number that doesn't incur a monthly charge but maybe only if we make any calls via VoIP?
Sipgate used to have a free "Sipgate Basic" or "Sipgate Starter" but they've withdrawn that for new users.

The cheapest option I know is AAISP which is £1.44 per month. You'll get a new number for £1.20.

Using a separate third-party VOIP provider is a good strategy, as it allows you to take low-cost broadband services from providers who don't provide voice any more (e.g. Plusnet for both FTTC and FTTP, Talktalk for FTTP, and many altnets)

I already pay for my landline which is used for my Broadband, our phone calls are made from our mobiles.
As an aside, this is now in the process of being flipped around: instead of having a PSTN line with broadband as an optional add-on, all lines will be broadband, with voice as an optional add-on.

All new services ordered from next Tuesday (5 Sep 2023) will be like that. After that date you will not be able to order an analogue phone line any more, even standalone, and all existing services like that will be switched off in Dec 2025.

EDIT: You will be able to receive your VOIP calls on your mobile using a SIP client. I use (and recommend) Acrobits Softphone, which uses native Android or iOS notifications to wake up the phone on an incoming call, so it doesn't drain the battery.

It does have a one-time purchase price, but it can be shared within your household if you have Family Sharing set up.
 
Some great suggestions there. I am on sipgate starter until they pull it and in another thread wanted to know about a free service I could have for emergency service use, Voipfone provides this with no costs however the incoming number is an 056 number that a lot of providers consider premium rate and the caller will pay about 25p/ min to access. That's fine for me as I don't intend people to call me, however might not be ideal for you.

I'm only really hanging onto the sip landline as a legacy, it never gets used. Realistically I'm silly keeping it, I have five Cisco handsets registered to an Asterisk server on a raspberry pi. It's totally excessive, I only have it because years ago I used an analogue PBX at home before smart speakers do what they do and when mobiles cost a fortune. I went to the IP solution as the analogue service started to fail. Now the whole system is powered up just in case I need emergency services. I think in some ways the move to digital voice is a reminder all the analogue info I know is becoming a relic, all the knowledge that was crucial in setting up analogue lines is about to be redundant. Perhaps a sign of me getting old and it's time for me to literally hang up that era?! Does anyone else feel that way?!
 
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"Some great suggestions there. I am on sipgate starter until they pull it "

Has anyone any evidence that they will pull it? Their paid 'starter' service is £12.95 a month and I am comparing that with A&A at around £1.44.

Makes me already on the old Sipgate starter wonder whether to stay there at £0.00 a month. I suppose if they eventually did give us marching orders we could port the number to someone like A&A
 
Perhaps folks do not understand how a serious scam caller works, they have a call centre or a recorded message system it targets all numbers, a change of number is not going to help when faced with an auto dialler that calls say all 01206-xxx-xxx numbers
 
Perhaps folks do not understand how a serious scam caller works, they have a call centre or a recorded message system it targets all numbers, a change of number is not going to help when faced with an auto dialler that calls say all 01206-xxx-xxx numbers
Not quite true. I've been with Sipgate for decades and never received a SPAM call on two different numbers, these are local numbers with local area dialling codes, however the number ranges are different to what landline numbers are. Automatic diallers don't seem to know about these number ranges or for some reason they can't dial them in the same way.

Conversely when we moved and got a new number with BT on a traditional landline several years ago, it only took a few weeks for the calls to start coming in!
 
As for your query, yes, there are free VoIP options available. Many providers offer a basic plan with a new number at no monthly charge. Usually, you only pay for additional features or if you make calls to non-VoIP numbers. It's a great way to keep a dedicated line for friends and family without breaking the bank.

VoIP has come a long way, and it's a versatile solution that could potentially solve your nuisance call issue. Just ensure that the provider you choose has good reviews regarding call quality and customer service.
 
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Not quite true. I've been with Sipgate for decades and never received a SPAM call on two different numbers

I’d agree, I’ve had two Sipgate numbers for just over ten years and can’t remember ever getting a spam call on either.
 
Technically incoming calls aren't free as you pay line rental for a working line, so incoming calls are inclusive with line rental.

So if you move to VoIP you would expect to pay maybe £2 or more for inclusive incoming calls and a guarantee that your direct inbound number works.
 
I am not sure if you will find a VoIP provider who offers a completely free inbound service including a geographical number.

You might get that from Numberpeople who claim "Never pay a penny for your number" But if you want SIP, then "For just £1 per month you can add a softphone extension to your virtual phone number." So, while the number itself may be free, you are still paying if you want to use SIP. As usual, there is no such thing as a free lunch.

Sipgate basic was too good to be true and apparently not sustainable.
IMHO A&A at £1.44 per month is a good deal.
 
This is news to me i have or did have Sipgate Basic ..
i have had it for 2 years now..They never bothered notifying me things were changing.
i do use the service by topping up £10 at a time. £10 lasts at least two months.
Like Phil2021 said not one spam call in 2 years...
"

Goodbye sipgate basic and sipgate team. Hello sipgate. ".​

 
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Free numbers was almost a reasonable business model 20 years ago when the telephony game was all about call minutes but when Skype eroded the minutes market and mobile packages with unlimited minutes became ubiquitous it became unsustainable. (Not to mention Zoom, Whatapp etc). Personally, I think it always was unsustainable, but FREE is a great marketing word - even though we know it can't be, you're paying for it somewhere.

If you want a service that's reliable, provides proper support, conforms to regulations and will be here in a couple of year's time you need to be paying a couple of quid or so a month for it.
 
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Free numbers was almost a reasonable business model 20 years ago when the telephony game was all about call minutes but when Skype eroded the minutes market and mobile packages with unlimited minutes became ubiquitous it became unsustainable. (Not to mention Zoom, Whatapp etc). Personally, I think it always was unsustainable, but FREE is a great marketing word - even though we know it can't be, you're paying for it somewhere.

If you want a service that's reliable, provides proper support, conforms to regulations and will be here in in couple of year's time you need to be paying a couple of quid or so a month for it.
Any plans to reduce the unlimited minutes package? £20 is a bit too high when many providers charge around £10-£15. I stay with voipfone as its pretty reliable
 
Any plans to reduce the unlimited minutes package? £20 is a bit too high when many providers charge around £10-£15. I stay with voipfone as its pretty reliable
It's an idea worth thinking about.

The original unlimited package was/is designed for businesses and they were for two users and above - ie for cloud PBX users. They include all the business stuff that home users and very small businesses don't need - call queues, call recording, multiple tiered IVRS etc. We got a lot of requests to make it single user and after we got over our fear, we did.

We were terrified that they'd be abused by call centres, scammers, re-sellers and cold call marketeers. During the last 20 years we've been subject to every scam, fraud and attack possible - so we're cautious. Without prior knowledge you'd think that the only people that would buy an unlimited package rather than a cheaper limited minutes plan would be those that were going to make a shed load of calls.

But it turned out that by-and-large people don't abuse it and we could control the abusers. So yes, maybe a stripped down and cheaper residential plan might be worth thinking about. Thanks for the suggestion.
 
It's an idea worth thinking about.

The original unlimited package was/is designed for businesses and they were for two users and above - ie for cloud PBX users. They include all the business stuff that home users and very small businesses don't need - call queues, call recording, multiple tiered IVRS etc. We got a lot of requests to make it single user and after we got over our fear, we did.

We were terrified that they'd be abused by call centres, scammers, re-sellers and cold call marketeers. During the last 20 years we've been subject to every scam, fraud and attack possible - so we're cautious. Without prior knowledge you'd think that the only people that would buy an unlimited package rather than a cheaper limited minutes plan would be those that were going to make a shed load of calls.

But it turned out that by-and-large people don't abuse it and we could control the abusers. So yes, maybe a stripped down and cheaper residential plan might be worth thinking about. Thanks for the suggestion.
Talking as both for my mum who got dementia (hence need landline for her) and for my wife retail shop. On both we have unlimited anytime mobile + landline call package.

In reality both be cheaper on a per minute call tariff but it just easier to manage £x per month , whilst for my mother extra bonus does not cause panic when she calls 5 times a day asking how her parents are (not been alive for over 30 years).
 
Talking as both for my mum who got dementia (hence need landline for her) and for my wife retail shop. On both we have unlimited anytime mobile + landline call package.

In reality both be cheaper on a per minute call tariff but it just easier to manage £x per month , whilst for my mother extra bonus does not cause panic when she calls 5 times a day asking how her parents are (not been alive for over 30 years).
It's worth remembering that for people calling on the same VoIP network the calls are free for all of them wherever they are - anywhere in the world. (At least for Voipfone users, can't speak for all others.)

So calls from shop to home and home to parent's home - and vice versa - would all be free so long as it's VoIP to VoIP. If your mother pretty much only calls home there would be no need for an unlimited plan.
 
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In reality both be cheaper on a per minute call tariff but it just easier to manage £x per month ,
One benefit of VoIP is that you can use more than one provider, e.g. one for inbound calls and one (or more) for outbound, picking whoever gives you the best value for money.
For outbound, I have been using Freevoipdeal for over ten years now, they are PAYG and charge by the minute. After top-up of €10, you get 120 days of free calls to UK landlines (and various foreign destinations). Unless you opt for auto top-up, you are protected from bill shock.
For inbound I had BT/Plusnet copper for far too long but changed that to A&A VoIP about a year ago.
 
I wouldn’t recommend FreeVoipDeal. On quite a number of occasions it would play ringing noises but would actually dial the number. I noticed it after some testing. You’d just think the person on the other end wasn’t there but it wasn’t even calling them. Not very impressive. I’ve still got Sipgate Basic and A&A. They’re great.
 
It's an idea worth thinking about.

The original unlimited package was/is designed for businesses and they were for two users and above - ie for cloud PBX users. They include all the business stuff that home users and very small businesses don't need - call queues, call recording, multiple tiered IVRS etc. We got a lot of requests to make it single user and after we got over our fear, we did.

We were terrified that they'd be abused by call centres, scammers, re-sellers and cold call marketeers. During the last 20 years we've been subject to every scam, fraud and attack possible - so we're cautious. Without prior knowledge you'd think that the only people that would buy an unlimited package rather than a cheaper limited minutes plan would be those that were going to make a shed load of calls.

But it turned out that by-and-large people don't abuse it and we could control the abusers. So yes, maybe a stripped down and cheaper residential plan might be worth thinking about. Thanks for the suggestion.
Do home users really need "unlimited" calls and is unlimited truly unlimited anyway? Business users, yea sure, but residential customers? Do the maths. If an individual spends two hours a day every day chatting away on the phone, then that totals 3,650 minutes a month. So, 5,000 minutes a month would surely be more than enough for the average residential customer? That's roughly two hours and forty-four minutes of calls per day! Such plans protect the service provider from abuse while offering transparency to the customer. Just a thought!
 
Do home users really need "unlimited" calls and is unlimited truly unlimited anyway? Business users, yea sure, but residential customers? Do the maths. If an individual spends two hours a day every day chatting away on the phone, then that totals 3,650 minutes a month. So, 5,000 minutes a month would surely be more than enough for the average residential customer? That's roughly two hours and forty-four minutes of calls per day! Such plans protect the service provider from abuse while offering transparency to the customer. Just a thought!
I think there are very few users - business or otherwise - that need unlimited packages. To be frank, if there were, they'd be uneconomic to provide - or at least cost a lot more than they do. The users that really need them - outbound call centres - aren't going to get them; they get put onto discounted fixed minutes packages very quickly.

But people seem to like the idea of them anyway - there's a fixed bill that they can budget for and they can't be surprised, but the majority would be better off on a minimum cost call plan with pay-go top-ups for if they go over.
 
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