4 ms·

I bailed out of the cellphone market after my last contract expired. I'm on Skype Out ($3/mo) + Google Voice (incoming calls go to voicemail and I call them bac

I bailed out of the cellphone market after my last contract expired. I'm on Skype Out ($3/mo) + Google Voice (incoming calls go to voicemail and I call them back) + iPod Touch until a compelling reason to enter the market again shows up. Ideally, I'll just get a better iPod Touch and continue to rely on "good enough" WiFi coverage in my area (University WiFi + whatever I can pick up from restuarants/bars while I'm out). I would like to be connected to the phone network 24/7, but it's not worth a 10x increase in price.

rw 17y ago
That's a cool workaround, but is an exta $27/month actually unjustified? How much time is lost when people are trying to contact you, and can't, or vice versa?
- swolchok 17y ago
  During my typical day, 0 people attempt to contact me by phone, and I spend almost all the time bathed in wireless connectivity. I am out of touch for a total of 40 minutes when I am walking to or from work, and perhaps another half hour when I am off campus for dinner. I did have an incident very recently when I traveled to a part of campus I don't normally frequent and couldn't find an open access point so that I could request entry to the building. I lost at most half an hour finding an access point nearby, and in the future I can walk directly to the AP if the need arises, so it was a one-time cost. There is also significant one-time savings from an iPod vs. a smartphone, to the tune of $200-$300.
ews 17y ago
I do the same with a free 415 (San Francisco) phone from sipgate.com (redirected from google voice to have free sms & calls) and an asterisk box. I use a sip client from my iphone only when I am on wifi (which is fairly easy in this city). I use voipcheap to call internationally (10 Euros last me for close to six months, which is the only cost of the system.

4 ms·

I bailed out of the cellphone market after my last contract expired. I'm on Skype Out ($3/mo) + Google Voice (incoming calls go to voicemail and I call them bac

by swolchok 17y ago

rw 17y ago
That's a cool workaround, but is an exta $27/month actually unjustified? How much time is lost when people are trying to contact you, and can't, or vice versa?
- swolchok 17y ago
  During my typical day, 0 people attempt to contact me by phone, and I spend almost all the time bathed in wireless connectivity. I am out of touch for a total of 40 minutes when I am walking to or from work, and perhaps another half hour when I am off campus for dinner. I did have an incident very recently when I traveled to a part of campus I don't normally frequent and couldn't find an open access point so that I could request entry to the building. I lost at most half an hour finding an access point nearby, and in the future I can walk directly to the AP if the need arises, so it was a one-time cost. There is also significant one-time savings from an iPod vs. a smartphone, to the tune of $200-$300.
ews 17y ago
I do the same with a free 415 (San Francisco) phone from sipgate.com (redirected from google voice to have free sms & calls) and an asterisk box. I use a sip client from my iphone only when I am on wifi (which is fairly easy in this city). I use voipcheap to call internationally (10 Euros last me for close to six months, which is the only cost of the system.