Vonage anyone?

[sergio]

Vonage is fantastic - a real lifeline. It's like being in the US. You don't have to sit in front of your computer like Skype. Walk around your house with a cordless phone and make calls to the US. For $30 USD a month I can call 60 countries with unlimited calling time. Cell phones in the US are included though only landlines in most other countries. You can even use vonage to call IN ARGENTINA! You can avoid local and long distance charges within Argentina thatr way.

 

[ElQueso]

El Queso - thanks for the message. I just started research Skype and am still a little confused on how that works... If I would be working from home (near the computer most of the day) would it be better to get Skype? Do you use a telephone or is it somehow integrated into the computer?

I guess the main objectives I need covered are:

1) a US based phone #
2) unlimited calls to US and Argentina
3) caller id would be good as we would likely use the same phone # for work and personal.

Thanks again!

To use Skype from your computer, you would use a headset. The headset can have a built-in microphone, or you can buy a separate microphone to talk into. If you do the latter, it's best to have a very quiet room because background noise could be a problem. Most headset mics are pretty good at only picking up your voice, but usually the headphones themselves are not as good quality - not necessarily the sound, but they tend to pinch ears after awhile being on the phone.

I bought some stereophonic headphones down here for about 100 pesos, without mic, and have a mic on a stand in front of me. I plug my mic into a USB port, and my headphones into my sound card. Other headsets use USB as well.

To get a number in the States on skype, you ahve to buy a SkypeOut number. It's not very expensive, but I don't remember - I pay by the year and it was about 6 months ago I last paid.

You can also buy long distance plans on Skype for a set price. If I remember correctly, you get to choose the US and one other country to have unlimited long distance to. I believe the other countries have to be listed in the available countries for the plan, and I'm not 100% sure that Argentina is in the list.

Without a long distance plan, you pay 2 cents a minute in the States and the last I checked it was something like 12 cents a minute to Argentina land lines and 17 cents a minute to Argentina cellphones. Most other international rates to the most popular companies are more along the lines of States' long distance charges on Skype.

No one will actually need to call an Argentine number from the States, unless you are making local calls on Skype. At that point, it would be cheaper to use local cellphones or even better a landline if you can get service for one. There might be other online services that make it easier and cheaper to call Argentina, but all of them will have to have dealt with making a deal with local telecomm companies, which is expensive, as you could probably tell by the difference in costs in the States as opposed to Argentina.

Skype has caller ID, at least from calls from the States. It also has voicemail.

You'll need to go check the Skype site out to figure out what all plans they have and what the cost is.

I have very little trouble with Skype itself. 98% of the problems I have are related directly to the crappy internet. Sometimes my voice starts getting altered (mechanical) to the point where the other person can't understand me and we have to reinitiate the call. Rarely the call gets dropped.

I call landlines and cellphones in the States and they are all about the same quality.

Vonage might be better overall. Skype actually records your voice and sends the recording over the internet, in pieces. I don't think Vonage actually uses software (if it does, it's in the phone or its base/modem, you don't have to have a computer), but I'm not 100% for sure about that.

 

[2GuysInPM]

We've been using Vonage in Argentina <> USA for years. We have two lines. Works well. I also take my adapter with me on long trips anywhere I go.

 

[jkreisler]

I run a US based business from BsAs, so I'm basically on the phone to the US all day. I've tested most of the VOIP products here.

The best product out there is something similar to Vonage called Packet 8 (9/10). Same idea as Vonage but works much better in Argentina because the up speed is so slow here. The highest up speed you will find is about 250 on a good day. A single Vonage line needs between 100 -200 to make a good quality call. This can be a problem on bad days here. Because of the way Packet 8 processes info, it only uses about 25 -35 to make the same call. In my opinion, Packet 8 is the way to go in Argentina. It's a few dollars a month cheaper than Vonage and the quality is basically perfect. As I said, I'm on the phone all day. I have a Los Angeles based number, and my clients have no idea I'm in South America. One thing to keep in mind, if you get a tourist rental when you get here, make sure the cable modem is in the apartment. Many times they are not as the short term rentals sometimes share a single connection. Packet 8 / Vonage or any of the other services like these will need access to the actual cable modem. These will not work (at least properly) over a Wifi connection.

I'd give the magic jack a 7/10. It's simple to use and the quality is not bad. For the money, if you don't need perfect call quality, this is a solid option. In fact, I have employees that work for me from their homes in BsAs and this is what I give them to call the US. If you do go with the Magic Jack, be sure to hard wire your laptop or computer with an ethernet cable. The quality is not good on Wifi and there is no way around this.

Skype 6/10. The quality of Skype seems to be better as of late. However, Skype has always been inconsistent for me. When the quality is good, it's as good as anything and this seems to occur more frequently recently. When the quality is bad it's basically unusable for business. I do love the Skpye application for Iphone/Ipod Touch. Great way to make and receive calls to the US on your cell phone when you are out and about in the city. You can find Wifi spots everywhere here.

 

[citygirl]

The reason I like skype is that with a skype phone - I can be mobile and use it anywhere there is a wifi connection. My understanding is that this is not an option with Vonage. Can someone who has Vonage confirm?

(And agreed - I had some problems with Skype back in the winter here but as of late - it has been perfect). I'm not sure the problems weren't related to the internet connection at my old apartment.

 

[Merlinova]

Hi there!
I've been living in BsAs for 6 months so far and I've been using Vonage all along.

I have not had any troubles with it. My internet provider is Fibertel. Of course I asked for 3M service. I actually have a plan where I can make argentinean local calls at no cost. I pay only $25. I love Vonage! Sure bring it with you!!

I don't think you'll have any problems here with vonage

By the way I used to live in Chicago, where in Chicago are you from?

 

[BA Bound Jan2010]

Hi there!
I've been living in BsAs for 6 months so far and I've been using Vonage all along.

I have not had any troubles with it. My internet provider is Fibertel. Of course I asked for 3M service. I actually have a plan where I can make argentinean local calls at no cost. I pay only $25. I love Vonage! Sure bring it with you!!

I don't think you'll have any problems here with vonage

By the way I used to live in Chicago, where in Chicago are you from?

Thanks for your response! We currently live in downtown Chicago (State and Erie). Where did you live? Where do you live currently in BA? We are very excited about the move but are trying to get as much figured out as possible to eliminate surprises!

 

[2GuysInPM]

The reason I like skype is that with a skype phone - I can be mobile and use it anywhere there is a wifi connection. My understanding is that this is not an option with Vonage. Can someone who has Vonage confirm?
...

Vonage has a new mobile app for the iPhone/iPod/BackBerry.
But it gets mixed reviews because it does not allow you to use your main Vonage number among other limitations. Perhaps they will fix this in the future. The one advantage it has over Skype mobile, is that it supposedly works over cell network as well as wifi.

 

[arty]

Vonage has a new mobile app for the iPhone/iPod/BackBerry.
But it gets mixed reviews because it does not allow you to use your main Vonage number among other limitations. Perhaps they will fix this in the future. The one advantage it has over Skype mobile, is that it supposedly works over cell network as well as wifi.

Skype can work on iphones so you can use it anywhere there is wifi, like in the subte. not that i would whip out my iphone for everyone to see

 

[2GuysInPM]

Skype can work on iphones so you can use it anywhere there is wifi, like in the subte. not that i would whip out my iphone for everyone to see

Thanks. I know skype works on the iPhone... I dont use it, but I have the app on my iPhone (just in case I need it).

I was just answering citygirl's question about Vonage availability on cell phones and pointing out that while Skype on the iPhone requires WiFi; Vonage mobile works via WiFi plus cell network --i.e., as long as you have a mobile data plan (e.g., 3G), you dont need a wifi connection to use Vonage on your cell.