Friday, 24 February
For most RVers, a good cell phone plan is probably sufficient to stay in touch with family and friends while they’re on the road. If our families were in Canada or Mexico, we could probably get away with just having cell phones as well. But that’s not the case — our families are in Turkey, and cell phone calls are prohibitively expensive regardless of who initiates them.
At the condo, we have Vonage VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) phone service. A flat, monthly rate gives us unlimited domestic and international calls without worrying about by-minute charges. And there’s no contract; always a good thing.
Our plan all along has been to take Vonage on the road with us, provided we could have a reasonably reliable internet connection. We resolved that requirement with our Millenicom aircard and CradlePoint router (post here). I imagine that there will be some places where we might not have internet, but they should be few and far between.
We were pretty sure this plan would work, but wanted to test it anyway. So, last weekend, we took our Vonage modem to the motorhome and Mui set things up in a jiffy. Since the modem was there only temporarily, we didn’t bother putting it in the cabinet where the whole set up is eventually going to be installed.
We have phone service!
The aircard and the Vonage Modem both plug into the CradlePoint router;
the phone plugs into the Vonage Modem.
The laptop’s there to make sure the phone set up doesn’t interfere with the wi-fi connection.
One more thing has now been checked off our ‘getting ready to go on the road’ to-do list. It feels good :-)
So glad you posted this. I never thought Vonage would work with an aircard/router setup. Wonderful! Now you're all set!
ReplyDeleteJust be aware that when you are not around a big city, air card service varies considerably. We have had places where the service was seriously poor or non existant.
ReplyDeleteHope it all works as well for you when you hit the road and out of the way places and parks.
interesting setup!!..glad to hear that it works for you!..now just to find those campsites with the 'smokin' hot wifi'!!
ReplyDeleteWe are always looking for reliable and reasonably priced internet because our satellite internet contract is up for renewal this fall.
ReplyDeleteI like your setup but can't help wondering what you do for incoming calls? Do you have to leave your computer on all the time? If so, can you accept incoming calls? Do you still carry a cell phone for making/receiving calls while away from your motorhome? How is this different from Skype.....or is it?
Aren't I just full of questions? :)
Another brilliant idea! You are going to be so prepared when you hit the road, you're putting the rest of us newbies to shame! ;c)
ReplyDeleteTo briefly answer Mark's questions: Vonage will be the way we receive our incoming calls to the Phaeton. The service is not connected to our computers in any way, so we won't have to keep them on. That's how Vonage differs from Skype. Our aircard/CradlePoint router will provide the internet/wi-fi connection we need for both our laptops and our phone service (keeping fingers crossed). As long as the aircard, router, and modem are all plugged in and powered up, and there's a regular house phone connected to the modem, we should be good to go to receive/make calls while we're home. And yes, we will be carrying cell phones for when we are away from the motorhome; but that's another post coming soon to a blog near you.
ReplyDeleteYou guys are just too smart!! Glad you got a setup that's going to work for you. 278 days!!!
ReplyDeleteInteresting! Anneke calls the Netherlands regularly and uses a international plan with Verizon that keeps the cost very low.
ReplyDeletePhones. YUCK! Devices of evil.
ReplyDeleteGlad you are happy ;)