24
   

Do you still have a land line?

 
 
Eva
 
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 02:55 pm
It's time to decide...the cell phone contract is up.

How many of you have given up your land line? We're currently using DSL for internet, but we could switch to cable easily enough if we ditch the land line. Should I worry about not having emergency 911 without a land line? Is it a good or bad thing not to have a phone book listing? What other issues should I consider?
 
tsarstepan
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:01 pm
@Eva,
I only have a cell phone and it's one of those paid minutes cheapies. Then again I'm not really boasting ... just sayin'.
0 Replies
 
djjd62
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:05 pm
@Eva,
being rural, the only option we have for internet is dsl through a phone line or satellite

if i lived urban, i'd probably still keep a land line, and keep dsl as my internet, i've pretty much given up on tv watching so i wouldn't get cable even if it was available
0 Replies
 
engineer
 
  3  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:10 pm
@Eva,
Line lines have two key advantages over cell lines. First is reliability. Land lines are hard wired with deep lines and significant backup power. When we have hurricanes here, cable and cell phones are the first to go, land lines are very last and often we don't lose phone service at all. The second advantage is sound quality. Land lines produce a SIGNIFICANTLY better signal than cell phones. If you are happy with the sound quality you receive with cell phones and you're not really worried about the rare power outage, then you should switch. You can register your number with online services so people can find you and it cuts down on junk phone calls.
roger
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:12 pm
@Eva,
Consider use in natural disasters, not that Tulsa has ice storms, thunderstorms, or tornados. Sometimes cellular systems go down, while land lines still work. I would keep a landline, and make sure that at least one of my phones is a simple, basic model that does not require electric service to make it work.

roger
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:14 pm
@roger,
I'll mention that my phone number is listed; the address is not. This let me get a call from Australia a few years ago.
0 Replies
 
Thomas
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:14 pm
@Eva,
I continue to have a land line, for two reasons:

1) The rates for calling Germany are cheaper than what I can get for my mobile line. Obviously that's not an issue for you.

2) Landline infrastructure tends to be more robust than cell phone networks in emergencies such as floods, storms, continental power outages, and the like. I value the warm, fuzzy, secure feeling that this robustness gives me.

I'm not giving up my land line any time soon.
JPB
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:24 pm
@roger,
Not only do we have a land line, we have one old one that's hardwired to the wall in case the power goes out. Land lines with portable phones don't do you much good with no power.
djjd62
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:31 pm
@JPB,
ha, us too, wall model with a rotary dial
0 Replies
 
Green Witch
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:38 pm
All land, no cell. We lose power often and I like having the landline working in case we need it in an emergency. I have no desire to pay cell bills or have people reach me so easily, but I understand why people would want a cell for safety reasons.
djjd62
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:43 pm
@Green Witch,
we have a pay as you go cell, for $100 we can get a card that's good for one year, we use it for traveling or time up north (no phone at friends cabin or Tai Chi's school house)

for about $8 bucks a month it's pretty cheap insurance, plus the year means you only have to remember to top up once a year, not forget and get out in the middle of nowhere and have almost no minutes
Green Witch
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:54 pm
@djjd62,
I'll probably give in one day, but I spent years with a beeper (remember those?) attached to my body. I felt like one those animals being tracked for research purposes. I couldn't so much as take a pee without the damn thing going off.
rosborne979
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:56 pm
@Eva,
I dumped my landline years ago and never looked back. I'm now considering doing the same for my business lines (in the office) as well.
0 Replies
 
djjd62
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 03:59 pm
@Green Witch,
don't talk to me about pagers, carried one on my last job, basically meant you worked 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
rosborne979
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 04:24 pm
@Green Witch,
When living with a cell phone it's important to use the off button (or silent mode) to give yourself some "I'm not home now" time.
0 Replies
 
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 04:29 pm
@engineer,
If I thought mobiles had anything like the reliability of a land line during a bad storm or blackout, I'd consider. Since my experience is that the old, wired-to-the-wall-no-special-functions-phone is the one that always works, I'm sticking with it.
0 Replies
 
jjorge
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 04:33 pm
@djjd62,
Ah yes, the old electronic leash...I've been there.

As for giving up my landline, yes. I am cell only now and quite smug about it.
I save money AND have no telemarketers.

I'm not worried about my cell service being interupted.
I'm only two miles from a commercial strip with malls etc and four miles from a hospital.
0 Replies
 
Abel Conklin
 
  2  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 04:34 pm
I consider a hard-wired phone to be one of the essential elements to stop the forthcoming communists.

We all must do our part.
chai2
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 04:37 pm
Just my cell phone, very very happy with that.

When people started giving up their land lines, I thought that was crazy.

After a period of time, I became aware I never used it.

Natural disasters?

I could to one of may neighbors and use their land line. If I were trapped under a burning beam in my house, what are the chances I could reach a line?

I called 911 on my cell just a couple of weeks ago, when I witnessed an accident where one of the vehicles ended up on its side (no one injured luckily).

I carry a pay as you go, Wally has a regular cell w/ service from Tmobile.

I became aware only in the last day or two, watching commercials, that we could get a plan that would cover the both of us for the same cost, from another company.

If I switched, I'd get an iphone, as I would find that useful while out and about, even if it's just for entertainment value while waiting somewhere.

eva....you've got me thinking.

0 Replies
 
chai2
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 Nov, 2009 04:39 pm
@Abel Conklin,
Abel Conklin wrote:

I consider a hard-wired phone to be one of the essential elements to stop the forthcoming communists.

We all must do our part.


well yes Abel, I do agree with you there.

I do my part by using hair conditioner, rather than aerosol shave cream, to shave my legs.
0 Replies
 
 

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