Any good ways to lower our phone bill?

[jess_g]

Our phone bill recently jumped from $55 to $85 and we are just starting to look at ways to lower the bill. We don't use the phone that much and its mostly local calls. We cannot use a VOIP service as we have TIVO and it does make a lot of calls on its own (or at least I think it does). Any advice on how to lower the bill? Should I just call around to the big compinies like Verizon and see what they can offer us?

Thanks,

Jessica.

[Andi98989]

You could get a Vonage VOIP account with two lines for cheaper than what you're paying right now. That would solve the TIVO issue, I think. The basic Vonage plan is $17.95/month. There are Vonage forums with great advice about using it with TIVO, too.

http://redesign.vonage.com/support.php?sc=support0409&article=389
https://forums.vonage.com/index.php

Otherwise, try and drop whatever added services you can - long distance, local toll, caller id, etc...

[rlu]

Otherwise, try and drop whatever added services you can - long distance, local toll, caller id, etc...

we dropped call waiting - every little bit helps. wondering about getting an old fashioned answering machine instead of voicemail, not sure where the breakeven point is on that.

[stillplayswithbarbies]

you can connect your Tivo to your home internet and it won't need the phone line. We have a wireless network and a wireless connection for Tivo.

[AnnieW625]

Eliminate your long distance and just get a 500 minute phone card from a warehouse store for $20 or so. One of those would last us at least two or three months. Also check and see if your cable company offers phone service. We got this through Time Warner and pay $130 for cable modem, cable (plus $5 for an extra tier of channels), and unlimited phone use including caller id.

[sariana]

Our phone bill recently jumped from $55 to $85 and we are just starting to look at ways to lower the bill.

WHAT?!?!?

We pay around $20 a month for local service only, barebones basic service (no caller ID, no call waiting, etc.), and I think that is too much. We use mobile phones for long distance. AT&T is our local carrier.

What services can your local phone company possibly be providing for that amount of money?

[pb&j]

We have home phone, internet (DSL), and satellite all bundled together. We save a lot that way. DH just called our phone company yesterday to inquire about dropping the home phone line. They ended up giving us a bunch of credit - some kind of "retention bonus," plus they were able to lower our monthly bill by more than the amount of our no-frills home line, so we ended up keeping it. This all took about 10 minutes. It's worth a phone call to see what kind of deal your phone co is willing to offer.

[3blackcats]

you can connect your Tivo to your home internet and it won't need the phone line. We have a wireless network and a wireless connection for Tivo.

:yeahthat:
Our tivo has never been hooked to a phone line. We bought the tivo wireless card

[alien_host]

We have very basic service...we pay for each local call and pay a standard monthly fee but I try to use my cell phone if possible to avoid paying extra. We still only pay about $25 a month and that includes $5 for an unlisted #, which is important to us.

We eliminated long distance ages ago and like a PP said, use a prepaid calling card or our cell phones.

In our area call waiting was $6 a month! We ditched that and if someone *needs* us they can call our cell if the line is busy.