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back to article Virgin liberates landlines with converged call service

Virgin Media today unveiled SmartCall, an app which lets customers use unlimited minutes from their landline talk plans on smartphones through a Wi-Fi connection. SmartCall automatically detects when such a service is possible and whether it would be included in a Virgin landline customer's talk plan. Subscribers with …

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  1. Terry Cloth
    Flame

    When did people give up on sound quality?

    They'll have to tear my landline from my cold, dead fingers.

    I continually wonder, when I get cellphone calls from friends, why there isn't a vast uprising of subscribers demanding that all these electronic marvels provide little things like intelligibility or continuity. Certain of the worst offenders get me telling them to call back when they get a real phone connection.

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  2. Nigel Whitfield.

    It's a nice idea, if it simplifies things for people - but pretty much what I've been doing for a couple of years using the standard SIP client built into my Nokia E72. Press the right hand soft key to make a call over the internet, and it signs into the 3CX server at home.

    With the daily data packages, and given how little VoIP calls use up, it's cheaper to make calls that way than by using roaming, even over 3G

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  3. PeterM42
    FAIL

    As long as......

    ....... the VM SuperDUD (SuperKRUD) is not involved, it might work OK.

    http://community.virginmedia.com/t5/Wireless-Networking/Connecting-wireless-devices-needs-a-reboot-on-R36/m-p/1540338

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  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    O2 are trialling something similar

    O2 are trialling their version of this, called O2 TU (silly name, I know!). I'm taking part as a beta tester (not sure if I'm under NDA here, hence AC) and it sounds like it could be really useful - I have Galaxy Nexus and a Nexus 7 and would love the ability to send texts from my tablet, or make voice calls.

    Hopefully it will work well.

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    1. Nigel Whitfield.
      Reply Icon

      Re: O2 are trialling something similar

      For voice calls from the Nexus, you could do what I do: run 3CX (there's a free version) on your PC at home, and set up a VPN connection to it; the 3CX (or any other) SIP client can then connect to your system at home via the VPN and make calls that way. If you want to use an analogue line, substitute 3CX for a cheap SIP FXO adapter or a router with one built in like a Fritzbox, though the whether or not it's worth it depends on how you'd be charged by the ISP/Phone company for their own service

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  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Announcing vs releasing

    Going by Virgins history, it could be 2 years before all users get to see this app. Just like the upload speed upgrades, doublespeed upgrades, blah blah.

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