What advantages does Dell Voice have over FreePhoneLine?

[dillpickle]

Dear all,
From a previous thread, helpful commenters have informed me that FreePhoneLine (also owned by FonGo) has a feature that Dell Voice doesn't: Voicemails can be sent to your email as Wav files.

1. What advantages does Dell Voice have over Freephoneline?
2. What other advantages does FPL have over DL?

[bridonca]

Dell Voice has free android and iPhone clients, and wells as a not so good PC client. FreePhoneLine has only the awful PC client.

I have no idea about the voice mail, because I do not use it.

[TheHardy]

DV is the new shiny big brother and is getting all the attention.

As a softphone client, DV also provides incoming caller ID, whereas the FPL version has a bug which shows all incoming calls as "INCOMING" but no number at the time of the call. Once answered, or in the call logs, the # shows up fine, but not at the time that the line is RINGING.

DV also appears to be a more stable piece of software that does not crash/hang as much as FPL; I am assuming because it is newer.

On a downside, DV is affected by "the java update" bug.

There are some other minor differences also.

Just remember that they both run on the same PLATFORM as each other and are provided by the same company, so most features are identical. You happened to want the one that is glaringly absent from DV.

[Sophia]

Well... I am tired of waiting for the Android app on FPL, so I called Fongo today to switch my number over to Dell Voice. The man was adamant that this was not possible... what gives? According to this post, "You may call in to our call center to transfer the number from one account to the other."

So why was I told this is not possible? I can't cancel the FPL number as it is tied to my Google Voice account. Not very happy...

[TheHardy]

Steve? Mike? Dom? Any T-3 or higher reps care to weigh in on this one?

[TheHardy]

This also brings up an interesting question that seemingly everyone else has glossed over -- with Dell as the title sponsor of DV, is there any plans for Fongo to develop mobile apps for it's own FPL-branded product offering? Or is there a no-compete clause somewhere?

There are those of us that like the features of the FPL platform over those in DV ... but as Sophia states, development seems to have halted with the launch of DV.

The new-found lack of config-file purchase seems to have also put a damper on DV in many people's eyes too.

It would be nice to know if FPL has reached the end of it's lifespan and will only be supported as a legacy product, or if it is still a viable product with ongoing support and development!

Thanks!

[Jake]

Well... I am tired of waiting for the Android app on FPL, so I called Fongo today to switch my number over to Dell Voice. The man was adamant that this was not possible... what gives? According to this post, "You may call in to our call center to transfer the number from one account to the other."

So why was I told this is not possible? I can't cancel the FPL number as it is tied to my Google Voice account. Not very happy...

Register a new account on DV and forward your 403 FPL number to the new DV account.

[Sophia]

Should be interesting to see if there is going to be any official response... I tend to agree with TheHardy, it does seem there is not much innovation lately. I have always wondered why Dell Voice did not take over FPL outright... especially since they both seem to wander a different path now. We'll see I guess.

The only reason I really need to keep the number, Jake, is because it is connected to Google Voice and the only way in which to forward GV to our landline and mobile I guess I could forward GV to FPL and then forward FPL to Dell and than Dell to our landline/mobile phone, but that seems a bit of a hassle... it's fragmented enough as it is.

[dillpickle]

The only reason I really need to keep the number, Jake, is because it is connected to Google Voice and the only way in which to forward GV to our landline and mobile I guess I could forward GV to FPL and then forward FPL to Dell and than Dell to our landline/mobile phone, but that seems a bit of a hassle... it's fragmented enough as it is.

Sophia, How is your FPL connected to Google Voice?

[TheHardy]

You have to remember, that FPL was the forerunner, and flagship of Fongo (it was only known as FPL before, and Budphone, ZPhone and all the others were "powered by FPL"). When DV came along, I guess the branding aspect of things, and other concerns, FPL changed it's name (or more correctly created a PARENT/UMBRELLA company) -- FONGO.

So under the PARENT of FONGO, you have DV, FPL, BP, ZP and others ... Now FONGO is an offshoot (and therefore the others too) of FIBERNETICS.

As has been stated since early on, there is no plans to merge the two main 'brands' and they are separate and distinct offerings, with independent feature sets. This is both good and bad, but I certainly hope that development of the precursor (FPL) does not stop just because of the New Kid on the Block, DV.

Overall, there is nothing wrong with developing and evolving both (or all....) of them on parallel yet different paths ... but you cannot let KNOWN EXISTING BUGS sit for as long as they have already, nor neglect one over the other. If you are planning to halt active development and support on one, PLEASE state that and allow us to transition to a better-supported platform!

[FONGO_mike]

Well... I am tired of waiting for the Android app on FPL, so I called Fongo today to switch my number over to Dell Voice. The man was adamant that this was not possible... what gives? According to this post, "You may call in to our call center to transfer the number from one account to the other."

So why was I told this is not possible? I can't cancel the FPL number as it is tied to my Google Voice account. Not very happy...

Sophia, Yes, you can port over your FPL number to Dell Voice, the cost is a one time $25.00 fee. If possible, can you please PM me the time and date when you caled? (as well as the number you called from and the name of the agent you spoke with if you remember it please)

You have to remember, that FPL was the forerunner, and flagship of Fongo (it was only known as FPL before, and Budphone, ZPhone and all the others were "powered by FPL"). When DV came along, I guess the branding aspect of things, and other concerns, FPL changed it's name (or more correctly created a PARENT/UMBRELLA company) -- FONGO.

So under the PARENT of FONGO, you have DV, FPL, BP, ZP and others ... Now FONGO is an offshoot (and therefore the others too) of FIBERNETICS.

As has been stated since early on, there is no plans to merge the two main 'brands' and they are separate and distinct offerings, with independent feature sets. This is both good and bad, but I certainly hope that development of the precursor (FPL) does not stop just because of the New Kid on the Block, DV.

Overall, there is nothing wrong with developing and evolving both (or all....) of them on parallel yet different paths ... but you cannot let KNOWN EXISTING BUGS sit for as long as they have already, nor neglect one over the other. If you are planning to halt active development and support on one, PLEASE state that and allow us to transition to a better-supported platform!

When Fongo was first introduced, it was a stand alone company the essentially took over FPL. All the products, FPL, DV, Budphone, etc, etc are their own individual products. I can not get into the details of the agreements for each, but i can let you know that they are all run differently.
As such, there are sometimes fee's associated in switching service from to another.

[Sophia]

Thanks so much for looking into this, MIke, I will send you a PM shortly
Dillpickle (nice name): "connected" is a big word... I've got a 403 number which GV forwards to. Not only have 403 numbers become rare, but GV does not allow to forward to NEW 403 numbers. So I'd like to hold on to that number for dear life

[dillpickle]

Sophia,

You signed up for a Google Voice account.
Question: Do you have a Google number (a brand-new number from Google)? Or are you using your existing 403 number when you signed up for a Google Voice account? (http://support.google.com/voice/bin/ans ... wer=164819)

[dillpickle]

Dillpickle (nice name)

Thanks, Sophia!

[Sophia]

I got a GV number in the US, they don't allow Canadian numbers unfortunately (I guess that makes Fongo happy though, haha)

[dillpickle]

So do you give your Canadian friends and family your U.S. GV phone number? Won't that cost them much money to call?

[Sophia]

We're getting a bit off topic here, but our friends in the USA call our GV number. Our local friends call our local number There is nothing in life that is nicer than choices
Edit: Oh I just realized this is YOUR thread... I was the one who hijacked it

[TheHardy]

So long as the conversation keeps moving along ... Sophia: you have it in black and white pixels now that you CAN port, and Mike will look into that rep as he said, if you provide him the information. We are blessed a bit by having some senior (tier-3) cust serv reps here, so we do tend to be able to get stuff resolved and moved along a bit better BTW: Kudos again to Mike Steve Neil & Dom ...

Regarding the different "brands" and how they are administered, yes, I am aware of that, mainly due to the advertising revenue side of things, loyalty, customer tracking, clickthru impressions etc etc etc. All that aside, as they are ALL Fongo brands/services, the issue that I have (and this gets down to splitting hairs, truly) is that in the PUREST sense of the word, changing from say DV to FPL is NOT "porting" as it is commonly held to be -- there is no transfer between CARRIERS -- there is only the internals of transferring between branded-servers ... removing the customer info from one and inputting it into the other -- not all the paperwork and administria of a TRUE port involving 2 carriers.

Far be it from me to say how things SHOULD be done, but if _I_ were in charge, I would offer "TRANSFER" between 'platforms' (is that a good term for them Mike?) at the reduced cost of say $10-15 ... again as it is NOT a true PORT ... it is FINE to have a PORTING charge, and we all understand that ...

At the end of the day, the optics of it is what is important too, and building customer loyalty is important too. Especially with the withdrawal of the ability to purchase CONFIG files for DV accounts. If you have stated (which you have) that there is to be no GRANDFATHERING for older accounts, then the least you could do as a measure of GOOD CUSTOMER RELATIONS is offer a package deal discount for those porting and unlocking/config'ing, say in the neighbourhood of the reduced "transfer" (vs port!) fee.

Just my two cents, looking at it from a CONSUMER perspective ... I know it is harder to do when you are a company employee, but I do not have that burden!

[bridonca]

I think porting is a correct term. It is no different when a Virgin customer ports to or from Bell, Telus and Koodo, or even Rogers and Fido. It is still a port, even between flanker brands.

[TheHardy]

I think porting is a correct term. It is no different when a Virgin customer ports to or from Bell, Telus and Koodo, or even Rogers and Fido. It is still a port, even between flanker brands.

Well, no, not entirely ... all of the ones that you mentioned there, are indeed separate companies. The MVNO's get their number assignment and network from the established carrier, but their administration, ownership and many other things is unique to the MVNO.

In the case of ALL of the Fongo brands (let's go back PRIOR to Fongo, when we just had FPL, Bud, Labatt, Zphone) -- those were all "provided/powered by FPL" ... ALL of the contact addresses and everything are to the same Boxwood address in Cambridge. There is NOTHING (was anyways) on any of those websites that identifies the owners as anything other than FPL/parent=Fibernetics. I just pulled up some of the older pages, and checked archived versions as well.

DV is worded slighty differently, and Fongo is entirely worded differently (duh, they created the new "sub-parent" Fongo in the midst of the FPL-Fibernetics structure).

DV, as a matter of fact, has this: (contact page) after stating that service is provided BY Fongo, blah blah, parent=Fibernetics....

"Please note that Dell Canada Inc. is a title sponsor of the service but does not provide the service. If you have any inquiries regarding the Dell Voice service, please do not contact Dell Canada support."

_TITLE_SPONSOR_

Therefore, the analogy to the MVNO's does not hold up here at all, as DV is not anything like an MVNO ... it is a sponsor of essentially the same PLATFORM as all Fongo services. As the services are all owned and administered BY Fongo (albeit for different SPONSORS), the true ownership of the service is...... Fongo. DV (and the other sponsors) pay for the advertising revenue and personal information collected thru the services, but the services are entirely provided by Fongo.

Sorry to disagree, but I do believe you are incorrect this time! IMHO

[Jake]

The analogy worked for me. I thought it was a pretty good way of explaining it.

I don't think you are going to get a better explanation, especially if you are not prepare to accept the fact that Fongo has said they are separate companies and to be treated as such.

[TheHardy]

It is not correct, however. To a lay-person, the explanation is adequate if not accurate -- "close enough" if you will. In reality, however, it is far less complicated than it is made out to be. Fongo needs to know who to bill based on the impressions/uses etc created by each branded unit, so they are technically separate.

HOWEVER, we know they are also the "same" insofar as you cannot share a FM number between them, they ALL had the MWI problem, and they are all now resolved. The architecture and underlying system is common, just the branding is changed. THAT is the distinction that I am making.

[Sophia]

Just a final note: I am Happy to say it's all been resolved... as usual, in a slightly different manner than I anticipated Instead of porting to Dell, I purchased the $50 SIP settings and can now use VOIP natively on my Galaxy Nexus. Now I'm going to be busy convincing hubby to drop our landline and go all VOIP by buying a Obi device... shh don't tell him of my plans, I'm the geek in the house

[bridonca]

Just buy it, test it vigorously, and then switch! Ignorance is bliss as far as hubby is concerned!

[TheHardy]

Just a final note: I am Happy to say it's all been resolved... as usual, in a slightly different manner than I anticipated Instead of porting to Dell, I purchased the $50 SIP settings and can now use VOIP natively on my Galaxy Nexus. Now I'm going to be busy convincing hubby to drop our landline and go all VOIP by buying a Obi device... shh don't tell him of my plans, I'm the geek in the house

Well, all in all, that solution is not too bad at all, Sophia. This gives you the latitude to use it on a home ATA (when not using it on your cell), so it may well be $50 well spent. Glad to see that it worked out, and only a little more than a PORT over ... and with the added functionality that you can use any VOIP client/ATA now, I think it is $50 well spent, tbh.

Good luck with your 'dastardly' program/plan/scheme ....