Question 1

Is it true that this no longer works with Google Voice?

Accepted Answer

According to the Obihai blog dated today, September 11th 2014, it is officially supported.

Question 2

I keep seeing people writing "this device is only for outgoing calls, not incoming calls". However in the product description the print says 
" Via the OBi200's on-board phone connection, you have the power make and receive phone calls using VoIP services for FREE"
Can you really make outgoing and receive incoming calls? If it does not receive incoming calls then I bought the wrong device.

Accepted Answer

Using Google Voice is a full service phone both incoming & outgoing. Whoever tells you otherwise is incompetent.

Question 3

will it connect to in house phone wiring?

Accepted Answer

From the manual, the REN is 5, although subjective, should be able to ring 5 phones. Make *sure* to get any old phone providers lines/equipment off your wiring before attempting to move to the VOIP device. I'm not doing full house, but I am doing multiple devices. I am using 2 of the Obi devices with 2 different providers and am really pleased. Both work well, so well that I pitched a free provider device and bought an Obi to replace it. BTW, I just bought a 3rd Obi today - going to give it to my out of town son.

Question 4

or if i don't have a home phone, what phone number i can use? thank you.

Accepted Answer

I used a Google Voice number, obtained from Google Voice.  The functions that made that work have changed.  You may need to get a number from Anveo, PhonePower, or some other similar service.  Those numbers are portable, to wherever your OBi device is. (I know of one US number where the device is in Australia.) They are not tied to a fixed geographical location. Google Voice had issues for a while due to a particular technology no longer being supported by Google, but I think that may have been resolved.  Check OBi's web site. Each option has different advantages and disadvantages.

Question 5

Is obi200 requires paid land line connection or just need a stand alone phone? Thanks

Accepted Answer

The Obi200 does not work with a paid landline(phone) connection, it replaces that connection with an phone line connection over the internet. The Obi200 does require an internet access connection to work. Just connect your house phone to the Obi200 instead of the landline phone connection. Of course there is some setup work to be done.

Question 6

I have a google voice number with my cell phone.  But, I do not want to lose my home phone number.  Am I able to 'port' my home number to google voice and use it with this ?

Accepted Answer

Yes but it is a two step process, You must first port your home number to a cell phone. I purchased a cheap Verizon prepaid phone for about $15 and a prepaid card. Move my home phone to the cell phone. Once that was completed I then was able to port it over to Google voice. Everything is working great.  Google voice does not have 911 service so if you want it you will need to sign up with a paid company I pay about $12/year for 911 service.

Question 7

Can i transfer current landline phone number?

Accepted Answer

It's possible you are inquiring about this item because you saw Rick Broida's CNET Cheapskate column yesterday.  He was touting the current $34.99 price at Newegg.  in that piece he explains that this device works with Google Voice or another VoIP service, which means the phone number is obtained from those services, not Obihai. In the case of Google Voice (which I use with my Obi), he says "Google Voice doesn't allow you to port an existing home number."  You can however, as i did, apply for a free phone number from Google, and you can troll their database to find a number you like.  Hope this helps.

Question 8

Can I use my existing landline number with this device?

Accepted Answer

You'll need to port your landline phone number to a service provider that supports the Obihai - I use Anveo but there are a number to choose from. The service provider you choose will then handle the process of taking your phone number from your local telephone company. As soon as the process is complete (it's quick), you'll be able to connect your Obihai to that service provider and your phone number will be operational. By the way, the device works great - I've been using two of them for years.

Question 9

I have a Skype phone number that I'd like to use via my cable modem that's connected to my WiFi router. I formerly used a VOIP modem with a DSL line, which worked fine but I no longer have a DSL line. Will your IBi200 be the link between my cable modem and WiFi router?  Is there anything else I need to do to make this work?

Accepted Answer

'Will YOUR IBi200 be the link between my cable modem and WiFi router?'

I will not give you mine and if I was 'Mr. Obihai', so it would be 'mine', I would be right now in the Carribbean instead of answering questions. I am an end-user like you. And a confused one now. You don't need an OBIxxx to use skype. You getourself a snuck wireless router/gateway and you are on your way. For skyping you use either one of the many skype phones as a hardware solution or use the softphone from microsoft since Skype was bought from them. OBI is a SIP solution, so you can't even use the QOS features since skype is a non-standard VOIP protocol. You can get yourself a google voice number and direct your skype calls to GV.

Question 10

Does this device currently enable users to receive INBOUND calls with only a Google Voice account, or is an additional service provider now needed for that function?

My understanding is that Google Voice is only for outbound calls and that inbound calls either require a different number for which the call can be forwarded to though the Google Voice number, or a web interface to be open, like Hangouts.

Is that correct?

I am trying to decide on purchasing this or a device that is locked to a cheap VoIP provider, like Basic Talk.

Thanks for any advice you can provide!

Accepted Answer

I have a Google Voice account and I can both receive and make calls using the Obihai 200 device.  Once configured,  the device is connected to my router and a phone jack,  it works just fine. Only drawback is no 911 service,  but you can subscribe through Obihai pretty cheaply if it's required.

Questions & Answers