# Vonage: Is there a Catch? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 16, 2005, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vonage-is-there-a-catch/294723 "2005-03-16T00:01:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Donovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ea666f/32.png) [@Donovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donovan)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vonage-is-there-a-catch/294723/21 "2005-03-16T15:33:19Z")
> [@Stan Doubt](#): > > I keep reading that VOIP has really taken off with business customers, and I wonder if they are allocated more bandwith or something. I have a hard time believing that businesses would put up with any noticeable loss of quality, let alone the level of quality I am getting. Business VOIP generally runs through networks already controlled and maintained by the company or their network provider, so they have control over the network quality and the network can be optimized for VOIP quality. Now, if you complain to Time Warner that latency is making your calls funky or the quality of service is off, they will check to make sure your connection is within their agreed standards, then tell you to take a hiike; their system is not gauranteed to handle VOIP. When the company I work for installs and maintains VOIP, bandwidth is adjusted, the routers in the network are tuned to provide priority to VOIP service and any quality complaints are examined thoroughly and addressed. ---
**Author:** ![Donovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ea666f/32.png) [@Donovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donovan)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vonage-is-there-a-catch/294723/22 "2005-03-16T15:42:30Z")
> [@aktep](#): > > I have VOIP through my cable company, not Vonage, but the concept is similar. The cable company disconnected the incoming phone lines and wired the VOIP box so that it feeds all phone jacks in the house. In this case, you might have a little more pull as far as quality of service goes - if they are selling you phone service & cable, do they have any quality gaurantee, or is ‘it works’ the only gaurantee you get? ---
**Author:** ![aktep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f0a364/32.png) [@aktep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aktep)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vonage-is-there-a-catch/294723/23 "2005-03-16T15:59:01Z")
Presumably, it’s the same quality guarantee as the rest of their services – if it should be working, but isn’t, they will send a tech out to fix it. I was told when I signed up it is guaranteed to work when the cable and power are both on. The broadband modem and VOIP modem are the same device, which I suppose implies something about their guarantees of quality, but I’m not sure what. ---
**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vonage-is-there-a-catch/294723/24 "2005-03-16T16:32:12Z")
> [@CaveMike](#): > > Another advantage that I have heard (but haven’t confirmed) is that you can take the little voip gateway with you when you travel and make calls “from home” using the hotel’s internet connection. Has anyone ever tried this? Yep, it works great. I took my Vonage line with me to the in-laws’ at Thanksgiving, and calls to our local number rang on the phone there (we didn’t hook up their phones, just a single cordless we brought along). It’s not a big deal to be able to do that for me, but it’s kind of cool. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vonage-is-there-a-catch/294723.md?page=1)