Cell Phone Only?

[Insanity]

Just curious to gauge the thought...

Do you have a home phone or do you only use a cell phone? 

Would you ever go cell phone only?  If so, what would be the driving force?

I ask, because I am tempted to go the cell phone only route.  My concern is: I don't want our kids to have cell phones until they are much older (given their age now they don't need any kind of phone since one is barely old enough to know what she is dialing and the other just started teething :) ).  I don't want them to have their own phone which means they'd have to eventually use on of ours if we didn't have a house phone.  Combine that with cases where I want people to be able to call either of us or have the other be able to answer the phone if need be (granted we know each other's PINs to their cell).

[Eric]

Went cell phone only about 10 years ago.  No kids though.

[Spork]

Been that way since 2008.  Our landline phone got knocked down by a storm (that knocked down power for a week as well).  We ported our land number to a cell.  Done.  No looking back.

We also recently built a house.  I didn't even run wiring for a home phone.  Maybe that's crazy... but I just haven't needed one in ages.  (Total truth here:  I ran TONS of ethernet -- most of which I will probably not use.  It was just easier to run it while walls were open.  If I ABSOLUTELY HAD TO HAD a home phone, I could steal a pair out of the ethernet and patch it all together.)

[Daley]

Prefer having a home VoIP-based phone, always advocate using one in conjunction with a cell. Using both, we spend less per month in total between the two cell phones and the home phone than we would with just cell phones for the same amount of talk time... and we get a semi-failsafe communications solution that depends on an alternate communications infrastructure.

[destron]

Haven't had a home phone since 2003. As I.P. notes, VoiP is a good option if you are not sure you want to go all the way.

[Spork]

Prefer having a home VoIP-based phone, always advocate using one in conjunction with a cell. Using both, we spend less per month in total between the two cell phones and the home phone than we would with just cell phones for the same amount of talk time... and we get a semi-failsafe communications solution that depends on an alternate communications infrastructure.

Hehe... yeah, I'd do that too... but the IP in my house is still cellular (with quality of Infinite Ungoodness™).

[Daley]

Prefer having a home VoIP-based phone, always advocate using one in conjunction with a cell. Using both, we spend less per month in total between the two cell phones and the home phone than we would with just cell phones for the same amount of talk time... and we get a semi-failsafe communications solution that depends on an alternate communications infrastructure.

Hehe... yeah, I'd do that too... but the IP in my house is still cellular (with quality of Infinite Ungoodness™).

Yup, that does pose problems. If I were in your shoes, I'd probably set up similar to yourself as well.

[dcheesi]

Agree with the VoIP combo if you have broadband. I'm able to stay on a cheaper pre-paid cell plan because I don't eat up cell minutes on my regular calls to family, etc.  Plus I have a separate number to give to companies I do business with, so the inevitable telemarketing calls don't bother me on my cell.

[hoodedfalcon]

My house currently isn't wired for a land line either. I was a late bloomer to the world of cell phones, but once I had my first cell phone (hehe...in grad school), I dropped the land line entirely.

[Cecil]

I've never had a land line in the 12 years I've lived on my own. Cell phone only since 2001.

[jrhampt]

I have a cell phone and supplement with Google Voice on my home laptop as needed.

[Kriegsspiel]

I've never had a land line.  I'm a millennial though, so I'm just apathetic.

[Rural]

We went cellular only in 2006.

[rightstuff]

We were in the process of deciding if our teenage daughter truly needed a cell phone and after running the numbers decided to drop the landline and add her to our plan, effectively saving us $30 per month.  Three years later we don't have any regrets, but I'm interested in VOIP as a part to get away from our Verizon bill.  Being in rural Nebraska, we haven't found a comfortable version of Ting, etc. as of yet.

Good luck!

[ace1224]

cell phone only house with an 8 year old.  we haven't run into needing a land line

[anotherAlias]

If not letting your kids have their own cell is the only thing holding you back, why not buy a cheap pay as you go phone to keep at home for home use only.  You could use something like an Airvoice $10 plan and just have the phone sitting on the counter or where ever you keep you landline phone today.  Make a rule that the phone is not to leave the house and is to be returned to the docking area when it isn't being used.

[Jamesqf]

Would you ever go cell phone only?  If so, what would be the driving force?

A bit over $24/month - basic land-line vs pay-as-you-go cell.

PS: But the downside is that it put a crimp in my social life, since I no longer get calls from all those seductively-voiced young women, like Rachel from Cardholder Services.  We had quite a thing going there: for a while, she'd call me almost every evening.

[ghatko]

My husband and I have been cell only since we first got our own place (2005). At first we shared a single cell phone, but I got my own soon after and we haven't looked back. If I want to make a long distance call (i.e., to my family) I use Google Voice on my computer for free. It's not as convenient, but it's free and it works.

[clutchy]

most plans can add a line for $10.  So just get an old phone and leave it plugged in and that can be your "house" phone.

That's what I'll do when the kids are older.  For now we don't have one.

actually we've never had a house phone.  I'm 32

[madmax]

Use Airvoice ($ 10 x 2) with Ooma. Been more than an year with Ooma and use it for international calls. Ooma works out to be $15 per month for us ($5 tax + $10 international calling plan). We keep Ooma because even counting the tax, 1.5 cents per minute to the destination we call is pretty cheap.

[huadpe]

We were in the process of deciding if our teenage daughter truly needed a cell phone and after running the numbers decided to drop the landline and add her to our plan, effectively saving us $30 per month.  Three years later we don't have any regrets, but I'm interested in VOIP as a part to get away from our Verizon bill.  Being in rural Nebraska, we haven't found a comfortable version of Ting, etc. as of yet.

Good luck!

If you have reliable wired internet service, you could buy an Airave from Ting to give you cell service when at home. 

https://ting.com/devices/buy/Sprint-Airave

It is pretty expensive though, so you'd have to cost/benefit analyze it.

[samustache]

Just finally did this. I ported the home line to a paygo cell phone in case we forgot to change a number somewhere. We bought an Obitalk which lets you use a regular phone and works seamlessly with Google Voice. It's like we never lost our home line at all (and we had been using Google Voice for free long distance already). We also bought the e911 service for it which is the only cost ($12 a year).

[Daley]

Use Airvoice ($ 10 x 2) with Ooma. Been more than an year with Ooma and use it for international calls. Ooma works out to be $15 per month for us ($5 tax + $10 international calling plan). We keep Ooma because even counting the tax, 1.5 cents per minute to the destination we call is pretty cheap.

I don't say this to offend, but to educate.

Hope that's not to call Canada, most of Europe, the UK, China, or otherwise. VOIPo, even with their international package would have run you about the same, and you would've gotten far more services for the money and wouldn't have been out another huge wad of money for the proprietary hardware. You, like every other Ooma user, are in deep... might as well ride it out. When the hardware starts to die, though? Be aware that there are better and cheaper options available.

Have some math:
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/communications-tech-isps-voip-cell/msg47654/#msg47654
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/landline-simplest-most-mustachian-solution/msg66868/#msg66868

[madmax]

Use Airvoice ($ 10 x 2) with Ooma. Been more than an year with Ooma and use it for international calls. Ooma works out to be $15 per month for us ($5 tax + $10 international calling plan). We keep Ooma because even counting the tax, 1.5 cents per minute to the destination we call is pretty cheap.

I don't say this to offend, but to educate.

Hope that's not to call Canada, most of Europe, the UK, China, or otherwise. VOIPo, even with their international package would have run you about the same, and you would've gotten far more services for the money and wouldn't have been out another huge wad of money for the proprietary hardware. You, like every other Ooma user, are in deep... might as well ride it out. When the hardware starts to die, though? Be aware that there are better and cheaper options available.

Have some math:
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/communications-tech-isps-voip-cell/msg47654/#msg47654
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/landline-simplest-most-mustachian-solution/msg66868/#msg66868

Yep, Ooma was a pre-MMM purchase but like you said - we already bought in and it has worked well so far. If/When the hardware gives up, we will revisit your thread and choose the most frugal solution.

[BlueMR2]

Do you have a home phone or do you only use a cell phone? 

Would you ever go cell phone only?  If so, what would be the driving force?

Cell phones only.

Moved into the new house and realized there was no need to pay anyone any money for a service we have no need of.

[chucklesmcgee]

Never had a cell phone but I'm a millennial. The apartment complex I'm in, built in 2004, isn't even wired with land lines. Though it is wired for a fiber optic internet connection :-).

I'd imagine most of the young children unfamiliar with landlines will have this attitude if you try to explain a landline phone:
"So this land line phone thing. It's like a cell phone, but you can't move the unit and talk on it at the same time? Oh if you get a more expensive wireless setup? But then you can only go a few dozen yards from the base? And you can't text or IM or check Facebook or get email or take pictures or watch movies or browse the web? And the phone number is attached to the house and not the phone itself so I have to get a new number when I move? And I get charged extra for calling people not in my zip code? And it's like $10+/month? Who was ever dumb enough to buy that?"

[Insanity]

Never had a cell phone but I'm a millennial. The apartment complex I'm in, built in 2004, isn't even wired with land lines. Though it is wired for a fiber optic internet connection :-).

I'd imagine most of the young children unfamiliar with landlines will have this attitude if you try to explain a landline phone:
"So this land line phone thing. It's like a cell phone, but you can't move the unit and talk on it at the same time? Oh if you get a more expensive wireless setup? But then you can only go a few dozen yards from the base? And you can't text or IM or check Facebook or get email or take pictures or watch movies or browse the web? And the phone number is attached to the house and not the phone itself so I have to get a new number when I move? And I get charged extra for calling people not in my zip code? And it's like $10+/month? Who was ever dumb enough to buy that?"

Awesome!  That's like trying to explain a VCR, Tape Deck, or Floppy Disk.  Though my wife still has her walkman (her old ipod broke and she never moved the music to her iphone) and our daughter picked it up.  That was amusing.

I don't necessarily mean "landline". We use VOIP through the cable provider since I used to work for them (ahh, that was nice -- full cable, fast internet, and phone for less than I pay for gas in my mazda 6 every month -- and I work from home). 

The other advantage to having the home phone is that you can have phones in rooms without taking them around.  Yes, they take up a little space, but I don't have to move chargers around.

[ghatko]

Never had a cell phone but I'm a millennial. The apartment complex I'm in, built in 2004, isn't even wired with land lines. Though it is wired for a fiber optic internet connection :-).

Never had a cell phone? Or did you mean never had a landline?

[Dee18]

My experience is that kids don't talk on the phone anymore--they text or facetime, but they do not "talk" on the phone (except to grandparents if required).