Communication is the key to human survival. A man is a social animal, which means that he loves being around the same type of people. However, this wasn’t the case if we take a look at just 100 years from now. Because as much people loved sticking close to one another it was almost impossible, due to various reasons, humanity has to live in scattered forms all over the world.
These distances grew a sense of longing in people, and this urge created a need to stay in touch with your loved ones. As “Need is the mother of invention” thus this need to stay connected with each other allowed humanity to invent communication mediums. These communication mediums have come a long way from their earlier forms with the inclusion of technology in them.
The earliest form of communication mediums were messengers that carried handwritten letters across vast distances to their recipients. This took a lot of time, anywhere between weeks to months. With so much time passed between messages most of the time, the contents of the message became outdated by the time they were received.
With the passage of time and the invention of the digital transmission of data through wires, we saw the invention of the telegraph, which was the earliest form of modern communication medium. But telegraphs were also limited to the transmission of only two types of sounds, the combination of which were made to send different messages across long distances.
In the 1870s, the improvement of the telegraph came in the shape of a telephone, which was developed by Alexander Graham Bell. This was the first time when actual human voice was transmitted over a distance and that too in real-time.
Telephones became such an important medium of communication that they dominated the telecom industry for more than a decade. A trend that started in the early 20th century was still going strong till the early 21st century without any competition until it was dethroned by modern cellular technology.
Although most people don’t consider keeping a home phone today as they are happy with their mobile phones, still it is a service that holds quite a merit even in the current landscape. And we are going to explain its advantages that make the home phone a very versatile piece of equipment even in today’s telecom era.
Advantages of Home Phone
The home phone of today is quite different from the traditional image most people have in their minds. The current home phone is quite advanced as it doesn’t work on the landline infrastructure. Modern home phones use VoIP technology that utilizes the internet as the communication medium behind all incoming and outgoing calls.
Many big service providers offer VoIP home phone services to their residential customers, one such example is Spectrum home phone, which also uses VoIP technology. VoIP stands for voice over internet protocol and it is a technique that converts the analog voice signals into digital data packets that can be sent over the internet and vice versa.
Through VoIP, there have been many advanced features that are integrated into home phones which were previously only available for cell phone customers. Users now have the ability to conference call, call blocking, call forwarding, and automated voice mail while the best one is the enhanced 911 option for emergencies. These features were previously restricted to mobile phones only but with the inclusion of the internet, they are now part of home phones. Plus VoIP has made home phones extremely economical, with many companies providing unlimited local and long-distance calling at a fixed monthly price. This price is significantly lower as compared to any mobile phone plan.
Best Home Phone Providers
We have already discussed the number of advantages current home phones possess, and by this time we are sure that you would have made up your mind to subscribe to one. But now the question arises which company to go with? This can be a bit confusing as there are many providers offering home phone services. So, to clear this confusion we have created a list of some of the best home phone providers in the country.
Spectrum
Spectrum is already a reputed brand name in the world of telecom industry since it is the second biggest internet provider in the country. But what if we tell you that Spectrum not only offers amazing internet but incredible home phone service as well. Yes, through Spectrum users can bundle their home phone with an internet or TV plan and get amazing discounts.
On a fixed monthly cost Spectrum home phone service provides a user with an option of unlimited local and long-distance calling all over the country as well as to places like Canada and Mexico. With that users get up to 28 distinct features like call waiting, caller id, call forwarding, and conference call. All this is because Spectrum uses VoIP for residential home phone service.
Cox
Cox communication is a brand that comes in the top 3 cable companies of the country. Not only that Cox also serves 3.2 million telephone subscribers in the US making it the seventh-largest telephone company in the country. Cox also offers VoIP-based home phone services to its residential consumers. Users can get the home phone service in a bundle or as a standalone product.
With 14 plus calling features including enhanced 911 service that automatically sends the required information to the emergency services with just one call, the Cox voice service is a strong contender for your backup or emergency line. With affordable international calling rates and fixed rates for unlimited local and long-distance calling Cox provides a strong home phone service that is worth considering.
CenturyLink
This is option is for the traditional customers out there that prefer a hardwired landline phone instead of these sensitive internet-based options. The home phone provided by CenturyLink is a landline service and has many advantages over its internet-based counterparts. A landline is much more reliable than a VoIP service as it still works in case of power and internet outages in which a VoIP phone falters and stops working.
Plus with CenturyLink, users can get a standalone landline with a price for life offer which means that for a fixed-price users can enjoy the home phone service without any worries that it will go up. With the price for life offer, CenturyLink pricing remains the same till a user is subscribed to the services. Although it does not have as many options as its competitors, the reliability provided by CenturyLink home phone over others is the sole reason to choose this as your backup or emergency line.
Conclusion
A home phone is still very much relevant considering its amount of options and low costs as compared to cellular services. Users should consider home phones as a backup line and that is why they are important to keep, even today. That is why we have written this article that not only highlights the importance of home phones but also lists some of the best providers out there that offer unmatched VoIP and Landline services.