OT: Fibre broadband and phone.

[Clive Arthur]

We have a copper landline with broadband router. Sometimes 10mbps, often less, but quite adequate, we don't do streaming or gaming and it's fast enough for Skype and surfing.

The mobile signal here ranges from poor to non-existent and these are rarely used anyway. We're with Giffgaff PAYG for mobiles and Plusnet for broadband/phone.

Sooner or later we're going to have to change to fibre. Giffgaff don't do Wifi calling, and Plusnet don't do phone over internet, or whatever it's called.

Also, we'd like to keep our 'landline' number.

There's a lot of sometimes contradictory information, but I reckon someone must have achieved what we want to achieve, ie same phone number and same service providers.

Is that person among you?

[Andy Burns]

It's still early days, I'd wait until plusnet are *telling* you they will move you to broadband-only, after which you should have 30 days to "retrieve" your old pstn number to a voip-provider of your choice (e.g. voipfone).

[Spike]

JAAMOI, is it possible to move a domestic landline number to a mobile phone, i.e. not via a phone app but on the phone itself?

[Andy Burns]

No, I think mobile number portability is totally separate from pstn number portability.

[Theo]

Only via:

which makes your mobile an extension on (your|their) digital phone exchange, and you can configure the exchange with a landline number to make/receive calls with it (data and SMS also provided but many places won't send SMS to a landline number).

Theo

[Roger Mills]

I'm not that person but I AM watching the situation.

Plusnet don't *currently* offer VoIP (voice over IP) but their latest Hub Two routers do have a phone socket. This socket is not currently supported by the firmware but *could* be with a firmware update. There are a lot of rumours that Plusnet will eventually offer an internet voice service, so it's worth waiting a bit. Even if they don't, it's easy enough to buy a third-party ATA (analog telephone adapter) that will support your existing phones - but you'll need to sign up with VoIP provider for that. You can probably port your existing landline number - but I'm not too sure about that.

With regards to WiFi calling, Giffgaff may not support it, but plenty of other providers do. Have a look at Lebara - they have some very attractive packages - not PAYG as such, but pay monthly, which you can cancel at any time. These include unlimited calls and texts plus *some* international calls. The data used for WiFi calling does *not* come out of your monthly allowance. Be aware, though, that not all phones support WiFi calling, so you'd need one which does.

If you have a mobile package with unlimited calls, and are able to use WiFi calling, you may find that you only need to use the landline (or VoIP) for incoming calls.

[Andy Burns]

That's the bit I said the O/P should wait for, at the moment it's an FTTC circuit (which is PSTN with VDSL) BT's bureaucracy means that the VDSL part depends on having the PSTN number, if you port the number out, the VDSL service gets cancelled.

At some point Plusnet will say they have to migrate the circuit to SOGEA (which is VDSL without the PSTN) once that happens the PSTN number is freed-up and you can port it without the VDSL being cancelled.

I would let Plusnet try that for a few thousand users, let some other mugs lose their numbers, let OFCOM issue a few bollockings, let Plusnet fix the process ... then go for it.

[David Wade]

Just be carefull, as this may limit your ability to move providers.

Well no, but only because I wanted to separate the phone service so I could use my own equipment. So my broadband is with Zen and the landline with voipfone.co.uk.

I was with Plusnet with FTTP and landline.

To achieve this I had ZEN install a new Fibre service. Their router comes with a VOIP facility. If you use their VOIP they auto configure it, but if you don't its free for you to use with any provider.

I then opened an account with voipfone.co.uk. using the free number they give you. I then set this up on the router Zen provide so I knew that everything works.

So at this point I still had Plusnet as well as Zen. I then put in a request to port my landline to voipfone. This caused all plusnet services to cease. As I was out of contract there was nothing to pay to plusnet.

Dave

[Peter Able]

I was in a similar situation to you - Plusnet landline and FTTC down to about 2Mbps afternoons and evenings and pretty poor (the best, typically

-110dBm, from Vodaphone) 4G signals.

I spent time getting callers used to calling a mobile number and playing with the new setup, then dumped Plusnet and am currently paying £9.95 a month for unlimited UK calls and texts, plus 70GByte data a month (Talkmobile). One-off cost: £9.86 for a second-hand Samsung 5 smartphone off of eBay, which acts as a hotspot for the house - and as its own UPS!.

PA

[Vir Campestris]

We gave up our landline number when we moved to fibre. My wife has an EE 'phone (we have BT for our ISP) and I have an iPhone on a £5 per month Asda contract.

Both allow Wi-Fi calling, which is good because mobile signal is rubbish around here.

Apparently if you get an Android mobile from one company you won't be able to do Wi-Fi calling if you switch providers. Apple don't allow their phones to be locked down like that.

Andy

[Andy Burns]

Not as cut and dried as that, certainly the exact combination of phone and mobile provider determines whether you get wifi calling provisioned or not. My phone is a Pixel5a (i.e. direct from google not from a network) but as they never sold the 5a in the UK, I grey-imported it.

I was on SIM only with VirginMobile they never recognised it, I tried an ASDA PAYG sim they didn't recognise it, then VirginMobile "ditched" all their customers onto O2 (rather than being a MVNO under O2) and wifi calling sprang into life for me ... go figure!

[John Walliker]

I have ported many numbers (some my own and some for other people). It is definitely possible to port a number from a BT phone line without losing the VDSL internet service that goes with it. There is a very well defined process which must be followed and if anything deviates from that process the porting may not work. However, A&A are very good at doing this and getting it right. When I ported a BT number away from my BT line with A&A VDSL internet service BT created a new number for the existing line. So I ended up with the old number on A&A VoIP and an unchanged internet service but with a new number on that service. The voice line was then ported to A&A and then converted to SOGEA which has the potential advantage that there is no need for a connection back to the exchange and there may therefore be less line noise and a better connection speed. Why not phone A&A sales and ask them for guidance about your exact situation? John .

[charles]

My iPhone uses wifi calling

[Sam Plusnet]

An iPhone will - provided that your phone network offers the facility.

[Sam Plusnet]

Not quite the same situation: "The mobile signal here ranges from poor to non-existent"

Hence:

Isn't the best way forward for the OP.

I mention this because whilst my FTTC bandwidth is plenty good enough for me, our mobile signal here is just enough above zero to be an irritation rather than a usable facility.

[David Wade]

Is this true? If they migrate you to their VOIP mid contract can you move or are you still tied as they are still providing a phone service.

Dave

[Andy Burns]

Plusnet don't have *any* voip offering.

[Peter Able]

Your point(s) being?

PA

[wasbit]

"The mobile signal here ranges from poor to non-existent and these are rarely used anyway."

A very generalized statement. Have you checked the position of your local masts? Have you checked which providers use those masts? Have you checked the signal strength from those masts?

I ask because we have 3 masts within a mile of us, each using a different provider & each having different signal strengths ranging from virtually nothing to mid range.

The signal strength was the governing factor in choosing Smarty who use the '3' network. Each location is individual. Houses 3 doors away & across the road get different signal strengths from each mast.

[Michael Chare]

If you moved from Plusnet to A&A they would likely be able to move your phone number to their VOIP service without terminating your broadband service. You could ask them yourself first before making the move.