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As we start the new school year, I want to add a "land line" to my house so I can tell them "devices are off at 8:30! If you urgently need to make a call, go ahead and use this land line."

I am hopeful this will mean they don't "just need to text someone" and then get sucked into the void of their smart phone addictions until all hours of the night, damaging their fragile sleep patterns.

Of course, I don't really want a land line. I want a SIP phone that connects via Plivo or Twilio. I've been looking on eBay and others to find an inexpensive cordless version that I can easily connect to Plivo.

I'm confused, however, what the difference is between a SIP phone, a DECT phone, Bluetooth and a WiFi phone, and if those can all be used with Plivo/Twilio.

For example this link:

https://www.voipsupply.com/voip-phones/cordless

Anyone have suggestions on going down this path? Do I need to run a PBX on one of my machines?

I figure the least expensive way is just direct to Plivo. The pay-as-you-go plan seems to be about $0.005 a minute inbound, $0.01 a minute outbound. That's easily worth my sanity.

https://www.plivo.com/pricing/

Comments (12)

threecheese · 2h ago

Are there any actual land line providers left? During the US east coast blackout 20 years ago, cellular networks and cable internet were both unavailable widely. It was frightening. However, land lines were generally usable given they had hardwired low voltage and didn’t rely on internet or cellular telecom infra. My current home has an old-school Verizon landline termination that’s unused.

My current “land line” is VoIP through my internet provider, and when the power or internet are down I have no way to communicate (given my cellular also rides the internet, using a Verizon femtocell, bc the local signal stinks).

solardev · 4h ago

You can't just add a phone line option from your ISP? It's all VOIP these days and sometimes it's actually cheaper to get it bundled (if you have a cable modem) than without. Fiber and DSL usually offer it too.

It'll be a bit more than a DIY SIP phone, but a hell lot less hassle.

Also, it's probably easier to just use the smartphons' parental controls.

gooodvibes · 2h ago

> I am hopeful this will mean they don't "just need to text someone"

This is naive. They'll want their phones just as much as before. The landline won't make any difference.

Maybe the goal is to entertain your children? "Oh dad and his 1980s technology, what a goofball"

al_borland · 5h ago

This YouTube video showed up in my feed a while back where a dad setup a whole phone system so his daughters could have landline phones. This might be overkill, or exactly what you want. Either way, I imagine it will give you some ideas.

https://youtu.be/fdM1V98iIQI

ycombinatrix · 2h ago

Dumb phone would be better than a landline, as it can be used for emergencies away from home.

tocs3 · 3h ago

I have been using cell2jack for a year or more and have been pretty happy with it. I plugged a cordless phone with satellites stations (extra phone around the house). It connects to a cellphone via bluetooth. At first I used a flip phone but now it uses a android phone.

https://www.cell2jack.com/setup.html

sugarpimpdorsey · 5h ago

Why don't you just get a "LTE phone adapter" where you pop in a sim card, plug an analog phone into it, and be done? Sure beats fiddling with SIP and jesus christ Asterisk to do something very simple and not worth any more time and maintenance.

xrd · 4h ago

This is exactly the kind of comment I was hoping for. Thanks!

But, I'm unclear that this is very cost effective. For example, is this the kind of device you mean?

https://twenty7tech.com/product/pots-adapater/

That's $300 and then requires a SIM card as well, right? So, let's say I use a cheap one from Tello that is $6/mo.

That's still a lot more than using Plivo/Twilio with a SIP phone, right?

abbycurtis33 · 4h ago

Your kids don't need to urgently make a call after 8:30.

stop50 · 5h ago

I use an number of an sip provider that allows time based routing. Outgoing is still possible for mobile phones, but when i set it, it straightly goes to voicemail.

xrd · 4h ago

Edit: Oh, you said SIP... Thanks, I'll review.

You are suggesting I get the kids to use a SIM I control?

My kids split time at my house and their mom's so I don't see this being an easy solution. But, it is an interesting idea.

paulcole · 3h ago

Do you want to teach your kids some kind of a lesson or do you want a hobby project for yourself?

Just add an actual land line. It’s not that complicated.