[LINK] Faxing to Telstra

[Ivan Trundle]

On 11/09/2008, at 1:23 PM, Rick Welykochy wrote:

> I am now seriously considering the VoIP option, if that service will
> run over ADSL 1. ADSL 2 is not available at the new location.

VoIP works just fine on a reasonable ADSL1 line - I've used it for  
quite some time until ADSL2+ rolled out. So long as you don't need  
video, it's generally good: but the number of co-users of VoIP in the  
district appears to have an impact, even with ADSL2+.

> A naked line would save $21/mon plus exorbitant Telstra call charges.

Not quite (to the first part).

What you 'save' is usually a transferred cost to the ISP. There's no  
money in it for ISPs just now (so they say), and the only place that  
they can make their mark is in call charges, by offering a different  
call regime and cost structure. And there's the rub: they often have  
'capped' plans, or call charges that have minimum fees, and connection  
costs - so comparing your Telstra costs with a proposed ISP telephony  
costs regime is incredibly difficult to determine. I've yet to find a  
deal that is competitive for light to medium home use, but I daresay  
there are cost savings for high phone line usage. However, I'm sure  
that there are clear advantages for people prepared to get out the  
slide rule and stopwatch.

I've been using a naked ADSL setup for more than 18 months now, and  
I've been told by the ISP that not only are all retail costs  
effectively transferred from Telstra to my ISP account, but the line  
maintenance is actually carried out by Telstra staff (under contract)  
all the way to the exchange. My benefit is not even realised in a  
single bill for phone and data charges, since I get separate invoices  
for both.

In discussions with others on Whirlpool, the only real 'advantage'  
with most naked lines at the moment is knowing that you're not seeing  
a Telstra logo on your bills, but that's not to say that Telstra don't  
profit from the setup in the first place.

iT