Replacing your landline with your cell phone

Are you ready to succumb to the latest trend in communications? No, it’s not the iPhone. Nope, not the BlackBerry Bold. It’s not any phone, per se, but rather every phone. People are ditching their landlines and going cellular-only en masse. The only question that remains is whether you’re ready for the lifestyle. There is enough familiarity and security in a landline that will keep many users around, even if they don’t use it much. But if you’re looking to cut costs and consolidate your phone usage, it might be time for a switch.

Why keep the landline?

Before we go into the benefits of going cell-only, let’s take a look at why you might want to keep your existing setup.

Annoyability. Yes, I mean telemarketers. You might be on the do not call list, but that only applies to legitimate operations. If you have a landline, you know that some companies circumvent the rules. Do you really want them having your cell phone number? An advantage of having a landline is that it gives you a number to give out which is not your cell.
Dependability. Cell phones break. It’s a fact of life. But what happens when the cell is your only phone? Then you’re completely out of commission. Having a landline is more reliable, so it’s understandable if you prefer having that safety net.
Familiarity. People know your home phone number. Most people, in all likelihood, do not know your cell phone number. It’s stored in an address book on their cell phones. What would happen if they didn’t have that fallback number any more?

While those are three good reasons to keep your landline, there are similarly strong arguments for ditching the landline and going cellular.

Cost

A big argument for not going cell-only is price. Or, should I say, was price. There was a time not too long ago — the year was 2007, I believe — when you had to buy bundles of minutes. Plans for big talkers could cost up to $130, and that was before any messaging plans. Plus, cell phone minutes are charged two ways. Why pay for Aunt Ninny’s call to your cell phone, when it’s free when she calls the landline?

That time has passed, though. The top six carriers in the U.S. — that’s AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, Alltel, and U.S. Cellular, in order — offer unlimited calling plans. Each provider charges $99 per month, though a few offer some extra services on top of the calling.

Unlimited plans help allay the two arguments against going cell-only that I just mentioned. Aunt Ninny can call whenever she wants, and it won’t cost you any extra (or you could call her, but I doubt you want to). The cost of minutes is also greatly reduced, as you’re paying a flat rate. So if you use 2,000 minutes, you’re covered. If you use 200 minutes, you’re covered. If you talk 20,000 minutes, presumably you’re covered, though I don’t think that instance has come up yet.

Point is, the cost of an unlimited plan is likely less than the cost of your current cell phone plan plus your current landline costs. So we have one aspect out of the way.

Number portability

Did you know that you can port your landline number into your cell phone? Many people don’t. Yet others aren’t comfortable with such a transfer. But it can be done, so you won’t lose that familiar number that your friends have memorized.

Let’s revisit the three points against going cell-only, as they all apply to number portability.

Yes, if a telemarketer has your home number, he will have your cell phone number if you port it. That might not sit well with most people, and I don’t blame them. However, if it makes you feel better, telemarketers get cell phone numbers as well. Remember, these companies are breaking the law by calling your “do not call list” number. So they’re going to break the law by calling your cell number, too.

Dependability is certainly still a concern. It’s not like a phone will be less apt to break if you port your home phone number. This is where cheap phones come into play. You can find outdated, or even refurbished phones for a reasonable price. This phone can be a backup. If your current phone breaks, it’s a snap to get your backup activated. Most carriers perform the service through their website. If not, you can always call customer service to take care of it.

Porting your home phone number actually solves the familiarity problem mentioned above. It’s still your home phone, basically, except it’s on you all the time. So when Mom dearest calls just after you leave the house, she won’t be stuck talking to your answering machine (unless you send her to voicemail).

Consolidation

When you switch to a cell-only lifestyle, you gain the benefit of having everything you need, right at your fingertips. Or, rather, everything you want to have at your fingertips. Even the most basic cell phones coming out today have a number of converged features, including mobile Web, multimedia messaging, instant messaging, and more.

When you ditch your landline, you have one phone, one number, one place to stay connected. People know where you reach you, because there is only one option. Similarly, you have more control over who contacts you, since a cell phone gives you more flexibility in your communications.

The alternative: HotSpot @Home

Every time we discuss landlines at Going Cellular, the subject of T-Mobile’s HotSpot @Home comes up. Simply, this is a service where you can port your home phone number to T-Mobile. However, it doesn’t port to a cell phone. Rather, your home phone now works by running on your home Internet connection. So you can keep both your landline and your cell phone, but only pay $10 more per month, rather than the $30 or so you get from other companies.

This is an enormous advantage, because T-Mobile is essentially using the same technology used by landlines nowadays. When you sign up for your landline phone service from a company that also provides you broadband Internet access, you’re really not getting a landline. Rather, you’re using Voice over Internet Protocol. This means that calls are essentially routed over your Internet connection, not through the old system of phone lines.

Is a landline worth it?

This is a question many will be asking in the coming years. As we see more and more services available in a wireless environment, is it worth it to hang onto old landline connections? Many people, especially the younger generation, are going to answer “no.”

In the future, many people are going to view landlines — whether traditional or via corporate VoIP — as an unnecessary cost. Yes, it’s nice to have separate lines for reasons of privacy. But this group is slowly going to diminish as we become more and more familiar with cellular technology.

A cell-only lifestyle brings the advantages of greater portability, lower cost, and an increased level of consolidation. While there still might be advantages to keeping a landline, the future will see those reasons decline greatly.

Filed under : Consumer Issues