Side by Side Comparison of: Obihai vs Cisco

I was getting very frustrated with paying for home phone service at a cost of about $35 per month, especially since my wife and I both had mobile phones. But I still wanted a home number, as that is the number that many of my family and friends still used, as being the number we used for all of our bills - water, electric, cable TV, etc. I started searching for options when I came across the ObiTalk devices. It seemed too good to be true, but I have been quite pleased.Something to note, if you want to keep your existing phone number, you can certainly do so, but it may require jumping through some hoops. I had to port my home number to a T-Mobile prepaid phone first, and then port it from that to Google Voice. I ran into some problems because my AT&T number was on their U-Verse service and the number couldn't be ported to T-Mobile. I had to convert the U-Verse phone account to a regular analog phone number account first. AT&T was actually quite helpful in taking care of this, although it did increase the overall time to get everything moved over. Once it was on the T-Mobile pre-paid account it was very easy to move it to Google Voice.Call quality has been great, even when my kids are playing online video games and/or streaming video.Something else to keep in mind is that there is no E911 service with Google Voice. Thankfully Obihai provides some built in options for taking care of this. I was able to get E911 service for $12 for an entire year through one of their partners.Lastly, due to a limitation with Google Voice, not with the device itself, caller-ID is numeric only, no name. This hasn't really been an issue for us, but for some people it could be.Overall, I am quite pleased with this device. Highly recommended.

I purchased the OBi100 and put it into service 24 Feb. 2015 and now 26 Mar. 2015, it's been working flawlessly with Google Voice. The only time I have to "mess" with any of it is to log into Google Voice to block a number.This setup may work for you or it may not, everybody has a different situation. Here's what I did, bear with me for this is going to be a long one.First and foremost, Google Voice DOES NOT DO ANY 911, no e911, no regular 911, none of it. This might be a deal-breaker for some but I've work around it. You'll either have to sign up and pay for VOiP service that works with 911 or keep a cell phone around that will work with 911, I chose to do the latter because the savings from Google Voice free calling will really offset the $6 ~ $8 per month cellphone bill to keep that line active.That $6 ~ $8 per month cellphone bill pays for a line that's connected to a Sprint Home Phone Connect 2 which is a bridge device that connects to the base unit of a set of cordless phones to the cell network, think of it as a multi-phone cell phone that never leaves the house. I've hooked the Sprint Home Phone Connect 2 to an older unused set of cordless phones and labeled each handset for "911 Use Only".I use the OBi100 exclusively with Google Voice because GV has free calling in the US & Canada, from the info on the manufacturers website this device will work with other Voice Over iP services also but I'm sticking with GV.I set this up for my mom and it's the perfect setup for her, she can talk as much as she wants and there's NO BILL for the thousands of minutes she talks!I first set up a new Gmail account to have access to a new Google Voice account.I paid Google their $20.00 one time fee for porting our home phone number to Google Voice (this can take 24 hrs to a few days).After verifying that Google Voice has our home phone number, I hooked the OBi100 up to power, the router and our cordless phone base unit.I dialed a number listed on the user guide from the cordless phone to see if the OBi100 was talking to the OBiTALK server, it was.I logged into the OBiTALK website signed up for a free account and had them register my OBi100 as a listed device on my account.I then pointed my OBi100 device to my new Google Voice account (from the OBiTALK website account), and that's was it.From my cell phone I call our home number and the cordless phones hooked up to the OBi100 began to ring, I answered myself to hear how the voice quality was, it sounded as good as the land-line it replaced.So what did all of this hoop jumping do for me? Read on...I began with one AT&T land-line and 2 cellphones on AT&T Wireless, the monthly combined bill was ~$117.00I ported the land-line and one cellphone over to Ting (pay-as-you-go MVNO for Sprint & T-Mobile), the land-line number lived on the Sprint Home Phone Connect 2 device and the other cell line is mine, the monthly bill was ~$70.00I ported away our land-line number to Google Voice and signed up for a new cell number for the Sprint Home Phone Connect 2 device to be used for 911 only. I also added an extra cellphone onto our Ting account because I wanted to try out "their" T-Mobile GSM service.I now have 3 cell line active with Ting, the Sprint Home Phone Connect 2 device for 911 and my 2 cellphones.My monthly projected (have not received a bill yet, hasn't been a full month) bill for all things phone related will be approx. $25 ~ $30, using the higher number, that's 1/4 of what we use to pay to AT&T.Thanks for your patience, you should be given a medal for reading all of this. :-)

Obihai makes it so easy that practically anybody can set up their own voip system. I just hope the device is long lasting. It has only been 2 weeks since the set up. Voice quality has been as good as my previous cable company's phone. Setting up Google voice was quick and painless. The only thing that was time consuming was finding a provider that was reasonable for both a back up number and E911. For my purposes voip.ms was the one that I settled on. Obihai has great deals for 911 and phone service providers. One of their providers charges only about $2.92 a month for a one year contract and an excellent deal on incoming and outgoing calls. I decided on voip.ms for about $2.99 a month for a number and E911 because I didn't want to be under a contract. They charge about 1.5 cents a minute for incoming calls and 1 cent a minute for outgoing calls for their value plan for my location. I got the number for backup in case google voice pulls a disappearing act. I won't complain because it was free to start with. I can later change plans if the need arises with voip.ms or some other provider because I am not under a contract.

After drooling over an Ooma Telo for several years after my oldest brother got one. I could use a land line, particularly for faxing, but use it so rarely that I can't justify paying even the Magic Jack price for a phone. (You still have to buy their adapter). I came across the Obi and it addressed the issues I had with the Ooma, and the Magic Jack nicely.#1. The Obi, at least the Obi 100 is inexpensive. Like I said, very rare use, so no need to spend a bucket of cash on it. I mostly use smart phones.#2. Small (tiny) size. This thing is smaller than my smart phone, by a large margin.#4. Works with Google Voice, and inexpensive E911 service.Installation via the included setup card is a bit confusing, the most important things it tells you is how to connect the hardware, and to go to the Obihai website. Once on their site, I followed the video tutorials on setting up my device, and accounts.After viewing and understanding the videos. It took all of 15 minutes to set up my Obi, to my All in one machine, then my phone, then connect to my Google Talk account, and finally to configure the E911 service through Anveo. Mind you, even though Ooma advertises their device gives you totally free telephone service, you still have to pay the 911 access fee (in the US anyway). That fee through Anveo is only $.80 versus $6.00 per month on services like Ooma...My first call was to my Dad across the country as he is the only person to not like the sound of my Cell phone. he reports the call sounded like it came from a regular land line. Several other calls to other folks and they all report good call quality. My perception of the connections was with the exception of my Dad (who likes to use junky old wireless phones) all of the calls were as good as, or better than a regular POTS land line.Testing faxing by sending faxes to our FSA company (which we had been using online fax services for) and receiving by sending to us from those fax services needed some adjustments in the settings of Google voice, but once set up fax send / receive was flawless.I can not speak to the long term function of this device, however the build quality is every bit as good as every other device in my network.My only complaint, and it is VERY minor, is in the year 2013, when the overwhelming majority of networking hardware, computers, etc... are shipped in dark gray, or black housings, this thing does cosmetically stand out. However I have it simply installed on a rack shelf with my other network gear (structured wiring using a relay rack in my home office). They could use to change the color of the plastic on the top piece to a darker gray than the base part. The contrast is nice,just went the wrong way is all. No biggie...For reference I tested and am currently using my Obi with an HP Photosmart 7520e all in one machine, and an AT&T 210 "Trimline" standard analog telephone.***EDIT***After 3 weeks of use I am finding I am using this much more often than I anticipated. Calls are clear and so far very reliable, not a single dropped call...I did notice a no service available error message when I came home and tried to use the phone. Came to find out that the cable had gone out during the day, and once the line was fixed, my Obi hadn't re-established itself. I tried resetting the modem, and router with no luck. Finally powered off / on the Obi and all was well once it came back online... I guess it doesn't automatically reattempt connection once it is somewhat persistently lost. However once power cycled like I said, all was well again...I do not have this connected to my house phone wiring as that is in pretty poor shape, and I am re-cabling the house. However it will be connected to a telephone distribution hub, with drops in each major room, kitchen, each bedroom, and the garage. Call quality is spot on.***UPDATE 3/19/2014***For those that don't know on May 15 2014 Google is cutting out the XMPP support from Google Voice. This is a HUGE problem for the Obi and similar devices in that Google Voice simply will not work with them any more. This was theoretically to improve Google Voice / Hangouts, but like I said, kills access to the Analog bridges like the Obi. Thankfully there are other SIP / XMPP Providers out there. I was using Anveo for my e911 service, and have bumped that up to the Office Unlimited plan as I do intend to use this for incoming calls and faxes for both home and small business use. The cost went up, but is manageable. It is now higher than Magic Jack by a dollar a month, but it is also includes 911 service which Magic Jack does NOT.In the time I have owned my Obi I have had one issue with the service just refusing to work after an internet outage (Comcast broadband cable went down, HARD during a phone call). I managed to bring it back online easily by simply power cycling the device.Call / voice quality is every bit as good, or better than my mobile phone, fax is flawless, cost is low / dirt cheap at least using Anveo, including international calls. What I spend for Anveo + international calls is less than what I was paying for Anveo + Google Voice + International calls... So win / win here!While not as much of a smoking deal as it was when I bought it due to the free service, when combined with the low international rates, this is still probably the best deal on VoIP out there!***EDIT 7/16/2015****Been using this far more than anticipated. Google backed out of dropping XMPP support and Google voice, but I had already bought into a dirt cheap VoIP service for something like $30.00 a year that gives me 911 service. So I did what any sensible person would do.... Bought a second one, hooked Google Voice back up, and use it for faxes. I love it when I have to deal with insurance companies and junk that want faxes sent while they have me on the phone!I would love it even more if I could get Google Voice to support both lines on my one account, AND give me 911 service, but hey, I am NOT complaining... I would pay Google the same as I pay PhonePower as Google Voice call quality is MUCH better than PhonePower...

I got this nifty device last week, and it's working great. I plugged it into my cable modem and plugged the other end to a cordless phone system with multiple handsets scattered around the house. I set up a new Google Account especially for the phone service (so I would not have to give my main Google credentials to OBI), and within about 20 minutes of setup time following the instructions included and on the OBI website, I was making and receiving unlimited free calls within US and Canada. We've probably used it for about 2 hours of talk time since we got it, and the call quality has been excellent, as good as the Comcast digital voice service it is replacing. No dropped calls, no noticeable delay.One thing to know is that Google Voice does not transmit CNAM when you receive a call, which is the Caller ID name. So when you receive a call, your Caller ID will show the number, but not the name of the person calling. This is because it costs the phone companies some money to access the databases that match the number with the name, and since Google Voice is free it's pretty reasonable that they don't provide the service. My workaround for this is to program the 20 or so numbers that most frequently call me into the phone's internal phonebook, so I get Caller ID most of the time because the handset recognizes the incoming number, and then just let the rest go to voicemail. You can also have Google Voice route your incoming calls to an alternate VOIP service like Callcentric, and configure the OBI device to take incoming calls from one service and outgoing calls through Google Voice. This costs like $1.50 a month to get incoming calls from Callcentric through a New York area code forwarding number, but in the process you get Caller ID and 911 too, not bad.One other thing - I tested it with my ADT alarm system, and it does not work. The ADT alarm system cannot call the central monitoring station through the OBI. I thought this might be a showstopper, but I called ADT and after threatening to cancel my service they not only dropped the monthly price but are installing a cellular modem to the alarm for me for free so I no longer need the landline for alarm monitoring.And Google just announced this morning that Google Voice will continue to be free throughout 2013 for calls in the US and Canada. Now I will port my old landline over to Google Voice and drop the landline completely. To port a traditional landline number, you need to port first the number to a mobile account, and then from there port to Google Voice since Google Voice only ports numbers from mobile accounts, not landlines. I am getting a SIM card for $0.99 from T-Mobile to put temporarily into an old phone for this purpose, and then it's just $20 to port to Google Voice. For $40 for the OBI device, $1 for the SIM card, and $20 to port to Google Voice, you can transition completely to making and receiving free calls through your Internet router and drop your landline completely.------Update: Had the device for about two weeks now. I ported my old landline number to a $0.99 prepaid SIM card from T-Mobile installed in an old cell phone. Then I ported from there to Google Voice. Took about 72 hours total. It's working fine.I also got a number from Callcentric for my incoming calls only which allows me to get incoming Caller ID name and true E911 service. Like I said earlier, the service is only $1.50 a month. The number is in the 631 area code (New York State). When an incoming call comes into Google Voice, it is set to forward that call to the Callcentric 631 number. Callcentric then tags the caller id name on that and forwards the call to my OBI device, and my phone rings. When I make an outgoing call, it routes through Google Voice instead, so people see my regular number on their Caller ID and not my Callcentric 631 number. The exception is when I make a 911 call - in this case, the OBI100 detects this and routes the call through Callcentric, which forwards the call and my address to the local dispatch center. I tested it by calling 911 (with permission) and it worked, my address pops up on their screen.Just a word of caution - although the setup for both Google Voice and Callcentric was a breeze through the OBItalk.com website per the instructions, initially I could not get incoming calls from Callcentric to ring on my OBI100. After a lot of back and forth troubleshooting with Callcentric which handles all their support online, we realized that the fix was to disable "SIP ALG" on my Internet router which required me to log into my router and adjust the settings. I am told that this is not an uncommon problem, so watch out for it if you set up Callcentric for incoming calls and your device doesn't pick it up, it might be this problem.Bottom line - for $40 (for OBI100 device), $21 (to port landline) and $1.50 a month, I am getting unlimited calls t US and Canada with full Caller ID and E911 service through Google Voice/Callcentric. It takes a little work to get it all set up, but when it's done it works well. Compare that to Ooma, which charges $150 for the Ooma Telo, $40 to port your landline, and $4.71 a month in my area for 911 service, and I'm saving a bundle.

***Update: 15 Sep 14***GOOGLE VOICE IS BACK!After some issues with Google's support for Google Voice/OBI integration...OBI now apparently has GOOGLE VOICE support once again! I moved over to another SIP provider (which was still dirt-cheap) during the past few months when GV wasn't "officially" supported...but I will look at going back to GV now that it's apparently supported again. 3+ years later...and my OBI100 is still going strong.*Original reviews below*Background/usage:Approximately 2 months ago, I finally made the jump to buy both my wife and I smart phones. The price for the devices themselves has never really been an issue, but I could never justify such pricey monthly subscriptions. $80+/month? Each?? No way!! When I heard that Virgin Mobile had the LG Optimus with unlimited data/text available for just $25/month, the barrier had been broken. I could have one for myself and another for my wife, and we would actually be cutting our monthly cost. Buttt...300 minutes only? Ouch. Not really an issue for me, as I'm not a big talker...but the wife can go through 300 minutes in a week, never mind a month. What to do?Enter the Obi100.Using Google Voice and the Obi100, we're able to use a single number that rings our home phone and her cellphone. When she's home, she picks up the home phone. Using the home phone doesn't use any of her plan's minutes. When she out of the house, she uses the cellphone. As a stay at home mom, she's typically at home to use the obi-connected phone...so she has not come anywhere close to her 300 minutes (so far). So...that is why this was a great investment for us.Setup:Setting the Obi up can be a bit of a headscratcher. The documentation included is a bit on the nebulous side. I'm fairly competent on home electronics and networking, so my first instinct was to log directly into the Obi and try to set it up. So I pulled the IP of the obi using the connected phone (picking up the phone and dialing ***1 get the IP) and logged in. Wrong move. As far as I can tell, most installs shouldn't even require you to log directly into the obi. All of the setup can(should?)be done through the "obitalk" website. Once I realized this, the setup went smoothly.Problems:2 months went by without any real problems. There were a couple of call drops...but I can't say it was attributed to the obi itself.Then one day upon my return home from work, my wife told me that the "house phone" wasn't working. I immediately began troubleshooting. Eventually I was able to realize that the obi wasn't pulling a IP via DHCP from my router. The Obi had no IP address. Many various resets of the obi/router later...still no luck. So, I tried a static IP address. Still nada. My obi was hosed, unfortunately. So, I emailed Obi Support on a Friday night. They emailed me back on Saturday morning and eventually called me directly to take me through some trouble-shooting steps. Still nothing. After consulting with their engineering department, they decided to mail me a replacement, which arrived on Monday afternoon (quick!). The replacement was up and running within minutes.Bottom line:I'm a happy customer. The Obi is impressive technology at a great price, with great potential as a money-saver provided you integrate it into your overall communications plan. It can be more than a house-phone landline replacement. It can also supplement your cellphone-plan in certain situations. If you can cut your landline phone altogether, AND reduce your cellphone plan to a cheaper plan by utilizing Google Voice's call-forwarding abilities and an Obi...this device will pay for itself many times over in a short period of time.*****update: 3 May 2012*****It's been quite some time since my original review...so I figure it's time for an update. The replacement Obi100 I received from Obihai has performed flawlessly, with no dropped calls and no missed calls that weren't caused by internet outages. Obi has come out with several software updates during this timeframe. Software updates are downloaded/installed by picking up the phone and dialing "***6". If there is an update, the automated voice says so...and then you simply hang up the phone to have the Obi download/install the firmware and then restart itself. It takes only a minute or two, and I have never had any problems during the process.Also since my original review, and perhaps more notably, I moved to a new state and purchased a new home out in a rather rural area. The only internet service I could get was DSL with a max download speed of 6 megs/sec...and an upload of 768k. Painfully slow by my standards. I was actually concerned about what effect it would have on my Obi. But, get this...it seems to actually perform BETTER than it did on my ~20meg Cable Modem at my previous house.Don't overestimate the bandwidth this thing requires. The Obi (VOIP in general?) seems more reliant on low-latency connections (low "ping" times) as opposed to overall throughput. My DSL now pings at ~50ms, where my old Cable Modem connection was ~200ms. There is noticably less latency in the voice as a result. That being said, if you have a router that supports QoS, and have the skills to use it, it would certainly be a good idea to prioritize the Obi's traffic to reduce the effects of network congestion on it.Still, even if you are stuck on a "slow DSL", give this thing a try. It's pure magic, especially from a cost-savings perspective.One final thought: If you are going to rely on the Obi for critical calls (emergency, business-related, etc)...you may want to invest an Uninteruptable Power Supply (UPS). It's essentially a battery backup in case your power goes out. Attaching your cable/DSL modem, your router, your Obi, and your phone to an UPS will allow you to continue making/receiving calls during power outages (until the battery runs out, of course).----------Another update: It's now been 16 months that I've been an Obi user. Still a happy customer...and wanted to display the math of how this is really a no-brainer. Using the Obi enabled my wife's Virgin Mobile plan to use the 300 minute plan instead of the 1200 minute plan. That's a saving of $10/month ($160 in 16 months). Also, we were able to go without the one-and-only land-line phone service when we moved to our new house...and used the Obi instead. That was $50 a month ($50 x 12 = $600).Doing the math...utilizing a $43 obi has saved my family $760 (and counting) over the past 16 months. $$$

I am using this with a simple analog phone and my Asterisk PBX home system. It was extremely easy to set up and use. The device automatically downloads the latest firmware once it gets an IP address on your network and access to the internet. You then browse to the configuration page of the device and enter your system details. There are a lot of configuration options available, but you are also presented with a "Quick Start" page to get up and running. Normally I would fiddle with all of the settings, but I decided to try the Quick Start and see if it was any good. After creating the extension in the PBX and entering only the IP of my Asterisk server and the extension user name and password, the device connected without issue and was up and running. It also seems to have any advanced configuration options I could need in the future. Great product.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.The CISCO SPA 112 worked perfectly right out of the box. I have a ZOOM Telephonics Model 5352 Cable Modem which lacks built in phone service. I had just terminated Time Warner after many years and took on another cable provider who doesn't provide phone service very well. They have a screaming fast Internet speed which TW lacks, so I signed with them and embarked on setting up my own VoIP inbound and outbound.CISCO provided excellent instructions in the package which proved to be 100% accurate. FYI, and this is important, my VoIP provider is Callcentric. Both CISCO and Callcentric had fully and accurately coordinated their settings to make the interface work.The short story of the setup is as follows:I plugged this unit into the ethernet port on the 5352, then plugged in the phone and energized it.I then plugged my laptop into another ethernet port on the 5352 modem so I could do the settings.The instructions had me put the phone in programming mode by pressing ****. This enabled me to get 100% of the settings I needed to enter into the laptop activation program. Initially you need to know the address of the SPA 112 and enter that into your browser to access the programming module. The phone will give that to you by following the instructions.After doing the initial activation I then checked for a firmware upgrade and found one. I installed it with no problem.Next step was to enter the Callcentric information from their account page and enter it via the laptop.They conclude with the statement, make a test call. It worked perfectly the first time.I am not an IT guy but I follow instructions really well. In this case CISCO and Callcentic did an OUTSTANDING job because if I can do this setup in 20 minutes, then someone who is actually trained will be able to activate this thing in ten minutes.If you think about it for a minute and look closely at this unit I believe you will figure out that there are a number of other sellers out there which are having this unit private labeled for them. Buying the SPA 112 gets you directly sourced on an OEM basis and you can then add all the bells and whistles you want. Bottom line OEM saved me money and gave me the freedom to use the carrier I wanted.

I found this IP to analog phone adapter on the voip.ms site. I created an account on the voip.ms site, followed their instructions for configuring the SPA112 to work on their system, and it worked the first time. I am using this device for my home phone. I would not try to use this device unless your specific voip provider has configuration instructions specifically for it.

I replaced a Linksys SPA3102 that supported an Asterisk 11 configuration. I 1) Defined the MAC to an IP address in my router DHCP Reservation (later gave it a static ip) 2) plugged in SPA112 and config'd/checked firmware 3) Upgraded the firmware to current 3) defined my "Line 1" (one of two FXS ports) with SIP credentials and checked SIP port (default is 5060). Saved configuration 4) Unplugged house phone wiring from my SPA3102 and plugged into this SPA112 . 5) The SPA112 now SIP registers my home extension. -- Background: The SPA3102 supported inbound from the local phone company wiring. I no longer needed this port (FXO) which the SPA3102 provided. The SPA112 only supports sending rings into your 'house wiring' and no inbound from the local phone company via FXO. My $5-$7 home phone/month continues to payback! SPA112 worked just fined. Happy Nerd Days!...

We dropped our land line several years ago when we decided it was insane to spend $40-50+ in service charges, fees, and taxes for a line that we barely used. However with growing children, we decided that we need a reliable way for them to call us (or 911) when they are home without us.It took me about 15 minutes to walk my way through configuring the Cisco SPA-112 phone adapter to work with the Asterisk package installed on my Synology DiskStation. (This was an easy pre-packaged install on Synology, but Asterisk can also be run on all sorts of things like a Raspberry Pi or a home PC.) The next step was purchasing a phone number through Flowroute and spending another 15 minutes or so configuring that into Asterisk. The end result is a reliable home phone that costs me under $3 dollars per month.The one thing I had to change was the default dial plan on the device. The default plan made the system pause for several seconds after dialing before the call would go through. I used the following dial plan setting to make 10-digit dialing fast and simple: "(0|[49]11|[2-8]xx[2-9]xxxxxx)"This will also work with other VoIP carriers, like Vonage, for those that want to spend more or simply don't want to rely on figuring it out themselves. We are saving a ton of money by using it, so I consider it well worth the up-front investment of time to figure it out.

I work for a non-profit, and we have a bunch of polycom conference phones that are analog. I actually like these better than the linksys boxes (PAP2-NA) that they replace. I read the horror stories on the reviews, but I didn't really have another option to go with so I pulled the trigger. So far I have 2 in production (2 spare) and they're going smooth. I know A guy that's using it to connect to a fax and surprisingly it's working awesome for him. Just don't forget to update the firmware! all of mine are on 1.3.2 and are going smoothly. I want to thank the other reviewers for giving me a heads up about the firmware. I love the amazon reviewing community!I'll buy again

The GV service stopped working after one year and two months. Obi wants $10/year to update the device so that the service works. Bait and switch.One star for this.Update:I've fixed this with manual update. So I give it four stars, because I still like it.See link here: [...]The page incorrectly states that the firmware is a version from 2014, while after the update it turned out to be a new version (2886).You need to login into your device (some local address on your home network). Default username and password are admin/admin.Once you logged in, go into System management/Device update and update the device. GV starts working then.Update2:Not sure why my link was removed above. Search for "latest firmware updates for obi devices". You should find an obitalk forum page with the links for latest firmware. Use the one for obi100/obi110.

I purchased this in 2011 and it has worked really well for the 5 years. Just recently however the dang thing quit working. After hours of internet searches and the 'user help forums" (which are of little help by nature) , OBi wants $10 for a firmware update needed for my g mail voice connection.Obi has annoyed me by turning off my device in order to collect the ten dollars. It is not the ten dollars I care about, it is the complete lack of notice I received before I spent hours out of my life trying to see what was wrong with my device. I understand the original business model was flawed but grow a pair and a least let people know you need another $10.

I have bought a few of this device for my vacation homes. But, when I tried to change my password. It stops working. It took me some time to figure out why it stop working when I changed my password in Obi device. Because Obi want extra $10 annual support fee for old device to make Google Voice password change.The reason I need to change Google voice password because "Google mail" detect I login through my PC, and my Google voice phone is remote at the other location. Google mail forced me to change the password to prevent security bleach which I think they overdid. If I want to change password, I will change it, why Google force user to change it. Or, Obi 100 device will not be able to login to "Google Voice". So, if you buy this device it will only work one year, after that if you want to change anything it will stop working unless you pay $10 fee which Obi never mentioned about it. Even, you do not need their Tech support, you just want to change it by yourself. DO NOT BUY IT. Or, this device will only work for one year unless you want to pay extra $10 per year. The next year could be $20.When I buy a printer. manufacture always supply the different OS driver upgrade free. Obi want you to pay to make their device work.UPDATE:After research for Obi firmware upgrade, found out you can download the free firmware [...]. and manually update your Obi device after login Obitalk portal (at system management - Device update).After free firmware upgrade, I can create/set up my new Google Voice password. Shared with everyone had an issue with this.So, I upgraded my review from one star to 4 star, not 5 star because Obi have not clearly said how to upgrade firmware free. It really caused me the problem.

Once I managed to get past a snafu in updating the firmware, it has worked as well as could be expected. Initially I had problems with the update process that took a couple of hours of head scratching, and reading through the forums to get it working.The main problem with voice over IP is not the sound quality (which is quite good!), it's the added latency of a few hundred milliseconds that throws conversations off a bit. Other than that issue which I think is unsolvable by Obihai (it's the nature of voice over IP), it's so far been very reliable and useful. I'm about ready to cut my landline!

This is an initial review, posted shortly after installation and configuration of the OBi100.The device itself is quite small, which makes it easy to find a home for it. It uses wired Ethernet only, with no wireless option, so keep that in mind when you go to find a spot for it. Includes a good-quality Ethernet cable but no telephone cable - luckily, I was able to find an old telephone cable that came with a surge protector. In my case, since my house is disconnected from the wired telephone network, I plugged the OBi100 into a telephone outlet in my basement, which then made phone service available to the other jacks in the house. I'm using it with a Panasonic cordless phone that was also purchased from Amazon.Configuration was the most painful part of setting up the OBi100. For some reason, OBIHAI's website was extremely slow, and it took several attempts to register the unit with their service. (Registration is accomplished by entering a verification code displayed on the website into the phone connected to the OBi100 unit.) Once registered, configuring the device to work with Google Voice was straightforward.So far, in three days' use, the OBi100 has been reliable and call quality has been good. I've encountered no difficulty with missed calls, dropped calls, or odd audio artifacts. I will post an update in a few weeks, once I've had more experience with the device.

This review is being written 11/22/2014 for the OBi100 VoIP Telephone Adapter and Voice Service Bridge, advertised and sold on the Amazon website.Update 8/16/2016I've had continued excellent experience with this device paired with Google Voice. However, most recently the device was blocked from Google Voice service. A voice message on the home phone informed me to login to my account, and I found I needed to update the OBi100 firmware due to Google Voice security requirements (requiring me to buy a $10 extended support contract for one year since my warranty had expired). Upgrading was painless and service was restored easily.------ Original review belowSince Google Voice is officially supported now, I think this product is worth considering. The combination of Google Voice with this device offers phone service very similar to a traditional land line with no ongoing subscription fee.Configuration is a bit daunting but worked as design with the Google Voice account (which you should setup ahead of time). You create an account on the obitalk website, and follow the instructions to register your device and link your Google Voice account to it. Even though this is not too complicated, I believe it's best left to someone who is technically savvy.The typical installation uses a cordless phone (that you purchase separately). You plug the base station into the phone jack on the Obi device, and use the cordless phones in your residence. This is the easiest and most straightforward and supported configuration.It's also possible to use the Obi device to power the home telephone wiring that already exists in your house. I mention this because people often ask this question. This allows you to use existing wired phones in multiple locations in your home, for example. Some items to consider if you are to do this:- You must disconnect the telephone company connection to your house wiring. Often, this is easy to do via unplugging a connection in the demarcation box, typically outside the residence in a plastic box in a modern home. This is an important step.- Turn off ringers on multiple phones that are plugged into home phone jacks so that you have no more than 5 devices total. To be more precise, the Obi device supports a maximum of 5 "REN" (Ringer Equivalence Number). Most modern phones have a REN of 1.0, so in theory the Obi could support 5 total. Most modern phones have the REN value printed on the bottom- You can plug the Obi into any home phone jack as typical house wiring has all the jacks connected together.With the Google Voice/Obi combination, there are some limitations:- No emergency service (no 911). You can purchase a 911 service subscription from another provider and configure that on the Obi in addition to the Google Voice service.- No service during a power failure. Traditional land line phone service will power most wired (not cordless) phones directly from the telephone company office. During a power failure, the Obi box itself will not provide service, nor would a typical cordless phone. To provide service during power failures, you'll need to buy and maintain battery backup (UPS) for your Obi, cordless phone if used, and Internet Provider device (cable modem or other).- You are responsible for some troubleshooting should issues occur. This is not a big issue for someone who is technically savvy. That being said, so far this has been reliable with no service issues.

Update #3: Well, finally, this ATA has been working fine for a while now, with Caller ID and no problem with incoming calls. It is very quiet andthe calls sound good. It really is a good value for the money. I officially have increased my rating to 4-1/2 stars, the 1/2 point demerit because I had to dink with it (with NAT KEEPALIVE and numerical proxy ip address) to get it to receive calls properly with my Time-Warner-Cable modem/router. I must say, however, that it had NO PROBLEMS from the start with my ASTERISK PBX at work. I also have put it on a static IP address so I always know where it is in my network. This works fine as well. DHCP also worked.Update #2: Well, I took this ATA up to work and it worked just fine on our Asterisk PBX for a week or two, even on incoming calls. So I decided to take it back home and change a few things and try again. So the bottom line was this:I PUT THE NUMERICAL IP-ADDRESS (4.59.156.116) OF SIP.TELASIP.COM (my provider) as the proxy instead of "sip.telasip.com", and turned ON all the NAT option NAT KEEP-ALIVE. I do not know which one fixed it, but IT SEEMS TO BE WORKING FINE NOW, including incoming calls and caller ID. (I turned have NAT MAPPING ENABLE on too, tho' I do not know what this means) I will continue to update this status if it changes. I give it just 4 stars for now, since I had to dink with it.(To Cisco: I checked to see that I had the correct DNS address over and over.)(find your provider's numerical IP-ADDRESS by going to the command line and:ping sip.telasip.com , it will tell you the numerical "dotted address".Update: Well this SPA112 worked fine for a while, then it started dropping inbound calls (so I did not notice it). I tried disabling Caller ID because of the ealier bug that was in the firmware. That did not fix it. Then I tried updating to the 1.4.1 firmware, and that did not fix it. So after you reboot it, it receives calls fine FOR A WHILE. Then it starts ringing once, and dropping the inbound calls. Cisco tech support is non-existent for such an inexpensive product. It either works for you or it does not. I will try using it on another carrier at work.First Review was good. Now not so:This ATA replaced a 10 year old SPA adapter that got hit by lightning. It had a quick setup screen! The only thing that was a little weird was that you had to hook up a telephone to find its DHCP address. Then you could go with your browser to that address to set it up. This was no problem for me, as I had done this before (you will have to read the manual to get this done). The quick browser setup screen worked right away, and it took me just 30 minutes to get going. It is quiet! It has caller ID! It is cheap and it works! Imagine that!

i'm going to put 4 stars for now as i haven't officially tried this exact one. I had one previously with my other internet service and it worked fine, so the 4 stars. It's shipped in a brown cisco box, has a minimal instruction manual, ethernet cable and power adapter. It has 2 phone jacks.

I purchased SPA112 to replace an aging SPA1001 for CallCentric. The CC web site's detailed step-by-step installation instructions with screen shots helped me to configure the ATA in 15 minutes.I use the ATA's debug log output to get caller-ID information that is fed to a home-grown caller-ID server (NCID) for whole house call notification. The SPA112 logs much less information than the SPA1001 (e.g. the callee number is missing, some possibly foreign caller cannot be identified), but I managed to modify the existing code to process enough information.

I purchased this adapter to replace an old ATA during a migration from one VoIP provider to a new service. I had some issues setting it up in my environment but since then it has functioned well.The biggest issue I had was that by default the Bonjour protocol is enabled. If your network includes an Apple AirPort Extreme or Time Capsule (whether in router or bridge mode - mine is in bridge mode at the moment) this is likely to cause a problems. Once I deactivated Bonjour protocol on the SPA112, the device could connect to my service provider, which is VoIPMuch. The tech support at my provider was unaware of this detail and have added it to their internal knowledge base. Since I brought my own ATA to the service rather than purchasing their default device, I wouldn't expect them to be aware even though it appears they have other customers using this device.While I can't be 100% sure that the Bonjour issue was the only setting affecting implementing the device, it is working well with Bonjour not running on the ATA, and I can use a soft phone app on my MacBook to place and receive calls.I deducted one star because I couldn't find any documentation for the issue I encountered.

Final resolution of Cisco SPA112 problems: This device was received in late July 2012. As suggested by Cisco and a number of blogs/sites, a check for updated firmware was made. Firmware dated 10Feb.2012 was downloaded and installed. In spite of much reading, testing, and a call to Cisco support, could never get the device to register. This same firmware was re-downloaded 12Aug.2012 in the off chance that something undetected went wrong in the process. As expected, the device still did not register. In a final act of desperation, second call was made to Cisco support 13Aug.2012. The engineer noticed that a newer release of the firmware was available; I said what new release? We both viewed the Cisco download site, which indicated a new version with a release date 20Feb.2012. I am sure this was NOT present on 12Aug. The new zipped file was downloaded; the firmware contained within had a file date of 10Aug.2012 as verified by both of us via the WEBEX session. Upon firmware installation, the device immediately registered with the default configuration. Summary: apparently untested firmware bricked the device.Device has been running fine behind the firewall. Two independent phone ports and a clean UI for $45.00 (Amazon) including shipping -just watch out for the firmware. With the same TELTUB/GV connections, voice quality is much better than with Obihai 110.

This is an update to the reviews below (1/26/2013)I upgraded to 1.2.1(004) and experienced problems similar to what others have described, w/ the device losing registration and requiring a reboot to get it working again. This was happening roughly every few weeks. I upgraded to v1.3.1(003) a little over a month ago and have not had a problem yet, so maybe they have finally come up w/ firmware that has the major bugs stamped out. Wish me luck...This is an update to the reviews below (3/7/2012)My opinion of this product has dramatically improved as Cisco has fixed bugs. They released a firmware update that fixed the caller id bug (1.1.0 (011)) and I just downloaded a beta release (1.2.0 (015)) that fixes the MWI problem. I've read some posts on the Cisco forums indicating there might be problems with the device frequently losing registration but I haven't experienced that issue.I still feel it was inexcusable for Cisco to release the product w/ obvious and significant bugs, but they've been making significant progress in improving the firmware. Overall I can now say this is a nice product in my opinion. The documentation is very well written and very informative. I'm not particularly well-versed in the technical aspects of voip, but the manual provides clear and useful descriptions of each option, and I never felt like I was cluelessly guessing when configuring the device. I was on the verge of returning the unit I purchased but I am now pretty certain I'll keep it.----This is an update to the review below (2/14/2012)Cisco still has not created an official release of firmware that fixes the caller id bug, but there is a beta release available. Call 866-606-1866 and mention the caller id bug. You would need to create a Cisco web site user id and sign off on a beta user's agreement.I've also encountered another obvious bug: The ata does not clear the attached phone's message waiting indicator (MWI) after voice mails are deleted. This has been acknowledged as a known problem w/ no ETA for a fix. This isn't as important as the caller id problem, but is another obvious problem that should have been noticed on like day 1 of alpha testing, so it illustrates the quality of the firmware in this device at this time. It has been something like two months since people reported the caller id bug, with still no final release of a fix, so that should let you know the time scale on which they solve these issues. Maybe if you purchase one of these devices in six months or so they will have fixed all the obvious bugs, at which time you will be left with the more subtle ones.----I actually read the words in an earlier review that this product did not pass caller id, and they didn't register until I reread the review after buying one. I think I unconsciously assumed it was one of those bugs that only shows up under some rare set of circumstances. I simply couldn't grasp in my feeble brain that a company with a reputation to protect would release a product with such a fundamental flaw. The process of debugging this product should have started with the questions "1. Does it make phone calls? 2. Does it show incoming caller id? ..." In the words of my wife, no caller id is a "deal breaker". In the dim and distant past my impression of cisco products was that they were expensive, but absolutely the best. More recently, I've heard that their products are overpriced and falling behind the competition. My brief experience with this product reinforces the impression of a formerly great company trading on its reputation and cutting back on fundamentals like basic quality control. I might add that I heard a beta firmware fix was (finally) available that fixed the caller id problem and called the support number to open a case so I could get the beta release, and spent over 1 1/2 HOURS on hold before I gave up (thank goodness for speaker phone or my arm would have fallen off). Finally, to add the icing on the cake, the web administration interface only works properly with Internet Explorer (1998 anyone?).On the upside, the documentation is well written.

Purchased in Feb. 2015. Worked great until spring 2016. Paid $10 for firmware upgrade (annoying, especially after I found instructions on how to do for no charge). Now I'm getting notices that the device is no longer being supported, and they want me to upgrade to the 200 model. Ignored, since my 100 was working fine. But now it has stopped working - seem to be able to make and receive calls, but can't hear party at the other end.The cost to upgrade to the 200 is not large, but it's really annoying when the device just stops working, with no warning or notice that something is wrong. Am reluctant to sign on for more of the same.

I've had one for awhile and used to highly recommended. Not anymore after my gv voice service stopped one day and when I logged in to my obi account I saw I would have to pay for a firmware update just to use again. No thanks. To the junk pile it went.Update 10/2/16It appears you can update your firmware manually. Go to the Obihai website. Select 'Support', then 'Contact Support' from the top menu, then select 'Document & Downloads' from the menu on the left. Then scroll down the page until you see the 'Firmware' link and select 'OBi Device Firmware'. This page will have the instructions and links to get your device working again.I've adjusted my rating to 3 stars. I still feel its shady of ObiHai to display a message making you think you have to pay to upgrade your firmware (with no mention of being able to manually do it that I can recall), then burying the method to do this in a maze of links.

I have been using Obi with my google voice number for almost three years now and love it. After setup it works just like a home phone and forgot it. The only reason I am not giving it 5 start is after your first year, Obi wants you to pay $10 a year to get support and use their web portal to update firmware or make any setup changes. Mine went dead needing a firmware update. If you dig into the support forums there is a way to apply updates locally but it is not at all user friendly.If Obi was more upfront about this cost it would probably be no big deal. When buying, just consider the first year of service included and $10 a year after that.

I have used this unit for about 3 weeks ago. This review is written in Sept 2014. I opted to port my existing number to Ringtone which is free phone service if I port my existing number. OBi100 and registration with Ringtone was initially very confusing. Only OBi registered users can get Ringtone registration. So you need to go in sequence with different companies and do registration process. If I separately go to Ringtone or other partner companies the deal does not show up. So once pass this hurdle, the service took about a week to get number ported. Now the phone can dial out and receive calls. Quality of voice is bad. Sound chops and many times goes blank for many seconds. I have excellent 20 mbps internet connection. I use Netflix video streaming service and quality of internet connection is real good. So internet connection quality is not a problem. OBi uses whatever processor in their box is not capable to process sound smoothly OR Ringtone has bad quality service. Whatever the reason, end result sound quality is bad, this is a reason I have only 3 stars to this product.

If you are using this device to turn up service on CallCentric then take heed!After receiving the device, follow these steps:(1) Open OBi VoIP Telephone Adapter package(2) Locate OBi instructions(3) Locate trash receptacle(4) Crumple OBi instructions and throw them in trash receptacle(5) Follow instructions on this web page: (URL not allowed - google the term "OBI100 CallCentric")Seriously - the device is great and works like a champ if you can find and use the magic words. Do yourself a favor and avoid hours of heartache and frustration by following steps from above. I created an (unnecessary) account on the OBi website and spent the better part of a beautiful Saturday afternoon trying to get this thing to work until I discovered that, at least for CallCentric, that the included OBi instructions are useless. Follow the CallCentric instructions and you can use the OBi100 to excellent results.

Its a great device and works great but if you planning on using this with Google voice think again.Here is a direct quote from their website..."Recently Google announced the end of support for XMPP based calling with Google Voice. This will happen on May 15, 2014 - that's over 6 months from today. Since your OBi device uses XMPP to communicate with Google servers, the end of support will directly impact how your OBi device can be used with your Gmail account and its associated Google Voice phone number. Unfortunately, you will no longer be able to use the Google Voice communication service to make calls using the phone connected to your OBi device. Also, the ability to receive calls to your Google Voice number, directly from Google's service, will not be possible."its really too bad.

Should have gotten the 122

The SPA112 arrived via the Amazon purchase on time and in good working order from the reseller. New and factory sealed.Abominable technical support from the manufacturer, Cisco, but the device seems capable enough of doing its job. I bought this to use with my Asterisk server. Because I am skilled with Asterisk, I made it work with not much difficulty at all. However, I checked Cisco's website for firmware updates and found the current download. After unpacking the zip file, the PDF inside contains an ambiguity in the document as to whether or not the firmware flash is applicable to the device I just received. So, I submit a question via email to Cisco's technical support that includes my unit's serial number, current firmware of the unit, and asking "Is this firmware flash applicable to my newly-purchased-from-Amazon unit? I can't tell for sure due to this ambiguity in the documentation." I get back an unhelpful email that does not address my question in any way.So I buy a less-than-$40 SPA112 device from Amazon, and Cisco can't even tell me if the firmware flash on their website applies to my device given its serial number and specific current firmware level. That gets Cisco a big fat "F" in technical support.But wait! There's more! I try calling the available 800 number. Cisco rep is totally baffled why I could possibly have a technical question she cannot answer on a product that she apparently has never seen and transfers me overseas to another rep. Other rep thinks I need to talk to "pre-sales support". Funny, since I am post-sale from Amazon. I play along, and let her try to transfer me. She comes back and says, "Sorry. It is a holiday (MLK day) in the USA. So nobody can help you."It is just a shame that the manufacturer seems unable to support this device.Update on 1/18/2017. I tried telephoning Cisco again using a toll free number provided by the "Sorry. It is a holiday..." rep, and had better luck. Of course, the number she gave me and options on their menu system once again got me to a "I cannot help you." kind of rep. But at least that rep knew the correct department that supports the SPA112 and transferred me to a knowledgeable rep who was able to understand my confusion over their documentation but answer my question on the applicability of the firmware flash to my unit. I am raising the review to 3-star.

Low cost. You get what you pay for. Very popular item in the ATA market.

Using it on my Asterisk system, configured for two client/SIP devices, able to power my regular analog phones, it stuck once in awhile and needed a reboot.

We bought several of these units as my company has begun offering VoIP services to our clients. We used Sipura devices (the predecessor manufacturer of these devices before Linksys/Cisco bought them out) and they were quality ATA devices, the same as well with the previous line of Linksys branded ATA's.However, with these Cisco branded models (SPA112 and SPA122), we've have quite a number of issues, even involved Cisco technical support, acknowledges several of these defects, yet months after still no firmware updates to resolve these issues. It's quite disappointing to see such a famous company as Cisco not standing behind one of their products.The device is somewhat OK if you only plan on using it for voice usage, however it has quite a number of issues:- Faxing is very flaky, even with T.38 enabled and a T.38 compatible SIP provider, T.38 doesn't kick in and it seems to always fallback to try faxing over a voice codec (ulaw)... This is okay if you have a fax such as a Brother, Xerox, Canon where you can lower the RX/TX speeds to 9600bps or lower, however, on fax machines such as certain HP fax machines where the RX/TX speed is not adjustable, it just doesn't want to work.- Caller ID is very hit or miss, for the same caller, at times it will show the caller ID, other times it won't...- MWI (Messaging Waiting Indicator light), when this option is enabled, if you have carrier provided voicemail, the indicator light stays lit even after you checked your messages and deleted them. (This issue was acknowledged by Cisco support, it's even part of the known defects in the PDF attached to the latest firmware update).- Once in a while, the units stop responding and need to be unplugged/replugged to restore service.If you need to be able to send & receive faxes reliably, I would recommend an ATA by Mediatrix instead. Their units are a bit bigger, but much more reliable in regards to faxing.

This product is still maturing. Make sure you install the latest firmware. Be sure to perform a power reset after upgrading the firmware, otherwise, the unit is unstable. If you are using this with Asterisk, make sure the RTP Packet Size under VOICE/SIP menu is set to 0.020 (default=0.030). Other default parameters need changing: NAT Mapping Enable = Yes, NAT Keep Alive Enable = Yes. I was really pulling my hair out trying to get the SPA 112 to work with Asterisk until I changed the RTP Packet Size to 0.020. The previous Linksys product had a default value of 0.020, so why did Cisco change the default setting? Lastly, if you set the web access to https, be sure to change the port to 443, something the unit should do automatically. Now, I am wiser and sharing this information. I wish I had bought the OBi100 instead.

OK , here is the deal.... this product worked great for 4 years non-stop other than updates. Okay on that point 6/22/2016 google and obi have locked this item out due to "security requirements" by google voice. Another words you have to buy a new device, even though the old device runs great, works great, no error or lag and was very easy to setup from the get-go. Now seems they want money plain and simple, this should be considered false advertising for it was advertised as free phone service with Google Voice with the ad on both Obi-talk and Google Voice. They just didn't tell how long it would last; and If it because of software I can understand that but if comes to strictly money then I will have lost faith in Obihai and Google .

The product itself works great - no complains. However, please be aware that to continue using this product after initial one year warranty runs out, if you need to update or reconfigure it (e.g, to change Google Voice password) Obihai will force you to purchase $10/year for premium support, without which, your device will be unusable. I didn't see anywhere advertised, that the product becomes unusable after the warranty expires, if an update is required, and the customer would have to buy additional support after 1 year... So the reason for 2 star review is that at a min it's misleading.

I give only two stars because it worked only when it worked. It has never been stable. Even if you set up and configure your phone and google voice correctly, it only worked ‘sometimes,’ not always. While I was able to make calls, it didn’t ring for incoming calls. Rebooting sometimes works. After rebooting a few times, it finally started working. It lasted only several months. It stopped working again – both making and receiving calls. When I logged in, it told me that I need to pay them $10 annually for the phone to work.I don’t recall seeing the $10 annual fee when I purchased and signed up. Either they changed their business model, or deceptive advertising. I chose Obi instead of Ooma only because Obi doesn’t require monthly or ongoing fees. I paid more than $50, which lasted only a year with sporadic performance. It is not worth paying $10 for annual service fee as it doesn’t provide consistent phone service. I will switch to Ooma.

It's really a shame, I used to love this device when it was linked to Google Voice, but since Google decided to eliminate the protocol that this depended on, it's been a nightmare. When I got the notice from OBIHAI that I needed to migrate to another VOIP provider, I chose Phonepower, one of their "recommended providers". Since that migration, one problem after another. It used to just work, now I've had to endure hours of research into esoterica on VOIP and multiple support calls. The service from Phonepower combined with Obihai OBi100 just is not reliable. Multiple reboots, loss of service, loss of registration, reconfiguration of my router, hassling with my IP ISP to get them to change special parameters on my service to be "compatible" with Phonepower, yadayadayada. Still haven't been able to get the Android softphone from Phonepower to work, either, which is supposed to be one of the benefits of the service. Check out the Obihai forum for Phonepower problems. Similar issues migrating to Anveo, apparently, as there is a whole thread on that, too. I guess I'll have to write off the investment in this device, and try some other solution that gives reliable and easy service. There may be some way to make it work, but I just don't have the time to waste on it any more.

Edited on 9/18/2016 - Dropped rating to 2-stars - I would've dropped it to 1 star, but I have to admit that I had amazing years of service... but looks like all comes to its end.It looks like one of my Obi100 devices finally died - tried to reflash it twice, it works for another few days and then falls into the same vicious cycle of restarts.But most importantly - I am extremely upset with the new extortion policy of Obihai. The whole idea of their devices that won minds (and dollars!) of many enthusiasts across the globe was that you pay a fixed price once and then you enjoy it. Apparently they managed to make (quite surprisingly for them) a VERY stable and nice device that lasted YEARS without any maintenance / upgrades, so at some point they figured they are losing money on NOT locking people into service contracts and the whole crap that people were actually running from when they chose Obi :-) Bingo!*********Living in one country and having colleagues / friends / family all around the globe has already made me a fan of VoIP technologies a very long time ago. So far I've tried numerous VoIP / SIP devices from Linksys / Cisco, Zyxel and other less known brands + different apps for my Android smartphones using a good dozen of different VoIP providers both US- and foreign-based. That said, I tried a LOT of stuff and I can confidently say that OBi is absolutely amazing! Forget about losing registration with SIP server once in a while (very common to Cisco / Linksys, unfortunately), forget about bad voice quality. Finally, last but not least, forget about hassle with setting things up - I was able to make this tiny box up and running in less than 10 minutes from opening a box until making my first call.A small thing that I particularly liked about OBi was ease of setting it up to use more than 1 VoIP providers. My unit is currently set to work with Google Voice as the primary provider and small Russian SIP-provider as the secondary one (mainly to call Russian cell phones as those are more than 2 or 3 times expensive with GV and I call those a lot). After fighting really long for similar setup with other units (usually I had to have at least 2 handsets to make it work), I was pleasantly surprised by how simple it was to set this up with OBi - every time you want to place a call with a secondary provider you just need to precede your number with **2 and that's it! I'm also sure that if I dig deeper, it can be somehow set up using dialplan for the unit to choose VoIP operator based on the direction of the call.Voice quality is also 5 star! Here in NJ Verizon charges me a fortune (more than the price of this OBi every month!) just to have a copper landline at home with local area calling only. With this box I'm now serious about dumping my Verizon services and just getting proper internet without any local phone service as OBi + GV is just a perfect and inexpensive replacement!Actually, I would seriously recommend this tiny box to everyone who 1) needs to call abroad a lot or just to anyone 2) who thinks that he/she is overpaying for monthly landline phone bill. There are absolutely no upfront costs to set this up (except for the price of this unit and unless Google starts to charge something for its Voice services), so even if you don't like it (which IMO is unlikely), you have nothing really to lose!

I did quite a bit of research, looking for a way to get rid of my $50/month landline. I narrowed it down to two options - OOMA and OBihai. After reading a lot of the reviews, I decided to go with the OOMA Telo, despite the higher price of the equipment. I liked the built in 911 service, and that reviews said it was easier to set up for non-techie types like myself.However, that easy setup couldn't have been further from the truth!! Initial installation wasn't terrible, but the call quality sure was! I spent hours on the ooma forums, and then in setup having to modify my upload/download speeds, jitter, etc - things I barely understood. I eventually got rid of the dropped calls and broken conversations, but could never get rid of the 10-30 delay during calls. It sounded like talking on a push-to-talk phone. To top it all off, though, both the unit and the wall wart had serious overheating problems, and I began to worry about fires. Add all that to the $200 in startup equipment costs, and $4 a month in 'taxes' - I got frustrated and sent the unit back. I've seen lots of positive reviews on Ooma,though, so it's entirely possible I just got a bad unit.I ordered the OBi100 as a replacement, and I could not be happier with it! It was so easy to set up - just plug in the phone, plug the unit into your router, and plug in the power supply. I had to sign up for gmail and google voice accounts (Painless, I might add), and then register the unit at Obitalk. I was making calls within 15 minutes of taking the unit out of the box, and the call quality is excellent. No static, no garbled conversations, and no delay. The call quality is actually better than it was on my land line.Bottom line - although Ooma offers a lot of bells and whistles, for the money and the ease of setup, the OBi100 beats Ooma hands down. I highly recommend it!Also, I've seen in several reviews that you can't have 911 service with the OBi, but that is not true. You can set up e911 service for a small fee on the ObiTalk website through providers such as CallCentric - there is a small fee per month for the service, but it's less than the 'taxes' that Ooma charges. I set up my Google Voice account as my primary provider, and my e911 provider as my secondary. E911 does work differently than line line services, though, so please be sure to research and become familiar with how it works.UPDATED ** 06/07/2015**. Google Voice forced me to change my password, but ObiTalk wouldn't let me update my password on their system. Every time I tried to access my google voice system settings, ObiTalk redirected me to a page saying I was "out of warranty" and that I needed to pay $10 in "Premium Support" fees in order to update my firmware. Very disappointed in ObiTalk for underhanded business tactics - they tout this system as "Free", so I shouldn't have to pay for "premiere support" to get it to work after the first year.--- HERE'S HOW TO GET AROUND THAT $10 FEE. ----For other users having this same problem, here are the steps I followed. My service is now working again.(*) Paste the link above into your browser address bar (I use google chrome), and when the download box appears, click "Save" and save the file to your PC.(*) From your VoIP Phone handset, dial ***4 (press the "star" key three times, and then the number "4"). This will give you the current IP Address of your OBI device. Write down the numbers given - this is your ip address. You can press "0" if you need it to repeat the number. Hang up when you are done.(*) Type the ip address directly into your browser address bar. It will ask you for administrator login information. If you haven't changed it from the factory settings, your user name and password will both be "admin".(*) When the page opens, click on "System Management" from the menu bar on the left, and then click on "Device Update".(*) Click the "Choose File" button, and select the firmware file that you saved in in the first step. Click "Open". Click "Update" and then "OK". It will take about 30 seconds to update.(*) Log into Obitalk.com, and you should now be able to access the gear button to configure your service and reset your google voice password.I found the following link very helpful: http://blog.voipdiy.com/2013/06/obihai-obi100-how-to-update-firmware.html

This ATA lasted just over 2 months before the Line 1 port failed to make outgoing connections - incoming still worked okay. Moved the phone over to the Line 2 port (with identical configuration and is working properly for now) while I order a new ATA, but it won't be another SPA112. My VOIP provider (1-VOIP.COM) says they won't recommend the SPA112 because it is too flaky. The unit worked well for a while, but I need better reliability than 2 months before failure. Firmware was updated when unit put in service to the latest available, and the ATA is powered through a UPS, so I'm sure there wasn't any power spikes that could have caused the problem. The last few weeks, outgoing connections took longer and longer, incoming calls still came through okay. Cisco says the warranty is only honored through the point of sale (Amazon) so when I get another ATA, I will have to work on getting Amazon to get me an RMA for repair or replacement.

On the box in the information page it say ATA with router, when you get it it doesn't say that. It doesn't have the yellow Ethernet port.IT WASN'T WHAT i EXPECTED.

Didn't work

Where can I get an official assisted set up? I've been having trouble setting this ATA to work.I bought it a few weeks ago, had some IT techs look at it and they had some trouble too. How can I set this up, how do I know its not broken?

tried to use but cant get it to work.may be a isp problem.but cant get to set up.i am going to send back and get something else.

I received the order quite quickly. Good work, however the power supply had a foreign plug. Normal US plugs have two flat pins like | | with a round ground pin. This thing has two flat pins like / \ with no ground. It's not a usable product. o Amazon needs to be sure their products are usable in the country they ship to. No where I could see in the description did it say the product couldn't be used in the US.

Dishonest marketing. Basically a year after you buy the device, they will disable your ability to use google voice. Nothing will work unless you buy Obihai Premium Technical Support for out of warranty devices. My Obi device worked great for a year. Then magically one day after the one year date they decided it magically needed to be reconfigured. It can only be reconfigured using their obi talk website which won't work unless you pay for technical support. I have no issue with someone selling subscription access to Google Talk. I have no issue with someone selling a device and stating up front that it bricks itself unless you pay them a fee. I have a problem with them stating you get free access via Google Voice and then bricking your device unless you pay them for "support". This is outright fraud.

I don't have an issue with a $10 charge but I do have an issue with the way it was done. I won't go into detail about this fee, a lot of people have already written about this, just do a search. This device was marketed as hardware that allows Google Voice users to connect to GV (which is a free service) and use their regular house phone, . The company decided to extort $10/year from people who had purchased the hardware by demanding they pay for ""premium help support". There were no advance messages, the phone simply stopped working properly and when you went to try to figure out what happened, you'd get a notification telling you that you have to pay $10.If that works for them, what next? Next year you charge $20? $30 the year after?

This is my second Obi device (first one mysteriously started flaking out) and I've been using them for over 3 years now. It had been terrific, and I was very happy to get free Google Voice calling, unlimited, without any monthly fees. (Well, I do also pay a tiny amount for Anveo to get 911 service.)Until today. I went to make a call, and got a message saying "Google Voice service connection error" and that I needed to log into obitalk web site to update my credentials. I thought that was odd, since I didn't change my Google password. (It turns out they switched from password authentication to OAuth.) Annoying, but okay... I log in, and click the Settings button next to my Google Voice account. Nothing happens -- the page flashes but still shows me the same content. I click Settings repeatedly... nothing happens, not even an error. So, I thought maybe I could run Setup again and get it working. I deleted the settings (it let me do that but not update them?), then tried Setup. Same thing... web page flashes and doesn't actually proceed to do any setup. What?Then, I notice it keeps displaying this message at the top part of the page saying my device warranty expired (3 months ago but it had been working fine) and that I can pay $10 for premium support. I don't necessarily mind if they wish to offer enhanced services for a price, but nothing about the message indicated I had to pay $10 to get the device working again! The message did not mention the authentication issue or that updating firmware would fix it. So, no way was I paying $10 to see if it would maybe get lucky and start working.So, I started searching around for answers. First, I did the most logical thing -- look for help on Obihai's web site. Why not? They sell it! I looked for service outage messages, FAQ, support area ... absolutely no mention of this issue. Then, I expanded my search range to DSL Reports and other places, only to discover they did this to everyone with a 100/110 device. It turns out if I paid $10, the web page would start working again and let me update the credentials and the firmware. Fortunately, the firmware can be downloaded directly and installed by pointing browser at the internal web page of the device, although the link to the firmware is difficult to find. Another reviewer on here (listed in the most helpful critical review section) explains how to do this. And, it worked.But, this is very dirty. Obihai sent no email or other communication -- they have my email address and send me promotionals all the time! They just brick the device with no warning, send no communication about it, have nothing on their web site, require a firmware update that is disabled until $10 is paid them, and don't even explain it to anyone. The only reason I know at all what to do is I had to start searching forums and reading through hundreds of posts until I found the solution. Is this the right way to make a few extra bucks for your business? I certainly don't think so, which is why I will never do business with them again. When this device eventually burns out, I will be looking at what the competition offers.

I would give this 0 stars if I could. After using this device for almost 2 years, I decided to change my Google password for security. I found out the hard way that the free calls for life advertised with this product is a LIE!! They only give you a year to use the product in a way that allows changes, but as soon as you change your password, the system will no longer work and you will be required to purchase a maintenance agreement to keep using your "free" Google Voice number. It's a total scam, and I for one will never support a company that works through shady processes like this! I would not recommend this product, and I highly suggest you look around for better alternatives that don't have hidden clauses!!

I have had an OBI100 for many years and it has worked very well, until now. The device was solid and firmware updates were timely and functional.The biggest plus is that Google Voice was able to connect to make and receive calls.Recently however things have turned nasty: OBi is now charging $10.00/year for "support" for any device that is over 1 year old. You may ask: if things are working today why worry about "support". The simple answer is that Google Voice is changing the authentication method to OAUTH from the current username/password method.This OAUTH method requires that new firmware be used on the OBi and the only way to get this is to pay the $10.00 "support fee". So if you are planning to use this on Google Voice, be aware that you will be paying a subscription fee every year.

Update: As of 7/22/16 it was a good run while it lasted. Picked up my phone to make a call today and every time I attempted to use my dial it says your phone is not properly configured; when I know its properly configured. So I log into the website to see what the issue was and the site says greetings your phone phone is not properly configured in order to properly configure your phone you have to pay a fee. What? In order to properly configure my free phone I have to pay. No Obi that is not how this works. You don't use strong arm tactics against people who support your product. Its rather insulting. Try a Magic Jack at least they are up front about their service.UPDATE: As of 9/11/2014 Google voice is back on the Obi. I know a lot of us were down because of the Google Voice dropping Obi support situation, but as of today I have received an email that says Google voice Obi compatibility is active again. This is for old and new Obi devices. I made a test call to my cellphone and it went through. I literally just plugged it back in and everything worked properly. I never removed my Google Voice info from the Obihai website, so I did not have to go and reenter anything. Glad to have my *free* back up home phone again.By installing the obi 100 and the Vtech Dect 6.0 I officially do not need phone service. This thing gives you the exact same service that most cable companies are selling in a bundle with cable and internet. Problem with the cable company is that after the promotion runs out each service is about 60 dollars a piece. The price jumps from 99.00 introductory 12 month rate to a whopping full circle at 180 bucks a month. I asked and asked buy my cable company refused to put me back on promotion. So, I ended up doing some research on how I could get a low cost preferably free phone service that did not require having a computer on always like Majic Jack.I ended up narrowing my search down to 2 choices 1 I could go with Ooma, or 2 there was the Obi. Both of these phone solutions use Voip which is just an acronym for voice over the internet literally. Ooma has a high installation cost, but if you are not very tech savvy and familiar with the internet this is probably the best choice for you. Installation of Ooma is very easy as I understand it. Its practically plug in and start calling. However the drawback as I mentioned is the 2-300.00 dollar equipment fee, and the 3 dollars a month they charge for some type of taxes that make no sense to me. They are not the phone company, and how does everyone pay the exact same amount 3 dollars and some change.Anyway I found out about the Obi110 and saw its capabilities, and I was impressed. It met all of my criteria. Low cost equipment; the obi100 was about 40 dollars and the phone was about 15 so all together I spent just over 50 dollars. Set up can be intimidating to a novice, but it is do able. It should take a novice about 10 minutes if they follow the video. As long as you follow the steps for configuring the Obi with google voice on the ObiHai website you can enjoy a free phone service that runs through your high speed internet modem. Google voice integration is perfect.I have used the exact same phone that I bought at other peoples house and I always hear this loud static in the background, and I struggle to hear the person on the other end. I chalk it up to the analog phone combined with the latency of the cordless phone. However, when I heard the clarity that Voip provided via the Obi100 and Google voice I was blown away. No monthly fees, no high equipment fees and fairly easy installation the Obi and Google voice are a no brainier. You can even get a local number or port your cell phone or some other number to Google voice.If you want to ditch your phone bill and need a replacement solution that does not depend on a computer. This should be your first choice. Only draw back is that there is no emergency calls and 911 can't find your location. I highly recommend, and if you read this entire review I am sorry for the length, but I tried to give a thorough review. Thanks.

Did not work.

Never could get it to work with Nextiva.

Accessories and parts missing - wall jack adapter (part of power adapter) is missing. Ethernet cord is missing. Documentation CD is missing.SPA 112 and remaining parts are not packed in plastic bags (unpacked).Seems that someone tried to use this before - dust on SPA112 itself, on rubber pads, , the "SPA 112" line on user manual's cover is marked with fluorescent marker. Power cube cord is fixed into roll with paperclip instead of usual soft wire.Dissatisfied.

Could never get this thing to work. Felt like I wasted my money. Used tech support for my provider as well as my VOIP provider. Turns out, there are issues with Comcast routers.

I don't know yet how this adapter works, and it doesn't look like I will be able to know anytime today. The plug sent with the adapter is CHINESE standard with the "/ \" prongs. It is now 1 hour that I am chatting with an Amazone rep. He wanted to send me a cheap adapter that would have voided Cisco's warranty, but I requested the OEM. They are sending it for free with 1 day shipment.Looking back at some reviews, it looks like the same problem happened some days ago to another buyer. What is going on with Amazon? That's a pretty big mistake and it doesn't look like they are taking care of it for days? Worse, in the "Frequently Bought Together" I see the correct adapter... Which means we buy an unusable product and we have to pay more for the fix?My recommendation, don't buy unless they fix their problem.

Our VoIP provider spent several hours trying to make this work reliably. At first it would allow faxes to send, but not receive. Then, receive but not send. Overall, it is not reliable as a fax digital-analog-digital converter.