Mommy Talk Show Candid Conversation with a TV Mom
Over the last few months I’ve realized we need a home telephone. In fact, we already have a home telephone number as part of our bundle with Comcast because it was cheaper to add it then just having cable & Wi-Fi alone. Two out of five U.S. homes don’t have a landline telephone. But I realized I didn’t want to stay a part of the trend and created a list of time I regret not having a home telephone, including:
When your cell phone battery is low…
I use my iPhone all day to manage social media for my clients and promote the family-friendly brands you see here on my parenting talk show. At the end of the day my cell phone barely has any power left. I try to minimize the power loss by dimming the screen and recharging it throughout the day. But if A.J. gets his hands on my iPhone to play his preschool apps or to watch an appisode of Disney Jr. – my power is blown for the day. As a work at home mom and freelance writer, I also rely on my iPhone for consulting calls. A home telephone gives me another option to make and receive calls when A.J. is playing on my iPhone.
When your cell phone breaks and is getting repaired…
In April, my iPhone 4s was showing signs of wear and tear I ordered an upgrade so I could stay in touch with the outside world. Before I left for a blogging conference, I upgraded to a new iPhone 5s. Thankfully, there was no downtime.
But I’ve had friends who’ve needed to send their mobile phones away for repairs, which leaves them out of touch for days or even a week.
In an emergency…
Earlier this year our neighbor’s home was destroyed in a fire. They escaped safely. It traumatized A.J. for about a month. He kept asking questions about how safe we were. Home phone numbers are connected to your physical address and make it easier for emergency responders to find you. Is your cell phone protected with a password or pass code? If your children don’t know it and your cell phone is your only phone, how can they call for help?
When your leave a cell phone in the car or in another room….
It’s late. It’s dark. And I realize my cell phone is not an arm’s reach away, but I need to call someone. These are the moments I wish I had a home telephone. Next week, I’m reviewing and giving away a VTech DECT 6.0 cordless home phone that has Bluetooth technology to make and receive cellular calls. Subscribe my bi-monthly e-newsletter so you don’t miss the opportunity to win one for your family.
Comment below: Is a home telephone obsolete? What features in a home telephone do you find most useful?
You can also talk back to me on the Mommy Talk Show Facebook page and see how many moms still use a home telephone:
I find a lot of people are getting rid of the home phone nowadays. I personally like having one myself, for the same reasons as you. My son plays games on my phone, I use it during the day and the battery runs low but what if the power goes out? At least with a land line (and not a cordless phone either) I will still be able to make calls to 911 or elsewhere. Satellites are not always reliable either. And with a home phone, there are the options to forward your calls to your cell phone if you are out for the day but expecting important calls.
I use to have a home phone because like you said it was cheaper with my cable package with Charter. I later disconnected it because telemarketers would blow up my phone all day even though I’m on the Do-Not-Call List.
You make valid points about needing a home landline phone.
I have always kept a home phone. We have one cellphone so not all have one which leaves whomever is at home having only the lamdline as a means of communication. We also have friends who are firefighters and they have told us sometimes those few minutes not knowing an address can make all the difference in the world.
I do wish the telemarketers would stop although the benefits outweigh the cons of not having one.
I have one for my Alarm and to fax. I live in the country so my cell phone doesn’t get reception until I go into the city like area which is about 10min in some from where I live I get one bar until I get to a certain point. A house phone is also needed for my business because I use it with my google voice number that way no one is ringing my phone at all times since my cell stays in my hand.
We do not have a land line and don’t regret it at all. Yes my cellphone is passcode protected only because my 17 month old knows how to open my phone and create havoc with my apps. The nice thing about the Samsung Galaxy is that there is still the ability to call 911 even if it’s pass word/code protected. There are also 4 emergency numbers that can be programmed in that can be called. My 4 year old does know the code AND knows how to make an emergency call. I do like that my cell phone is usually on vibrate, therefore when the baby is napping or the kids are sleeping, the phone doesn’t ring and wake them up. I remember many times when my 4 year old was younger that a nap would be interrupted by the phone ringing.
Very valid points.
I have a landline and will always have a land line. I live in NYC. my cell phone doesnt always get reception in my phone so I have to have a clear reception but more importantly I have learned that in emergencies like 9/11, the 2003 black out and the Superstorm Sandy, you need a landline. Cell phones die even with a back up chargers and in an emergencies, cell phone service is not the best.
Good post! Also in case the kids are home with a babysitter, I like to provide a landline.
The last time we had an earthquake the power went off as you can imagine, and for how long?
Our land line telephone is powered from the central office on “Battery” or “Bell Power” and we had this service for the entire two days it took to resume electrical power to the local cell towers.
There are more good reasons to have a landline, than not. # 1, if your power goes out, you’re lost. # 2, if you have a landline, it uses 12 volts, and there are gadgets that you can buy on E-Bay that can use the 12 volts to run lamps, radios and even TV’s. so why ditch something so beneficial just to save a few bucks?
If you have a landline as well as cell phone in your home and don’t want telemarketers bothering you at home, just don’t give your landline number to friends/family. Use only your cell phone and turn your ringer off or way down; this way, you can still use your phone in an emergency but won’t be bothered by calls you don’t want.
I have a landline went the power is out I can always make a call will always have one.
We have Vonage, but it’s connected to a regular handset with 5 phones throughout the house. (We have a big house.) I’ve made sure it’s set up with local 911. (My cellphone is still my old Denver phone number from when we lived in Colorado two years ago.) If the power or Internet goes out, the phone rolls over to my cell phone. I like it because we have several floors and we can grab the phone throughout the house. I also take my phone with me when I leave, which means anyone at home (like my kids who are old enough to stay at home) may not have a phone with them. My elderly mother-in-law stays with us frequently. She doesn’t know how to use smartphones, so having a regular phone is much easier for her to use.
I often lose my cellphone in the house. Did I leave it in my purse? The car? In kitchen? Who knows? Finally, since my kids’ rooms are upstairs, I’ll call the main phone from my cellphone to have them come downstairs to get the dog (or whatever) late at night when I don’t want to walk all the way across the house and yell up the stairs. Much more convenient! All in all, so many reasons to pay Vonage $12 a month and buy a good phone set for our house.
Reason #1 I would not miss having a landline: Truth be told, we rarely ever use our landline. We only answer it when we hear the ‘special’ ring that we established for our family members.
Reason #2: We disconnected our voicemail after having it for 5 years and never even setting it up. People who called us were more aggravated by that then we were so we removed that service.
I need a home phone for the simple medical reasons and 911.
I agree with these. I decided about 6 months ago to go with Basic Talk and it has been great. My family has had to call for an emergency and they got a hold of us through our landline, thank goodness we had it. I also use it for job calls.
I own my own business and my husband used to do 24 hr roadside service for it so the phones were always ringing…for safety purposes now he only goes if a law officer calls so we changed his #s…Sometimes I just enjoy the peace & quiet b/c only immediate family / friends have house # 🙂
I would regret not having a house phone if something happened to my kids and needed to call 911 and my husband has our only cell phone with him at work or to run errands!
Home phones are becoming obsolete, as more and more people are relying solely on a cell phone. I like not having to worry about my phone being charged, always having a connection, and the comfort of talking on a larger phone.
We have a landline as a part of our bundle with Comcast also, and I don’t regret it one bit. I even dropped my cell phone plan, it’s so nice to be able to go somewhere and not having everyone and their brother calling me. It’s nice to only be reachable at home once again.
Our phone company is the only internet provider in our area & they will not provide internet without a landline. Plus, our security system is hooked up to the landline. So, we have no choice. But I’d be torn if we did. Having only cell phones is so much cheaper.
I agree with these reasons. I so want a home telephone and would love to have this V-Tech that I can use in coordination with my cell phone.
I would like to have a landline when we get our own place in a few months.. but we’ll probably stick to cell phones at first until we get into a better financial situation. It saves money to only have cell phones! Otherwise, I’d love to have a landline also.
I like having a home phone so that I can take a break from my cell phone. I really don’t like having to carry it around everywhere with me. Also I feel like the cell phone has made things less personal with text and all.
I tried to not have a home telephone for a while. I missed it horribly. The voice quality of a cell phone is just sub-par to a land line. In addition, I tend to be on the phone for long periods of time, and a cell phone is very comfortable, as I would have to old my arm up by my ear. Whereas a land line headset can be rested on the shoulder.
we all have cell phone including my kids,and they r playing games on them,sometimes on my too.Thats why we have home line as well,mostly for emergencies or family to call us when we wont answer the cell phones.
we have home land line as well for same reasons,not everytime my cell phone is found,and with 3 kids in the house we need phone for emergencies,just in case is need it
We keep our home phone because it’s pretty dependable. Although we hardly have any calls on it (only family)
#1 reason for me is about connection. I have a great cell phone but I still go in and out to the person on the other end so they can never really hear me that great.
#2 Just like you said,cells die..chargers get chewed up by bratty kittens….you get the point. =)
I agree! I think of Emergency and sometimes I don’t want to give out my cell number
I have a home phone in case my cell dies, I also use it to weed out calls I know I’ll never answer.
i like having a home phone because i always know where it is and it lasts longer than a cell phone.
Definitely during a power outage! Cell phones will die quickly without a charger!
If I run out of minutes im charged for all the extra minutes calls cost me