BT digital voice

ripplyuk

I live in a rural area and power cuts are common here in winter. After storms, it has been off for days. Because of this, I keep a corded landline plugged in. I never use it apart from during power cuts but it gives me peace of mind that I could call for help if my mobile runs out of battery. 

I recently decided to switch my broadband to BT and the contract starts in 2 weeks time. They offered me a free gift of an Alexa enabled landline phone (That’s not the reason I signed up!) and after reading the links they sent me, it says it will not work in a power cut. There’s absolutely no point in me even plugging it in then. The only reason I want a landline is for power cuts. 

Is there any way round this? If I keep my current corded landline phone instead of the Alexa one, will it still work? I have some health problems and am worried about being unable to call for help. My mobile battery will only last one day. 

BUFF

what type of broadband are you getting? if it is FTTP then, no, afaik (but I make no claims of being an expert) your current landline phone won't work. The mention of digital voice makes me think that it probably is FTTP.
 If instead it is FTTC then, again afaik, it should.

ripplyuk

@BUFF It’s FTTC, I think. If FTTP is the one where you pay a fortune to have the line brought right into the house, it’s not that. It’s a cheap broadband package. 

matelodave

Even FTTC wont work if the phone is served via the router rather than over the copper pairs. Digital Voice implies that the phone signal is Voice over IP (VoIP) rather than POTS so you need to know how your phone/broadband is being delivered.

As BUFF says, with FTTP you dont have any option unless the phone is carried on separate copper pairs.

We've had FTTP with hybrid cable (optical and copper) for several years, but last year the phone was transferred to DV and the copper line was decommissioned. Phone service is via the router land so we lose service if we get a mains outage.

The only answer is a back-up supply for both the Optical unit and the router.

pramsay13

What is the longest you have been without power?
You could buy a decent power pack to keep our mobile phone topped up and then cancel your landline to save money. 

flaneurs_lobster

You should be aware that the days of the traditional landline of the type you have are, er, numbered as BT switch them to Digital Voice (aka VoIP or Internet Phone). There was a bit of a huff when people realised that the new service would not work in the case of power cuts and the roll-out has been paused while BT come up with possible solutions.

https://newsroom.bt.com/were-pausing-our-digital-voice-plans-for-consumers-while-we-work-on-a-more-resilient-rollout/

In your case, as long as your switch to BT Broadband did not include a swap to Digital Voice then your plug-in handset will continue to work as now. 

Might I suggest a second mobile phone just for emergencies? Need only be a cheap non-smart phone with a PAYG sim from, say Asda or RWG that you add a fiver's credit to and just remember to keep it charged and use every couple of months just to make sure both the phone and the sim are OK.

BUFF

matelodave said:

Even FTTC wont work if the phone is served via the router rather than over the copper pairs. Digital Voice implies that the phone signal is Voice over IP (VoIP) rather than POTS so you need to know how your phone/broadband is being delivered.

Yes, but if it is FTTC then it is still an analogue landline so the old corded phone plugged into the master socket (or extension) would continue to work in the event of a power cut. (the Alexa DV one would not).

flaneurs_lobster

BUFF said:

matelodave said:

Even FTTC wont work if the phone is served via the router rather than over the copper pairs. Digital Voice implies that the phone signal is Voice over IP (VoIP) rather than POTS so you need to know how your phone/broadband is being delivered.

Yes, but if it is FTTC then it is still an analogue landline so the old corded phone plugged into the master socket (or extension) would continue to work in the event of a power cut. (the Alexa DV one would not).

My FTTC BT service has been converted to DV, broadband still comes down copper wires to premises. My old corded landline phone plugs into a phone socket on the router. Also have a freebie BT DV cordless that talks to the router using (I think) DECT. There is no service to the phone socket on the "Master" socket box.

littleboo

As above, DV can and is provisioned over FTTC lines, not sure if they are the priority at the moment but clearly not every last customer in an exchange area will have an FTTP connection before the exchange is decommissioned. Moving FTTC customers to DV also allows the copper from the exchange to the cabinet to be removed.

ripplyuk

pramsay13 said:

What is the longest you have been without power?
You could buy a decent power pack to keep our mobile phone topped up and then cancel your landline to save money. 

5 days but usually it’s back on again the next day, within 24-36hrs. The landline didn’t cost any extra. That’s a good idea about the power pack though I can imagine forgetting to charge that! 

iniltous

flaneurs_lobster said:

BUFF said:

matelodave said:

Even FTTC wont work if the phone is served via the router rather than over the copper pairs. Digital Voice implies that the phone signal is Voice over IP (VoIP) rather than POTS so you need to know how your phone/broadband is being delivered.

Yes, but if it is FTTC then it is still an analogue landline so the old corded phone plugged into the master socket (or extension) would continue to work in the event of a power cut. (the Alexa DV one would not).

My FTTC BT service has been converted to DV, broadband still comes down copper wires to premises. My old corded landline phone plugs into a phone socket on the router. Also have a freebie BT DV cordless that talks to the router using (I think) DECT.

If the offer is for DV , regardless of it being FTTC or FTTP , then the phone service is from the router so in the event of a power outage , the router won’t be powered therefore no telephony.
If the OP , in the short term at least , wants a landline telephone service that’s going to work during a power outage then DV isn’t it , unless they also obtain a BBU/UPS and that won’t keep a router and possibly a phone handset going for multiple hours  they can typically maintain service for short periods.
TBH , if the OP health concerns are such , that even though a mobile works power  outages are such , that a fully charged mobile phone battery can run flat before the power is restored, then perhaps where they should look to relocate somewhere less likely to be affected by such lengthy power outages, because a UPS it’s not likely to last as long as a fully charged mobile phone battery