SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE LATEST POSTS VIA EMAIL!T-Mobile Hotspot @Home Talk Forever Review
February 22, 2008
I wanted to do a quick review on T-Mobile’s Hotspot @Home Talk Forever due to the fact that they have changed the name, pricing and also introduced new functionality. So I thought since it took me a while to figure out all the confusion, I would share it with you.
So basically the T-Mobile Hotspot @Home Talk Forever is now comprised of two services:
Lets start with HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Mobile. This was the original Hotspot @Home service T-Mobile released last year. Basically it allows you to use a WiFi enabled phone to make free calls when you originate those calls from a WiFi router, be it your home router, T-Mobile HotSpot, or any place you can jump on WiFi. The calls could jump seamlessly from WiFi to the towers as you left a WiFi area and back. There are certain phones that can be used with this. (Do a filter on HotSpot @Home Phones)
You must also add on the Hotspot @Home Add-on plan (now called HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Mobile Add-on) to your current plan to be able to get unlimited WiFi calls. The plan used to be $9.99 for a single user and $19.99 for a family plan. It was then raised to $19.99 for a single user and $29.99 for a family, now it is $9.99 for a single user and a family. So that means when you add on the $9.99 HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Mobile plan anyone on your family plan with a Hotspot @Home enabled phone can make unlimited wifi calls. I think this is a pretty good deal, especially if you have teenagers. I currently have this service and love it. The calls are very clear and I hardly ever use minutes anymore since most of my calls are wifi calls. (See my original Hotspot @Home Review Post for more detail)
Ok, now lets discuss T-Mobile’s new HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Home Service. You can think of this as more like Vonage or Comcast VoiP. This service does not use your cell phone but rather a router which a regular telephone plugs into. 
This new router (Linksys WRTU54G-TM) , which will cost $50 with a 2 year contract extension, basically replaces any current router that you have. It has wireless as well so you shouldn’t miss anything from your current setup. What makes this router unique is that you can plug in regular telephones into the back of it and make calls. The router supports up to two phone lines. These phone lines each have their own number. You do however need to add the $9.99 per line HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Home Add-on plan to your wireless plan for each line that you want. So you must have T-Mobile wireless service to be able to get this feature. This is basically giving you an additional phone line with unlimited calling for $9.99. The service also comes with Domestic long distance, Call forwarding, 3-way conference calling, Voicemail, Call Holding and Call Waiting. This obviously beats Vonage’s $24.99 unlimited plan. This service is currently in Beta in Seattle and Dallas with a planned national roll-out soon. One thing I am anxious to see is if these lines can handle faxing as faxing has been as issue when I had Vonage.
One thing to note, to be able to add either of the 2 plans you must have a current individual wireless plan that is 39.99 or higher, or any FamilyTime mobile plan $49.99 or higher.
The HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Home Service is more for people that would want to replace their land-line phone with a cheaper alternative. Since I have the HotSpot @Home Talk Forever Mobile family plan I don’t think I would get this since we never use a land line phone anymore. So it is really up to you to determine how you use your phones. I also like the HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Mobile plan since I only have one phone number. However if you have a small business at home adding a HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Home line might be an option for you. This is also a good alternative to Vonage if you are not happy with their service.
I hope this kind of cleared up the confusion with all the changes to these plans. Please let me know if you have any questions!
Other Posts You May Be Interested In:
T-Mobile HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Home to Launch Next Week
T-Mobile Hotspot @Home Price Changes
Great post, thans for clearing that up. Other sites say that the HotSpot@Home Talk Forever Home plan still uses your cell phone. I was pretty sure that was false. This looks like a good deal since AT&T is really overpriced.
I’m damn in the damn middle of a damn fiasco with damn T-Mobile and my original land line provider, Qwest! Let’s just summarize it by trying to coordinate two major corporations’ service departments who depend on automated tech support is a real headache! I’ve been to my cell phone office 3 times and each time takes an hour and each time I have an answer and each time when it come down to actually depending on the job getting done it doesn’t get done! Don’t do it.