The best kept secret in VoIP with overseas relatives and friends is Ooma. For about $200 you can set your overseas loved ones up with some hot VoIP action, giving them a local telephone number they can use to call you and you can use to call them. If you travel then its great.
That said, Ooma has just released the Telo system, an improvement to its current firmware that includes iPhone/Touch support, Bluetooth support, Google Voice connectivity and voice transcription. Not an upgrade per se but an improvement.
Pure Voice improves the call audio and the additional features – Bluetooth, for example – allows you to connect to cellphones. Here’s the Google Voice juice:
Google Voice Extensions
Ooma simplifies the Google Voice user experience, enabling consumers to take advantage of the complementary capabilities found in both offerings, for a truly integrated and seamless phone experience. Google Voice users can integrate the Call Presentation, Listen In, and caller-ID features with their Ooma system as well as access Google Voice voicemail at a touch of a button.
Voicemail Transcription
Ooma customers can have inbound voicemail transcribed into text and sent as an email or text message. Users can now enjoy the convenience of reading their voicemail quickly and silently whether they are at home or on the road. Ooma voicemail transcription is human-aided to ensure the delivery of accurate and reliable messages.
Ooma Announces New Features That Connect Consumer’s Mobile Lifestyle, Provide Enhanced Voice Quality, Convenience, and Savings at International CES 2010
LAS VEGAS, January 7, 2010 – Ooma, Inc. today unveiled several new features and enhanced services for its award-winning Ooma Telo system that extend the functionality and ease of use for consumers wanting a superior home phone telephony experience. New additions to the product and services lineup include Ooma Pure Voice™, High Definition Voice, mobile phone calling with the iPhone or iPod touch, Bluetooth support, Google Voice Extensions and voicemail transcription. All new features will be demonstrated today through January 10 at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas at Ooma’s booth, Grand Lobby GL-7.
With today’s new enhancements, Ooma offers the most complete home phone solution that further expands its renowned voice quality, cost savings and ease of use beyond the home and into the mobile and business calling landscape.
“Consumers should expect the same innovation in their home phones as they experience in their mobile phones,” said Rich Buchanan, chief marketing officer at Ooma. “Consumers today are in calling purgatory – forced to find a compromise between shoddy cell phone reception in their homes and a featureless landline phone experience that hasn’t innovated since the 1970’s. Today’s announcement extends the features and functionality of our leading VoIP phone system to connect the gap that currently exists between advanced smart phone functionalities and the inherent limitations of the home phone. Ooma Telo is the smart phone designed for your home, not your pocket.”
The following new features and services for Ooma Telo are now being demonstrated at CES 2010.
Ooma Pure Voice™
Ooma raises the bar on voice quality again with the introduction of Ooma Pure Voice. Ooma now brings to the home the data redundancy sophistication normally found in industrial-grade Internet telephony products. With the explosion of bandwidth usage in the home for video streaming, photo uploads and real-time gaming, Ooma Pure Voice ensures crystal clear conversations over congested networks while maintaining low-bandwidth requirements.
High Definition Voice (HD Voice)
Ooma is the first residential phone service to support high-definition voice technology. Compared to conventional telephones, Ooma HD Voice doubles the audio frequencies transmitted to deliver richer, more natural sounding conversation to calls between Ooma customers. Compatible corded telephone or Ooma Telo Handset is required to support Ooma HD Voice.
iPhone and iPod Touch Calling Application
Ooma customers will be able to download an Ooma iPhone or iPod Touch application to make phone calls over any Wi-Fi network using an iPhone or iPod touch. Ooma’s app allows customers to take their Ooma service on the road with them to make or receive calls from around the world at Ooma’s low-cost international rates.
Bluetooth Support
The addition of Bluetooth support on the Ooma Telo allows users to integrate their mobile phone with their home phone systems, delivering superior flexibility and convenience. Bluetooth support on the Ooma Telo allows customers to pair compatible, Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones enabling inbound calls from the mobile phone to be answered on any home phone connected to the Ooma Telo. Users may also pair compatible Bluetooth headsets to the Ooma Telo to enable hands-free talking from anywhere in the home. Additionally, Bluetooth support will allow users to download their phone book from their mobile devices for use on the Ooma Telo Handset and online at My Ooma.
Google Voice Extensions
Ooma simplifies the Google Voice user experience, enabling consumers to take advantage of the complementary capabilities found in both offerings, for a truly integrated and seamless phone experience. Google Voice users can integrate the Call Presentation, Listen In, and caller-ID features with their Ooma system as well as access Google Voice voicemail at a touch of a button.
Voicemail Transcription
Ooma customers can have inbound voicemail transcribed into text and sent as an email or text message. Users can now enjoy the convenience of reading their voicemail quickly and silently whether they are at home or on the road. Ooma voicemail transcription is human-aided to ensure the delivery of accurate and reliable messages.
Availability
The Ooma Telo and Ooma Telo Handset are available at Ooma authorized resellers including: Best Buy, Datavision, Fry’s Electronics, J&R, Micro Center, and leading online destinations including Amazon, BestBuy.com, Buy.com, Costco.com, Dell.com, JandR.com, NewEgg.com, OfficeDepot.com, PC Mall, Provantage, Shop Harmony, Staples.com, Sears.com, K-Mart.com, Tiger Direct, RCS, Nebraska Furniture Mart, B&H Photo and Walmart.com. All features will be available to Ooma Telo customers in the first half of 2010.
Pricing
Ooma Telo retails for $249.99. Ooma Telo Handset retails for $49.99. Ooma Premier, an optional bundle of enhanced calling features costs $9.99/month. Sign up for one-year of Ooma Premier and receive a free Ooma Telo Handset or a free number transfer (a $39.99 value).