Phone Service - Land Line Phones vs Cell Phones

Simple, with kids, if the power goes out or cell towers go down you need to be able to call 911. We even have one corded phone incase the power is out too long and the portables can't be recharged.

1 mom found this helpful

I always get head aches when I talk on the cell phone too long, which makes me nervous. And my friends face is much more wrinkled on the side she uses most with her cell phone. And there is proof that a child should not talk on a cell phone for more than a minute before the brain could be effected. Check out these links:

http://www.internationalparentingassociation.org/BrainDev...
http://www.bioprodownloads.com/pdf/article_4-01-04.pdf

Hey L.,
I have only had a cell phone for the past 7 years. The cost is almost half of what I was spending due to high long distance bills to relatives. It's great! I never miss a call, and always have the convince of having it with me when I need to make a quick call. I have all of the numbers with me all of the time. The only disadvantage was when my two oldest children were home alone, (never longer than a few hours and never together)there wasn't a phone here. I am against children under 16 having their own personal cell phone, with a few exceptions of course. So I bought a pre-paid phone to leave at home for emergencies, or when there is a sitter. The expense was worth it. I allow my children to walk up to the elementary school with friends to play and have them take the track phone with them to call if needed or for me to call them when I wanted them home. The walkie talkie only work at the neighbors a few doors down. This way they can get me if needed and I can always get them. Hope this helps! L. B.

My sister has had a cell phone only for a couple of years now. She has not had any issues with not having the land line phone. She said that she was tired of paying for unexplained phone fees so she had it taken out. I really can't think of any disadvantages to it. I guess most people are just comfortable with having a land phone in the home because that is what we are use too.
I'm not sure if it would work for me. It would take some effort on my part only because I never keep my phone charged. It's never where I can hear it ringing when I'm at home. I would have to make it more of a priority I guess.
Sometimes I don't answer my home phone at all any way. I work an office job and spend more time on the phone than I care too. But it's good to have a phone at all times in case of emergency.

The only thing that concerns me about getting rid of land lines is 911 calls. If you or your children call 911 from your cell phone they wouldn't be able to know your location unless you told them. I know this sounds paranoid, but I've wrestled with the same question. Also, what about babysitters? What if your sitter doesn't have a cell phone and she is left home with the kids and no phone?

L.,

The only reason we have not gotten rid of our land line is this - We then would need an extra cell phone to leave home with a sitter, or child who may be here when we are not. How then are they to get a hold of us if they need to? I guess if you get the extra cell to leave at home it would work, but then it is just like changing your number and you have to let EVERYONE know. It seems just easier to leave the land line.

If you have comcast service in GR (we don't where we are in Muskegon Co.) they have a 3 in 1 where your phone cable and internet can be combined and you keep your current number and you still save $$.

K.

My hubby has also thrown this out to me. The only concern I have is if my hubby and I are out on a date, and (God Forbid) something happened at home or to the sitter, my kids KNOW how to dial "911" on our home phone. Sure, hubby and I could leave one of our cells at home, but my husband gets alot of work calls on his and I like to know that my kids can reach ME at ANY time on my cell, with a question or concern. That's my only thought on this.

I recently took my certification for First Aid and CPR through the American Red Cross at our local YMCA, They highly suggested NOT doing this because of the inaccuracy of tracking cell phones and how much longer it takes to respond in emergencies. Let's say you are calling 911 from Grandville on your cell phone (from home). The call will go to the nearest State Police Post, which would be in Rockford. You tell them your emergency (evening saying that you are in Grandville) and they will transfer you to the nearest large city (Grand Rapids). Then you tell the GR dispatcher your emergency and then they finally get you to the Grandville Police. Many time savings minutes can be lost, especially if it's your child. Those minutes, even seconds, can mean the difference between life and death. I don't mean to scare you, but it's just the reality of the situation. Maybe keep your landline with only local calls on it and use your cell phone for everything else. Especially if you were to have a babysitter and they didn't exactly know where you lived, if they called from the landline, the emergency medical personnel would be able to find your house with no problem. Hope this helps!

We considered it also but the issue was with the people who care for our son at our home...we wanted a land line phone for emergencies. Cell phones are not always reliable and half the time my mother doesn't even know how to use hers! We also got a really good internet rate with our land line phone. We ended up getting the cheapest package with internet and it ends up being less expensive than getting internet alone anywhere else!

Hello L. - My hubby, 14 year old son & myself have cell phones (his bill paid by the company he works for & we get a company discount on mine; our bill is about 65-70 a month) I have a 14 year old son & a 3 year old daughter aside from having the cell phones we also have viatalk ($199 a year)(internet phone) my daughter is severly allergic to dairy & egg products....we made a test call w/our internet landline & 911 could not pick up on the address (I'm not sure in an emergency situation if we would be calm enough to relay this information) not only that but w/internet service if internet service goes down, power outage, etc,. then no phone service. We got a regular land line w/the very basic package w/DishNetwork (SBC/ATT & pay $116 a month for Dish, DSL & land line)for just this reason (we don't use this line for anything...strictly there in the event we have to call 911). As everyone else has said how reliable is your cell phone service signal strenght, dropped calls etc., also again 911 issue.

Did it last year and so glad to be done with it. One less bill and we dont miss it at all. We also had our security system changed over to the cell phone. So far no problems with that either.

I ditched my land line about 6yrs ago. I'm happy with it. Only one phone bill, no telemarketers and total portability.

Only bummer... I have to get my son's cell reloaded and working again so there is a phone for him if we're gone. But that's not really an issue for you since your boys are so young.

J.

We have always had just cell phones. You each probably have one already anyway, and what's the point of people calling the house when they can call your cell which is always with you. I just see no point in paying for cell phones and a house phone. And it's nice to get just YOUR calls and not your husbands, and I have never got telemarketer call my cell.
My advice would be to increase your minutes and dump the extra bill!

My husband and I only use cell phones, and we are happy with the savings that we've had so far. The only drawback that we have is 911 service. Obviously, with a land line, they automatically get your address if you are unable to speak when you call. So we are betting on the chance that if we do need to call, we'll be able to give them our location. Otherwise, it's worth saving the $30+ a month to us! Good luck on your decision!

do you have to have a landline for internet?
My cell doen't get much for signal at my house, I keep my landline for emergency's.

For the last year I have only been with my cell, sick of getting 40-50 dollar bills when I never used the home phone. When someone comes to babysit I just leave my cell with them because Im usually always with someone who has a cell and just give the sitter their #. Also 9 out of 10 times when someone comes over to babysit/visit they have their own sell phone (even the 10 year old neighbor, crazy I know) About the 911..alot of phones now are equipped with GPS my nextel is and thats how they would locate you if you were unable to give your address. Hope this helps!!

We only have cell phones and it works out fine for us. People can get in touch with us wherever we are and I don't get any telemarkets calling.

My husband and I have had only cell phones for about 4 years now. It is cheaper and easier. We just give out my cell as our home number for schools and stuff. The only drawback I could see is if you didn't get good reception at home. We get our internet through our cable company and haven't missed a home phone at all.

My husband and I only have cell phones (NO land line). Financially, it is more cost effective.

One of the drawbacks that immediately come to mind is when we have to both be gone and have a babysitter at our house. There is not a phone for them to use. :-( It is true that most teens have their own phone these days, but we have run into the situation where a few have not.

Another "issue" that comes to mind that may not affect you due to the ages of your boys is when friends call. I have a 10yo daughter who does not receive many calls, but every now and then a friend will call her and she will have to use my mobile phone or give out that number instead of a home number.

I have mixed emotions. There are times that I really miss our land line, but apparently not enough to pay to have it again! Good luck with your decision.

We wouldn't get rid of the landline for the same reason we won't go digital. We have one analog phone in the house (not cordless). If the power goes out (which it does on average once a year), we still have a phone. AT LEAST 4 times in the past 12 years we've lived in our home, we've lost power for more than 24 hours. It's not worth the risk of loosing communication.
I do feel your pain. We're trying to find ways of cutting costs and we too are looking into cutting phone costs by limiting options (caller ID, call waiting, etc.) and costing out different companies (AT&T, MCI, Sprint). Good luck.

We have only cell phones. We got tired of paying $100 a month never to pick up the land line except when telemarketers called. They aren't allowed to call cell phones by the way.

If you have a cell, the extra expense of the landline is wasting money, I think.

--L. (Also a Pampered Chef consultant)

my husband and i have cell phones exclusively now and it's been great. i was a bit hesitant at first, being that we have a little guy in the home and may need it for emergencies, but a cell phone will do the same thing. we save $50/month AT LEAST w/o a land line. i say go for it! anything to save some money these days. :)

hope that helps!

We have only had cell phones for 4 years now. We get great reception and I've used it to call 911 and didn't have a problem. We know to keep it charged and it is always in my pocket so it is easy to find. No irritating calls to wake up the baby. I don't get any sales calls or political calls at all hours of the day which in itself is awesome. ;)

My husband and I have always just used our cell phones, no problems. I like it better to as I hate talking on the phone and then I don't have two phones, and if I need to I can leave while in the middle of a conversation since it's a cell.

We have only cell phones. We have three. One is mine. One is my husbands. And one is the 'house' number' - that's the one we leave home for babysitters, etc. We became a cell-only family last year when we moved into this house. We were looking for ways to cut costs, and my husband convinced me we didn't need a land line. It's actually working fine. We can even bring the house phone with us when we're expecting an important call. We aren't big phone talkers, though. I guess when my daughter is older we might get a land line, but for now, this works fine.

My husband and I had only cell phones for 5 years. However right before our son was born we put in a home phone. It's through Vonage and has unlimited local and long distance calls. It's $30 a month and includes taxes. Since I'm at home, we were able to cut down the cost of cell phone bill and has saved money. Plus when there is a baby-sitter in the home, the land line is right there for emergencies. If you are interested I have a coupon for anyone who signs up for Vonage to get 2 months free. Let me know.

The only one I heard of from one family was that when she loses/misplaces her cell phone she no longer has a land line to call it to find it! :)

what if the cell phone wasn't home. towers down etc. you have young children. at least keep a land line for emergencies only. 911 comes in handy and they can trace the call to your address. the bare minimum is only 12 bucks a month. hope this helped with your decision.

ANYONE who stays with your children MUST have their own phone if you are gone with yours!!! For any emergencies, etc.

Friends of ours got so many calls on their 'primary' number it cost them hundreds per month. They finally got a higher $$ package @ 'no cost' or less cost for incoming or more minutes.

If you lose power for extended time, or didn't fully charge before you lost power, too bad. Unless you trust your car charger & can run your car whenever you want. Otherwise.....

losing the 911 locator is a big reason we keep ours. The other is if you and your husband ever both go somewhere...you end up needing to keep one of your personal phones at home with whoever has the kids, so they have some form of communication, which can be a slight hassle.

As long as your husband's company does not require a lock on his cell phone (blackberry, treo devices have this option for company security functions), and either your cell phones do have trackign devices that are activated or you know for sure your kids would not panic and forget thier address in an emergency situation then you should be fine. 911 service should be the biggest factor in your decision, at home they can find you through the landline. On a cell phone, they may or may not be able too.

Good Morning L.,

I got rid of my land line a couple years ago, changed my wireless plan and have been saving approx. $100 a month and also I never miss a call unless I want to because my cell is always with me. I am always reachable and that is nice with teenagers and sick relatives. I couldn't find one disadvantage to not having a land line. I do know that some people do need them for internet I have am WIFI so that wasn't even an issue.

I think you should give it a try, I think you will be extremely happy with the results.

Best of luck,

C.

We did that for two years. The only problem we had was not having reliable service out where we live. When my youngest started having health problems that led to calling ems 3 times, we needed a TOTALLY reliable service, so we had to go with a land line. I have many family members that live in the city who don't have a land line any more. If you leave kids home with a sitter, you just need to make sure they have a phone.

1. 911 location service. Not all emergency centers are equipped to identify location with a cell phone. Very important safety feature to have with children.
2. Have you ever had your cell phone go/out on you? How many dropped calls have I had talking to people in another state? The cell phone service is so poor in different parts of the country, totally dependent on the carrier.
3. Cost. My cell phone bill is way higher than my land line. I'm not charged by the minute.
Those are the cons as I see it. I do think that eventually the service will improve, and the cost will come down (maybe). Then it will be a possibility in my eyes.

My family switched to using a cell phone about 3 years ago. It cut our monthly bills in half. We still have a land line, but only use it in case of emergency. We do not give this number out. The downfalls for switching to a cell phone are antenna strength, remembering to power off daily (otherwise you may not get voicemail messages the same day), and remembering to put it on silent/vibrate when out in public. Otherwise we are happy about our decision. The other nice thing about the cell phone is using the family plan as the children get older(leaving one behind for the babysitter if they don't have one themselves.)

Hi There.

Neither my husband nor I have had a land line in about four years. We have a 2.5 year old and still didn't even think to get a land line. The only drawback is how well your phone service is inside your house...if that is fine - it's really not an issue.

We thought the same thing, and got rid of the land line....not even a month later, my husband got pulled over, and they took him in...thay brings me to reason #1: you can't make a collect call to a cell phone, and after you have spent a whole night up wondering why you can't find your husband, he hasn't called, and you start calling hospitals, and finally police stations to ask about car accidents, it is worth every penny. Reason #2: now that we have children, if something ever happens to you or their caretaker, and they need to call 911, they automatically have the address. Children may think clearly enough to call, but under that stress, or if they are as shy as my daughter, I don't know that she'd give out that info in that situation. Not to mention that unless each child had a phone, what do they do if there is an emergency if you are away with the phone, or if you have a babysitter without one? Sorry if I sound preachy, but we got rid of it, and then had to turn around and pay all over to get it reinstalled, and learn a new number, etc. etc. All a big pain in the butt. Just keep the bare minimum service, I think the benefits should you ever need them outweigh the cost of the bill every month. Good luck with whatever you do. A.

Cell phones do not function in power outages such as 9/11 and the big one that cut power across 1/2 of the nation a few years ago. In the case of needing to call 911 when done from a land line the operator in most cases gets a read out of the location of the call by address (check you local 911 service).

You can always get a cheaper internet/phone service with a company like Cavtel (No, I don't work for them!)

Since you have a home based business, do you use a fax? Do they require a land line?

Good Luck!

We've had no land line for nearly 8 years! I've had to call 911 before when my DD (who was 1.5 at the time) passed out in the bathroom! I had no issue getting the info to 911 and them understanding me.

When we leave DD w/ someone who doesn't have a cell phone, we leave DH's phone w/ them.

And DD knows how to use my iPhone (though she can't read yet to figure out who's number she's really calling), LOL!

We have only used cell phones for about 6 years. The only down side is that unless you always have it with you in the house- you are more likely to miss calls. My husband was too busy to grab his phone while I was out, and I was stuck in a parking lot with a flat tire and screaming baby for 2 hours! Now before I leave to go anywhere, I make sure I put his cell phone right next to him!

Not a good idea in my opinion. I had never thought about it before until I was asked to babysit for someone who only used cell phones. After they had left, I realized that I had no way of summoning help if I needed it because they had both taken their phones with them and I do not own one. Also, it is easier for the 911 operator to locate the address if the call is being made from a land line and the caller is unable to communicate clearly. Just my opinion. I look at it as being the same as a smoke detector, need to have it just in case!

We got rid of our land-line phone several years ago. It has never been an issue. We do have children and so we added a cell phone for $10 a month to have a phone that stays permanently in the house. We don't really use that phone as most anyone that comes over to watch the kids already has a cell phone and our cell numbers programmed in.

We haven't missed the phone and we especially haven't missed the monthly charges.

I still have a land line and the one disadvantage that I can think of is having a baby sitter come to the house (and have no phone at home) or in my case leaving my 10 year old home only for an hour. I have thought about using cell phones only, but I would then need to get a 2nd phone for my son.

M.

I have done it both ways with the phone situation. I have found that as long as I can always get a good cell phone connection, you do not need the Land Line/VOIP. You also need to have adequate minutes on the cell.
I hope this is helpful.

We have been without a land line for 3 years now and I don't miss it at all. We actually had some issues with our phone lines inside our house and rather than pay to have someone fix it we just ditched it, got cable internet, and use our cells. I would say the only down side is remembering to keep my cell on the charger at night so that I don't lose juice during the day. I have never had a problem losing service/signal and I don't see how having my son learn to use my cell is any different than using a regular phone. We do save money by doing this as well.

We do the cell phones only--- and it works well! just be sure you have good reception in the house... GL

I do not think it is a good idea when you have small children under high school age, or emergencies such as fire or EMS. Cell phones delay reesponse time due to them bouncing off towers and many emergency systems not able to adequately handle them.

I have had only a cell for about 5 years. I have had no problems with it. If you are worried about having another phone for at home, why not just add an extra cell to your account, usually at minimal charge, and leave it at home. If you are worried about the sitter having a phone, they usually have their own cell phones, you can call them on that. I think people keep their land lines because it is just something that we are used to having, and not something we really need.

I guess it would depend on the cellular plan. You can compare plans on-line at my web portal and decide that way if you want. www.marketamerica.com/thevoiceoftruth . Mid-page click on VOIP.

Good luck!

S.

I have wanted to do this for a while and just cannot convince my husband to do it. I really don't see any reason not to. A few of my friends have done it ove the past few years and have had no problems.

THAT'S SO FUNNY!! There must have been an article in a man-magazine somewhere on this.....my hubby suggested the same! I don't have a great reason for keeping my land line ~ it just makes me feel like we have a permanent residence at our home. We spend upwards of $60 for telephone service and it doesn't make sense to me either!!

I am going to give it a try when we move this coming spring/summer....the only thing I'm worried about is having to carry my cell phone with me in the house, in case someone calls.

It will be weird!
Good luck!
M.

Many cell phone companies do not have the updated 911 systems with name/address. This is the only reason we have not gotten rid of our lan line.

We have internet phone at home, which is less expensive than a traditional land line and the service for us has been the same. My concern with no home phone is 1) I want anyone home (including the kids) to be able to call 911 if necessary w/o searching for a cell phone; 2) when 911 is called from a cell phone they do not get an address, so if for some reason you cannot talk, etc. they don't necessarily know where you are. We have a bundle through comcast and pay 99$ a month for cable, high speed internet and phone (including long distance).

We use cell phones only here at our home. It does save money. The only downside is that we have to make sure our babysitters have a cell phone on them at all times which usually isn't a problem.

L.,
My husband and I got rid of our land line a couple of years ago and just use cell phones. My cell phone is the number we give as our home number and I leave it on 24 hours a day(it charges at night in our bedroom in case of emergency calls in the middle of the night). The only thing that you have to be aware of is if you call 911 you need to be able to give them the address of where you are at. Other than that it has been a great savings for us to cancel our land line. (At least until our kids get to middle school/ high school age then it will be beneficial to have a land line for all the extra talking to their friend that they will do.) J.

I have two kids, 11 and 16 and we all have cell phones, plus we keep our land line. I cut the service on the home phone down to the basics, no long distance or extra services. We have it basically if there is an issue with the cell phones we always have it is a back up. 911 was the big reason. In an emergency can you always find your cell phone? The land line we keep is corded to the wall. Also, due to telemarketers and other places that get our phone # we always give that # out instead of our cell. With the family plans everyone in the house can have a cell cheaper than the land lines. But if you get just a phone will the cheapest available plan it will give you peace of mind knowing it is there in case of an emergency.

I think getting rid of land line phones is dangerous...
If something happens to me, will my 3 yr old be able to turn on/unlock key pad of a cell phone to call for help?
If the power/cell towers go out the only way to call anywhere is a land line. (most are buried under ground)
And as a FYI bit... Have at least one corded phone in the house. If your power goes out portable phones do not work. It takes power for them to receive and transmit signals.
The cost of having a land line and cell phone basicly washes eachother out. We have a package thru att that is internet (dsl)and phone and pay less than $100 a mo... ($40 for phone...$30 for net and the rest are fees...)Since we do have long distance at home we have the basic cell package that has about 400 min a month... We use the cell for travling and as an emergency phone... So we have a cheaper cell plan. If we upped it and got rid of our Long distance plan we would still be paying the same but be running the chance of overages and other stuff... Plus, i've never heard of someone loosing or having their home phone stolen...
My whole fam lives out of state so we do a lot of LD talking... For us it works... Its a decision you have to make for yourself...

We turned off our home phone for the simple reason that we also believed it would save money. It worked, for a while, but here are the things we came up against:

- had to make sure the sitter had a cell phone
- concerns about using 911 for emergencies and whether they'd locate where the call originated
- started racking up minutes, which cost us more
- now that my daughter is older (7), concerns about her using a cell phone to call friends
- some areas of the house had poor cell reception

So,after about a year, we reconnected our home phone. We went with Vonage, a cable phone company, and received 2 free months and unlimited calling for $24.99. We like it, so far. Depending on your plan, turning off your home phone may work well for you. Just thought I would share some things to consider. Good luck!

Dear L. B.,

We have considered this same thing but my husband has some extremely serious health problems and if we forgot to keep our cell phones charged at all times, we could not call 911 in a timely manner to get him an ambulance.
Also, a landline phone will usually work even when the electricity is off for some reason. A cell phone will only work if it is charged enough to get a good signal. Also, people cannot look up your phone number if you don't have a landline phone. If you only have a cell phone you may not hear from someone you would like to hear from who has not contacted you in sometime since those numbers are not generally available to the general public.
We would like to save money as well, but a human life is worth more than a high phone bill to us. I wish there was a way to force large companies like A T & T to lower their rates to the faithful customers who helped them become large over the years. I think they only give brand new customers lower rates and the rest of us who have been customers for years keep paying more and more as time goes by.

L. C.
Zeeland, MI

I would NEVER be without a land line. I think it is good in emergencies--what if cell is dead and you need to call 911--wouldn't want to risk it:(

With my WORK AT HOME UNITED business, I use my 2 land lines and my cell, I am also a independent AFLAC AGENT as well.

For BUSINESS TAX PURPOSES if you want to claim a phone deduction on your income taxes you have 2 phones and you can only claim 1 for your business. I hope that this will help you.

Hi L.,
Getting rid of a land line was the best thing my husband and I ever did. We were paying money for something we were never using. I love that people can get to me no matter where I am (if I want them to) and that I don't have to wait until I get home to hear messages.

We considered it, but decided against it when my husband and I were at 2 different locations, (I at work, he at a meeting) and we had a sitter. If we didn't have a land-line, which cell would we leave her if she had an emergency? What if she couldn't get in touch with the parent that had the cell? We decided it was too risky. We, too, got sick of the phone bills. Have you looked into Comcast? We have our internet, cable, and phone all on one bill and it's cheaper then the three separate that we used to have... the only down side is when you lose power, you lose your phone service (and 911), but then you do have your cell.

Couple of reasons I will always keep a hard line land line. (meaning... not a wireless phone)

1) If something goes wrong with your cell tower (as happens more times then we like) you still have a means of communication. Even if your power goes out... you have a phone... unless you only have a wireless land line. Then you're out of luck.

2) It's good idea to have a phone at home when babysitters are there etc...

3) There is increasing evidence that cell phones DO emit radio waves that DO interfere with our bodies. Children are very suseptible to these waves because their bodies are still growing and their skulls are not as think as an adults. There are many who believe the Electro Magnetic Radiation from Cell phones actually decreases the bodies ability to get rid of heavy metals from our bodies. There are some who believe there is a direct link between autism and the increased use of cell phones. (www.mercola.com good information on this)

We also will keep our land line because my husbands family lives overseas and making international calls on a cell phone is much too expensive.

For a number of years I had only a cell phone. The only reason why we have a land line now is b/c of our internet connection. Cable wasn't available yet when we moved into our subdivision and DSL was.

The only other downside that I can see, coming up with kids now, is when their friends start calling. At that point it will be nice to have a line that they can use without being one of our cells.

we live with out a land line. My husband and I have a family plan and its great. The only thing to consider is when you call 911 with a land line they can trace your call back to your house. They can not do that with a cell phone. So, I think it all boils down to that.

Hey L.,
I never gave this much thought until I heard of a gal who had forgotten that her eldest son (age 8) was getting out of school early and when he got home (and she was not at home) he had no way of contacting anyone. He had to go to a neighbors house to call someone. Both her and her husband have cell phones and disconnected their land line. So, as for me, I will always keep a land line just in case my kids don't have a cell phone available.

L.,

To agree with most everybody- we keep our landline only because we have kids, and for all the same reasons- sitters, the land phone "stays" on it's cradle, my kids talk to their friends now on the phone, etc... Also, I like having school, Dr.'s offices, soccer coaches, neighbors, etc.... calling a family phone with an answering machine, instead of my or my DH's cell, and having to remember later to pass on messages. Everyone can hit "play" when they get home and get all the day's calls