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Mobile network outages it can destroy our reception for hours, leaving us stranded without one of our most critical lines of access the world. What good is a smartphone if it can’t make calls – especially in an emergency?
Earlier in 2024, AT&T discontinued services for more than 12 hours in many of the most populous cities in the US. And in September, a Verizon outage left some customers stuck in SOS mode for most of the day. These interruptions serve as a reminder to the dangers of relying only on mobile phones.
Perhaps it has made you rethink the place of a home device that was once a standard question but is now almost obsolete: the landline. Here’s what to consider when deciding whether to keep (or get) a landline.
Remember the landline?
Those old-fashioned landlines may still have their place, but only 28% of American households have one.
Landlines are phones that connect to specialized wires in our homes. The icon is a picture of a rotary-dial phone – usually rented from the phone company – that either hung on the wall or sat on a counter or table, although push-buttons and later cordless landlines replaced many of those old-timers in the 1980s. Landlines connect to each other through a global communications network that has been built for more than a century. But as cell phones became widely available and affordable, many people decided to give up landlines altogether.
A 2022 survey by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that only about 29% of American adults live in a home with a landline, down more than 90% 2004. The crossover happened around 2015, when the sale of smart phones entered a period of prosperity who reshaped the tech industry and helped turn it around iPhone manufacturer Apple u one of the world’s most respected companies.
Ann Williams is one of the people who hasn’t given up her landline just yet. When asked why she keeps hers, she describes that she moved to Huntsville, Alabama, after a tornado outbreak April 27, 2011, when dozens of twisters killed at least 250 people and knocked out electricity for days. Although she moved there after the tornado, hearing about the event made her realize how much she always needed a phone connection.
“The weather here is so unpredictable,” she told me in an interview. But landlines have dedicated power and often work even in blackouts. “We remember the days when it was absolutely necessary to have (a landline),” Williams said.
What makes landlines more reliable?
Landlines work on a special infrastructure, built from copper telephone lines that are cheap to build and quite reliable. They also do not have the disadvantages of mobile networks, such as dropped calls, poor and distorted quality or weak reception.
A key reason people keep landlines is that they tend to work even during power outages, which is a big plus for people whose work involves emergency services, work or healthcare.
Analog fax machines are also built around landline systems, meaning that most hospitals and doctor’s offices, as well as policy and attorney offices, need to maintain a landline connection.
Disadvantages of fixed telephony
Remember cordless phones and phone books?
The US Federal Communications Commission is phasing out requirements that telephone companies provide landline services (called Plain Old Telephone Service) throughout the country. As a result, more homes and business offices are being built with Ethernet connections than not telephone sockets.
Landline telephone connections are not cheap either. CNET’s corporate cousin AllConnect notes that AT&T’s traditional home phone plan starts at $48 a month, and you have to use the company for Internet, too. CenturyLink is cheaper, starting at $30 per month, and Spectrum will charge just $20 per month.
And not all landlines use copper phone lines. Companies are increasingly using their phone systems over their Internet connections, a service called Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP. AllConnect currently tracks only three service providers that offer old-style landlines: CenturyLink, Comcast Xfinity, and Cox.
How to get a landline
If you’re ready to install a landline, call your local phone company and ask about phone service. If you live in an apartment building, it is important to find out where the telephone junction box is located. Usually the landlord should know, and if not, the local phone company should be able to find it.
Here are some additional questions to ask and what to look for in the answers:
- Are landlines VoIP or POTS? Ideally, if you’re looking for security and reliability, POTS is what you want. VoIP can work, but understand that it probably relies on your internet modem and connection to work.
- If VoIP, does the company have backup power systems to ensure the voice line is operational in the event of a power outage? Most companies sell replacement batteries that you can buy directly from them. You can use an uninterruptible power supply, perhaps from CyberPower or APC. Note that they are different from portable power sources. Portable power supplies allow you to stay electronically powered on the go, but they’re not designed to constantly monitor for power outages and then turn on as needed.
- Local calls are usually free, but dialing outside your area code costs money. What is the rate structure? Companies like AT&T have various surcharges they charge for nationwide calls as well as international long distance calls. Long distance calls in particular are usually charged by the minute, and companies don’t always publish that information on their website. Make sure you know how much it will cost, and if it’s too much, consider using a chat app like Signal, WhatsApp, Google Meet or Apple FaceTime for your long distance calls.
What to do with a landline
If you have a landline but let it languish, just taking money out of your bank account every month, you’re not alone. But there are some ways to make it more useful.
Google Voice is a popular option, which gives you a new phone number that acts as a hub of sorts. Whenever people call, Google Voice then calls whatever phone it’s connected to, whether it’s a home landline, cell phone, work phone, or anything else.
There are other such services, including Zoom and RingCentralif you don’t like working with Google.
A landline can also be connected to home security systems and medical warning sensors to ensure that if you are in an emergency, help will be there as soon as possible.
If you can’t get a landline
If you don’t qualify for a landline or don’t like the service you’re offered, you have more options than satellite providers. Companies such as HughesNet and SpaceX can support VoIP over their Internet connections.
Phone manufacturers like Apple are also slowly evolving satellite messages into their devices. The iPhone 14, which debuted in 2022, has a feature called Emergency SOSwhich can connect to a satellite to send location data to your friends or an emergency text to the authorities.
