apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

We tried to give up our land line a couple of years ago when we moved to a new apartment, but it so happened that the new place was near a college football stadium, and we realized that we could not get reception during football games. This was really annoying, so we went back to having a land line! If you have DSL anyway, it is cheap as a package, too.

We have a land line because it works best with our home security system. I know that there are ways to hook it to VOIP but I don't have the energy to look into it. Also, my cell phone reception is still iffy at best. When it comes to a long conversation with out of town family, I like to know that I'll be able to hear everything they say.

That being said, I have been gritting my teeth more and more as I pay the bill and I think that I'll be calling the phone company soon to cut down the bill a little bit by cutting off some of the services that we have. Do I really need call waiting anymore?

We haven't had a land line in 7 years. Just cell phones, and that's living in 4 different cities. Guess we've been lucky with reception.

yep, but the ONLY reason we have one is because of our security system. grrrr....

We got one when we had our home security system installed -- it's way cheaper with a landline than using cell signals. We have super-basic VOIP service (I think it's $10 a month) and never make or receive calls on it.

I also haven't had a land line in years, but I definitely feel nostalgic towards the family phone I grew up with. I realize that I really liked knowing that I was calling a phone in a specific house and that when the phone rang you had no idea who it was. [I also hate cell phones (despite their obvious usefulness in an emergency) and the way that we are now subjected to strangers' conversations in public.] So maybe I should go back to a land line ;)

We don't have cell phones, just one land line! I think here in Canada it is more expensive to have cell phones than in the US (not sure why) but if we did get 2 cell phones instead of the land line, despite bundles and deals and whatnot, it would easily cost triple the amount we pay now.

The land line offers far more than nostalgia, it provides better communications in an emergency scenario.

As a rule of thumb, cell phone towers run normally at 60 to 80% capacity. An influx of people (like LovelyDarkAndDeep's football crowd) can cripple the system. For large events like SXSW and MacWorld, companies are forced to bring into mobile towers to attempt to meet the temporary demand. During the Presidential Inauguration cell phones in the DC area were lucky to connect at all.

Our community got hit by a tornado in 2005. While the tornado cut a narrow path through the community, the destruction made world news. People from all over the planet were calling to check on friends and family, and the cell system went belly up. This terrible coverage continued for almost month as the National Guard, out-of-state utility workers, and locals helping with damage recovery put heavy demands on the already busy system.

Our house got hit. We didn't have power for over a week. As the storm roared through in the early AM hours, we sat in pitch darkness wondering what exactly was happening outside. I was shocked to hear the eerie post storm quiet broken by our land line ringing.

Throughout the next month, the land line was our only reliable connection with our insurer and contractors. It would have been our only means of contacting emergency services had anyone been injured in our home.

I recommend that everyone seriously consider a simple land line plan with a non-electric phone (cordless and speaker phones are useless post-disaster). It might end up being a critical life line.

But we have the bare minimum. Saves on our DSL. We also have most of our family out of town, so they call us on the landline to save our cell minutes.

I have a land line because in an emergency my son knows where to find it and how to use it. He'd never find my cell phone - it could be anywhere. Also, our security system runs through it.

As long as we have young chidren we'll have a landline. 911 still can't reliably track a cell call.

And I'm paying $99/mo for FiOS phone/TV/Internet.

We had a land line but no one ever answered the phone when I called home and we always forgot to check the answering machine. My husband, daughter and I just all have cell phones. I felt like such a nerd when I first got my daughter a cell phone when she was 9 but now I never worry about her and I can always reach her. I can also see exactly where she is online. This will be super-handy when she's a teenager!

We don't have a land line just 2 cellphones. We don't miss it. Now we no longer get calls from telemarketers and we've done away with one more monthly bill.

My parents still have a landline. When I lived with them I never answered the "home phone" because anyone worth talking to had my cell number. After I got married and moved out of my parents' house, my cell phone was (and still is) my only phone.

We're seldom called on the landline, but like adrienne, we have a landline for emergencies, too. In the event of an earthquake or a blackout, a landline phone will still be up and available. We briefly had an VOIP phone, but realized that in a blackout, the back-up battery is only good for about 2 hours. We even have an 80s hardwire phone as the back-up.

Would never give it up-- for safety-- when my husband and I are out we want a reliable way to get in touch with sitters etc-- I would never rely on someone else to have their cell phone on, charged, nearby etc when home with our kids. Not to mention 911 and that during the black out the only phone that worked was our land line.

Land line only, here! Gave up the cell phones a few months ago and don't miss them a bit.

Kept the landline for the security system and in case of emergencies: blackouts, no reception at the house, etc.

Only have a landline because we have a landline/DSL/cable package.

We had that same phone in yellow! I miss it sometimes. When I was in high school we had a touch tone phone with about 50 feet of cord so that we could carry it around the house. Didn't get a cordless or answering machine until the early 90's.

Cell phones are great, but I like having a land line. Won't give it up.

Yes, I have the cheapest rate land line with no intention of giving it up. AND I use corded phones in my home... they still work when the power goes out. Old fashioned, yes but I don't mind. :)

I insist on keeping the land line (cancelled the $6/mo call waiting though) for 911 and general peace of mind, though we are a double iPhone family. Plus I like having a number I can give out that's not as invasive as the cell.

Anyone have a tip on where to get a good, non-electric phone? All I can find at drugstores, Best Buy, etc are crappy and our current home phone is electric with answering machine.

"We don't have to go through family members when we want to call someone, but is that good or bad?"

I'm SO OVER the "good old days were better" implications. It's not good or bad that this doesn't happen any more. It just is.