Over here Bruce most young people would have to have their smartphone surgically removed before you could have a proper conversation with them…
True. To me, the most advantageous thing about a smartphone is that you can use it wherever you may be; you don’t have to be at home.
Having said that, I do use mine for other things, but not constantly!
What about those of us who do not have a mobile phone?
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Get one! 
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You’re the modern equivalent of the deserving poor or even the great unwashed.
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I have one in case of emergencies when I go out but when I am at home I use the landline. If the landline is cut I think I will cope. Mind you I am 84 so I will maybe go before the landline.
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Oops!..
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Good news!
According to the DT, today, the changes has been put on the back burner.
BT seems to be apologising for not realising that, if there is a power cut, people will not be able to call 999 to get help, if their only phone connection is via their mains powered Modem/Router & Voip.
Presumably Virgin Media will realise the same.
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I wouldn’t hold your breath! All Virgin are interested in is ££££££
I heard this on the radio this morning and didn’t make sense to me, I had mine installed last week, but they warn you of this and tell you to make sure you have a mobile in case of emergencies.
Should we think it’s a bit much when they save money, by removing their landline service, and then explain that we should buy a mobile phone in case their replacement VOIP service loses power?
Tough luck if you’re an oldie who can’t afford a mobile, or the time to set one up just as a stand by.
How many of you still have a landline that is actually plugged in for it to work? All our handsets are wireless and so if there is a power cut then the base unit wouldn’t work and so neither would the handsets.
Not true, apparently.
And to check it out, I just unplugged my handset from the mains and it still worked ok!
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Now, that is a surprise. Will try out ours in a bit but I would have thought that the base unit needed power for it to work as a wireless receiver other than just another handset charging point.
Just reading that there is, apparently, battery backup (for a few hours) in the street connection boxes.
If so, taking away the boxes will remove that facility.
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I definitely couldn’t use my landline if the electricity went out, before or now.
A bit more about it from BT:_
“At the end of 2025, Telephone Exchanges will no longer provide the 50V current that has been supplied in the past to the premises to keep telephone lines working due to a loss of power. This means that all backup will need to be provided by the customers own Battery Backup arrangements. However, if your service is running on a Fibre to the house (FTTH) the service is power from the exchange still, but you will still need a backup solution. BUT this is totally dependent on the backup power solution at the exchange, which will shut down at some point if the power is off for any length of time. Customers who are using the FTTC service for their digital lines are reliant on the backup batteries in the cabinet in the street, this is normally around 4/6 hours tops. So, ether way you will need a backup power solution. We strongly recommend getting a mobile phone as a secondary backup solution as recommended by Ofcom.”
Thanks.
We have FTTC, so I assume that we could still keep an internet connection for a time with their battery backup. On the other hand, the router also needs a power supply which will have gone off anyway.
We used to have VOIP, but Virgin no longer supports that via their router.
Both Marge and I have mobile phones, though, so no problem there.
I use PAYG as I don’t make many phone calls and use my phone using the router.
Marge on the other hand has a contract because she talks a lot more (on the phone and otherwise)!
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My landline phone on the wall in the kitchen does not use mains power, it still works if the house power goes off Melgal. Even though Mrs Fox and me both have mobiles, we still use the landline a lot. I suppose us here in South Yorkshire are perhaps still a bit behind the times…
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I believe you’re right. It is some time since we had a traditional (50V) landline telephone and I never remember that going off during a power cut, though I don’t seem to remember power cuts lasting for very long in those days. I think we were better organised then!
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