Image source: EW.com
I’m in San Francisco, for short project, this week. On some downtime, I told Florian that in my next place I live, I want to get a landline, a real copper wire one, not VOIP. He turned and said he completely agreed.
Every so often, I think about the days when I enjoyed talking on the phone. When I lived in Seattle in the 90s after college, I would call people in New York or where ever the landed. There were several people I would call a couple of times a month, for conversations over half an hour on a crystal clear and reliable landline connection. These calls were a rich and valued experience. These days, mobile phones and VOIP are a constant battle. Having a telephone call where both sides are clear and audible seem like a victory instead of the standard.
Rates on mobiles are cheaper, but I wonder if there will be a return back to landlines for their reliable service and clear conntections.
Is part of the reason I SMS more now because talking on the mobile phones is often a futile exercise of shouting, deciphering lost syllables, and walking around looking for the best signal?
Here! Here! Landlines rock. And what about businesses, most of them are still locked into landlines.
That might be true, but a lot of small business are moving to VOIP as well, and service can be spotty and the costs are rising to about the same of landlines.