Sprint to offer landline-cutting device to its wireless providers
Already available directly to its customers, Sprint Phone Connect will now be offered through the carrier's wholesale wireless providers. Plug a home phone into the device, and calls are carried over Sprint's network instead of the landline.
Sprint's Phone Connect device will now find its way to more people anxious to get rid of their landlines.
Known as Sprint Phone Connect, the "plug and play" device operates via Sprint's 3G network. Users can simply plug their home or office phones into the device, and calls are then carried over the network instead of the traditional landline.
Sprint already sells the product directly. But now the company is offering it to its MVNOs (mobile virtual network operators), wireless providers that buy network services from the major carriers and then sell them to customers. This means that a wider range of customers will be able to pick up the device.
Subscribers can access a variety of services, including voice mail, caller ID, call waiting, three-way calling, and call forwarding. The device itself includes GPS for 911 calls and battery backup in case the power goes out. And Sprint promises that Phone Connect is compatible with most corded and cordless phones.
Plugging the main base of a cordless-phone-set into the device automatically activates the service on all of the handsets. Users can also opt to keep their existing phone number or choose a new one.
However, new users considering the device will want to first check out the reviews on Sprint's Web site, many of which are less than complimentary.