Devices cut cost of long-distance calls

This used to be the season that saw long-distance phone bills jump as people called friends and relatives around the world. Not so much any more with the lower long-distance costs, flat-rate pricing and a range of options, from Skype and Apple's FaceTime to other services and devices that shrink that long-distance bill. This season Canadians have a new option, the Ooma Telo, a second generation VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) device from Ooma, a company that has offered ser-vices in the United States and recently extended it to Canada. A little black item just a bit smaller than my wire-less modem, the Telo plugs into an Internet connection and connects to your existing home phone to deliver free calling across Canada, with added features including caller-ID, call waiting and voicemail. You can check the rates for international calls or pay a flat monthly rate of $11.99 for 1,000 minutes to more than 60 countries. The cost for the basic service is the price of the Telo unit plus taxes and fees for your area, which when I checked amount to $3.98 for Vancouver. A premier service that includes free calls to the U.S. is $10 a month or $120 a year. You can as well link your mobile phone to the Telo with a Bluetooth adapter that Ooma sells for $30. During the service says it includes 911 calls, note that the 911 operator will only get the address listed on your registration. In an emergency you may not remember you failed to update the address - a failing that could have tragic consequences. Go to: http: //ca.ooma.com/

The border to Canada is netTALK DUO

Another VoIP offering that has crossed the border to Canada is netTALK DUO, a U.S.-based service in other words expanding here. Like the Telo, it connects directly to your router or modem so it doesn't require a computer to work, even though you can as well plug it into your computer and use netTALK's videophone application for computer calls. The cost of the device includes the first year of calling across Canada and the U.S. and afterwards that it's $40 a year.

You can add an international plan, good for calls to 60 countries, for $120 annually. NetTALK DUO as well has calling features like voicemail and others and the 911 service that relies on the address you give with your registration.

I must have told London Drugs buyer Theo Horsdal the sad story of the cellphone I dropped on a tile floor because the minute the industrial strength Extreme sleeves for tablets and notebooks arrived in Canada, he was quick to let me know.