Reception complaints with the new iPhone 4, and occasionally every mobile phone on earth, have made the decision to ax one’s landline less clear-cut than many thought it would be by this stage of the cell game.
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But as consumers continue to cut costs, more are cutting the cord. One in four homes in the U.S. relied on cell phones alone during the last half of 2009, an increase of 1.8 percentage points since the first half of 2009, according to a survey by the National Center for Health Statistics.
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One in every seven homes had a landline yet received all or almost all calls on cell phones.
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I argue with my wife often about why we still have a landline, said Mitch Hiller, director of technology for Consumers’ Checkbook. She wants one. She isn’t clear on the reasons for that, but for the sake of domestic tranquility, I give in.
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Several variables, logical and psychological, complicate making the call.
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Part of the answer about what is the right answer is the comfort level of the person with technology, Hiller said. The answer for me is very different than for my mother, who is phobic of technology. If she tries to implement the same solution, she’s going to be frustrated and unhappy.
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Here are some arguments for and against the landline. You make the call.
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Five Reasons To Keep Your Landline
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_ Multiple users: Having a landline means relatives and family friends can reach all members of your household (in theory) by dialing one number and/or leaving one message. (That’s assuming voice mail in your household gets checked more than once every two months.)
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_ Multiple phones: It also means you can have several phones within your house, rather than conjoining yourself to your cell phone in order to hear incoming calls.
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_ Reception: Landline phones don’t require you to…