Can I use my old phone and DECT on a smart hub

[licquorice]

https://community.bt.com/t5/Home-phone-including-Digital/Digital-Voice-FAQs/td-p/2207485

[iniltous]

@Anje You presumably see the flaw your the argument that if broadband fails when telephony is DV ( not power related failure ) the phone won’t  work , it is also the case that if PSTN fails , but broadband is OK , then those with DV ( internet telephony )  will be fine whereas the PSTN customer would not ….whats more PSTN equipment is around 40 years old and much more likely to fail than the much more modern ‘broadband’ equipment, so those on DV are much less likely to experience failure than PSTN once you remove power failure as an issue , 

[Anje]

I found the following info using links provided

Question : I have three phones all connected to a base main phone. Do I need to synch one or each one ?

Answer : Just connect the base unit of your main handset to your Smart Hub 2. Your other handsets will automatically connect.

Interesting info by BT says

- Personalised data such as handset names, Speed Dial numbers, Ringtone choice and Contacts are all stored in the Hub rather than the handsets. A factory reset or change of hub will therefore result in the loss of this data. The contact list can be backed up by exporting the list to file on a PC. Other data is not backed up and will need to be re-entered.

Mine are stored in the main phone including the answering machine. I expect them to remain in that location.  How would they be removed?  If synching phone auto copies data to Hub then why would I lose anything which is already stored ?

Cannot find anything on this question - so no answer!

Question : Explain what is meant by stored in the Hub and where is this file that needs a backup?

Answer: If you get a replacement broadband hub you'll need to backup and restore your phone contacts, using your BT Smart Hub online. In your BT Smart Hub Manager, click Phone, then Contacts. In this section you can export the contacts from your Digital Voice phone to your computer. To do this, click the Export button and save the file. Once your hub has been replaced you can restore your contacts by first clicking the Browse button to find your saved contacts file. Then click the Import button to send them to your Digital Voice phone

That answer really needs a lot more information - so hopefully BT has got a webpage with images etc so any person with virtually no computer knowledge understands this process.

But the following information is nonsense

If there is a power outage or your broadband fails, you’ll be unable to make calls using Digital Voice, including calls to 999. You’d experience this if you have a cordless phone plugged into a power supply. You’ll still be able to use a mobile phone, which should be charged at all times. If you don’t have a mobile phone or are in an area with no mobile signal, please contact us on 0330 1234 150.

If you have no power or no internet and no mobile which may not work anyway if mast has no electric - then how exactly are you supposed to ring that contact number. Previously you would use an analogue phone that does not need electricity nor internet, those phones used to work prior to Digital Voice - they only fail after the move to Digital Voice. It was the only means of getting help and it's goin to be removed when Digital Voice is installed.

This is the single biggest problem that no one seems interested in because there is only one answer and BT do not seem to want to say it.

If no internet then you are stuck. It says very clearly If there is a power outage or your broadband fails, you’ll be unable to make calls using Digital Voice, including calls to 999. You cannot ask for help.

Clearly, this has been written by someone who never actually understood what they had written.

[licquorice]

That information is with regard to BT Digital Voice handsets. It is not relevant if you are using your own DECT system.

Please read the FAQ

[Anje]

This has been my personal experience:

I've had broadband fail in the past and it did not effect the phone.

I've had hub failure - hence no internet -and it never effected the phone

But if I was using DV then in both of the above cases - there is no phone

I've had an engineer turn up and completely disconnect my entire line by accident - both broadband and landline - that did cause a problem - but there was no electric outage so a neighbout let me use their landline phone.

Using DV then phone is no use - but what else would you expect if there was a total diconnection.

I've had a phone problem where the telephone itself was useless - it did not stop connection via internet nor did it stop an alternative phone from working.

I'm not under any illusions about what currently works and what does not work. Been there and got the T-Shirt. 

BTW - if electric fails the you may discover the local mobile phone mast has failed as well. I believe BT have a lot to do to ensure there is backup power to all their masts - so don't expect the mobile to work - it might not.

If electric only had failed then the old analogue phones that did not need a power supply  worked perfectly. This is never going to be an option with DV. 

So there is no cunning backup plan.

[HHGTTG]

I live in the SE and all my mains supply comes from underground supplies and when there are power outages, as we seem to call them nowadays, these outages aren't for days on end but perhaps for a few hours at most and the least of my concerns is whether the phone works or not but I do have a mobile phone. Obviously other parts of the UK and country areas have overhead power supplies which do get blown down in extreme weather conditions anyway perhaps causing several day delay before power is resumed.

With PTSN the good old corded landline phone NOT a cordless DECT phone will still work during a power outage whereas DV, without a UPS backup won't .

As regard mobile phone coverage, surely it is not impossible to find a provider who perhaps does have coverage in your area, even stepping outside the house?

Just my twopennyworth.