So, you’ve just got a new landline phone but you’re not sure where to plug your phone system cable and whether you should unplug it from the phone jack to set it all up.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through detailed steps on setting up a landline phone, and setting up a voicemail and a phone number to make your landline setup as efficient as possible. We’ll also discuss how to set up landline phone services across 5 different popular providers such as Community Phone.
Before we dive in, are you looking to upgrade your landline phone service?
Community Phone is the best landline phone service in the United States that provides excellent home phone service without tying your phone to the internet or copper connections. Its landline base works off cell towers, providing solid coverage across 99% of the US, including rural and low-reception areas.
Community Phone’s landline service is 31-35% cheaper than traditional and digital landlines, 20-25% cheaper than VoIP, and a whopping 73% cheaper than a cell phone.
How To Set Up A Landline Phone
Setting up a landline phone doesn’t have to be complicated. Follow the steps below to do that:
Step 1: Plug your phone cable into the appropriate port on the back of the landline base.
Note: Modular plugs are the fittings at the end of the phone cable. These modular plugs are constructed of plastic and are square in shape. Your landline phone's corresponding port is similarly square.
Step 2: Plug the other end of your landline phone cable into the right wall outlet.
Note: You should install your landline phone in a location near a wall outlet or have a cable that can reach an outlet in another room.
Optional: Connect more handsets to your phone system if you want to use the landline phone service throughout your home (or office).
Step 3: Connect the base device to the power outlet too and allow it to boot up.
Note: If your base device has an antenna, plug it into the antenna jack before booting it up.
Step 4: Register your phone to the landline modem according to the instructions provided (they vary on the basis of providers).
That’s it – your landline phone system is all set up.
If you want to add more handsets for more effective communication, register each handset with your cordless phone system.
More often than not, it requires you to position the new handset on the handset base and press the Find Handset button from the base, followed by the # (pound) key on the handset (unless instructed otherwise).
That’s it; adding new handsets to your cordless phone system is that easy.
Community Phone has researched all the common issues people face with major landline providers across the United States today to ensure seamless, high-quality service for our customers.
Download our brochure below to learn how to upgrade your landline for cheaper with Community Phone.
How To Install a Landline Phone
Setting up a copper wire landline can be cumbersome, tiring, and messy, not to mention the time spent chasing technicians and appointments. With large carriers retiring copper wire service nationwide, as per the FCC order, phone companies are ushering customers into an era of forced upgrades.
Digital phones, aka "upgrades," need copper cables to be replaced by fiber optics and involve messy technician-led installations. The sensitive nature of fiber cables demands expert technician-led installations making the process challenging and expensive.
Though wireless, VoIP landlines still require an internet connection to be installed at your place, which involves the same tiring installation process. There is a simple solution to all installation and phone setup woes - Community Phone's wireless landline. Read on to learn more!
1. Community Phone
The Community Phone landline base connects your phone to local cell towers, eliminating the need for high-speed internet. The unique design of the landline base and partnership with nationwide carriers ensures coverage across 99% of the US and excellent call quality in rural and low-reception areas.
Community Phone is the best wireless landline phone service that combines the reliability of copper wire landlines, freedom of wireless access, and fantastic calling features. Enjoy unlimited nationwide calling, landline texting, 3-way calling, caller ID, and other features at affordable prices and no hidden charges. Try their service for 14-days before you commit to a paid plan. If you think Community Phone is not for you, you can cancel your service without jumping through hoops.
Landline Setup
You do not need a technician, copper or fiber optic cables, or advanced technical skills to set up the Community Phone landline. Here's how you or anyone else can set it up in a few steps in under 30 seconds.
1. Unwrap your Community Phone landline base and phone.
2. Plug the Community Phone landline base into a power outlet. Do not turn it on yet.
3. Plug your landline phone into a jack on the back of the base where it says Phone1 using an RJ9 (phone cord) cable.
4. Toggle the ON/OFF switch at the back of the base to the ON position.
5. Power on the landline base. Once the setup is complete in about 5 mins, and all the lights on the base turn green, your landline phone system will be ready to use.
6. Make a test call to 866-511-7870 to ensure your Community Phone landline works as intended.
Pro tip: If your landline base comes with antennas, make sure the antennas stand tall. Place your landline base near a window for adequate coverage.
Watch the video below for a full tutorial.
Best-in-class Community Phone Features
1. Call Waiting
The call-waiting feature enables you to answer a second call when you are engaged on the first one. Two beeps will alert you of an incoming call when you are engaged on a call, allowing you to place the first call on hold and talk on the second.
This can be an excellent feature for remote or work-from-home employees who may miss a vital office call when talking to a loved one.
2. Spam Call Blocking
Many studies reveal that people invest in spam call blocker services only after being victims of a phone scam. Protect yourself, your loved ones, and your business with the Community Phone spam blocker that automatically blocks over 6 million calls before your phone rings.
You can receive calls from specific numbers and block all others with the whitelist option or contribute actively to the ever-growing Community Phone blacklist database to block millions of spam calls.
Talk to a landline specialist to learn more!
3. Landline Texting
Stay connected to younger children or grandchildren by texting any number of your choice with the landline texting feature. Use your landline number and your Community Phone user account to send unlimited messages to loved ones, colleagues, employees, or customers to stay in touch.
4. Call History
Enable the call history feature and access information on incoming and outgoing calls to and from your Community Phone landline.
You can use this feature to
a) Return missed calls from known contacts
b) Store legitimate contacts
c) Check caller information against known contacts
d) Send a message or
e) Block spam calls.
Benefits of Switching to Community Phone
Here are the benefits of switching to Community Phone's landline service:
1. Unlimited nationwide calling: Stay connected with your loved ones across the US without calculating talk time spent. If you are a business, use the unlimited minutes to run telemarketing campaigns, collect feedback, or provide tech support.
2. Quick and easy setup: Install the Community Phone landline in under 30 seconds without a technician and messy wired setups, saving time and money. Connect the landline base to a power outlet and a phone. Power on the base, and you can get started in minutes.
3. No internet required: Community Phone works on mobile technology to provide reliable landline service that does not need high-speed internet. This unique ability ensures more reliability than VoIP phone services and your phones will continue working during internet network outages or scheduled maintenance.
4. 24/7 reliable customer support: Several landline customers have been upset with the unavailability of support reps and long wait times to receive assistance when they call telecom companies. Community Phone's US-based subject matter experts are available 24/7, in under a minute, via phone, email, and chat to assist you.
5. Stay Connected during power outages: The 12-hour backup battery in the landline base ensures your phone continues to work during power outages or blackouts to help you stay connected with emergency services.
Landline Setup - Other Providers
2. Verizon
Follow the steps below to set up your landline phone with Verizon:
Step 1: Remove the battery cover of Verizon’s landline base and plug in the provided battery.
Step 2: Put the cover back and connect the antenna by screwing it into the antenna jack.
Step 3: Plug in the power adapter into the landline base and connect the other end to a power outlet.
Step 4: Plug one end of the telephone cord into your wireless phone system and the other end into the base unit.
Note**:** If your telephone is plugged into a wall jack, unplug it and then plug it into the back of the landline base.
Step 5: Once the device boots up, dial *228 to activate it and press 1 to begin programming.
Step 6: As the programming procedure completes, you’ll receive a confirmation message, and the landline system will be ready to make outbound calls or receive inbound ones.
Note : Make sure at least one signal indicator on the device blinks to make a call.
3. AT&T
Here is the step by step process for installing the Wireless home phone by AT&T:
Step 1: Remove the lid from the battery compartment and plug in the backup battery.
Step 2: Put the lid back and plug the power cord into an electrical outlet.
Step 3: Press and hold the power button until the base light turns on.
Step 4: Raise your device’s antenna and check for wireless signals from cell phone towers.
Step 5: Next, unplug your phone from the home wall jack and plug it into the device’s Phone 1 port.
Step 6: Place a call using a 10-digit dialing code (for international as well as local calls).
Step 7: Set up additional phone features like setting up voicemails and registering more handsets.
Once you’re done, the landline phone is ready for making calls.
4. Spectrum
Spectrum is yet another fast-growing Internet, voice, TV, and mobile service provider that lets you set up landline phones for your home or business. Follow the steps below to do that:
Step 1: Connect the coaxial cable onto the back of the modem.
Step 2: Plug in the power cable to the modem and plug its other side into a power outlet.
Step 3: Wait for the modem to boot up and turn all 3 of its lights into solid blue.
Step 4: Connect your home phone to the back of the modem.
Note**:** Be sure to plug the home phone cable into the Phone 1 port on the modem’s back.
5. Ooma
Ooma is different from the landline services above as it runs off high-speed internet. You can set up your Ooma device, called Ooma Telo, by following the steps below:
Step 1: Locate the activation code on the bottom of the device.
Step 2: Visit the webpage ooma.com/activate, enter your phone number & password, and click “Activate Your New Account.
Step 3: On the next page, enter the activation code and click Next to continue.
Step 4: Now, select a phone number, enter your contact information and set up a password.
Step 5: Register your service address and add billing information.
Step 6: Once done, click “Activate,” and your Ooma account will be created.
Step 7: To connect the Ooma Telo device to your router, plug one end of an ethernet cable into your router and the other hand into the base device.
Step 8: Now, plug your phone into the phone port on the device.
Step 9: Plugin the provided AC adapter to the device and allow for it to boot up.
Step 10: Once the device boots up, the Oomo logo on the top will light up solid blue.
Step 11: Pick up the phone and listen for the Ooma dial tone. That’s it – your landline system is ready for calling.
How to Set Up Voicemail On a Landline
The voicemail service is usually included with landline phone services free of cost. Follow these steps to set up a voice mail or answering machine on your phone system:
Step 1: Dial 1 on a handset and wait for a few seconds until the voice prompts start coming in.
Step 2: Follow the voice prompts and create a 4-15 digit password required to access your voicemail.
Step 3: Record a personal greeting or use the default greeting for the voicemail.
Step 4: If you don’t want to use voice mail, plug your answering machine into port 2 on the base of your landline base.
Step 5: Set your answering machine to pick up in fewer than five rings or customize the setting as you prefer.
That’s it, setting up a voicemail is that easy.
How to Set Up a Landline Number
A landline number is the phone number allocated by a service provider. The procedure of setting up a new landline number varies, depending upon your landline provider. However, you have to follow these steps below in most cases:
Step 1: Visit your landline provider’s official website and select “Get a phone number”.
Step 2: Type your contact and area information like City and Area code.
Step 3: Choose from the available numbers or input letters or digits for a customized search.
Step 4: Once you choose a phone number, click Continue and call the provided number to activate your chosen number.
That’s it – your phone number will be activated by the provider for your use.
Note: If you have an existing landline number you don’t want to lose, your new landline provider may help with transferring it from your old landline service.
Conclusion
Setting up a landline phone connection doesn’t have to be hard. It’s much simpler than the traditional landline connections, where you have to arrange a messy copper wire connection and hire a technician to set everything up.
Providers such as Community Phone make it easy for seniors to get started with a landline phone service – there’s only a base device you have to set up (which usually takes a few minutes), and that’s it; the landline phone is ready for use. If you want to use CommunityPhone to get a landline connection, click here to get started.