That sort of service was what I meany by dynamic DNS. It would be just as for accessing home, as you say, but I need an IP address rather than domain name for use with the web host. But I do appreciate it is one of those "something has to give" situations and at some point it will likely have to be the cost over the convenience. Or a different web host.

I tried looking on eBay but there were not that many Fritz!boxes on there. However it seems I was wrong in that that AAISP's Technicolor modem does support VOIP, though not DECT, and has no subsidy on the six-month contract though it is free with a 12-month one.

Another little known brand here! So first I find out it is Technicolor as in the logo on the end of films of all things, and then that it is a brand now owned by Thomson which makes more sense. They made the supplied O2 modem which was an awful experience. I am guessing their quality must be better now. It will be interesting if on leaving Sky they ask for it back, a complete waste of postage on their part but I still have it boxed up in case they do. I do not think I own it. I hope not, anyway!

So one option is to buy that modem for £90, though you can get the DGA4134 online for £106 (a bit less than AAISP charge) which has Wifi 6 and, for me, a better form factor. If paying that much then it is probably worth the extra.

The other option would be to buy their subsidized ZyXEL VMG1312-T20B for £25, then buy a VOIP solution for which the cheapest option seems to be the Gigaset Hello handset and adapter which is £40 on Amazon. That is less than the N300 adapter on its own, I guess maybe it only supports one line but that would be enough for me, though.

That combination would only cost £65, but I would also need to keep using my wireless router as the ZyXEL modem does not support 5 GHz Wifi. I know it is meant to be the basic offering, but I am surprised such a thing is still being made let alone offered.

Nothing is ever easy!

Which includes that on AAISP's site you can order broadband (losing phone service and number) or order VOIP (cutting off broadband) yet not both together! So I will have to email despite as I said earlier that they, like Zen, did not answer my question to their sales email address when I first asked for advice. So that could be an adventure in itself.

Apologies to AAISP, they do have a form where you can order broadband and VOIP together, but wow is their website a mess with buttons spread out over various pages.

A few days ago I screenshot a drop down list from their site which offers a ZyXEL VMG8623. I just have no idea where it came from as I cannot see any mention of that model on the site at all, yet it has to be theirs as it is alongside the other modems they offer. But it has both 5GHz wifi and VOIP support so if they can provide that, and obviously depending on the price, I think I have found my answer.

If no one wants to warn me away from that choosing option, I will contact them tomorrow.

Thank you everyone for the help and warning me about Zen. All being well they will improve so I can switch later as it would then save me £10/mo after having split the phone service away. Though in saying that, committing to AAISP for 12 months would cost me an extra £60, yet depending on modem and VOIP adapter costs could save more. Which is why you should type out your every thought at 1:30am.

I personally would say go for it with AAISP - they understand people like yourself who wish to communicate different ways so they cover them all.

Just be aware that if you port your number to AAISP you may not be able to port it away again

They don't have it documented anywhere on their website but after you place an order they send you these lovely t&c's

VoIP Services: We have very limited porting agreements in place so it is unlikely you will be able to port any number to another provider of your choice, although you may be able to port it back to the original provider if it is not one of our numbers originally.

In reply to a post by j0hn83:

Just be aware that if you port your number to AAISP you may not be able to port it away again

They don't have it documented anywhere on their website but after you place an order they send you these lovely t&c's

VoIP Services: We have very limited porting agreements in place so it is unlikely you will be able to port any number to another provider of your choice, although you may be able to port it back to the original provider if it is not one of our numbers originally.

If one is reasonably savvy and IT literate, to my mind the best way forward is provider separation of voice/VoIP and broadband. It just keeps all options open and allows the best integration of novel access techniques to the century old landline.

That’s just me though and I recognise it doesn’t work across the board or for all folk who want the one stop shop.

Thank you. I never got the chance yesterday so emailed them today so will hopefully they will reply. If it were not for wanting a more suitable modem than the couple offered on their form I would have just ordered online.

Thank you for the warning. It is a little worrying, but unless they significantly raise the price than at £1.20 per month then I doubt I will want to move anyway.

I did consider Sipgate's free service, which seems to be well regarded, but the AAISP call costs are better that I could just redirect my number to my mobile when necessary without risking it costing too much. Plus going with Sipgate would have required going a few weeks without internet access or needing installers to add a second line.

But with the PSTN switch-off I would expect Ofcom to start regulating VOIP providers the same way they currently do for phone and broadband. I guess BT will be required to provide a restricted broadband line for those who only want a phone service but not internet access. Otherwise, though, it will completely separate the phone line from the phone service, so it would be odd if they do make it so that people could easily switch phone providers.

I appreciate there has been a bank holiday, but a week later but no reply.

It was the start of April when I first contacted them to ask a question about their VOIP service, to which they never replied but I ended up finding the answer elsewhere. Based on this I am not feeling like they would be any better for me to be able to communicate with than the warnings people have given about Zen.

I had wanted to switch by the middle-ish of this month but it seems to late for that now, so I am looking at my options for buying my own modem then can just order AAISP online for six months to split the broadband and phone service. While I have been waiting for a reply I I have discovered IDNet, who seem to be well reviewed but do not offer a modem of their own. So as they are cheaper than Zen or AAISP I can switch to them after my contract is up.

I have been an IDNet customer for about 3.5 years now and they offer a solid reliable service with good support when you need it.

Would their customer service be better than AAISP? I doubt it.
Would their customer service be better than Zen, Historically IDNet were always on a par with Zen and the evidence appears to be that Zen aren't as good as they used to be.

The beauty of IDNet is that you are only on a one month contract for ADSL or FTTC.