Cox to eliminate traditional copper phone and replace with VOIP.. BAD NEWS

This is wonderfully circular.  I already did that.  That's where I got the information that I'm responsible for anything that needs to be done to get the one room in my house that won't require running wires everywhere "ready" for this "upgrade" I don't want: 

"A MTA Telephony Modem will use the coax to receive signal, and then can connect to a functioning phone or phone jack in the wall. If the phone jack in the wall or inner wiring in the home is causing the service not to work, then that would need to be repaired in order for the MTA Telephony Modem to extend the signal through the inner wiring of the home."

I don't hear Cox offering to waive a repair fee, or the fee you usually charge for activating the coax in a new room.

Just visited the COX Store to look at the equipment required, picture below... this is a behemoth and when they install, it must be in close proximity to a cable coax line, electrical outlet and a phone jack for the inside wiring in your home. Now I don't know about you, I don't have this combination unless this big ugly box is going to sit on the floor in my living room! Well, I don't want this additional piece of equipment and all the wires, etc. This is just wrong at every level. And, and, this is just more equipment that can go bad and go bad at the wrong time. 

it's not a new piece that can fail, but it replaces  the outside box which is no longer being made.  I'm surprised the traditional phone company outside hardware are still going strong

Hello DJV, Depending on your home set up. This modem would take the place of the current modem for the internet service, then they only need to get a phone wire over to a phone jack which normally can be installed where it's not noticeable at all. Once on site the tech may also come up with another way of installing it that will better suit your needs.

I just got notified that my phone is moving FORWARD (marketing speak for backwards).

I currently have the Cornerstone NIU. It's immensely reliable. It's powered by Cox, so my power can go out and my phone still works. It also works when my internet goes out. They can reset my cable modem and it doesn't knock out my phone line. One Cox support tech also told me a year or two ago to NEVER let Cox take that NIU box away because that system is very reliable. My system works perfectly and I have no interest in Cox messing with it.

I also have an alarm system and a fax machine and a fax switch. Typically, these things have problems working properly with VOIP lines (my HP unit even says it doesn't work with VOIP). Are the signals from these systems even going to work on my "new improved" Cox VOIP landline?

I understand the wiring for making all that work. I also have 66 punchdown blocks in my house with home runs to all the jacks, along with CAT5 panels for internet. Residential techs tend to be baffled by my setup (although Cox is better than AT&T when I used them, as the AT&T people were completely clueless).

I also have a wiring problem if Cox is going to mess with this. My lines run to the demarcation point. You can't just plug it in to a phone jack inside and have it work because of the alarm and fax wiring. All my wires are inside the walls. Is Cox going to fish more wires through my walls, patch, and repaint them to make this new system work? I doubt it.

Also, I wonder how well these VOIP systems work. I put AT&T U-Verse at my parents' house a few years ago. What a nightmare. A beautifully-working landline that had been there for 50 years became a problematic VOIP line. Telephones that worked just fine (from the 70s and 80s) would no longer work with the new VOIP line and AT&T was clueless. I ended up having to buy new phones and a new TV. Although Cox is way more competent than AT&T, I fear I'll have similar problems.

I can't believe I'm actually thinking about calling AT&T to put in a POTS line. I'm in California where AT&T hasn't yet convinced the lawmakers they can stop offering POTS service (but they're working on it...)

Cox internet is nowhere near as reliable as my Cox landline service. Here's how I see it:

• Cox annual price increase: 100% reliability
• Cox landline service via Cornerstone NIU: 99.9% reliability [8.76 hours/year max outage]
• Cox internet service: 98% reliability (and getting worse) [7.30 days/year max outage] (along with several modem reboots or it would be worse...that's what I have to look forward to on my "improved" landline?)

Cox...I don't want this backwards move. Why not place a big order and get Arris to make more boxes and install them? Your customers will be much happier.

Hello EvaFam, We can understand all the concerns listed. Couple things we can mention that may help. The modem does not have to be combined with the modem for your internet service. That is a request you can make with the technician when they arrive. This way you still have your free standing data service and will be unaffected by the modem install for the phone. This is not a full VOIP product so some of the compatibility issue you mention will not be a factor. Just let the tech know there is an active alarm in the home at time of install. This will alert them that they must run dial tone from the modem directly out to the bell NID to capture the input wiring for the alarm system. After that everything else remains the same and nothing else needs touched. With a 66 block in the home we would assume there is access to an APU that would be able to supply you power in the event of a commercial power outage. This is a reliable unit and once installed you will find that it is just as reliable as our older cornerstone network interface units.

DannyS, thank you for your speedy reply. I do have more questions.

1. You mentioned this is not a full VOIP product. What is it? The Cisco DPQ3212 manual that I downloaded from the Cox website calls it VOIP. 
2. Are you guaranteeing that this new DPQ3212 will work with alarm and fax signals? Besides my current Cox Cornerstone NIU landline, I also have a VOIP line and I can tell you the fax doesn't work with it, despite all the claims to the contrary. Although I don't use fax a great deal, it's handy to have sometimes and works just fine on my Cox Cornerstone NIU landline.
3. Reliability: I've seen several online comments about DPQ3212 failures, so I have concerns about how reliable this thing is. 
4. If I don't connect my internet to this and keep my separate cable modem, what does your modem reset tool do? How does it know which modem to reset? Does a telephone-only install require fewer modem resets? Cox internet reliability for me is nowhere near the reliability of the Cox phone. Is the phone line technology somehow separate from cable modem that's included in the box? If it's really as reliable as you indicate, why isn't this packaged as an outside, non-user-serviceable device like the Cornerstone NIU (and other Telco/Cable devices I've used over the years)?
5. The DPQ3212 is huge. Cox marketing tries to make it look small, but it's 8 x 8 x 4. I might have to put an addition on my home to find somewhere to put this thing. My Cornerstone NIU is currently inside of a shed, so it's not outdoors. Maybe I can put the DBQ3212 in place of it in the shed? (I have power in the shed.) That would minimize wiring issues. If I have to find a place to put this thing in my house, what wiring is the Cox technician going to do? I'm pretty sure you're not going to go in attics, under the house, fish wire through walls, pull new wiring through conduits, etc.?
6. I may have a punchdown block, but I don't have an APU. Why doesn't Cox continue to power these devices from its reliable infrastructure? You already have 90v going to the Cornerstone NIU. I'm sure with the quantity you purchase you could get Cisco to work with 90v, if it doesn't already. Maybe it requires more current than the wires carrying 90v to my house because it's also a cable modem? And then you want me to buy a battery? How is this "just as reliable" as the Cornerstone NIUs? The overall system design is less reliable.

Hi, Cox is proactively updating the network by removing outdated Circuit Switch technology that will cease to be manufactured in the future and replacing it with up to date Packet Switch technology.  Even with the switch, Cox will continue to provide the same reliable home telephone service. The DPQ3212 modem does work with alarm and fax signals.  You do not have to connect your Internet to this modem.  You may continue using your stand-alone modem; however, the Tech will be able to better advise on this once they see the set-up in your home. It's important when the Tech arrives, that you explain what your needs and desires are regarding your telephone service in your home.   I'm including a link that includes a list of Cox Certified Modems:  https://www.cox.com/residential/support/cox-certified-cable-modems.html. If you're using (2) separate modems, the modem reset tool will reset based on the service you select when calling in. Regarding your additional questions, those items will have to answered by our Field Technician when on-site.   

If it was really "the same reliable service" we would simply be able to plug phones into the existing wall jacks, without a new modem that won't work in a power outage without a paid battery, or having to be near a power outlet and a coax cable.

And I'm sure there's a zero percent chance Cox will be finding new things to charge us for down the road.

In response to my question about the new phone system not being VOIP, Cox replied that it's now packet switch instead of circuit switch. From my understanding, packet switch = VOIP. How is this not VOIP and how does it work better with fax and alarm than a traditional VOIP system?

I doubt the tech is going to be able to answer the question about why Cox isn't powering the modem from its network anymore.

Has anyone had Cox force this new thing on them yet? I think I just received my third urgent letter about it yesterday. Is anyone having success with the new system?

As near as I can tell I'm paying the same price--plus the cost of a battery--for a downgrade in service. Why doesn't Cox lower the price for the new, worse phone system?