Great video Dave, that you for posting it. I want to hook up a dedicated fax line for a home-office that will rarely get used. I really didn't want to pay my local telephone provider $20 a month for this. Your video gave me the info I needed to do it with extremely small investment in hardware and free service through Google Voice.
Thanik you Daves Workshop for the walk through to set up my Obi202 that I got working fine. The page to accept the Google terms never did build, it said can't connect to google server. I thought that was a failure but clicked accept anyway, it worked and allowed to proceed with the setup. I had to change some settings in my Canon multi function RX for Fax and turned off all the forward, message, etc settings on my Google Voice settings. I used faxzero and HP's service to confirm. It worked. Thanks again :-)
I have found a way to make faxing work using Google Voice. The problem with faxing is it is analog and Google Voice is fully digital so I ported my Google Voice number to a friends land line and set the Google Voice setting to not to ring the land line and to my surprise it has worked.
A great informational video on the Obihi unit and service. I am sold and will use it in psych on-call practice remotely for on call phone consultations. Thanks ever so much.
I am glad you found it helpful. And do to your application you may have additional security or compliance requirements. I cannot advise you one way or another on those.
what settings did you do to receive faxs through your google voice line.. Is there special setting like with the greeting call screening and the voice mail. I am stuck with faxes not completing. ANd It appears that the voice mail may be causing hiccump to receive the calls or call screening feature with google voice??
Dave thanks for taking the time to enlighten others as to how to use 2 separate lines. w/ two separate G accounts. Just 1 question how does one port their existing land line numbers?
In case you haven't figured it out yet, try searching on "porting landline to google voice". I think the idea is, you must first convert your land line number to a mobile number, and then you can port it to Google voice.
@@hounddog57 Yes, there are videos on UA-cam that describe the process. I'm in the middle of doing it now. I bought a pre-paid T-Mobile Sim card about a week and a half ago that I put into an old unlocked iPhone 4 that I hadn't used in years. I set up a one month plan. After I confirmed everything was working--I could send and receive calls and texts on the repurposed iPhone--I requested that T-Mobile port my landline number to the T-Mobile account, replacing the number they had assigned me. This took a few days. As of today, my land line is now my mobile number for the T-Mobile account, and I checked that I could send from and receive calls to the old iPhone using the ported landline. I have initiated the process of porting the T-mobile number, (my old landline number) to Google Voice, which should be complete by tomorrow morning. I just received the rebranded Polycom version of the Obi 202 yesterday in the mail and I will be setting up my "new" landline (using my landline/GV number). Callers to my landline number shouldn't even know a change took place.
2023 they're ending Obi , selling off current stock, supposed to still work . But can't figure thru OBI web sight. There's some used ones and open box on ebay . I'm wondering if they are tied to an account ? And Google voice only lets you forward calls to one ph number, I tried a second voice account and it will void my 1st account # if I choose 2nd GV number. Can't use forward # twice. Does OBI202 let you use 1 forwarding number to set up account thru GV ?
It's been working reliably for me since I set it up doing this video. However polycon owns them now and I believe they're dropping support for the device so I'm not sure what to do that and my fax machine died and I'm not going to buy another one.
Nothing special at all I simply set up the Obi202 the way I show in the video and then set up the fax following the manufacture directions. Works perfectly
Daves Workshop i've followed your steps, check forums, other videos and the whole world can't seem to get google voice to work with obi202 to receive faxes. I can send all day if i turn off ecm and lower speed to lowest, but can't receive. I wish I knew how you made it work when nobody else can. please enlighten us with an update showing it actually working and show us your settings again please!
Great video ,can you let us all know the make and model of your fax machine that worked with Obi 202 and Google Voice? GV says they dont support fax, curious to know the fax machine that made it possible in your case.
Can I use the same GV phone # for phone and fax? I am setting up SP1 for phone and SP2 for fax. Or do I need a 2nd GV #? There is a fee for a 2nd GV#. Did you have to setup 2 gmail accounts to get 2 numbers for no fees?
The Obi200 Is a single line adapter so you will only have one phone line. When I started I had 2 Obi110 Adapters but they lost support due to a change in Google Voice protocols. I prefer having the single device for both lines. You can use the single wine for outgoing fax calls but I needed an incoming fax line as well.
Hello . I set up everything as instructed but my incoming faxes aren’t completed ? Is there a setting I have to do to enable that ? Is the voicemail the issue ? Thanks
Thanks for the video and it made setup quite easy. So far everything works for me except for receiving fax. Would you please teach me how to setup to receive fax? I turned off ECM and set up fax speed to low but still not working. I contacted OBiTALK support but nothing new to suggest to me. Thanks again!
Hi Dave, Please I watched your video, how you set up obihai 202/Google fax. Please I would like to know how to figure out the fax number. I didn't see any fax number in the video. Thanks.
Well, you are quite correct, I did not expose either of my Google voice numbers in the video. Like I explained in the video, you set up 2 Google voice accounts, and configure one as dedicated to voice, and the other dedicated to your fax. Google voice provides the numbers, you chose which one you use for what. Hopefully this explanation makes sense. Let me know if you are still lost afterwards.
@@Wildersport got, thanks. OK, 2 different Google accounts. Each one gets a number. I had to fall back to Google voice legacy to find the SIP IDs, and yep, they are different.
I wonder if this would work for me abroad. Hopefully will be retiring end of this year and I’ll need a USA phone line to keep in contact with local banks, etc. could I receive pin codes banks send? Text messages? And I’m guessing faxing should be fine as long as I have WiFi
I don't know if Google imposes restrictions based on IP addresses etc... Might be worth a try. Mind you, I don't think these are sold under the Obihai name any more. Another, larger telecom mfg bought them up I believe... And yes, you can send / receive SMS messages using Google Voice... You need wired broadband though, not WiFi.
If you setup the Google voice number like you described and connect a standard fax machine to the line on the obi202 can you send and receive faxes without an additional fax service such as efax?
I'm not an expert with the fax machine but the ones that I have had have a pass through for the phone so you hook the OBI to the fax machine and the phone to the output on the fax machine.
@@Wildersport Thank you. I do have a fax line plugged into my all-in-one printer/scanner, and that line is plugged into the wall phone line where I have plugged in a splitter, the other line going to my handset. I am able to use the fax function with the same number as my landline phone number. I was wondering if this was true with the Obihai 200, or if the 202 was required.
@@Wildersport Thanks! I suddenly realized I want to get the Obi202 anyway, as I will be able to assign two Google Voice numbers to the Obi, one for each line. I had been thinking of getting the Obi primarily so I could port my land line to a cell number and then to Google Voice, in order to stop paying for land line service, minimal as the cost is. Also, I live in NYC and I will probably have to move elsewhere in the relatively nearer, rather than farther, future, and I want to keep my Manhattan phone number! (It's mine! It's mine!) Thanks for the very clear and detailed instructions.
@@Wildersport I finally received the OBI 202, (or the rebranded Polycom version, anyway), and I wonder if you could elaborate a little on your comment above about the fax, (or even make a short video?). That is, you say to "hook the OBI to the fax machine and the phone to the output on the fax machine." Does this mean you don't connect the OBI directly to the phone? Do you connect the OBI directly to the fax machine, and then connect the fax machine to the OBI? I can't envision what you are describing, given that you do have one line as your dedicated voice line. Also, are you able to use GV via the OBI to make faxes without needing a paid third-party eFAX service? I appreciate any clarification you might be able to add. Thanks again for the video and comment replies so far.
The Obi202 is a 2 port device configured with 2 separate lines, in the configuration I set up, one is dedicated to voice only, the other is dedicated to fax.
@@Wildersport very kind of you to reply so quickly. I already have my phone set up to obi200 which has only one port. so I was wondering if I can use that one port just when I need to fax, which is not very often (unplug from phone and plug the fax machine). thank you.
I can't imagine a reason you would want to do that for sending a fax. Just set up your facts to not answer incoming calls. Unless you are planning on making a call at the same time as you're making a fax it shouldn't be a problem. And I just now saw your reply to my reply. Yes with the obi200, You can just set it up so your phone line comes out in into your fax and then out and to your phone can of Daisy chained. Now if you have some odd fax machine that does not have and in-and-out port so that you can do this you will have to unplug and plug in each device you need to use when you need the use it. Mind you facts is an outgoing technology and I only have it around because well the printer had it and my doctor, and flex plan administrator occasionly requires stuff faxed.
Is this model still supported for google voice in Jan 2021? I am looking at a used one to buy for $15 and want to be sure I will actually be able to use it. Also, is it still free to use with google voice or is there now a yearly fee to use it?
Mine still works with Google Voice as of 5 minutes ago. I have no idea about any updates to Google voice, but I saw something about hangouts going away.
@@Wildersport thanks. I think that hangouts going away will not affect the google voice VOIP. I just wanted to be sure this hardware had not been forced obsolete like so many things are forced these days.
I cant really say as I don't use it. I know that I had to check compatibility through Xfinity when I got my own cable modem they have compatibility lists you might want to check there.
The video you are responding to is over 2 years old. As you know Technology marches forward at an incredibly fast pace, and the current year, 2020 hasn't been kind to many businesses. I noticed over a year ago the Obi devices started getting Polycom branding, and soon after they disappeared off of Amazon. A quick Google search for Polycom Obi202 lead me to the listing on Newegg business. www.neweggbusiness.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9B-33-617-016&source=region&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleBiz-PC&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleBiz-PC-_-pla-_-Telephone+-+VoIP+%28Voice+Over+IP%29-_-9B-33-617-016&gclid=CjwKCAjwlbr8BRA0EiwAnt4MTsdH64iCR7QYJ_ExsjDX0pePXaLzmBrd55zgkBtnngap7Ybb2qo2PBoCefwQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds Hopefully that helps.
Yes there is some work required to satiate up probably more then magic Jack. But I have no bills from my phone for either voice or facts so to me it's well worth it. My line if I choose to will ring through to my cell phone so effectively my Home Office phone is wherever I am if I want to be. I would say the effort is well spent but you may not feel the same way.
this is the only video in the whole UA-cam that actually shows how to do 2 lines on one device. thanks for the info !!
I echo Eleazar's comments and sentiments! Thanks so much for the video!
Great video Dave, that you for posting it. I want to hook up a dedicated fax line for a home-office that will rarely get used. I really didn't want to pay my local telephone provider $20 a month for this. Your video gave me the info I needed to do it with extremely small investment in hardware and free service through Google Voice.
That's exactly why I did it from me. I want to be able to receive faxes and have a landline for a small business but it doesn't get used often
Thanik you Daves Workshop for the walk through to set up my Obi202 that I got working fine. The page to accept the Google terms never did build, it said can't connect to google server. I thought that was a failure but clicked accept anyway, it worked and allowed to proceed with the setup. I had to change some settings in my Canon multi function RX for Fax and turned off all the forward, message, etc settings on my Google Voice settings. I used faxzero and HP's service to confirm. It worked. Thanks again :-)
I have found a way to make faxing work using Google Voice. The problem with faxing is it is analog and Google Voice is fully digital so I ported my Google Voice number to a friends land line and set the Google Voice setting to not to ring the land line and to my surprise it has worked.
I never had to do anything fancy like that. For me Fax just works.
A great informational video on the Obihi unit and service. I am sold and will use it in psych on-call practice remotely for on call phone consultations. Thanks ever so much.
I am glad you found it helpful. And do to your application you may have additional security or compliance requirements. I cannot advise you one way or another on those.
So do each phone line have a different google account or can single google account for both phone lines? Thank.
Thanks Dave your're awsome god bless
Dude you look and sound like John Goodman! Very cool dude!
I wish I looked that good! Of course I'm super glad my wife is way hotter than Roseanne...
what settings did you do to receive faxs through your google voice line.. Is there special setting like with the greeting call screening and the voice mail. I am stuck with faxes not completing. ANd It appears that the voice mail may be causing hiccump to receive the calls or call screening feature with google voice??
I Am having the same issues ? Did you find out what settings to do to get this resolved ? Thanks
Dave thanks for taking the time to enlighten others as to how to use 2 separate lines. w/ two separate G accounts. Just 1 question how does one port their existing land line numbers?
In case you haven't figured it out yet, try searching on "porting landline to google voice". I think the idea is, you must first convert your land line number to a mobile number, and then you can port it to Google voice.
@@hounddog57 Yes, there are videos on UA-cam that describe the process. I'm in the middle of doing it now. I bought a pre-paid T-Mobile Sim card about a week and a half ago that I put into an old unlocked iPhone 4 that I hadn't used in years. I set up a one month plan. After I confirmed everything was working--I could send and receive calls and texts on the repurposed iPhone--I requested that T-Mobile port my landline number to the T-Mobile account, replacing the number they had assigned me. This took a few days. As of today, my land line is now my mobile number for the T-Mobile account, and I checked that I could send from and receive calls to the old iPhone using the ported landline. I have initiated the process of porting the T-mobile number, (my old landline number) to Google Voice, which should be complete by tomorrow morning. I just received the rebranded Polycom version of the Obi 202 yesterday in the mail and I will be setting up my "new" landline (using my landline/GV number). Callers to my landline number shouldn't even know a change took place.
2023 they're ending Obi , selling off current stock, supposed to still work . But can't figure thru OBI web sight. There's some used ones and open box on ebay . I'm wondering if they are tied to an account ? And Google voice only lets you forward calls to one ph number, I tried a second voice account and it will void my 1st account # if I choose 2nd GV number. Can't use forward # twice. Does OBI202 let you use 1 forwarding number to set up account thru GV ?
Nice video. Did you ever get fax to work reliably? I haven't.
It's been working reliably for me since I set it up doing this video. However polycon owns them now and I believe they're dropping support for the device so I'm not sure what to do that and my fax machine died and I'm not going to buy another one.
Good video!
Question: how do you configure your fax with obi202? did you have to do anything special?
Nothing special at all I simply set up the Obi202 the way I show in the video and then set up the fax following the manufacture directions. Works perfectly
Daves Workshop i've followed your steps, check forums, other videos and the whole world can't seem to get google voice to work with obi202 to receive faxes. I can send all day if i turn off ecm and lower speed to lowest, but can't receive. I wish I knew how you made it work when nobody else can. please enlighten us with an update showing it actually working and show us your settings again please!
@@Wildersport seems google voice doesnt support fax, but can you make another video how to set up a free fax with obi202 with a fax machine? thank you
Great video ,can you let us all know the make and model of your fax machine that worked with Obi 202 and Google Voice? GV says they dont support fax, curious to know the fax machine that made it possible in your case.
Can I use the same GV phone # for phone and fax? I am setting up SP1 for phone and SP2 for fax. Or do I need a 2nd GV #? There is a fee for a 2nd GV#.
Did you have to setup 2 gmail accounts to get 2 numbers for no fees?
You need 2 separate numbers.
how do i port my home phone to obi202
Bro I need your assistance I followed your instructions and it says all are connected but the fax doesn't work how do I set it up
good job
i just got the obi200 and I want to know how do I also fax with my google voice number? or will I have to get a second number?
The Obi200 Is a single line adapter so you will only have one phone line. When I started I had 2 Obi110 Adapters but they lost support due to a change in Google Voice protocols. I prefer having the single device for both lines. You can use the single wine for outgoing fax calls but I needed an incoming fax line as well.
I'm trying to setup a second Google Voice number on line two (Sp2) and I'm getting the message: "Connect Failed: 403 Forbidden" Please advise.
Thanks for the tutorial. I set mine up and am using it only for fax. How do I get phone number that is associated with this line?
Do you have to pay for any additional services/ fees in order to fax?
@@DwayneDevelops No you dont have to pay for anything
Hello . I set up everything as instructed but my incoming faxes aren’t completed ? Is there a setting I have to do to enable that ? Is the voicemail the issue ? Thanks
Thanks for the video and it made setup quite easy. So far everything works for me except for receiving fax. Would you please teach me how to setup to receive fax? I turned off ECM and set up fax speed to low but still not working. I contacted OBiTALK support but nothing new to suggest to me. Thanks again!
What sort of fax are you using? O am using an HP all in one machine with no specific settings....
Thanks! Dave, I used HP all in one laser printer and somehow it worked after I tried a few times. Thanks for your time.
Hi Dave,
Please I watched your video, how you set up obihai 202/Google fax. Please I would like to know how to figure out the fax number.
I didn't see any fax number in the video.
Thanks.
Well, you are quite correct, I did not expose either of my Google voice numbers in the video. Like I explained in the video, you set up 2 Google voice accounts, and configure one as dedicated to voice, and the other dedicated to your fax. Google voice provides the numbers, you chose which one you use for what.
Hopefully this explanation makes sense. Let me know if you are still lost afterwards.
OK, get it... but how do know what number (other than the OBi number) is assigned to each phone line?
You sign up for 2 separate Google Voice numbers, and each Google Voice number gets assigned to each line. Sorry if that wasn't clear.
@@Wildersport got, thanks. OK, 2 different Google accounts. Each one gets a number. I had to fall back to Google voice legacy to find the SIP IDs, and yep, they are different.
I wonder if this would work for me abroad. Hopefully will be retiring end of this year and I’ll need a USA phone line to keep in contact with local banks, etc. could I receive pin codes banks send? Text messages? And I’m guessing faxing should be fine as long as I have WiFi
I don't know if Google imposes restrictions based on IP addresses etc... Might be worth a try. Mind you, I don't think these are sold under the Obihai name any more. Another, larger telecom mfg bought them up I believe... And yes, you can send / receive SMS messages using Google Voice... You need wired broadband though, not WiFi.
If you setup the Google voice number like you described and connect a standard fax machine to the line on the obi202 can you send and receive faxes without an additional fax service such as efax?
Yes. Thats the idea...
thank you
Can the obi200 be used with a phone line and a fax if I have a splitter at the phone line slot in my wall?
I'm not an expert with the fax machine but the ones that I have had have a pass through for the phone so you hook the OBI to the fax machine and the phone to the output on the fax machine.
@@Wildersport Thank you. I do have a fax line plugged into my all-in-one printer/scanner, and that line is plugged into the wall phone line where I have plugged in a splitter, the other line going to my handset. I am able to use the fax function with the same number as my landline phone number. I was wondering if this was true with the Obihai 200, or if the 202 was required.
If you want a dedicated fax line with your dedicated voice line, you need the Obi202.
@@Wildersport Thanks! I suddenly realized I want to get the Obi202 anyway, as I will be able to assign two Google Voice numbers to the Obi, one for each line. I had been thinking of getting the Obi primarily so I could port my land line to a cell number and then to Google Voice, in order to stop paying for land line service, minimal as the cost is. Also, I live in NYC and I will probably have to move elsewhere in the relatively nearer, rather than farther, future, and I want to keep my Manhattan phone number! (It's mine! It's mine!) Thanks for the very clear and detailed instructions.
@@Wildersport I finally received the OBI 202, (or the rebranded Polycom version, anyway), and I wonder if you could elaborate a little on your comment above about the fax, (or even make a short video?). That is, you say to "hook the OBI to the fax machine and the phone to the output on the fax machine." Does this mean you don't connect the OBI directly to the phone? Do you connect the OBI directly to the fax machine, and then connect the fax machine to the OBI? I can't envision what you are describing, given that you do have one line as your dedicated voice line. Also, are you able to use GV via the OBI to make faxes without needing a paid third-party eFAX service? I appreciate any clarification you might be able to add. Thanks again for the video and comment replies so far.
Hi Dave . I did all that but when I try to fax in it doesn’t go through ? Am I missing a setting for the fax line ?
Are you saying you can't receive a fax or you can't send?
@@Wildersport hi Dave . Thanks for your quick reply . I can’t receive anything ? And sending is sometimes random. I keep getting error 345 or 344
also, can I use a regular fax machine? thanks
I would think so I use a Hewlett packard photo smart all-in-one print scan copy fax machine on mine.
can I use same port for both fax and phone, just unplug the phone when I want to send a fax? thanks.
The Obi202 is a 2 port device configured with 2 separate lines, in the configuration I set up, one is dedicated to voice only, the other is dedicated to fax.
@@Wildersport very kind of you to reply so quickly. I already have my phone set up to obi200 which has only one port. so I was wondering if I can use that one port just when I need to fax, which is not very often (unplug from phone and plug the fax machine). thank you.
I can't imagine a reason you would want to do that for sending a fax. Just set up your facts to not answer incoming calls. Unless you are planning on making a call at the same time as you're making a fax it shouldn't be a problem. And I just now saw your reply to my reply. Yes with the obi200, You can just set it up so your phone line comes out in into your fax and then out and to your phone can of Daisy chained. Now if you have some odd fax machine that does not have and in-and-out port so that you can do this you will have to unplug and plug in each device you need to use when you need the use it. Mind you facts is an outgoing technology and I only have it around because well the printer had it and my doctor, and flex plan administrator occasionly requires stuff faxed.
Is this model still supported for google voice in Jan 2021? I am looking at a used one to buy for $15 and want to be sure I will actually be able to use it. Also, is it still free to use with google voice or is there now a yearly fee to use it?
Mine still works with Google Voice as of 5 minutes ago. I have no idea about any updates to Google voice, but I saw something about hangouts going away.
@@Wildersport thanks. I think that hangouts going away will not affect the google voice VOIP. I just wanted to be sure this hardware had not been forced obsolete like so many things are forced these days.
Mine still works. Google voice is still free. You just have to us it at least one every 30 days to keep it active
HOw does it work with Xfinity Voice?
I cant really say as I don't use it. I know that I had to check compatibility through Xfinity when I got my own cable modem they have compatibility lists you might want to check there.
Good tutorial, but fax is a no go with google voice.
Been working flawlessly ever since I set it up. So I'm not sure what the issue you're having with fax on Google Voice.
Hi Dave . Can you please let us know if there is a certain setting to be done to allow faxing ? My incoming faxes aren’t completing
Is the fax outgoing/incoming?
Bi directional
does it still work?
As of last night... yes. No problem. This is the current 200 series Obi. My old Obi 110 was end of life and replaced...
where to buy one brand new at around $100? ebay wants $200, and that's too much. amazon wants $300. outrageous. thanks.
The video you are responding to is over 2 years old. As you know Technology marches forward at an incredibly fast pace, and the current year, 2020 hasn't been kind to many businesses. I noticed over a year ago the Obi devices started getting Polycom branding, and soon after they disappeared off of Amazon. A quick Google search for Polycom Obi202 lead me to the listing on Newegg business. www.neweggbusiness.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9B-33-617-016&source=region&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleBiz-PC&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleBiz-PC-_-pla-_-Telephone+-+VoIP+%28Voice+Over+IP%29-_-9B-33-617-016&gclid=CjwKCAjwlbr8BRA0EiwAnt4MTsdH64iCR7QYJ_ExsjDX0pePXaLzmBrd55zgkBtnngap7Ybb2qo2PBoCefwQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds Hopefully that helps.
Dude the music is too much
you have flying orbs behide you....
Hmmm. Probably aliens...
Setting it up looks too complicated
Yes there is some work required to satiate up probably more then magic Jack. But I have no bills from my phone for either voice or facts so to me it's well worth it. My line if I choose to will ring through to my cell phone so effectively my Home Office phone is wherever I am if I want to be. I would say the effort is well spent but you may not feel the same way.