To wonder why everyone insists on using your mobile rather than a landline?

[Dancergirl]

Do we not use landlines any more??

Despite giving both landline and mobile numbers to various people, why is the mobile always the first port of call??

This is why I prefer my landline:

-I can actually hear it ring as we have 3 handsets around the house. My mobile is usually tucked away in my bag.

-When I'm out and about, I'm busy and therefore can't talk at length or make appointments/check my diary etc. I need to be at home to do this.

-I am not a slave to my mobile phone. I think it's rude to start chatting on the phone when I'm talking to someone/in a shop.

So please just use my frigging landline, if I'm not in leave a message and I will ring back at my convenience.

And I would also go so far as to say manners have gone downhill since the introduction of mobiles. The constant interruption, you can't have more than a 5 minute conversation with some people before their phone starts ringing.

We have broadband but no LL

Lara how do you do that? I don't want a Sky/Virgin/cable/whoever tv package. I'd have even less use for that than for a landline.

I got rid of my landline last year, saved a fortune as it was never plugged in anyway. Use mobile bb now. Think the only peoples landline number I have is my nans and the ex's.

I agree OP.

This had nothing to do with everyone else's phone use preferences and everything to do with inability to listen to a simple request, note it, then act on it.

The answer is of course that people who are constantly aware of their mobiles and will happily take personal calls at work or when in the middle of something else, assume that everyone else is the same. The fact that you tell them explicitly that you aren't is hard for them to understand, or, more importantly, remember. So they default to 'reach them now' mobile.

There is mobile bb of course. I signed my son up for 3's. He gets 15gb per month for £15. I suppose I should check our monthly usage and see what we use.

I'm hardly ever in. I expect people to call my mobile if they need to speak to me urgently. I've recently changed my landline number and hardly anyone has it. In any case my mobile number's on my website and everyone who calls me for business purposes uses it.

I am baffled by people who prefer to be called on landlines (other than in non-mobile reception areas) - it's totally perverse.

But if it bothers you that much (and you continue to give out your mobile number despite it bothering you) - set your voicemail to say "this message bank is not in use. If you wish to speak to (NAME), please call (LANDLINE)". Problem solved.

I prefer the landline. When family calls it's nice to have a small chat before swapping the person answering, rather than going direct. DHs family are in another country so 'LL is cheaper. There are 4 handsets in the house and are always set to ring, so your chances of me hearing are much better. I can't answer my mobile at work or when driving, if I'm in the house, I'm more likely to be available to answer.

I wasn't paying for a landline when DH and I have contracts, for some reason it was over £100 for 3 months.

my sister has a landline and I just pay to use here's. Which is once a year for tax credits.

On iphone you can get a app for 0800 numbers and google local numbers.

I use whichever is cheapest.

If I'm calling a landline, or the USA - i use my LL.

If I'm calling a mobile, I use my mobile.

Think it is because it is cheaper. I have landline and mobile but I use the mobile more often because the minutes are already paid for per se (On a cheap Tesco mobile contract). I use the LL for 0845 numbers etc.

I had the opposite problem. I broke down in my car and contacted my breakdown company. Despite me leaving my mobile number with them, they tried to contact me on the landline. When I hadn't heard from them an hour or so later I phoned back and was not amused when I heard they'd been phoning me at home- I did point out that the reason I phoned was because I'd broken down, in my car, ie not at home!

Oh god landline users. Welcome to 2014... I don't get the need to hang on to this landline thing. Get rid its useless. It's like saying you still use the telegram instead of email.

Only my mum calls our landline, mainly at highly inconvenient times and only to convenience herself so I just ignore it most of the time. I unplug it when I can't be arsed with it.

"I am baffled by people who prefer to be called on landlines (other than in non-mobile reception areas) - it's totally perverse."

Perhaps you should read the entire thread.

You obviously don't have older relatives who don't use mobiles and for whom it is expensive to call a mobile number.

I am older than most of you young whippersnappers and my friends, family and I still use a landline as a default option, but will use my mobile to call mobile numbers. I am with Giff Gaff so my contract doesn't include calling 0845 etc numbers, but the landline contract does. We also have unlimited broadband with our LL contract.

OH gets a lot of business calls on the landline because in his line of business to just have a mobile number gives the wrong image.

Where I work we still have telephones on our desks. I can't imagine that my company will ever provide all of its staff with a mobile phone.

And last of all, at key times of the year, and perhaps if there was a huge disaster the mobile networks jam and landlines don't.

I rarely use my mobile - so much so I have no idea what the number is unless I look it up in my phone book ! We have fairly crap mobile reception at home and the signal only really works outside so relying on a mobile would be useless.

The landline is always plugged in because it is also the internet - and the people who ring us on it also either don't have or rarely use a mobile.

I am slightly puzzled by how much people are willing to pay to be able to be phoned wherever you happen to be and whenever. I always hesitate to ring a mobile because the recipient may not be in a good position to talk (and you have no idea). At least with a landline they are at home and more likely to be happy to chat. It also costs more to phone a mobile which I kind of resent paying.

OP, I am the same as you, but I think it's a sign of age. It seems to make so much more sense to me to phone a landline - it's usually cheaper and if you call a mobile you have no idea where the person is or what they might be in the middle of doing. Also, the sound clarity is usually much better on a landline.

But no-one calls me on my landline apart from my OH on the way home from work, or cold callers. Though I do also use it for work calls.

I agree with the Op and Bunbaker - but then I also existed very happily before mobile phones . We coped in emergencies - more to the point we learned to be self-reliant rather than expecting someone else to bail us out. It's all too easy for young people to rely on their mobile 100% instead of learning skills like how to get home safely etc etc

I have stopped giving out my mobile number to all and sundry, as someone else says it is for my convenience.

I also don't like to call other people on their mobile, I think it is very intrusive (a quick text is different) - someone else mentioned emails but a lot of people I know don't seem to use email anymore - is that considered old fashioned now? British Gas phoned me at work the other day to do some sort of survey and seemed quite surprised when I said it wasn't convenient to talk to them .

hackmum - good point about sound clarity, it is not always easy to hear people on mobiles and you get a terrible, disjointed conversation yes, DH, that applies to you too. .

I agree too, we have poor mobile reception at home so the LL gets used by default.

Although I have 24/7 free call to and from both I always try people on their LL first, as if they are out they're probably busy. If they don't answer I tend to text rather than leavd a message though.

As for tradespeople, I tend not to use them if they don't have a landline, unless they've been personally recommended, it used to be standard advice that those without LLs were possibly not trustworthy and the habit has stuck.

I don't like texts either - would far rather email. If they don't answer - send an email - that's my motto.

toavoid how are you supposed to 'get rid do your landline' when you have such poor mobile reception at home you can barely hear??

Another reason to keep the LL is for the DCs, they are too young to have mobiles (10 and 8) but old enough to use the phone, if I go out and leave the eldest for short periods he uses the LL to call me on my mobile. Also, if DH and I were only ever called on our mobiles the DCs wouldn't get the practice of answering the phone and asking the person to hold while they go and find me or DH. Maybe that need will die out as the use of LLs decreases though.

My mobile is almost always switched off - I use it to make calls not to receive them. I refuse to be a slave to the phone. The ringer on my landline is often off (got fed up with sales calls) so most of my family email me to make arrangements to speak on the phone :-)

My OH (a journalist) doesn't have a mobile. Hates them and refuses to use one. A little unusual nowadays...