Our Mission: Bring Back the Good Calls

Our mission is to connect as many people as possible to the safe, retro fun of landlines—and leave the annoyances behind.

We’ve grown fond of an old feeling: the phone rang, and you were excited.

A real human was probably on the other end. Someone who knew you, at least a little, and wanted to talk. A friend asking if you could come over. Your aunt checking in. Somebody with a story that apparently could not wait until tomorrow.

You picked up because you wanted to find out who it was.

We would love more homes to feel that way again.

A phone worth answering

A child should get to call a friend, tell Grandma something important, and learn how to carry a conversation. A grown-up should be able to put down a smartphone without giving up the people on the other end of it.

Those are small freedoms. They can make a home feel different.

The annoyances are familiar too: unwanted calls, interruptions at the wrong time, confusing bills, and equipment that makes an ordinary conversation feel like a project. Removing those frustrations is the work behind our mission.

With Doorman, families can choose who rings through and how unfamiliar callers are handled. Call screening is built into the Brain, without a paid Doorman plan. Thoughtful rules help make room for welcome calls; they still need to account for people such as the school office, a doctor, or a friend calling from a new number.

Find the phone that fits your people

For some families, Ooma Basic will be a good fit. We say: totally fine. It’s a great option to consider.

The same goes for Tin Can. If the people your child wants to call already use it, and you can see your future teenager happily sticking with it, that sounds like a good fit too. Having your people already there matters.

If a phone does what your household needs, at a cost you are comfortable with, that is a good outcome. Pick the phone you will actually use. Then give someone its number.

Our comparison tool is there to help you make that decision, including the situations where another option costs less. Every family that finds an easy way to keep talking is a step toward the world we want to help build.

A little old-fashioned. A little more possible.

We also think a home phone has room for more fun.

A story on speakerphone while children follow along in a picture book. An adventure where pressing a button changes what happens next. Games that give friends a reason to keep calling each other.

StoryBox, interactive stories, and phone games are things we’re working toward. They’re coming soon. We want them to make the phone a place for imagination as well as conversation.

But the feeling we’re after is already easy to understand.

The phone rings. Someone looks up. A little smile.

“Oh! I wonder who that is.”