Is it true that au's new rate plan "povo" cannot use answering machine service?

A cheap plan for a major carrier mobile company that started in the spring of 2021. The advantage of this plan is that the monthly usage fee can be reduced as there is no supplementary service included in the basic fee in the conventional plan. In the case of au's cheap plan povo, you can use an option called "topping" by paying an additional fee. In this article, we will explain the options that can be used with povo and the availability of services such as answering machines that can be used with conventional plans.

Povo doesn't have answering machine

First, let's take a closer look at what's not available or included in povo's basic plan. First of all, let's understand that povo cannot use answering machines or carrier mail.

The price is cheap, but some functions cannot be used

Povo's appeal is the low basic charge realized by eliminating unnecessary services, Some services are no longer available. For example, the "Upgrade Program" and "au Smart Pass", which discount the purchase price and repair fee of the terminal, will continue to be applied, but the "Smart Value" and "Family Discount", which discount the basic monthly fee, will be applied. Not applicable.

Can't use carrier email

Carrier email is the email address given to you when you sign up for a smartphone. It is an email that includes "@docomo.ne.jp" for docomo, "@softbank.ne.jp" for Softbank, and "@ezweb.ne.jp" for au.

People who have registered for websites and apps with these carrier emails until now will not be able to log in to their accounts after the povo migration, so before the migration, change the registration to a free email such as Gmail or Yahoo mail. Let's get it done.

There are toppings (optional), but you can't set the answering machine

Povo's toppings include "unlimited calls within 5 minutes," "unlimited calls," and "unlimited calls." For when you want to use a lot of data, there are four toppings: "unlimited data usage for 24 hours" and "additional 1 GB of data". However, there is no topping that corresponds to the answering machine service at the moment, and the answering machine function cannot be used.

How can I survive with povo that can't use the answering machine function?

Although the answering machine function cannot be used with povo, there must be many people who say, "I'm in trouble without an answering machine function service." Here are some workarounds. For those who signed up for povo without knowing that the service could not be used, or those who hesitated to switch to povo because of the inability to use the service, please refer to it.

Using the call forwarding function

povo supports the "call forwarding function". Call forwarding is a free service that forwards incoming calls to another registered phone. You can set "transfer conditions", for example, you can transfer incoming calls when you cannot answer an incoming call, when you are out of service or the power is off, or when you are on a call. However, in the case of this method, there is a demerit that a telephone to be a forwarding destination must be prepared.

Using an IP Phone App

One way to do this is to use the IP phone app "050plus" from "NTT Communications". 050plus is an application that allows you to have an IP phone number starting with 050 for a monthly fee of 330 yen. Compatible with Android, iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad devices.

If you use the call forwarding function mentioned above and set the forwarding destination to the 050plus IP phone, you will receive a message with a voice file attached when you cannot answer the call, so you can immediately retrieve the contents of the answering machine. I can confirm. The number of messages that can be stored in the app is 20, and the recording time is 90 seconds. It can be stored for 7 days.

In addition, the calling application "SMARTalk" provided by Rakuten Mobile can be used free of monthly usage charges. The storage period is 7 days, the same as 050plus, but the number of records and recording time are less than 050plus.

Cheap plans from other companies recommended for people who need an answering machine function

The three cheap plans povo, ahamo, and LINEMO (formerly softbank on line) that started all at once this time are all answering machines. Not compatible with service. So, finally, I would like to introduce carriers and cheap smartphones (MVNO) that can use answering machine services in a similar price range.

Rakuten Mobile

Rakuten Mobile's "Rakuten UN-LIMIT VI" is a one-plan system where the monthly usage fee is determined by the monthly data usage fee. You can reduce the monthly usage fee for months when you do not use data, and if you exceed 20 GB, there is no limit and the monthly usage fee is 3,278 yen no matter how much data you use. A free answering machine service is available.

UQ Mobile

An answering machine service is also available with au's sub-brand "UQ Mobile". However, the answering machine service cannot be used alone, and a new person can be called during a call, and three people can talk at the same time. It is necessary to apply for a 418 yen pack that includes the "nuisance call rejection service" that can be connected to.

Sentence/oki