Jamesey said:

The only charge for voicemail is when you make a call from your cell to check messages. I try to check my VM from my office or home phone whenever possible to avoid charges.

Ah.. you see I keep learning every day. I thought that the messages were already on your phone and it was your decision to check them or not. I didn't know a call had to be placed first before you could check them. (Hey it's conceivable that messages could be delivered to your phone automatically/silently if it's turned on. Crazier things happen with technology these days.)

The only charge for voicemail is when you make a call from your cell to check messages. I try to check my VM from my office or home phone whenever possible to avoid charges.

Retrieving messages are free, but regular airtime charges apply if you check your voicemail using your Speak Out cell phone. You are not charged for the time that other callers spend leaving messages on your voicemail. Of course, they are charged regular airtime charges if they use a cell phone to leave a message.

Call customer service if you really don't want voicemail.

iamdrumming said:

Airtime charges ALWAYS apply at all times when using a SpeakOut phone. I don't think it's deceptive at all.

IAD, to a long-time user all of this would be rather obvious.
But for a new user like myself, who was just advised to read the FAQ at this site and reads the line in question, no one would automatically think that airtime charges would ALWAYS apply, especially when they aren't even familiar with what airtime means!

>I would suggest doing lots of reading on the official SpeakOut site as well, as their word is the final word. This site is just a guide.

Will do that. Perhaps you could add:
9. What are the voicemail charges?

Leaving messages and retrieving messages are free (PLUS airtime charges of course) ...

I would have no misunderstanding with that at all.

I would suggest doing lots of reading on the official SpeakOut site as well, as their word is the final word. This site is just a guide.

Leaving messages and retrieving messages are free, unless you are checking them from your cell phone. In that case, regular airtime charges apply. Call customer service if you really don't want voicemail.

Sounds a little deceiving/confusing.
Someone may interpret that to be; you call someone, you are given their voicemail, you leave a message and you aren't charged anything for that (free).