PSTN dialler/call savings routing box from 1990s? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: eti
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 05:33:10 am
content: In UK back in the 90s, there were various prefix numbers you could dial before you dialled the desired number, which saved you money, one of which was "Mercury" which used 132 code. Anyway, way back in the 90s I recall we were sent a tiny box about the size of a UK phone socket, which had a BT phone plug at one end and a socket at the other - you inserted this device inline, between your phone and the phone socket, and it would detect what number you were dialling, wait until you'd finished dialling digits, then it would prepend the call saving service code in front of the number you'd dialled, then dial the whole number for you, savings code included, without you needing to do anything.I remember taking it apart as a teenager, but I didn't make any notes as to what make or model etc, it was, nor the provider (this was wayyyyyy before my digital realm began online, so I have no records or emails).Does anyone in the UK remember these dongle dangling thingies, where they came from or any other info? They fascinated me.Thank you

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 05:07:46 pm
content: IIRC, they were called "least cost routers". DTMF receiver and transmitter plus an MCU and simple SLIC circuitry.

author: eti
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 06:08:40 pm
content: Quote from: Benta on August 14, 2020, 05:07:46 pmThank you ever so much! Now, to wrack my brain as to the company we got it from...Hmmm, this looks interesting:https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/3a/76/bd/c3a2a5f44c833c/WO1996033583A1.pdf

author: MrMobodies
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 08:20:23 pm
content: I remembered getting something like that with Cable & Wireless back in 1999 after getting cut off by BT.I didn't know what it was called but was told it saves the cost telephone calls.When I returned home a couple of years later NTL took over the street cabinet and also installed cable broadband and I never saw the savings box after that.I see this might had something to do with it:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_Communications

author: eti
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 08:38:15 pm
content: Quote from: MrMobodies on August 14, 2020, 08:20:23 pmI seem to recall it being something to do with Mercury... hmmm

author: ynfo
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 19, 2020, 03:34:30 pm
content: I have an "Orchid V4". Originally used to stop teenage sons dialling high-cost numbers!It has a serial port and companion PC program to download settings and save them on a hosted server. The company stopped selling them around 2010 and there was an open source excel spreadsheet based alternative developed.It used to be recommended by Martin Lewis's MoneySavingExpert site and there is a (long) archived thread with more details here:https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/1477019/orchid-v4-v4-programing-tool-supportMine still works. At some point I will retrieve it from the cobwebs and tear it down.