CallerID on your DVR? Childs play. Verizon has launched an app on FiOS TV set-top boxes to manage your digital voice account. The rollout started earlier this month, but now that all subscribers have been successfully upgraded to IMG 1.9 (including us here in the DC region), the FiOS Digital Voice functionality is universally available. And, as you can see from the pics, I took it for a quick test drive.
While the IMG interface is still too sluggish, compared to say the upcoming DirecTV UI, it may be more convenient for folks to access their FiOS Digital Voice calls logs and voice mail. Yes, you can actually listen to your voicemail from the TV. Which gave me the opportunity to do a little house cleaning via that delete option. Verizon also pulls off some Google Voice trickery by allowing you to return missed calls — once selected, your home phone will ring and then it’ll dial up the other number.
Will I use these features? Probably not… as we don’t much utilize this line, only keeping Digital Voice services around as a cell backup and to save a few bucks via the triple play bundle. But it’s a rather clever technical proof of concept. And I suspect some will appreciate it.
So I’ve been informed the NYC region still hasn’t received IMG 1.9. Interesting, all along I’ve been under the impression Virginia was last (as the largest). Having said that, Verizon did tell me yesterday that this feature is available to all FiOS TV subscribers, who also obviously subscribe to Digital Voice services, as of this week. Which happens to be the same week NoVA received IMG 1.9.
Not all FiOS TV Subscribers will have this available. I have FiOS TV & Internet, but not Digital Voice. That option was not available and I am still on their Freedom Voice POTS product.
Hmmm – pretty sure we have it in Northern NJ – I came back from vacation last month to a brand new interface. Unless there’s yet another update?
Proof of concept is definitely the correct spin for this. Sort of like their Facebook-on-TV-but-you-have-to-type-with-your-remote
As a fellow subscriber, I’m far more interested in when they’ll give us a working iPad app