I'm somewhat acquainted with one of the guys running this effort, and it's really been amazing to see it go from "unknown niche hobby project" to "all over the news" practically overnight. Nobody is sure why the media seized on it so much, but in the course of a week or two, it went from completely obscure, to being reported on by a few Internet-based techy/nerdy media outlets, to being talked about by the mainstream news (NBC!). I guess people are more interested in payphones than expected.<p>Though it does bum me out that a typical comment section on the mainstream news articles is 30% "why is the government spending money on this? Lower my taxes!!" It's a completely volunteer project guys, there is no government money involved... ah well.
In Australia a couple of years ago Telstra, which I believe is required by the government to provide public phones. They have discovered that it's cheaper to just provide the phones free rather than have to continuously repair them after people try to jack the coin hopper or deal with support for refunding card payments when the payment succeeds but the call does not go through.<p><a href="https://exchange.telstra.com.au/why-were-making-payphones-free-for-calls-around-australia/" rel="nofollow">https://exchange.telstra.com.au/why-were-making-payphones-fr...</a>
My big worry with the disappearance of public pay-phones is for the homeless and other poor. However, I recently learned that there are often programs to assist them with getting cellular devices. All in all, a mobile device is probably much more useful than a public payphone (as long as they can keep it charged). I'm a little under-educated on what the actual reality of this situation is, tbh.
All the 15000 payphones in Australia are free and have WiFi. <a href="https://www.telstra.com.au/consumer-advice/payphones" rel="nofollow">https://www.telstra.com.au/consumer-advice/payphones</a>
Time really flies! I still remember when my friends from the Patio Maravillas social center in Madrid set up one in this style... in 2009 ! At the time and in the beginning, it was a bunch of countries only, as VoIP gateways weren't as popular as now.<p><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090402170754/http://www.patiomaravillas.net/hamlab/llama-por-la-patilla-con-isaac" rel="nofollow">https://web.archive.org/web/20090402170754/http://www.patiom...</a><p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patio_Maravillas" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patio_Maravillas</a>
Reminded me of 2600 magazine's reader pics of payphones from around the world.<p>I haven't looked at a copy in forever so I don't know if it's still a thing.
"...and never again pay for a service that would be dirt cheap, if it weren't run by a bunch of profiteering gluttons!"<p>Hack the planet!
anyone remember the needles in coin return slot scare growing up? We didn't the internet to check if it was real so I'd always be a little paranoid when getting my coins back.<p><a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/slots-of-fun/" rel="nofollow">https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/slots-of-fun/</a>
BT in the UK has been replacing payphones with advertising billboard, with a little digital infopad, USB charging and free domestic calls. Calls are cheap as, they probably still make a profit with the advertising.
It's win-win, though they are a bit of an eyesore.
Wait so this is a real....phone? Using old-school twisted pair phone lines? If it has a monthly cost that scales with use it must, but it seems like making this IP would be more practical, if a little less fun?
Other discussion on this earlier this month:<p><a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33851030" rel="nofollow">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33851030</a>
This is all good, hack the planet and all that, but meanwhile there are Link NYC boxes with free calls all over NYC no? (debatable quality etc but still, they're there)
New Idea: Android tablet connected by wire (PoE?) with tap-and-pay NFC giving out a unique Wifi QR code. And that will give you pay-per-use-or by-minute internet at every booth. A free phone call is just a headphone plug away with voice activated calling. Full hardware with phone handle and/or tablet screen browsing is (much) extra.
Does anyone still make phone books? I can count the number of phone numbers I have memorized on one hand. Without access to a phone number registry of some sort, I think these would have extremely limited value to most people.<p>It's a neat project though.
One of the best projects I've seen in years. This project should receive some sort of grant or at least award from Philadelphia. This brought back good memories :) EDIT: Hack The Planet and maybe @giantg2 for downvotes! ^_^
How long before someone with less-than-good intentions walks up and starts using this phone in ways that the creators didn't intend, and it has to be shut down?