Halloo Comparison and Review

Pros:

• Save 33% when you pay for a year in advance
• 300 included minutes (our market standard is 150 minutes)
• Free 800 toll-free number
• Free to port existing number into the service
• Smart system (ACD) queuing for incoming calls
• Mobile app available

Cons:

• Conference calling costs $4.95 with this plan

Conclusion:

Halloo’s Office Startup plan has a monthly fee of $14.95 for 100 extensions and 300 minutes, which is a good value. They offer Find Me/Follow Me (which sets forwarding rules) and an auto attendant (which is a custom menu that directs calls). They also offer voicemail alerts via email, but voicemail transcription is not available. You can save 60 minutes of voicemails online for an unlimited amount of time. They include receive-only Internet fax with this plan, which does not meet our Market Standard for sending and receiving faxes. Halloo’s and they provides good phone and email customer support five days a week.

Pricing

Halloo’s Office Startup plan provides 100 extensions with 300 minutes for $14.95 per month. Office Startup may also be purchased for an annual prepayment of $119.95 which comes to $9.95 per month. This represents a savings of 33% over month-to-month pricing. They also offer a plan with 2500 minutes for $84.95.

Phone Numbers

Halloo will provide you with a local number or 800, 866, 877 or 888 number for free, which exceeds our Market Standard. Vanity numbers or numbers ported into the system cost a $30 setup fee. Halloo does not offer international numbers at this time.

Online Interface

Halloo provides an online interface with no setup wizard to help you get started. All Virtual PBX services provide an online interface through which you can customize and monitor your phone system. You can access call logs, make a blocked call list, and store contacts through the online interface. You can also set specific handling rules that redirect calls to menus, a greeting message, dial by name directory, or dial by extension menu.   

Voicemail

Halloo will store your voicemails online for as long as you wish. You can also choose to receive voicemails directly in your email or download them to your computer through the online interface. Halloo does not offer text transcriptions of voicemails.

Call Handling

Halloo offers Find Me/Follow Me call handling, which allows you to set a rule that dials a string of numbers in order until you answer the call. One of the main functions of a PBX system is to set rules on how calls are handled when your number is dialed. While on a call, you can transfer a call to voicemail or place the call on hold using just the phone’s keypad. You can also purchase the ability to record a call  for $4.95 per extension per month. You cannot block a caller using your phone’s keypad. Halloo also offers call screening and Do Not Disturb functionality, which makes your phone appear to be off to callers. You can set up an auto attendant, or custom menu, and define how long someone waits in a queue before the menu automatically redirects the call. Halloo allows you to place outgoing phone calls even while you’re outside of the U.S. During testing, we found Halloo’s audio quality to be clear with no static.

Conference Calling, Internet Faxing, and Mobile Apps

For $4.95 per month, you can obtain a dedicated toll-free conference number through Halloo. They offer moderator features and provide a reference guide for conference call moderator keypad shortcuts. Halloo offers receive-only Internet fax capability, which does not meet our Market Standard of send and receive Internet fax. Halloo currently offers a mobile application to access their service that may be used over a data network as well as Wi-Fi.

Customer Support

Halloo offers quality 24/7 phone customer support. They provide FAQs, tutorials, and online forums for asking questions, but the FAQs and tutorials are not searchable.