Phones

The Phone Team provides a comprehensive phone service at EMF, with several different ways to connnect!

Our phones network allows EMF attendees to call each other in the field, dial interesting services posted around the field and more.

Ahead of the event

If you want to take part in our phone network, we highly suggest picking up a DECT phone (like a landline phone you might have at home)!

Here are some of our suggestions:

Model	Price	Buy	Notes
Gigaset C570A	£20 on Amazon	amazon.co.uk
Gigaset Life H (E794)	£20 on Amazon	amazon.co.uk	(known to be compatible with Bluetooth hearing aids)

If you already have a DECT phone, feel free to bring it along! You can also check our DECT compatibility list, generally Gigaset and Mitel handsets tend to be good options.

There may also be some DECT phones available to buy at the shop during the event.

During the event

Be aware that mobile phone coverage on the site can be patchy, being in the middle of a field!

We have many public phones located around the site on posts which anyone can use to dial other EMF extension numbers from our phonebook (external calls are not permitted), or which you might see posted around the site!

Every EMF extension also has its very own real phone number you can call from a regular phone!

0114 501 XXXX

Replace XXXX with the 4-digit extension you want to call

If your extension isn't 4-digits, use 0000 and you will be prompted to enter it

You can configure if you want people to be able to use dial-in for your extension from the number management page.

Registering a number

phones.emfcamp.org isn't quite ready for the public yet, but watch out for an upcoming announcement very soon!

Closer to the event start date, we will publish instructions here about registering a personal extension number you can use during the event.

Getting Started

You can pick a 4-digit extension number to use, and call anyone on site via it. Create your number in the Electromagnetic Phonebook at phones.emfcamp.org

Firstly you will need to register an account by selecting Login, then Register. (Don't select the 'Login with Orga SSO' option as this is for EMF organisers.)

We will send a confirmation email from phones@emfcamp.org you can use to validate your account.

Registering a Number

Once logged in, to register a number go to 'Your numbers' and select 'New number', you'll then have a few options:

Number: This is where you pick your phone number! You can click 'View all available numbers' to see a grid of which numbers are available for selection.
Name: A description of what this number is for, such as your name. This will appear in the phonebook if you choose, and as your caller ID.
Service: The type of device you'd like to use your number with.
Extension type: What category of number is this, a personal number, a number for a village, etc.
Visibility: Do you want your number to be listed in the public phonebook?

Once you're happy, press 'Register number' and you'll be shown setup instructions to connect your number.

For more information on how to connect your number, see the Types of Service section below.

Numbers are a finite resource, we have ~3500 attendees and ~8000 numbers. Please don't register excessive amounts of numbers that you don't intend to use.

If you have a use-case that could need a lot of numbers, please come and speak to us and we'll see what we can do!

Managing your Numbers

The 'Your numbers' page will show you all the numbers you have assigned to your account, as well as details about them.

You can edit them, or click 'Setup' to see information on how to get your phone connected again.

Types of Service

DECT

We will have a DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications) network on-site, as described.

POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service)

There will be a site-wide analog POTS network allowing you to connect a traditional analog phone to a phone line, with support for modems and fax machines.

For more information see docs.cutel.net.

Cellular

We intend to have a GSM (2G) and LTE (4G) phone network on site, you can get a SIM card from us to connect into the rest of our phones network from your mobile phone.

More details to come closer to the event at gsm.emf.camp.

SIP

You can use SIP-capable phones, or a SIP VoIP app on your phone to connect into the phones network once you've registered a number.

You can find the SIP credentials in the portal at phones.emfcamp.org.

If you wish to connect a SIP server to the network, we would generally prefer you do so with caution or let us know - as this can expose our network to a large amount of spam or fraud if incorrectly configured, which is easily done.

Group call

You can create a group call extension, which will forward incoming calls to a group of other numbers.

Application

We have limited support for programmable numbers this year, if you have a specific request - please speak to us soon so we can see what we can do for you!

Alternatively, you can use the SIP number type hooked up to your own SIP server if you would like to implement something more advanced.

External Calls

We do not allow attendees to make external calls from the on-site phone system. If you need to make a call, either use your mobile or come to the Info Desk.

Mobile Coverage

Mobile coverage on site from the public networks is poor, we recommend using WiFi Calling if your handset and network support it.

WiFi Calling

We have done some work on the WiFi network to enable access for WiFi calling to UK providers, previously this hasn't worked with the IP ranges we use, but we have now solved this. WiFi calling should just work normally, as it does at home, from any of the camp WiFi networks.

If WiFi calling doesn’t work for you on our network, and it normally does at home, please come by the Phone Team tent.