You read the story and you heard the podcast. Now you can try out Ooma yourself, way before they go on sale to the public in September.
We have fifty to give away. This isn’t like most account giveaways – each of these packages will be sold for $399 retail in September and gives you free VOIP phone service on your normal phones for life (the life of you or the company, whichever ends first). You get it for free, and you get it right now.
Here’s another cool thing about these – each one includes three free “white rabbit” tokens that you can give away to others so they can try out Ooma, too. They have a limited number of these, but they’ll continue to give three to everyone until they start to run out.
Here’s what you have to do. Just write a short comment below telling us why you want it. Or tell us about your favorite Ashton Kutcher movie or tv show (since he’s the Creative Director of the company). Or both. You don’t have to be truthful or nice, but you do have to be creative and entertaining. All you have to do is be one of the fifty most entertaining comments and you’re in. You have until end of day California time on Friday to write. Make sure you use your real email address in the comment or we won’t know how to contact you.
Ooma will only ship these in the U.S. for now, so you must be living here. And there’s one more rule – We’ll be adding Ooma to InviteShare later tonight and allowing people to sign up to get one. If you are selected you have to agree to give at least one of the systems to the person on the top of the InviteShare list. That way we can possibly get some more of these to TechCrunch readers.
Update: Ok Ooma is now up on InviteShare, so feel free to add your name to the list of people who want an invite. The list order is determined based on the time you enter your name as well as how many invitations to other services you give out, so move up the list by participating. If you are one of the fifty people who get a direct invite from this post, please remove your name from the list – and remember to give at least one of the invitations you receive to someone on the list.
If I get one of these it will be the phone system for my soon to be launched startup…. I hope to call all my friends on it once the TechCrunch20 contacts me to present my company in September!
You’ve been Punk’d
I hope these get a lot more entertaining. Points are subtracted for any sort of brown nosing.
Come on guys! Write some excellent user generated content so I can take the rest of the night off.
I should get one because then I can finally call my friends all over US
I always kinda liked that show Punkd, not really because the show was so great but because of all the parodies that came from it. I think I only saw the show once but the Celebrity would be very upset and then he’d run in there an they would be ok with the fact that an hour of their time has been wasted and that they were just put in some stressful situation, but it was ok because it was Ashton. I think a celebrity might find it kinda cool that they were Punkd, like “hey, I must have really made it because Ashton Kutcher Punkd me”
Oh I just remembered That 70’s Show, that show was great too, I probably should have written about it instead…
Like OOMA god! I soooo want one of these.
Ashton is pretty cool too…
sorry:-)
I want one to replace my Vonage service. I am a current VOIP user and want to experience something new and better. Besides if Ashton is creative director then they will need a better way to get the word out, and I can do that
I would love to have one…
Cheers,
Ashton wasn’t even like born when Ghost came out.
Fashizzle.
I should get one because I have no fingers and the buttons look big. Also, I like to beat up guys who wear trucker hats with sport coats so they can look like Ashton Kutcher.
I just got orphaned by Sunrocket, this would totally make my day…
BTW, how come no one made fun of the name yet… OOMA… the first thing that comes to mind is “Out of My Ass”…
Oprah…
I am an atheist but people ridicule me saying that I am an atheist because I haven’t actually tried speaking to god. I think I have an opportunity now to talk to god. If you give the Ooma to me, I can call god and talk to him. I want an ooma because I want to talk to god, go to heaven and talk to 7 virgins inside the heaven.
Is it creative enough to get an ooma? if yes, send me one
In the truthful, but not nice realm of Ashton Kutcher critique, I’d say my favorite was his role in Butterfly Effect. I would try to put together some witty commentary, but it’d just be doing a disservice to Nathan Rabin’s review of the DVD. Not sure if this makes me Ooma worthy, but it’s worth a read:
http://www.avcl...tent/node/23524
Ooma = Milf
Well, I was just talking to Ashton about Punkd and he told me that it was probably the worst decision he’s ever made and that no one will take him seriously anymore (I told him what did he expect after the 70’s show). That’s why he got the job as Creative Director with Ooma, to get some street cred with people that matter. I hope it works for him and he doesn’t continue his downward spiral into the D celb list. That would be tragic.
Anyway I want an Ooma so that me and Ash can stay hooked up. Let me me know, thanks
points? O_O
Ooma completely changed my life
Before I used Ooma I was unemployed, with huge dept. I had no friends, my children didn’t talk with me, and my landlord was about to kick me out of my crappy apartment because I didn’t pay my dues. I smoked, I gambled, and I had many other bad habits. Since I start using Ooma my life completely turned around. I’ve made new friends, I opened a new business and I now earn millions of dollars. I lost 85 pounds, I quit smoking, I look great and I feel great. Last week I crossed the English channel, and I completed the Iron Man challenge in Hawaii. I have 3 new houses, I’ve a yacht, and I’m flying my own jet – all thanks to Ooma. Thank you Ooma, I owe everything to you! Keep on the good job.
Me again – but you know his best role is playing Demi’s husband. She’s oooMaILF caliber.
OK here goes:
i want an Ooma so when people try and talk to me when i is on the phone I can say “can’t you see i’m on Ooma?!?”
(My girlfriend’s name is Uma.)
(Not really.)
Now I can haz cheezburger?
The reason why I want OOMA is because it’s a ground breaking device that everyone will be talking about, or asking about come the near future. Working in a retail eletronics enviroment I have people come up to me every day asking the difference between vonage, cox cable phone and internet, and the difference between cordless phones.
Becoming an expert with an OOMA hub will allow me to sell the device a lot easier than just saying it’s $399, there’s no monthly fees, and it works like vonage. I will be able to explain ALL the details and I usually find when you do this the change of a sale goes up 50%.
As far as Aston Kutcher, I respect him a lot for having the courage to take on the film The butterfly effect when he was type casted as a comedy actor. Not only is The Butterfly Effect one of my favorite films, kutcher went on to make the guardian another great drama filled movie, and now the man has moved into the business of tech entrepreneur.
This guy is extremely creative. Ive never seen an a-list celeb be able to act AND run the creative energy of a tech startup, and I wonder if people will start to copy this model.
The Butterfly Effect ruled! If I get an Ooma, I’ll feature it our next tech talk vidcast on our site. Double-exposure!!!
Because once I get one I can talk to all my friends on my new Kutcher-phone while watching Robot Chicken and laughing at that Tivo-addict that Ashton is…
Oh, I wish I were an Oscar Meyer Ooma. That is what I’d truly love to be-e-e. Cuz if I were an Oscar Meyer Ooma. Everyone would be in love with me.
telecom companies suck
its about time someone had the balls to take them down
i cant wait for ooma to rip the telecom execs to peaces
Fez said he wants Omma, dude.
I want Ooma because I’m poor and don’t have the money for a phone line in my house. I would also like to be able to talk on the phone with my friends while I watch Punk’d.
“Just write a short comment below telling us why you want it. Or…”
Ouch, I think I just got Punk’d by Michael!
Ashton can’t afford shipping to Canada? …
Using a rotary phone for most of my life has caused severe depression, a lack of feeling technologically superior, and most horrifically a lack of at-home mobility with only a 1 foot cord on my “I Love Lucy” looking telephone. On top of this I had used a mobile phone that is at least 4-5 years old that makes even my rotary phone look chic. The iPhone comes out and I finally became superior to my peers yet I still have my rotary phone, and even worse I now have AT&T for both my mobile lifestyle and home lifestyle.
Deliver me from AT&T and the 1950s at home to allow me to come home from a long day at work to a device that will make me feel technologically superior. There is no feeling worse than being a superior human-being thanks to my iPhone and then coming home to be thrust back into the dark ages.
Michael please show me the light and send me an Ooma.
P.S. I spent almost all of my time at work today refreshing TechCrunch waiting for this post to be posted.
I will be using it for my startup’s phone system. Then I will use the cash I save on phone bills to build a better device and kick Ooma’s ass!
I am an IT contractor and would and I always seem to have a work cell phone and a personal cell phone. The idea of having one number for good and for free would be awesome. I would then dedicate one of my domains to this awesome device. http://www.itreviews.net I could then brag to everyone about being one of the first ones in on this new technology. Of course on the site I would include a review of Aston’s movies too.
When I was a kid (30 years ago), I used to argue with my best friend (Coincidentally, his name was Billji) that free communication was what was going to change the world. I think it pretty much has and Ooma looks like the natural evolution of that idea. So yes, I want one.
I am currently deployed in Afghanistan and getting one of these for my family would help my wife keep in touch with her mother and my parents, all currently long distance calls. Even her job is long distance, and it’s only 25 miles away! She loves to talk on the phone, and this would save us money better used to pay off bills. It would also allow my kids to talk to grandparents whenever they want to.
I am in the middle of launching my first startup with a small staff of 3, a small angel funding, and a whole lot of sweat equity. We’ve been looking for a way to add an office phone without breaking the bank– this would be the perfect thing.
Help me bootstrap my startup! Thanks!! TC rules
OOMA! OOMA! OOMA! – I want one (hands raised up jumping around)
Seriously though why all the OOMA about VOIP. Who cares if I have a VOIP at home or the office. I’m never in the same spot at for too long unless its after the day is done and I’m sitting in my office (recliner). Give me a VOIP handset that automatically attaches to ALL access points encrypted or not. Then I can ditch the cell.
But since its pretty new and shiny —
OOMA! OOMA! OOMA! — I want one (now jumping up and down like a crazy person getting somebody to notice me)
Then I can talk about it on my blog
I had a VOIP service with one of the providers and really did not like it, so I just stopped using it. I had more problems with it than actually experiencing the full spectrum of the service. So, I wish to try this one out as well, and by the way I really like that move with Ashton “It is all about love” that I watched last night. It is the second time I’m watching it.
The idea behind the concept of P2P is very valid, however, it is yet to be seen in reality. I’d be thrilled to test this unit out in my house. Kudos to the brains behind it.
Ashton is the best in the west. I would appreciate a present from you to talk about for life.
In addition, I am impressed that you are pursuing a career in web technology and communications.
Current VOIP solutions are a ripoff, your solution will make a difference.
All the best and really would like to hear from you.
Keep it up, we will be looking up to you and watching you.
There’s a simple reason I want an Ooma – I’ve been dreaming about using a P2P network to subvert the POTS (Plain Ol’ Telephone System) for years, but being only a programmer and not a hardware guy never had the chance to do it. I think it’s well and truly a game-changer, and here’s why: making something free (even with an up-front cost) vs. almost-free is a game-changer. You approach things from a different perspective if the cost associated with it is literally zero. It’s not that a couple cents prevent me from calling people – it’s just that when it’s free, there’s quite literally no reason *not* to call.
Anyway, there are many things I want to investigate about the system – what about cell phone calls? International calls (I have a lot of friends and family abroad – once Ooma deploys internationally, would it make it cheap – or even free – to call them)? And – of course – what sort of things can you do with it that nobody forsees yet?
Yeah, it’s “just a phone” – but hey, so’s the iPhone. Hmm, maybe I’m a little more susceptible to Kool-Aid than I’d like to think…
Dear Michael,
If you give me an Ooma, I will eat it. Ashton is also my gay lover, however refuses to give me an Ooma. I hope you will, so I can eat it. After I eat it, I will use the Ooma dung produced by myself to light a fire which will shine greater than all the fires in the world put together! And then, dear Michael, you will feel the sense of accomplishment I so desire.
Sincerely,
Bear Grylls Fan
Dude, where’s my ooma?
Object Of My Affection
Anything that gives a good run to voip, skype, I would love to try out. thanks.
Oooh, Ma! Look at this,
Haiku writing for a phone.
The Internets rock!
Ooma will want to give me an Ooma because I sit in the center of a 12-mile radius area in which I am the only one know about and will install an Ooma so that Ooma can use my phone lines to connect to other Oomas. Ooma will be helping me so that I can help Ooma and the many other Oomas.
My wife won’t let me buy an iPhone (she’s said it’s too expensive for a phone) then she saw this post before she hit the bed and told me,”here.. they giving away new phone..why don’t you try it? maybe if you win you’ll stop craving for iPhone”
@Kyle Whitehead
The Guardian was all Kevin Costner…
I would like an ooma because I have always wanted something from a “stealth startup” as valleywag suggests, something that is from “Silicon Valley’s most accomplished minds” must make my life better. Plus the idea of unlimited calls sounds rather a good idea, even if it does not make ooma any money
I want to Punk AT&T with this.
So, not many people know this, but “Dude, Where’s My Car” is actually about aliens taking over the planet.
Like, for real.
*AND* it’s actually pretty funny. My favorite part is when the drive-thru lady keeps saying “and then…” asking Kutcher and his bud to add fries and wontons and whatnot to their order. Completely absurdist comedy that ends when they destroy the squack box in the drive thru lane.
At any rate, I just started my own small online political communications consulting business and I’ve been racking up big cell phone bills. So a “free” VOIP solution for voice would be pretty frickin’ nice.
Plus, if Ashton ever calls me I cross-my-heart-and-hope-to-die promise to say nothing but the words “AND THEN!!” to him until he loses it and destroys all the other Oomas.
That would actually be a good thing because everyone knows Oomas are just ANOTHER vehicle the aliens are using to take over the globe. We need Ashton to save us all.
Ooma opens up new avenues that Alexander Graham Bell never even dreamed of. ‘The Guardians’ of closed pipelines have to realize it’s ‘Open Season’ on their monopolies or they’ll be ‘Grounded For Life’. ‘Guess Who’ wants to get in on the game, everyone. So it’s ‘Down To You’, enough with the ‘Reindeer Games’. Ooma’s may be ‘Cheaper by the Dozen’ but to win one now would be ‘A Lot Like Love’. Thanks!