Emergency Hybrid Home Phone received - but EE installation abandoned

[PAYGpeon]

New poster, long-time lurker here: I hope someone knows more about the above bit of kit:

I’m helping a remote family member who was moving over from another provider to join EE with a full-fibre installation. The installation failed (long story) and the order with EE was automatically cancelled after a month. Family member remains very ‘disenchanted’, and EE was not interested in picking up on the existing copper service (fibre to the cabinet vdsl).

Family member let the issue lie fallow for a couple of months to re-consider. Recently they have initiated a One-Touch Switch to another provider with bundled digital phone / DV / VoIP-like service (Zen, fwiw) — coming soon.

The equipment which had been ordered as part of the prospective new EE contract included the EE Emergency Hybrid Home Phone - - the one with a 4G SIM for backup calls when the EE Hub goes down. Family member still has this (£79.99 as part of the initial order, still unopened) but is confused. And, frankly, really does NOT want to have to talk to EE about this because of the customer experience ‘to the back teeth’ with EE so far.

My questions to help me support family member:

1. 1: How many minutes are on the ‘emergency’ SIM? I’ve downloaded the manual, it’s basically the same as the BT product of the same name. The guide says it can make a “limited number of calls/minutes” when in 4G emergency backup mode, but I haven’t found any clues as to what minimal allowance of minutes is on there. I’ve searched this forum and other forums. (I know that there won’t be quota restrictions on 999 calls.)
2. 2: Is there any point keeping this 4G Emergency Backup Phone for use alongside their Zen-based setup? I am currently guessing that the EE SIM in the 4G backup phone is somehow tied to a successful EE account activation, so I guess that means it will never receive its allocation of “limited” minutes of emergency calls. My guess is that this means the phone needs to go back?

Thanks in advance for your advice.

[JimM11]

@PAYGpeon Not much about the Moto phone is available or what to do when the minutes run out etc, since you are moving lock stock and barrel to zen, talk to them about what they have for fall over when the digital fibre goes offline, they surely have that case in mind also. 

[XRaySpeX]

Won't be any use at Zen. It is designed to plug into the back of a BT/EE router to operate over their proprietary DV.

Whatever is its limited mins. allocation it'll be on its SIM rather than on the BB a/c.

[PAYGpeon]

Ah, thanks for the info. I had thought that perhaps a non-EE SIM could be put into it for the emergency 4G voice moments, and I had assumed that the plug on the back of the EE router was an ordinary-style analogue jack (which would work with the analogue phone socket on the back of the Zen router.

Ah well, I’ll read (both) manuals in more detail.

[JimM11]

@PAYGpeon You may wish to also have a read at this linked posting as well.

Nuisance calls on emergency backup telephone - The EE Community

[XRaySpeX]

You're right on both counts! 1) It should plug into any BT style phone socket & 2) It won't be locked to EE & so it should accept any network's SIM (with as many mins as you care to buy).

[JimM11]

@PAYGpeon If you search online you will also see other's are using possibly, so far seen EE/BT/VM have it as an option switching over to a mobile network, it's really how it is all integrated into a system controlled operation.