AVX Cloud outlines how VoIP and traditional landlines compare on reliability, cost and 911 compliance as carriers continue retiring copper phone networks across New Jersey.
SECAUCUS, N.J. – AVX Cloud, a business phone system provider in Newark and across northern New Jersey, has published a comparison of business VoIP and traditional landline service. The aim is to help local companies weigh the tradeoffs before a carrier makes the decision for them. The guide for businesses in Newark and across northern New Jersey, available at https://www.avxcloud.com/blog/business-voip-vs-traditional-phone-systems-pros-cons/, looks at how each technology handles cost, scalability, outages and emergency calling.
Copper Retirement Reaches More of New Jersey
Verizon’s copper retirement notice, dated September 8, 2026, lists 62 New Jersey wire centers where it plans to retire the remaining copper facilities on or after December 10, 2026. Examples include Atlantic City, Burlington, Millville and West Milford. The notice says customers may be required to move off copper well before that date. It points affected locations toward alternatives such as VoIP and fixed or mobile wireless service.
Federal rules have also shortened the runway. Carriers generally must give at least 90 days’ notice before retiring copper that is still in service, and a 2026 FCC order removed several filing and approval steps that once slowed the process. AVX Cloud notes that there is no single statewide shutoff date. Businesses in Newark and Essex County should confirm the status of their own wire center rather than wait for a letter.
“Most of the Newark businesses we talk to aren’t against moving off copper. They just haven’t had a reason to look at it yet,” said Adam Estruch, CEO of AVX Cloud. “A retirement notice gives you 90 days. That’s enough time to switch phones, but it’s tight if you also have alarm panels, fax lines or an elevator phone on the same copper.”
Where Traditional Landlines Still Have an Edge
The guide is direct about the one advantage copper still holds. An analog line draws power from the carrier’s central office, so a basic phone keeps working during a local power or internet outage. That independence is why copper has long been the default for elevator phones, fire alarm panels and other life-safety lines.
It also notes that a simple, single-location office with few feature needs may find a basic analog line straightforward. Devices such as fax machines, alarm panels and some point-of-sale terminals were built for analog service and may need adapters or purpose-built replacements.
As wire centers are decommissioned, though, that reliability argument applies to fewer locations each year, and the copper lines that remain have become more expensive to keep.
How VoIP Closes the Reliability Gap
VoIP reliability depends on the infrastructure around it. AVX Cloud’s guide recommends that businesses plan for:
- internet redundancy
- battery or generator backup for network equipment
- Quality of Service settings that prioritize voice traffic
Cloud-hosted systems can also reroute calls to mobile apps automatically if an office loses its connection.
On cost, the guide encourages businesses to compare total cost of ownership rather than monthly line rates:
- VoIP: subscriptions, handsets and network upgrades
- Traditional systems: line charges, hardware, maintenance contracts and technician visits
VoIP also scales through licensing and configuration rather than new physical lines, which matters for growing companies or those opening a second location.
911 Compliance Applies to Both
One area the guide asks businesses not to overlook is emergency calling. Under FCC rules implementing Kari’s Law and RAY BAUM’S Act, multi-line telephone systems must:
- let users dial 911 directly without a prefix
- notify someone on site when a 911 call is placed
- send a dispatchable location, such as street address, floor and room, with the call
The rules apply whether a business runs a legacy PBX or a cloud phone system, but VoIP adds a complication: softphones and mobile apps can move between offices, floors and home locations. AVX Cloud recommends that businesses keep location records current and test their E911 setup periodically rather than treat it as a one-time task.
“E911 is the part of a phone migration that’s easy to skip because everything else seems to be working,” Estruch said. “We’d rather a client place a test call in the first week than find a problem during a real emergency.”
Planning the Move on the Business’s Own Timeline
For Newark-area businesses still on traditional service, AVX Cloud suggests three steps:
- Inventory every copper line, including those tied to alarms, elevators, fax machines and payment terminals.
- Rank the lines by risk.
- Migrate life-safety lines first.
Number porting, E911 location records and backup power should all be planned before cutover. More information about AVX Cloud’s business phone services is available at https://www.avxcloud.com/.
As carriers continue retiring copper across the state, the company expects more New Jersey businesses to plan their migrations in advance rather than react to retirement notices.
About AVX Cloud
AVX Cloud provides VoIP phone systems to NJ businesses and small enterprises. The company works with businesses looking to modernize communications, support remote employees, simplify multi-location management and move away from traditional on-premises phone systems.
AVX Cloud helps organizations evaluate VoIP and cloud communications platforms based on their existing infrastructure and operational requirements. For businesses still using legacy telecommunications technology, the company can also help assess the current communications environment and identify opportunities to reduce complexity and modernize business phone systems.
Contact Information
AVX Cloud | Business Phone Systems | New Jersey | VOIP
Adam Estruch, CEO
2 Emerson Ln, Suite 209, Secaucus, NJ 07094
201-340-9101
Website: avxcloud.com
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