Televolution, the company behind the unique PhoneGnome VoIP telephone adaptor, has introduced a premium service that allows subscribers to make and receive calls on their POTS line from any remote broadband-enabled location.

The service, an extension to PhoneGnome called SoftGnome, includes a simple softphone – SoftGnome Express Talk – that can be utilized on a Windows-based PC. But, perhaps even more useful, SoftGnome subscribers are informed of their PhoneGnome SIP credentials, allowing the use of any unlocked VoIP device such as an IP phone, WiFi phone or analog telephone adaptor.

PhoneGnome, released in July, is a souped up version of the Linksys SPA-3000 (formerly manufactured by Sipura Technology) that easily accepts a connection from a PSTN line and registers the telephone number associated with that line with a central server.

Calls between PhoneGnome users are automatically carried over the internet at no charge. PhoneGnome users dialing non-VoIP numbers are either connected via the PSTN or through any VoIP service provider programmed into the adaptor.

SoftGnome extends that functionality to any other SIP-based device connected to the internet. For example, a user may have a PhoneGnome connected at home and a two-line IP phone at the office. One of the two office lines can be programmed with the SoftGnome credentials, allowing that line to transparently receive and make calls over the telephone number at home.

SoftGnome will also work with any unlocked analog telephone adaptor. Tests with a stock Linksys SPA-1001 configured using the Voxilla SoftGnome Wizard confirm that SoftGnome provides the same experience as the regular PhoneGnome.

Calls made via the SPA-1001 had the same experience as with regular PhoneGnome. Calls to the attached PSTN line rang both the PhoneGnome and the SoftGnome.

SoftGnome is available now to PhoneGnome owners as a premium service for $4.95 a month. The service can be tried risk-free for 30 days.