Poor payment options
Aside from some weird bugs that kept me from receiving texts, the app has been pretty stable. The only issue I’ve been having is that when I have 2 phones near each other, each with the same sideline app phone number, certain calls won’t even show up when it’s supposed to, and I’ll just get a missed call notification. I’m hoping this won’t be a big problem later on.
However, my biggest issue with this app is that you can only pay through iTunes. It’s such a big problem for me because I don’t have a dedicated work phone that’s linked to a dedicated business iTunes account. So every time I pay, I have to switch payment methods through the App Store. They don’t have a normal function where I can pay on their website, without going through the App Store, so I’m always stuck trying to change my payment method because I’m trying to keep business expenses on the business credit card. It just seems so lazy and inconsiderate to handle all payments through the App Store, and not even have the option of letting their customers pay directly.
However, my biggest issue with this app is that you can only pay through iTunes. It’s such a big problem for me because I don’t have a dedicated work phone that’s linked to a dedicated business iTunes account. So every time I pay, I have to switch payment methods through the App Store. They don’t have a normal function where I can pay on their website, without going through the App Store, so I’m always stuck trying to change my payment method because I’m trying to keep business expenses on the business credit card. It just seems so lazy and inconsiderate to handle all payments through the App Store, and not even have the option of letting their customers pay directly.
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Response from developer
Hi there, we appreciate the feedback and we understand how that process could be cumbersome. We're currently not working on adding different payment options to Sideline. That being said if you email us at reviews@sidelince.com with your use case, and why you these options, we'll pass the feedback on to our product team and see if we can add this to a future version. Hope to hear from you soon.
Bugs in the updates - NO AUTO TEXT RESPONSE- NO CUSTOMER SERVICE
UPDATE: This app constantly drops calls and no longer has AUTO TEXT REPLY to calls or texts. It’s gone downhill and fast. And also NO CUSTOMER SERVICE. NONE. No one will call you or respond to your online requests for help - THEY KNOW THEIR APP IS BROKEN.
Original:
For the first month the app was working okay. A huge DOWNSIDE is it doesn't separate your contacts so when you save a sideline contact it goes into your personal iOS contact list without ANY ability to separate. The update in August 6 prevented all new calls from being logged in the app - no texts, no missed calls, no made calls. So essentially it's been destroyed by a bad update and by engineers who clearly didn't QA the roll out. sad for pinger. And they have no customer support - over the phone so it takes 7 hours and 3 days to find a problem and NOT to fix it.
Original:
For the first month the app was working okay. A huge DOWNSIDE is it doesn't separate your contacts so when you save a sideline contact it goes into your personal iOS contact list without ANY ability to separate. The update in August 6 prevented all new calls from being logged in the app - no texts, no missed calls, no made calls. So essentially it's been destroyed by a bad update and by engineers who clearly didn't QA the roll out. sad for pinger. And they have no customer support - over the phone so it takes 7 hours and 3 days to find a problem and NOT to fix it.
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Good when it works, customer support is awful
This app works about 60% of the time it is glitchy the rest of the time. None of my billing information changed but somehow randomly I have to contact Apple support and billing to fix something that never changed. I did some research and found out this is something that a ton of people had to do and it appears to be an error on the developer side. However, instead of helping their customers or working through it, they pass the buck and customer service is completely unhelpful and unsupportive.
It was a great app when it was free because it made up for the lack of customer support in the glitchiness of the app. Now that it’s paid, it’s really not worth the money. There are a lot of other apps at a similar price point that have much better customer service, work better/more consistently and have better features and benefits.
As a matter of fact, you can get true voip software for about the same price or slightly more and it functions as a full blown phone system.
It was a great app when it was free because it made up for the lack of customer support in the glitchiness of the app. Now that it’s paid, it’s really not worth the money. There are a lot of other apps at a similar price point that have much better customer service, work better/more consistently and have better features and benefits.
As a matter of fact, you can get true voip software for about the same price or slightly more and it functions as a full blown phone system.
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Response from developer
Hey Trenton, we're sorry to hear your interaction with Support lead to additional frustration. Unfortunately, there was some confusion about your account type which led to us providing incorrect information. Our Support Manager has reached back out via email to clarify the situation. If you have any other questions or need any assistance, please feel free to reply to her email. We'll be happy to assist.
Great product for the price and convenience.
I have been using this app for several years, and I am able to keep up with my business smoothly. Not only am I able to answer my calls, but when I am working an event, I have set up a team member to also be able to answer calls that I’m not able to. I can automatically respond to clients when my hands are tied with another task, and the best part....I only have to lug around one phone! Having my personal and professional life both available in one device is truly fantastic.
My only issue has been the occasional dead zone for my service provider, but I live in a very rural area, and can’t entirely blame that on the app.
Great product and easy to use!
My only issue has been the occasional dead zone for my service provider, but I live in a very rural area, and can’t entirely blame that on the app.
Great product and easy to use!
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Trash App, Trash Policy
***UPDATE***
The app has reached out. Same issues still continue. They’ve given me steps to get a refund from the App Store. BUT, the app stores says I need to get it from the App Developers. How interesting...more headaches.
I’ve decided to just use a competing software. Definitely DO NOT USE this app for a business that requires heavy phone communications. All they do is ask for times of issue, and have no resolution whatsoever.
**Original**
I think this mirrors lots of reviews on here. I never write reviews, but this app and experience demands one. This app used to be good. But if you’re looking to use it for phone calls, it’s trash.
I get multiple dipped calls, people complaining that I sound like I’m underwater, and frequent garbled conversations. I’ve tried to switch networks, use WiFi, even tried numerous technical support options. Trash. Straight trash.
Then I contact them for a prorated refund. Their policy is NOT TO OFFER ONE. As a business owner myself, I understand how things works and how customers should be treated. The support was so terrible they just pointed me to the Apple Store. When I talked to Apple Store support, they pointed back to the Sideline support. Stuck in this loop, I assume it’s solely to discourage customers from continuing to pursue.
I’m sure I’ll be contacted with attempts to resolve “technical issues.” But I’ll also tel them that I’ve logged each instance as well and have not found any solution.
The app has reached out. Same issues still continue. They’ve given me steps to get a refund from the App Store. BUT, the app stores says I need to get it from the App Developers. How interesting...more headaches.
I’ve decided to just use a competing software. Definitely DO NOT USE this app for a business that requires heavy phone communications. All they do is ask for times of issue, and have no resolution whatsoever.
**Original**
I think this mirrors lots of reviews on here. I never write reviews, but this app and experience demands one. This app used to be good. But if you’re looking to use it for phone calls, it’s trash.
I get multiple dipped calls, people complaining that I sound like I’m underwater, and frequent garbled conversations. I’ve tried to switch networks, use WiFi, even tried numerous technical support options. Trash. Straight trash.
Then I contact them for a prorated refund. Their policy is NOT TO OFFER ONE. As a business owner myself, I understand how things works and how customers should be treated. The support was so terrible they just pointed me to the Apple Store. When I talked to Apple Store support, they pointed back to the Sideline support. Stuck in this loop, I assume it’s solely to discourage customers from continuing to pursue.
I’m sure I’ll be contacted with attempts to resolve “technical issues.” But I’ll also tel them that I’ve logged each instance as well and have not found any solution.
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Response from developer
Hi there, we're sorry to hear you've been dealing with this frustrating situation. To our knowledge, Apple does not allow us to provide any form of a refund. They control all in-app purchases and give us very little insight into the payment process. However, there seems to be a miscommunication somewhere along the line. We're attempting to reach out to Apple now to figure out where the gap is. If you email us at reviews@sideline.com once more, we'll do our best to get this rectified and help you get your refund.
Not worth the monthly fee
I’ve had this app since it was free and enjoyed the extra line for work so decided to keep it even though the cost went up to $10/month. Was fine for awhile but the past few months I've been experiencing issues with tests being undeliverable to certain numbers- numbers that I had previously never had issues with. I contacted support services and was told my account checked out and basically there was nothing else to be done. While the staff was nice and professional, I (like others have commented) have no interest in continuing to pay for a service that works only part of the time. No one was able to explain to me what the problem could be other than issues with the contact’s cell services. Not being able to pick which cell phone service my clients have, this leaves me with few options. Disappointed to say the least...
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Terrible
This app is absolutely terrible. It charged me regardless which whatever, it’s only 9.99 + tax so whatever, I will eat the cost no problem. But, where I then get super frustrated is the fact that the app doesn’t work! I can call out using my 2nd number through this app BUT when people call me, it will just ring until it gets to voicemail but, never comes up or allows me to answer on my end. I can only see after the fact that I had missed a call. So, it’s basically worthless! I’m a technician for a living so it’s not like my notifications aren’t enabled or, I don’t know what it is I am doing. It will notify me AFTER the fact that I missed a call or that I have a VM but, It never rings on my end nor am I able to answer.
What a waste of money. If you’re looking to do a subscription with them, don’t. It’s not reliable and doesn’t work so save or money or use it elsewhere for an app that actually works. Canceling my subscription.
Hope this helps someone out there!
What a waste of money. If you’re looking to do a subscription with them, don’t. It’s not reliable and doesn’t work so save or money or use it elsewhere for an app that actually works. Canceling my subscription.
Hope this helps someone out there!
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Unsolicited XXX calls and texts
I was SO excited about this app when I first downloaded it. But the phone number they gave me literally gets several ‘late night themed XXX’ texts and random spam calls/texts at all hours of the day. It’s to the point where I don’t even answer my sideline calls or texts because it’s some sort of spam or advertisement. In theory, this app is a great idea, but I’m so disappointed. Furthermore, I went to cancel my subscription, bc I bought the year plan (which I regret) and I can’t get a refund from sideline, they said to contact iTunes. And i contact iTunes, and I’m a few weeks out of the 90 day limit to get a refund. I’m just shocked! I figured it was a normal business where you can cancel anytime. I have this app a try and now don’t want it anymore and I can’t even get my money back. Terrible customer service, I can’t even reach anyone to talk about this issue. Download it at your own risk and it is NOT free either. I paid $100 for 4 months of (barely using it) and will not be getting a dime back. Just sad.
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Response from developer
Hi Amanda, we're sorry to hear your experience of Sideline has been anything less than excellent. If you email us at reviews@sideline.com with your Sideline number, we can work with you to block these numbers from contacting you again. Hope to hear from you soon.
Quality - NO VPN COMPATIBILITY
I have used and really liked Sideline for quite awhile for my work as an attorney. It has been far more reliable than either Burner or Hushed ever was. I think BusinessCall may be the most rock solid reliable app but when I left them they had no desktop text messaging functionality, which I’ve appreciated about Sideline a lot.
Recently however, the app has totally stopped working with my VPN. I use NordVPN and sideline WILL NOT work at ALL with NordVPN enabled. Once enabled, Sideline doesn't work on my phone or on my desktop. Nothing. No calls. No texts. Nothing.
This is a deal breaker for me and I’m looking to switch to another provider. Which makes me sad because I have enjoyed my time with Sideline for the most part. Fees are very reasonable and service is solid.
Recently however, the app has totally stopped working with my VPN. I use NordVPN and sideline WILL NOT work at ALL with NordVPN enabled. Once enabled, Sideline doesn't work on my phone or on my desktop. Nothing. No calls. No texts. Nothing.
This is a deal breaker for me and I’m looking to switch to another provider. Which makes me sad because I have enjoyed my time with Sideline for the most part. Fees are very reasonable and service is solid.
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Excellent customer service
I contacted customer service because my text messages weren’t coming through. They responded right away through the instant chat feature and quickly figured out it was an issue with one of their partners. While I was not able to recover the texts that never came through, IT support was amazing. They offered to give me a new number that would fix the problem right away or I could wait until they contacted their partner. I opted for the latter and everything was fixed in about 12 hours. They even checked up on me the next day to make sure it was still working.
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