A recent survey of bundled telecom services, conducted by Consumer Reports readers, found that, “newer alternatives,” were rated favorably, this included mention of Ooma’s phone service when it came down to VoIP offerings.

The survey, conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center, found that, “most major providers scored about the same in satisfaction as in recent years.” About 70,000 Consumer Reports readers participated in the study, which covered aspects of bundled telecom services in depth.

Some highlights:

TV still represents “the biggest chunk of the home telecom bill for most households,” the survey found, noting that over 90 percent of the respondents to the survey had a pay-TV provider. And despite all the talk about doing away with that, only a tiny fraction actually have – “1.4 percent of CR readers have canceled their pay-TV service in the past two years.”

For specifically VoIP services, the study advised readers to, “consider low-cost VoIP services,” adding that “many homes already have Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone service from their cable company, Verizon FiOS (News - Alert), or AT&T U-verse,” whereas alternative VoIP services “including Ooma, Vonage, Magic jack and Skype cost less, from nothing to about $25 a month for unlimited domestic calls, plus an upfront cost for equipment.”

Finding the most satisfying telecom providers overall, the study turned up “a few small, regional cable companies, and Verizon (News - Alert) FiOS and AT&T U-verse, the high-speed phone-company offerings,” the magazine noted, adding that the problem is that most customers have little actual choice.

Even Verizon FiOS and AT&T (News - Alert) U-verse, the magazine says, are available in “only one-third of the U.S., and almost nowhere are they both available.”

VoIP providers are more available to a wide range of customers, however.

Bundled services from established cable companies, including Cox (News - Alert), Cablevision, or Bright House Networks, were also rated favorably. Of course it all depends on what you want: “If television service is a priority and Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-verse aren't available in your area, satellite providers DirecTV (News - Alert) or Dish Network received above average survey scores.”