It accepts money, does VOIP, and has Easter eggs!The 970-HA-JOKES Payphone Project:
It all started because they moved the parking meters around my neighborhood. When our city (Boulder) got new pay stations, they left behind concrete pads with metal mount points.
I mentioned to my wife, 'wouldn't it be funny if someone put a payphone there?
Previously, previously, previously, previously, previously, previously, previously, previously.
Nifty! Here's another story, about someone putting a pay phone in their house.
That's also awesome.
Related-ish: 567-867-5309 actually works (and no, it wasn't me).
The page makes it sound like it's difficult to find a pay phone. It really isn't. They're not cheap, and it's undeniable cruelty to ask your delivery driver to lug one to your doorstep. But you can find used phones easily at places like Payphone.com. Importantly, they also sell the required mounting plates, locks, t-bar, and all the other goodies you might need.
I bought one a decade ago. It came with the coin acceptor unplugged, but I plugged it in and it now plays the redbox tones. The solenoid that chooses the vault or the coin return was removed and it was set to vault-only, so it functions as a piggybank and can't actually be used as a real payphone any longer.
It had a printed number plate from Longview, Washington area on it. Currently, I've got mine plugged into an ObiHai OBi200 and CallCentric.
You are suggesting that they should have bought the phone from payphone.com instead of doing what they said they did in the article, which was buying the phone from payphone.com?