What Is A VoIP Phone?
Copyright 2006 Peter Nisbet
In spite of the growing popularity of IP telephony, there are still many people who do not know what a VoIP phone is.
What is the difference between a VoIP phone and an ordinary phone?
As far as you are concerned, probably not a lot.
You can still use your own landline phone if need be, though in its simplest form there is no VoIP phone handset as such.
Just a microphone and speakers will do.
All you need is some software which is supplied by the provider.
You can use your normal land-line phone.
Just like digital TV requires a box, either set-top or included in the set, VoIP needs a box which you can either buy yourself, or get from your VoIP provider. Once you connect your phone to the box and the box to your internet connection, you have your VoIP phone system using your own phone.
Due to the connection speeds involved you have to have broadband or another high-speed internet connection.
Your telephone conversation passes through the internet in packets in the same way as any other file does. As you speak, your analogue voice signal is digitized by the VoIP software into binary form, and the digital stream broken up into small 'packets' which are sent through the internet.
These packets each take their own fastest route through the internet, from computer to computer, till they reach their destination.
This is the way that all files are sent through IP.
The problem with a streamed signal, such as a VoIP phone conversation, and a packet system, is that the packets do not always arrive in the correct order.
This is due to the releative amount of internet traffic each packet comes up against, and the fact that they can each take different routes.
Also, some packets are lost, or 'dropped'.
Modern software is becoming increasingly better at arranging
packets in the correct order (often through slight time delays which allow them to be rearranged) and covering up 'dropped' packets.
VoIP phone conversations are therefore more audible now than they were in the early days of VoIP phone systems.
As I said, you can use your computer microphone and speakers to make and receive conversations, but you can also get a dedicated VoIP phone if you prefer. It's all a matter of choice and does not significantly affect the services you can have.
Some of the services supplied free with VoIP phone systems are:
* Caller ID
* Call waiting
* Call forwarding
* Voicemail
* Conference calls
* Call transfer
* Group pick-up
Once you have your box, any calls you make to another VoIP are free ? anywhere.
For calls to non-VoIP
phones there is a charge, but this is generally lower than normal land-line charges.
Your phone number relates to the adaptor, so you can take this with you and use it on any computer with fast internet connection. You can also buy a VoIP phone to go with your laptop and make telephone calls anywhere at any time;
just as you can with a mobile, but at a fraction of the cost, and usually free to any other IP phone.
This is an excellent inexpensive solution for businesses with a network of offices ? all calls between them will be free throughout the world.
Another cool feature is virtual phone numbers.
You can get local area numbers allocated
to your regular phone number, so that if your family live in LA and you are in New York they can ring your LA local number with their landline and speak to you in New York at local rates.
How cool is that!
A VoIP phone is now an attractive option for anyone, both as a cheap alternative to a mobile phone and as a complete replacement for a landline.
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Comparison Site Emerges to Evaluate Emerging Telephone Technology - Voipreview.org is Consumers "One-Stop Shop" to VoIP
Voip > Comparison Site Emerges to Evaluate Emerging Telephone Technology - Voipreview.org is Consumers "One-Stop Shop" to VoIP
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VoipReview.org Adds 14 New VoIP Providers to Online Search Tool
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What is VoIP?
VoIP is an acronym for voice over internet protocol. A VoIP, in essence, is a computer phone that allows you to make phone calls from your computer to anyone in the world, e.g., PC to PC, PC to landlines, or PC to cell phones. The voice signal converts to data packets and travels across the internet through a VoIP platform, and then converts back to voice at the receiving end of the communication exchange. There is no delay in conversations / communications with 3WTel VoIP. Leading telecom experts are projecting that 75% of the world's communications will be done on VoIP within the next several years..
What is VoIP?
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Comparison Site Emerges to Evaluate Emerging Telephone Technology - Voipreview.org is Consumers "One-Stop Shop" to VoIP
The future of phone calls is here - Voice-over-Internet Protocol, VoIP, is an innovative new way of saying hi to Mom that eliminates minute-by-minute charges and even allows you to call anywhere in the world. The service uses the power of the Internet to carry voice signals instead of traditional copper."It's probably the most significant paradigm shift in the entire history of modern communications, since the invention of the telephone," Michael Powell, chairman of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, told journalists at the World Economic Forum.Foreshadowing a consumer trend that looks to become widespread throughout the country, a new site has recently launched to give savvy buyers an edge in the VoIP market. VoipReview.org is the premier online destination for comparing and purchasing VoIP services."The site is a one-stop shopping comparison site for VoIP," said Eric Laughlin, co-founder of VoipReview.org. "We provide an unbiased evaluation on the quality and serviceability...
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Whether you run a small business or a big corporation, switching to VoIP is something that you must not delay. As we speak, many companies are making the switch to VoIP upon realising the many advantages of incorporating their business with VoIP. In a nutshell, these benefits include saving costs and increasing productivity.
Below is an overview on why your business should make the switch to VoIP.
VoIP Saves Cost
No matter how you hate to admit it, you cannot deny the fact that today, without telecommunications your business can be considered non-existent. We have become so dependent on the telephone, fax, Internet, E-mail, Customer Service through telephone, web-conferencing, online web applications, and any other business needs that we cannot even begin to imagine how we survived without them previously.
Don't fret, as VoIP handles all of it by integrating everything into one application. Not only that, VoIP has also combined...
Voip > Should Your Business Switch to VoIP
Should Your Business Switch to VoIP
Whether you run a small business or a big corporation, switching to VoIP is something that you must not delay. As we speak, many companies are making the switch to VoIP upon realising the many advantages of incorporating their business with VoIP. In a nutshell, these benefits include saving costs and increasing productivity.
Below is an overview on why your business should make the switch to VoIP.
VoIP Saves Cost
No matter how you hate to admit it, you cannot deny the fact that today, without telecommunications your business can be considered non-existent. We have become so dependent on the telephone, fax, Internet, E-mail, Customer Service through telephone, web-conferencing, online web applications, and any other business needs that we cannot even begin to imagine how we survived without them previously.
Don't fret, as VoIP handles all of it by integrating everything into one application. Not only that, VoIP has also combined...
Voip > Should Your Business Switch to VoIP
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