Phone Cards Blog

VoIP, Voice over Internet Protocol is the future for phone service. While virtual an unknown technology a few years ago, VoIP is becoming common place. With new technology appearing here is a VoIP tutorial on the different types of VoIP.

There are several different setups for VoIP. The basic setup is a free service, normally. It is computer to computer. This is where you use your computer to call another computer and you talk with a headset and microphone connected. Think Skype, MSN and Yahoo.

These services have been around for years, but have improved greatly in their technology of computer to computer VoIP. As long as the person you wish to speak to has the same software and a high speed internet connection, you can speak with them. Next door or around the globe the call can go from your computer to someone else’s.

IP Phones are the next step. These phones have the ability to plug into the router that you use. They look like a traditional phone. They have software built in and are able to use the technology of VoIP to send and receive phone calls. Another up and comer in this category are WiFi phones. They use the technology of wireless to provide phone service. There is usually an installation fee and a monthly service charge.

ATA is the standard. ATA stands for analog telephone adaptor. When you sign up for this service you are sent a special router. This router enables you to plug in a traditional phone. The router is able to route your phone calls using the internet service you have.

There is usually a setup fee and a monthly service fee. You get many of the same service you get on traditional phones, such as caller ID and call waiting. Plans often include unlimited calls and cheaper international rates.

Whichever method you choose, ensure you read the fine print. Many of the subscription service have a contract of one or two years. If you find that it is not the service for you, you will have to pay a disconnection fee.

VoIP is the technology for the home phones of the future. Many traditional companies are starting to use high speed internet to route their calls, as it is more efficient and less costly than phone lines. Finding a provider and plan will become more competitive and technology improves.

VoIP is an acronym that is going around a lot lately, but what is it? It stands for Voice over Internet Protocol. This is the new level of phone service that you can use that costs a lot less than a traditional phone line.

In traditional phone service voices are transmitted via phone lines. They all need to be hard wired in. Phone companies must maintain these lines. This can be very costly.

Voice over internet protocol is phone service that is provided using high speed internet service. The phone line is “piggy-backed” on cable lines that are all ready present. If you have high speed internet, all you have to do is purchase a special type of router and a service plan.
VoIP works with traditional phones even. You just plug them into the jacks in the router that you purchased.

A few years ago there were only a few companies that offered VoIP services. More are now competing. New services are being offered. Worldwide plans are now even available. Cable companies are jumping on the bandwagon and bundling phone service in with their television and internet service. This is referred to as bundling a package, basically giving you more features in one package.

This competition has lowered the prices as well. Traditional phone companies are having to lower their prices to be competitive with VoIP service providers. In the years to come we will see VoIP become the prominent provider for home telephone service due mainly to the fact that voice over IP costs a lot less.

Learn more about the VoIP benefits

Learn more about Basic VoIP

An IP-PBX phone system can be hardware appliance, or virtually, as a software system running on a workstation computer. Due to the fact that a major part of IP PBX phone system functionality is software based, it is relatively inexpensive and easy to add features that can exist in only enterprise level business phone systems.

Getting an IP PBX for your office, doesn’t necessarily mean that you have free long distance. This is a typical misconception I have seen with any new prospect that I meet.

The truth is that an IP PBX, by virtue of the technology that has created it, has the ability to instantly connect to various VOIP service providers who are able to give you dial tone or phone line via your existing broadband internet connection. No expensive upgrades required. Just connect your IP PBX phone system to the internet and setup your internet phone line or VOIP Line.

And depending on what deals your VOIP phone telephone line company has to offer, you can get free unlimited calling to some countries or absolutely free calling to any place in the world !!

Residential VOIP phone service may be cheap when you calculate the cost of all the features bundled into one low price. But when it comes to business VOIP, I beg to differ.

Consider this, a good business VOIP service will cost you between $22.95 – $32.95 per month. If you need more than 3 channels for simultaneous outgoing calls ( called multi-line or hunt group in traditional telephony  terms ) you may as well opt for a dedicated broadband access which will cost you around $59.95 a month …remember this is a business account and you will pay a premium for the better grade of service and support.

Taking the lowest figures you will end up spending $128.8 for a 3 channel VOIP trunk. And this works out to minimum $43 per line. Compare this with your friendly neighbourhood landline provider with the features that both offer and then make an informed decision.

Don’t buy VOIP just because of the hype. Remember, when you buy VOIP, you are also relying on the broadband service provider. Whereas, in case of landlines, there is a direct copper wire circuit connecting you directly and exclusively to the telephone company’s switching network.

These days, most people are familiar with VoIP even if they don’t recognize the word. Voice over Internet Protocol is something that many of us use from time to time or even on a daily basis. Services like Skype are a good example of a VoIP system.

Just What is a PBX?

PBX refers to Private Branch Exchange, which sounds a little confusing, but is basically a method of switching phone lines back and forth to connect them in the world of offline communication. When referring to VoIP, the system is essentially the same in concept, only it works over a LAN or WAN network. These are data-oriented rather than circuit switched networks which we use in the real world phone systems.

You see, when you make a call on a VoIP system to a phone, a VoIP PBX or IP PBX, is responsible for making the connection between the virtual and the real life version. This is also in effect when you are calling from one computer to another, but there is no “translation” necessary between data and traditional phone lines.

With VoIP PBX, it’s a very simple matter to create a conference call and have several people in on a call. The technology has made it extremely easy to add new people to a call and without any additional preparation, you’ll be able to turn an ordinary phone call into one between several people. This is particularly useful for business calls where several people need to be in on a discussion or for long distance meetings. Families can also use this to connect on one call, no matter where they are in the world. It’s an amazing technology that still isn’t being used as much as it should.

What Should I Know?

VoIP PBX is essential to making your calls online, but in most cases you don’t need to know anything about this. In fact, your VoIP provider is going to be responsible for this area. However, it does help to understand what they are talking about and to realize what some of the potential issues are with this type of setup.

The reason some people still refuse to use VoIP is that they worry about the quality and reliability of this form of communication. While this was once a major issue, the technology has progressed to the point that these problems are far less frequent.

Before we look at the issues that can arise, it’s important to know that when you communicate online, your voice data is divided into smaller pieces, called packets, for sending.

Possible problems include the following:

Too much information being received by the VoIP PBX at once.

• Packet delay, when a packet gets sent through the wrong relays.
• Packets getting jumbled up in the sending and reaching the receiver in the wrong order.
• Packets arriving at different times at the receiver, causing ‘jitter’.

The result of having packets get lost or misdirected is a pause and possible loss of data while speaking. This is part of the reason why there is often a delay when using VoIP. This means you’ll need to speak slower when this happens. However, for the most part, the technology works well enough for even business calls and is far more cost effective.

Even though you may not need to know exactly how VoIP PBX works, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with the concept. VoIP is a very valuable addition to our communications systems and it is estimated that by 2010, 90% of communications sales will involve VoIP as it is rapidly growing in popularity.