VoIP Guide and Tips

Gizmo Project SoftPhone Review

2006-07-31T07:40:00.000-07:00

At first glance, Gizmo Project seems like Skype. However, there are differences, some mentioned here before. One is an invisble feature, namely that Gizmo is SIP-based and therefore open sourced. So not only can you call other Gizmo members (PC, PSTN) but also members of other SIP-based networks. In fact, you can now at least IM Google Talk users, with actual softVoIP calling to come.

With the recent announcement, you can also call to PSTN phones in 60 countries for free - a potential market of 2 billion phones - provided the person you're calling is a registered member of Gizmo. If they're not, Gizmo CallOut (similar to SkypeOut) offers low per-minute rates. The free calling to 60 countries is a permanent feature, not a promo. (There is a noticeable absence of China and India on this list.)

Gizmo Call In gives you a free US-, UK-, France- or Spain-based phone number for US$3/m, payable in 3- or 12-month increments. Interesting that Canada is not part of that, especially considering Skype's 2006 promo for free calls between the US and Canada. (I.e., there's a VoIP market in Canada.) Over all, you can have a phone number from over 50 cities. (How cool would it be to have, say, an L.A. phone number yet live on the East Coast. East meets West.)

Essentially it means that if you live in one of the cities represented, you can travel and still receive calls as if you're local. Less cost for your friends. It's also ideal for people who've moved - or relocated temporarily - and want friends and family to be able to contact them without long distance charges.

One other call option is an US-based Area775 number, although in the same breath it's described as being both free and costing a small monthly fee. (Don't know how that's possible.) When other people dial your Area775 number, it can call both your computer or regular phone. Calls can be screened, transferred, or shuttled to voicemail. The latter has the option of generating SMS messages. (Having your regular phone called costs $2/call.)

For those of you that get calls from strangers - like I occasionally do - Gizmo Project has a Google map that shows you their call location. This is ideal for for flagging potential Vishers who tell you that they're from somewhere else.

If you have need of conference calling, Gizmo Project has FreeConferenceCallTM, which allows calls between landlines, cell phones, and Gizmo softVoIP users. Gizmo users initiate the call with a free conferencing number. Other phones have to dial a (non-toll-free) number, then the conference room #. Of course, if other callers are using Gizmo, there's no long distance cost.

There's also support for Asterisk PBX, an open source PBX designed for enterprise VoIP, and a host of other features. Or if you want to make outbound calls from a PSTN phone, you can buy Gizmo-compatible SIP adapters.

Finally, if you're a developer and want to build VoIP applications, they have an API (Application Programmer Interface) and SDK (Software Development Kit) for both Windows and Mac OS X, with a Linux SDK coming soon. The SDKs are unfortunately only in C++, but a lot of Java and other object-oriented programmers do not have too much trouble with C++.

At the most basic level, the API and SDK allow you to create your own branded SIP-based softVoIP phone, so businesses could have a soft client with their logo.

Gizmo Project is available for Windows 2000 + XP, Mac OS X, Linux, and the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet. They're a member of the IM Federation, an organization promoting IM network intercompatibility.

How To Improve VoIP Call Audio Quality

2006-07-27T23:19:00.000-07:00

The consumer market for VoIP grew by over 250 percent in 2005. This refers to people who actually subscribed to a VoIP service, which amounts to over 3 million people. That number is expected to nearly triple in 2006, and be nearly ten times in 2009. Call audio quality is going to be an issue sooner or later, if it has not become one already.

Besides hardware-based VoIP, many more people are using soft clients such as Skype, including some PDA users, without any subscription plan. Some may even be using the voice capabilities of IM (Instant Messaging) clients such as Google Talk or MSN Messenger. For Skype alone, there are an estimated 100 million users worldwide.

Up till now, people may be putting up with poor call quality, simple because for soft client users, VoIP calls are very cheap or even free. My own experience suggests poor audio quality is fairly common. If you're a VoIP soft client user, here are a few things to consider, to improve your audio quality:

(1) Don't use a $1 microphone if you intend to record VoIP calls, particularly for podcasts. You mic doesn't have to be expensive either. You're not recording vocal tracks for a music CD. For standard calls that will not be rebroadcast, you can probably use a sub-$30 mic or headphone + mic headset combo. (My $1 mic works just fine, if my laptop RAM is free.)

(2) Make sure the RAM on your computer isn't maxed out. For my daily work, my RAM is constantly topped out and it affects my audio (and especially my video when I use a WoIP soft client such as Sightspeed). If you notice poor audio quality, you could try closing some other programs on your computer. Sometimes it's the program itself. I noticed that the free Babble.net client is unfortunately a memory hog.

(3) Expect poor audio quality if you have a slow Internet connection. If you're using a Wi-Fi setup, it might be a matter of positioning. Try moving around.

If any of the above problems arise, you'll probably get audio artefacts including warbling, echo, or buzz. Electrical interference can cause your microphone to generate hum as well.

As for the audio quality of calls over VoIP hardware or networks, that's something manufacturers and providers have to work on. PSTN phones use dedicated networks, thus providing high quality calls. Early VoIP adopters are putting up with issues of poor audio quality and reliability. However, as VoIP usage spreads, newer customers are less likely to put up with poor service. Someone also has to come up with a reliable e911 emergency calling solution.

Why Internet Phone Should Be Your Next Home Phone

2006-07-26T08:16:00.000-07:00

VoIP has become extremely popular with the general public. TV and online adverts, news and paper headlines have aired this new technology heavily recently, furthering its overall success. If somehow you’ve managed to miss all this hype surrounding this recent computer related communications revolution the abreviation VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol or Voice over IP. This technology enables the user to talk with a phone/microphone over the world wide web connection.

Normal phone bills can be minimised by using VoIP since it boasts extremely low rates, considerably lower than conventional telephone, whether the calls being made are local or to the other side of the world. Large corporations are taking advantage of this fact massively by installing the necessary software and equipment, loosing the old requirement for traditional conference calls, many faxes etc, whilst incorporating such media tools as streaming video applications. The recent explosion in VoIP use has hidden the fact that this technology has been around for many years waiting to become economically viable.

In terms of families now wanting to give this exciting new improvement on phone communication a go, mostly this concept is a full gone conclusion people are going stir crazy about it. Do they believe all the hype about how it will hugely improve their everyday lives? Is this technology really as impressive, reliable and affordable as is often touted by the sales pitchers? Any unanswered questions alongside possibilities you may not have realised yet are provided here in this article aimed at furthering your understanding of this new VoIP technology. Once you’ve read everything here you may be more inclined to get out there and purchase then test run this communications system.

Initially an internet connection to your residence must be present! This connection must be a high speed one, any of the following varieties i.e. satellite, cable or DSL, not 56K dial up. VoIP can only function properly and transform into your new calling station by following this important advice. Quality loss is just far too significant when attempting to use slower connections such as 56K dial ups. These now fairly antiquated connections simply don’t have the speed or capacity required to transfer calls digitally. If DSL happens to be your choice of broadband service, and you’re hoping to replace your existing phone service with VoIP, a company known as SpeakEasy has just recently created a VoIP product that does’nt require any already installed phone line.

The second most important requirement is a ‘gateway’, needing to be connected between your ethernet modem and computer. Your phone line needs to be plugged into this VoIP gateway to then enable calling to be high quality, unhindered by any potential computer problems that may occur. Many computers have a variety of momentary unpredictable problems, e.g. slow memory or crashes which could significantly reduce quality calling time.

Adapters are available so that VoIP can fit any phone, old/ existing or new. Typically the promoters of VoIP provide sell adapters to reduce the time you may spend shopping around for one. Albeit a great money saving plan, not buying a new phone will probably mean you miss out on the next big VoIP move, video usage in combination with VoIP on phones, a trend that looks set to blow up everywhere. A company known as Packet8 VoIP sells a great video phone in addition to their usual services.

Phone services that have VoIP included typically contain the whole range of great offers and gadgets the current phone services provide. Details cover such aspects as three way calling, voice messaging, your own VoIP telephone number and call waiting.

Key aspects associated with this brazen new feature-full phone technology that you should be aware of are that local 911 emergency coverage exists. This feature may come as an additional extra charge on top of the basic package, hitting your wallet on a monthly basis. Don’t commit to a calling contract until you have ironed out all the costs associated with what ever deal you choose.

Lastly, remember that electricity is the fuel your VoIP system uses and the occasional power cut will unfortunately put a stop to its functioning, momentarily. This is the one small aspect that traditional phone calls don’t have to contend with, due in part to them containing their own small power supplies.

How to Use Your Cell Phone via VoIP

2006-06-29T07:00:00.000-07:00

Many of us came to rely on cell phones to make long distance phone calls, our only option was to commit to a long distance phone company. Long distance carriers charged what were at times exorbitant by-the-minute fees to make calls to friends and loved ones often living only a few hours away. When cell phones came into prominence, they brought with them service plans that gave us such luxuries as free night and weekend calling anywhere domestically. Alas, even cell phones had their drawbacks, in that their reception was often broken up, and calls could be dropped unceremoniously. When along came VOIP, a new choice in long distance phone calling was on the horizon. VOIP has many different options, and now it seems that we have the choice of combining VOIP technology with cell phones. The prospect of VOIP cell phone service brings with it the potential for even more freedom and convenience, along with lower prices. Or does it?

Normally, VOIP service is available in three modes: ATA, IP phone, and computer-to-computer. All of these services are common and available for use at your home computer. ATA, or analog telephone adapter, lets you connect your regular home telephone to your computer and use it for VOIP service by converting analog sound bits into digital data. IP, or Internet protocol, phones are telephones that are specially designed for use with VOPI service. These phones look just like a standard home phone, but are wired differently to be VOIP capable. You can have a cordless IP phone that allows you to move freely through your home or office as you talk. Computer-to-computer VOIP is achieved by installing software that you can get through a provider. You make long distance calls from your computer, and talk through a microphone that is hooked up to your machine. All of these services are convenient in their own ways, but do not have quite the portability that cell phones offer. That is why the idea of VOIP cell phones is so appealing. Potentially, it is the best of both worlds: portability and low cost phone service.

Cost savings is by far the most attractive aspect of VOIP. With typical VOIP, you can expect to pay anywhere from $19.95 to $34.99 per month for a service that consists of many features, including free domestic calls, dirt cheap International calling rates, Caller ID, Call Waiting, 3-way Calling, among others. This, of course, is in addition to your current monthly ISP charge, which for broadband is usually around $40 per month. The combined cost for your ISP and VOIP services is likely to still be less expensive than if you were to remain in service with a traditional telephone company. However, this is not necessarily the case if you were to switch your cell phone over to VOIP as well.

Providers that offer VOIP cell phone services usually charge a monthly fee in addition to a per-minute fee. If you don't use your cell phone often enough to meet or exceed your current allotted plan minutes, then it is simply not cost effective for you to subscribe to VOIP cell phone service. VOIP and cell phones go well together for those customers that regularly exceed their plan minutes or make International calls on their cell phone on a regular basis. And, if your Internet connection if prone to outages, you could experience the same dropped call occurrences that you might often get with a standard cell phone service.

There is no doubt that VOIP is a reasonably priced and convenient way to bundle all of you communications together. VOIP service is improving all the time as technologies moves forward, which will allow providers to offer more reliable and even more affordable service down the line. Currently, VOIP cell phone service is in its infancy, and the kinks are being worked out. If you do the math, and feel that your monthly cell phone bill would benefit from a reasonable VOIP service plan, then it is worth the switch. If you do not make International calls on your cell phone, and you rarely or never go over your plan's allotted monthly minutes, then you are probably better off sticking with your traditional cell phone service for now than putting out more money for VOIP cell phone service.

VOIP Hardware 101

2006-06-09T08:05:00.000-07:00

VoIP or Voice over Internet Protocol is a technology that taken the telecom industry by storm by introducing significant changes in the field of telecommunications. Because of the changes it has brought to the traditional telephony system it has become a hot favorite in both the residential and commercial market.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is basically a process, which converts your voice into digital signals that travel over internet. Its most prominent feature is its affordability. With VoIP you can make long distance calls at a fraction of cost that you used to pay to your telephone companies. It is primarily because of the fact that transferring digital signals over internet is quite cheaper than transferring analog signals over the traditional telephone lines.

The VoIP hardware needed to make VoIP calls depends on the type of VoIP service being used. VoIP service is available in three different modes. These are ATA, IP phone and PC-to-PC. All these services are common and available for the use at the home PC. ATA or Analog Telephone Adaptor lets the user to connect the regular telephone to the computer and use it for VoIP service by converting analog sound bits into digital data.

Internet Protocol phones are those phones which are specially designed to be used with VoIP service. They look very similar to the standard phone models but their components are different from them. Moreover, a cordless IP phone will enable the user to use the VoIP services on the move. The PC-to-PC VoIP can be set up by installing the software provided by the VoIP service providers. Yahoo and MSN messengers are the examples of such software. In the PC-to-PC VoIP, users can make long distance calls through their computers and can communicate through the headphones with attached microphones.

As the VoIP is gaining popularity the market for the VoIP services and hardware is becoming more and more competitive. Presently there are several companies that are offering VoIP services and hardware to the growing market for the VoIP. However, the VoIP technology is so new that even the latest VoIP hardware becomes outdated in few months. Thus, one needs to be very careful while investing in the VoIP hardware. First of all, you should decide what kind of VoIP service is perfect for you. Then compare the cost of the VoIP hardware with that of the traditional phones. If it costs more than the traditional phones then there is no use of buying it as it is not advisable to buy VoIP equipment just for the sake of having the latest technology.

Moreover as the products become outdated very fast you should purchase them only when needed. If you are using VoIP then you should be ready to spend more money in future to upgrade your hardware. Also, the installation costs are to be paid every time you change or upgrade your hardware. Finally, before going to shop for VoIP hardware you must collect information about the different vendors and should only select a licensed or authorized dealer.

VoIP Headset Know How?

2006-05-09T17:44:00.000-07:00

Many people use headsets when talking to their friends and family using VOIP. VOIP stands for voice over internet protocol and it is a very inexpensive and a popular way to make phone calls from your computer or land line phone over a broadband internet connection. If you are using your computer to make phone calls, then you should definitively check out headsets for VOIP.

Benefits Of Using A Headset For VOIP

Headsets for VOIP computer calling makes it easier when on the road or at home to make free or very affordable phone calls. Headsets main benefit is that they set your hands free, enabling you to be more productive. And using a headset for VOIP is very easy.

Most headsets are extremely comfortable and either fit over the head, behind the neck or is ear buds that gently fit in your ears. The difference between a cell phone headset and headset for VOIP is that a VOIP headset has a microphone RCA connector and an earphone RCA connector which is made specifically for a computers sound card. A quality headset system can dramatically improve the quality of your VOIP calls and will as well considerably reduce shoulder, back and neck strain.

Costs Of VOIP Headsets

Headsets for VOIP are extremely affordable and usually start at about $10. There are several models that are wireless if you don't like to be connected by a cord, which makes it easier for you to walk around your room or office. Keep in mind that wireless headsets are generally more expensive than headsets connected by a cord.

Where To Buy VOIP Headsets

You can buy headsets for VOIP at all computer stores, office supply shops and online at VOIP provider shops. Ebay is also a great way to grab inexpensive headsets. Just be sure that the shipping costs are not going to cost you more than the headset! GN Netcom, Headsets.com, Jabra, Plantronics, Sennheiser and Sony are the main manufacturers of headsets and they all provide quality equipment.

What If You Do Not Want A Headset?

Headsets for VOIP are just one way to talk over VOIP. Other ways are to use a land line phone plugged into an adapter or a USB phone that plugs directly into your computer's USB port.

However, headsets for VOIP are usually the cheapest option and are the easiest to install. So if you are looking to talk over VOIP, check out headsets for VOIP, you will not regret it!

VoIP vs. PSTN - Pros and Cons?

2006-05-01T17:39:00.000-07:00

A seamless communication environment, where the limitations of time & distance would be eliminated is surely the ultimate objective behind newer inventions in the communication arena. VoIP technology holds great promise as it keeps evolving itself by providing newer applications.

But has VoIP truly arrived and is it completely ready to replace PSTN? That’s the big question. To know the answer we have to peep a little deeper into the technological aspects of them and try to know their real worth.

PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network): It’s the existing system based on circuit switching, the silent features

Advantages:
1) Well established technology
2) Easy maintenance
3) Hassle free set-up process
4) Simplicity in usage procedures

Disadvantages:
1) Dedicated line required to complete a call
2) Limited scalability
3) Optimum usage of bandwidth not possible
4) Monthly fees applicable for maintenance
5) Higher call charges

VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol): The latest technology on the block, it employs the packet switching method of data transmission leading to an increase in the effective rate of transmission.

Advantages:
1) Concurrent transmission of data, voice & video possible
2) Scalability
3) As the data is sent over the network in compressed format, proper utilization of bandwidth is rendered possible
4) The World Wide Web, which is in the public domain, is used as the backbone of the network, that’s why hardware requirements are a bare minimum.
5) The enhanced efficiency which becomes evident due to the proper utilization of bandwidth leads to massive reduction in the costs incurred per call. Thereby making VoIP a very cheap, yet effective communication tool.
6) Value added services are offered free of cost.
Disadvantages:
1) The quality of sound at times become unpredictable
2) Echo

VoIP is a near perfect technology as the disadvantages associated with it, are to a great extent in the domain of the VoIP service provider, so by choosing a reliable service provider you can hope to eliminate the disadvantages.

Coming back to the big question about choosing in between VoIP & PSTN, as of now it would be advisable to use a hybrid system with VoIP being in the core of the system & PSTN in the periphery. This arrangement would ensure that you get most of both the technologies and would not be dependent on one.

Although the near future would see VoIP completely overtaking the existing system, so by switching over to VoIP now on one hand you will witness massive savings and on the other hand get to have a feel of the technology of the future!!

How to Set up Alarm Systems with VoIP Line

2006-04-06T22:12:00.000-07:00

An astounding and unexpected number of people are dropping their (POTS) plain old telephone system, for the latest trends in phone service, VoIP. According to Frost & Sullivan there were 100,000 VoIP users at the end of 2003. Just halfway through 2004 the number jumped to more than 500,000.

The draw to such a change is most often cost related. Traditional phone companies charge use fees and by the minute charges, coupled with long distance fees. VoIP companies are charging a flat fee somewhere between $15.00 to $30.00 US per month, for unlimited calls to anywhere in the US and Canada.

VoIP works by digitizing voice signals from your phone and sending them over the Internet via your home or business computer. While people are scrambling to make the switch and begin to count the money they are saving, they may not realize that there is a good possibility that they are cutting the link between their alarm system and the monitoring station. Another link that is lost in most cases is traditional 911 services, as VoIP does not capture data for emergency response.

When your alarm goes off due to an attempted break in, is no time to find out that the monitoring response that you have been faithfully paying for is not available for you. The Alarm Company has no way of knowing that you switched services. You should be sending a test signal monthly, to assure yourself that the system is working properly, no matter who you are connected through. Be advised that if you are using VoIP and the signal goes through, it does not mean that it will always be as clear. The volume of traffic on the Internet can and will vary the quality of the digitized signal it sends.

If you find yourself intrigued by this revolution in phone services and are dependent on alarm system dispatch as part of your security plan, you should consider the pitfalls and options.

* If power fails to the premise it is likely that your VoIP will fail also, unless your PC has a backup power source.

* You may not be able to use 911 services.

* Your signal may go through giving you a false sense of security, as it may not work next time.

* You may have already switched to VoIP and not realize that your alarm is not being monitored.

I myself have elected to utilize VoIP to save money on long distance. I also maintain a standard limited use phone line to take care of my security communications, 911 and phone backup should power fail. The (limited use) phone line, cost me less than $15.00 per month and is offset by the savings on my long distance bill.

Cellular communicators are available that will make your alarm call over any available cellular network. The device will have to be purchased for about $200.00 to $500.00, and an additional fee of approximately $10.00 per month is added to your monitoring bill.

Some alarm companies offer radio signal transmitted monitoring services, which do not depend on phone lines of any sort to transmit your alarm signal. The availability of such services is limited and depends where you live.

Alarm companies of all sizes are working with manufactures and providers of VoIP services to find ways to properly integrate Alarm Systems with these phone communications industry changes. I would expect many changes in the near future as this does not seem to be a passing fad. Be on the lookout for information on these changes, so that you can always make an informed decision.

Matthew Francis, 22 year veteran of the alarm industry Installer, salesman, licensed alarm company owner, monitoring station designer, promotions and marketing director with one of the worlds largest security dealers. He now works as a consumer advocate, teaching consumers how to buy or get systems for free (without being taken). He is committed to being unbiased.
web site: http://www.expertsknow.com

How to Get The Best From VoIP Phone and Services

2006-03-27T23:21:00.000-08:00

VoIP is the fastest growing internet communication service. With features and services not normally found in traditional landlines, it is fast becoming the number one choice of people.

At first, people have been skeptical to use VoIP but soon found out the effectiveness and convenience of VoIP.

VoIP phones are now changing people’s perspective on the use of telephone. If you want a phone, it can be a good choice.

VoIP offers standard features that regular landline phones often charges extra. For instance, free or low cost long distance calls are often not available in regular landlines. This is because VoIP uses the internet to make a call. Since the internet offers free information, and fast communication, VoIP phones take advantage of this feature to transmit the calls free.

With a VoIP phone, you can take your personal number wherever you are. You can make and receive phone calls from your number even if you are traveling as long as there is an active internet connection to where you are going.

There are many VoIP broadband phone provider in the market today, choosing the right one would be very beneficial for your business or personal for your use.

Here are some of the things you should look for when choosing VoIP service providers:

Audio Quality

Recent advancement in technology allows better sound quality with reduced noise. This means that a VoIP service provider should have excellent audio quality when making calls. If you experience lags or delays in your phone calls, you should think twice before subscribing to the company another time.

Little or no delay transmission is needed for your voice to reach the person you are calling. A one-second delay can mean the difference of making a simple answer of “yes” or “no”. Remember that voice delays can mean misunderstanding, and precise answers are extremely important in businesses.

Reliability

Imagine making an important business deal or talking to your family and friends and your call is suddenly cut off. This is a bad sign that your service provider is not making sure that you get your money’s worth.

Get a VoIP service provider that offers maximum reliability and free try out periods to ensure you that they give the best service to their subscribers. Although cheap rates are attractive, try their services first before committing.

Customer Service

VoIP service providers should offer customer support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This can help you if you ever have problems using VoIP.

The customer assistance service should be quick and take care of their subscribers immediately after making the call. Know if the VoIP service providers you are planning on subscribing have customer assistance. Customer service can be found in the VoIP service providers or by calling them.

Features

VoIP service providers should offer standard features like; free long distance calls, emails, fax, web conferencing, and videophone and others for no extra fee at all. Still quite a few VoIP service providers out there charge for these extra features. Get a VoIP service provider that offers maximum standard features free.

Price

VoIP is supposed to be free or cheap. Get a VoIP service provider that offer free long distance and low monthly payments. Make sure that not only it should be cheap but also offers quality service. Most providers offer trial periods, use this to determine if it is worth spending you hard earned cash.

However convenient it might be to own a VoIP phone, there are still drawbacks for it. For example, you should have a high-speed internet connected.

Since VoIP phones depends on your internet connection, this means that disconnected internet, no VoIP service. Slow internet connection is also a factor. With slow internet connection, expect audio delays.

It is wise that before getting a VoIP phone, you should determine that the internet connection in your area is broadband and reliable.

Bob Hett has extensively covered the VoIP Service Provider industry as an analyst and has researched the various companies for factors based on price, reliability, support and overall quality. Learn more at VoIP Phones.

How Small Business Can Benefit from VoIP Technology

2006-03-27T23:11:00.000-08:00

VOIP has been declared by greats like Forbes.com to be “the four letter word for growth.” It is widely acknowledged that technology can spur growth and businesses, even small ones that integrate new technologies, have a strategic and competitive edge over others.

VOIP offers great benefits. It involves the setting up of just one network that will encompass so many functions at extremely affordable costs. Studies show that the phone bill can be culled to half or even lower.

Although cost savings is reason 1 for installing VoIP there are by other great advantages. In the case of small businesses, you can choose any area code irrespective of where you operate from. So, if most of your clients are in Atlanta but you are based in New York you can choose a connection with an Atlanta code. This enables you to create a sound business presence in many cities. The system allows setting up of toll-free lines which creates the image of a large business. If you choose a plan carefully you will be able to make unlimited free calls for a fixed payment, forward calls, call internationally for a very low charge, and expand the reach of your operation.

A VoIP system moves with you, erasing the problems associated with business travel or other kinds of moves like shifting office or home.

As a business person, you or you office staff will always know who called because of “unified messaging.” And the system collates all the messages such that you can prioritize responses. And, what is even more alluring is that business can retrieve messages via telephone, PC, laptop, or PDA. So, your customers receive 24/7 service and are never disappointed.

The VoIP system allows multiple employees to manage customer calls. Creates a “mini” call center expanding business potential and facilitates better utilization of scarce resources. This leads to immediate solutions for customers. Useful features are click-to-call, web based voice mail, integrated conferencing, auto-attendant capabilities, and call routing.

In case of corporate use, VoIP allows the use of a single high speed internet connection for all voice, video, and data communications. It permits convergence. By incorporating a single data network across all offices and employees the business can reduce operating costs, increase productivity and efficacy, and enhance communications and customer services.

What you need to do, is seek expert advice and find out all you can about quality,
infrastructure, costs, and advantages as well as disadvantages. Technology moves with time so keep in mind aspects like upgrading of system and maintenance.

The system introduces efficiency, effectiveness, professionalism, and a customer oriented approach to the smallest of businesses, lending the business the advantages of otherwise unattainable infrastructure.

Paul Wilson is a freelance writer for http://www.1866Voip.com , the premier website to find help on Voip including topics on online voip, voip phone, voip service providers, voip solutions, business voip, internet telephony voip and more.

Bandwidth: The key Factor for VoIP Call Quality

2006-03-20T21:30:00.000-08:00

A long-standing question for potential VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) consumers is “How much bandwidth does a VoIP phone require to make quality telephone calls?”

First of all, Bandwidth is defined as the ability to transfer data (such as a VoIP telephone call) from one point to another in a fixed amount of time. The higher the bandwidth speed you have, the more data you can send over your Broadband Internet connection.

There are two types of bandwidth at your location: upload bandwidth and download bandwidth. The Upload Bandwidth is the amount of data you can send to the Internet and download bandwidth is the amount of data you can receive from the Internet. The more Internet bandwidth you have from your ISP (Internet Service Provider) the better.

In most cases, the normal VoIP telephone call will use up 90 Kbps (kilobits per second). If you have a Broadband Internet service provider that doesn’t offer much bandwidth then most VoIP providers give you the option to lower the VoIP voice quality by lowering the bandwidth used for VoIP calls to 60 Kbps or, to really conserve your bandwidth, 30 Kbps. Most people can't tell the difference between the three settings. We suggest you use the high sound quality setting (90 Kpbs in most cases), if bandwidth is not an issue. High VoIP voice quality is generally the default setting but if you are running into a situation where your bandwidth is limited then you can adjust your VoIP bandwidth to one of the lower settings. Some consumers with 128 Kbps upload connections can receive less VoIP service quality due to a poor quality ISP (Internet Service Provider). By selecting a lower quality VoIP bandwidth setting, this problem can be avoided.

If you plan on using a VoIP service provider, should you get a DSL or a Cable Internet access provider? In general, DSL upload bandwidth starts at 128k where as Cable Internet upload bandwidth starts at around 600k. Cable Internet is a little bit more expensive, but it is also about 4-5 times faster than residential DSL and a bit friendlier to a VoIP telephone call. Having said that, both DSL and cable modem high-speed services provide sufficient broadband Internet access bandwidth to support any of the top VoIP service providers. If you are experiencing low Broadband Internet Service provider bandwidth, we suggest you try Packet8 VoIP. Packet8 VoIP boasts an advanced compression technology in which each active voice line uses approximately only 23Kbps of total data throughput, upstream and downstream.

The amount of bandwidth that a VoIP provider requires to make a quality telephone call is only one thing to consider when choosing a VoIP service provider. In fact, there are many things to consider when choosing a VoIP provider. An educated consumer generally results in a satisfied consumer.

Chris Landry is the foremost authority on residential and small business VoIP providers. Chris is the founder of http://www.VoIPChoices.com. Chris has prequalified several high-quality VoIP providers and compares them by price and features at http://www.VoIPChoices.com

VoIP Security: The Risk and Protection Measures

2006-03-15T15:07:00.000-08:00

It is often said that understanding the problem is 90% of the solution, and VoIP security is no exception. It is fear of the unknown which is likely to elicit a knee-jerk reaction of panic, so the first step is to understand the threats and then classify them. We also have to ask the question: what does security mean to me and what does it mean to my customers?

Security to the customer means protecting their device and identity and the continuity of their service. Security to the service provider means protecting their network their revenue and their customers. In this feature we will look at service disruption and service theft.

A service can be disrupted by breaking the user's device, flooding the IP network with traffic or breaking the service provider's infrastructure. Disruption is usually achieved through either Logic Attacks or Flood Attacks or Application Layer Attacks.

• Logic attacks exploit vulnerabilities in protocols or their implementations, e.g. Ping of death, Teardrop, Land etc.

• Flood attacks disable targets through traffic volume; a flood attack can originate from a single platform or from multiple platforms.

• Application Layer Attacks include: SIP-SPAM, and identity forging.

We can also divide the attacks into IP layer and SIP layer thus:

IP Logic Attacks:
IP Logic attacks on SIP devices are no different to any other IP device; these include well known exploits such as: Ping of death, Teardrop, Land, Chargen and Out of sequence packets. All of these can disable a device which has not been fully tested to protect itself against these exploits.

IP Flood Attacks:
IP Flood attacks include: SYN flood attack (TCP SYN Floods are one of the oldest DoS attacks in existence), Smurf Attack, Fraggle attack and the list goes on... These attacks are designed either to overcome the device by tying up resources or to simply overwhelm the network through shear weight of traffic.

SIP Logic Attacks:
SIP logic attacks exploit weaknesses in SIP signalling implementations. Incomplete or incorrect fields, invalid message types can disable not only client devices but also core network devices.

This type of attack can be countered by thorough testing of any devices against suites such at the IETF SIP Torture test developed through the SIPiT Events or the PROTOS Test-Suite, developed by the University of Oulu.

A more sophisticated attack can be to inject messages into a call to terminate it prematurely. This type of attack can be largely avoided by the use of strong authentication techniques, thus, the injected packet would not be authenticated and therefore would be rejected.

SIP Flood Attacks:
SIP flood attacks exploit weaknesses higher up the communications stack that require more processing resources. As a consequence, it takes a much smaller flood to cause disruption. For example, one or more devices may send multiple registrations or call requests to a server.

Countering this type of disruption requires network based devices like Session Border Controllers (SBCs) to police the signalling stream and rate limit registrations and calls to Softswitches to predetermined limits. Acting as a proxy in the signalling stream the SBC can also filter inappropriate protocols, IP DoS attacks and invalid SIP messages. This helps compartmentalise the network and restricts any disruption to just one network segment.

Protect the User Device:
These devices will typically be incapable of rate limiting and may be overrun by flood attacks. This means they are subject to both logic and flood attacks. Again the user device will benefit from the protection afforded by network based SBCs blocking DoS attacks and invalid SIP messages.

Service Theft:
A simple example of service theft is to signal that a voice call it being made but exchange video data. This hits the service provider on two fronts: a) loss of revenue by billing for only a voice call and b) potential degradation in service quality for other users resulting in dissatisfaction.

The structure of a VoIP call with separate media and signalling streams has lead to some innovative ploys. For example, a rogue PC client which transports media in the RTCP quality monitoring stream, this is not policed in most networks. Another ploy is to transport media in the call signalling then failing the call before billing commences. Not only does this mean a free call but repeated call set can cause huge signalling rates which are a DoS attack in themselves.

The solution is to police all components of the call. SBCs police the signalling and the media to ensure that the call is executed as requested and that RTCP traffic is within expected bounds.

Security is a vast subject and needs to be ubiquitous in its implementation. Take care of the fundamentals first:

• Test network elements against standard IP and SIP test suites to ensure they can survive IP and SIP logic attacks.

• Implement strong authentication, identifying your users protects their identity, protect their service and combats disruption.

• Protect the Network by compartmentalizing it to restrict the range of any disruption.

• Block malicious or inappropriate traffic – do not propagate the problem.

• Limit the rate of traffic to core elements to ensure the survivability of the service.

• Police all aspects of the traffic flowing across the network to prevent fraudulent or inappropriate use.

A secure and dependable service brings with it benefits to users and provider alike. It will build user confidence which in turn creates dependable revenue for the service provider and by addressing the basics from day one, need not be complex or expensive.

Dave Gladwin works for Newport Networks and has worked in the telecoms sector for 25 years and VoIP for the last 10 years.

Voice over Wireless Local Area Networks (VoWLAN)

2006-03-05T16:51:00.000-08:00

Voice over wireless local area networks (VoWLAN) combines voice over IP (VoIP) and wireless networking.

VoWLAN might just be one of those technologies whose time has come. Combining voice over IP (VoIP) and wireless networking, the two headline network technologies of the last couple of years, VoWLAN is, quite simply a natural.

Analysts say that the lure of VoWLAN is due to the fear of high Wirelesss phone costs. There's a lot of pent-up demand for VoWLAN, and particularly for dual-mode cellular and wireless VoIP phones.

VoWLAN also frees up the office workers who are no more bound by location inside the office. VoWLAN allows for freer movements - Anytime, anywhere conference, anyone?

Indeed, at one level, the equation is quite simple in a carpeted office environment. If you have a wireless network anyway, and your employees are using their company cell-phones to talk as they move from desk to desk and from conference room to cubicle, then you might as well see if you can put it all together and save airtime charges.

VoIP Price War: Good for Consumers

2006-02-20T23:48:00.000-08:00

The Internet gives you an easy access to information and services and it is becoming the wave of the future. With the hype of broadband enabled services, competition is increasing and prices are dropping. Broadband has opened a whole new world of creative opportunities for individuals and businesses alike and has made ordinary Internet browsing extraordinary. With amazing speeds and reliable connections, all Internet activities are best performed with a dependable speedy connection. Gone are the days of expensive phone calls and slow speed Internet access. Today, broadband allows you to access Internet at lightening speed from home or anywhere at the most affordable prices.

Looking from the consumer’s point of view, it’s good news for them, as they would obviously like to pay less for a service. People are becoming aware of broadband services available for low prices and so they are switching from dial-up to broadband. Apart from the prices, a number of factors like faster downloads, the introduction of Voice of Internet Protocol (VoIP), offering customers free, or extraordinarily cheap, telephone calls; and the enormous success of online computer games has led to the switch over from dialup to broadband.

It is expected that the prices will continue to fall and customers will continue to get more for their money. Customers are always looking for the providers offering less price and more quality and are willing to switch their existing service provider if he doesn't fit their needs. But the biggest problem for the customers wanting to take advantage of lower rates by switching their provider is paying a service charge to the provider for installing a modem.

With the competition among Internet providers becoming more severe every day, consumers are getting great choice. A number of providers are willing to cut down their prices to match their competitor and get business. Changes and technological advances in the world of broadband are happening all the time. The price wars have finally begun with the competition soaring among high-speed Internet providers. Cable companies are also competing with the broadband providers in a bid to gain their position in the market by slashing prices and increasing access speeds.

VoIP Standards Overview

2006-01-23T21:52:00.000-08:00

VoIP is a new technology and still does not have universal standards. This makes it difficult for network managers to integrate the products obtained from different vendors. In the absence of standards, vendors come out with proprietary standards that make interoperability a difficult proposition for enterprises. This is where the “standards bodies” come into the picture. These bodies are made up of the inventors, developers, vendors who have an interest in a particular technology.

The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the Internet Society define VoIP standards. The ITU has its headquarters in Geneva and was established in the 1860’s in order to develop standards for telegraph communications. The ITU is divided into ITU-R, ITU-T, and ITU-D. These are the Radio Communication Sector, the Telecommunications Standardization Sector, and the Telecommunications Development Sector, respectively. The ISDN and ATM standards for telecommunications have been developed by ITU-T. The standards can be identified on the basis of a letter that is assigned to a particular aspect of that technology. ITU-T standards that begin with H relate to audiovisual and multimedia. VoIP is covered under this group of standards. ITU-T standards can be viewed online. The Internet Society has been involved in issues related to the Internet since 1992. It concentrates more on packet switching and data transmission issues.

The Internet Society also works as small groups such as the Internet Architecture Board (IAB), Internet Research Task Force (IRTF), Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), etc. Internet Standards, also known as Request for Comments or RFC documents are developed by the IETF. Some well-known RFCs include the Hypertext Transmission Protocol (HTTP), RFC 2616, and the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), RFC 3261. Organizations such as the American National Standards Institute and the European National Standards Institute also influence standards but at a less broad level.

A company that wishes to implement VoIP should try and get an understanding of the standards that govern their VoIP devices and applications. This is because applications that follow the ITU-T specifications may have different networking and architecture issues than those that follow the IETF standards. Knowledge of the standards will help in making the right product decisions and also help to solve interoperability issues.

VoIP Security Issues

2006-01-23T21:49:00.000-08:00

VoIP undoubtedly has the potential to effect huge savings on call charges, infrastructure, and maintenance. However, it still has to assure IT administrators that it can offer a level of security similar to that offered by traditional telephony. The concerns arise from the fact that VoIP uses Ethernet and is therefore susceptible to DoS, interception, spamming, etc.

As compared to data networks, phone systems may be difficult to patch. VoIP phones are susceptible to Address Resolution Protocol spoofing that can lead to illegal tapping and crashing of the VoIP phone. According to tests conducted by Secure Test, the Cisco 7900 series phones are vulnerable when running the default Skinny protocol and can be crashed easily.

An attacker can use a PC attached to the VoIP network and send a stream of malformed messages that can result in a buffer overflow and crash the instrument. If such an attack were to be performed on a switchboard network, it would be possible for an attacker to disable the network in a matter of minutes. VoIP enables routers are also susceptible to DoS attacks. A large message in which the number of characters exceeds 50,000 can sometimes cause every phone on the VoIP network to reboot.

Prevention of tapping in PSTN networks is more a question of maintaining physical security whereas VoIP data, if unencrypted, can be intercepted by any other phone on the network. It is important that VoIP phones support the secure RTP protocols required to ensure default encryption of data. The attacks on a VoIP network can be carried out remotely with the help of Trojans that may be distributed via a PC connected to the VoIP network.

The Ever Growth of VoIP

2006-01-23T21:47:00.000-08:00

In 2006, more than 66% of the Global 2000 companies will implement VoIP. At present there are close to 400 VoIP only providers in the US and even network vendors, including the RBOCs are now providing IP options. Cost reduction achieved by running voice traffic on packet-switched networks is the main reason for companies switching over to VoIP.

Savings on toll-charges, shifting, operating expenses are possible with VoIP. However, it must be borne in mind that the capital cost of IP applications is not very low, even if the VoIP network is hosted by a third party, it does not automatically translate into savings. New applications such as unified messaging and instant messaging can be implemented in a smooth manner by converging voice and data networks. This is a big reason for companies to migrate to IP-driven networks.

The advantages offered by the new applications and improvements in IP PBXs resulting in better security and QoS are an attraction for many companies. These developments, which keep cost in mind, are helping in bridging the disconnect between customer needs and vendor marketing, which had occurred initially because vendors approached the issue of VoIP adoption from a technology perspective.

To encourage companies to adopt VoIP without losing out on their investment in the existing systems, vendors are offering hybrid IP systems that allow a gradual convergence. Thus, companies need not wait for their existing equipment to come to the end of its life-cycle. In Illinois, the village of Lombard deployed an IP telephony network purchased from Cisco. The network consisted of Cisco switches, unity voice mail, dual Call managers and around 240 IP phones. The village has around 42,000 residents and has used the IP system to connect the Village Hall, the police station, fire station and the water works department. The village of Lombardy is an example of a community or organization that wants to do away with its existing system and is in a good position to employ VoIP from scratch.

In order to achieve a truly converged network, network monitoring and balancing of the traffic need to be managed. To this end, the enhanced remote monitoring diagnostics offered by Avaya should be of help. The migration to a VoIP-enabled network should happen on a large scale in the next few years because the existing networks installed around the year 2000 will be coming to the end of their lifecycle. The onus is on the IP- systems vendors to ensure that the transition for its customers is as smooth as possible.

VoIP Codecs 101

2006-01-23T21:33:00.000-08:00

Coders/decoders (Codecs) are used by VoIP networks for converting analog voice signals into digital pulses and then reconvert the digital pulses into analog signals. In order to communicate, the codecs have to be compatible with each other. The algorithms that the codecs use for conversion of the data streams affect the quality of voice as well as the bandwidth consumption.

The solutions to algorithm usage are either proprietary or covered by international standards, where everyone has access to the algorithms. Pulse Code Modulation (PCM) was responsible for the development of the T-carrier systems that are used even today. PCM could yield a data rate of 64 Kbps. The signal was sampled in two ways, Mu-Law in the US and Japan and A-Law in Europe. Both these forms of sampling allowed for a high resolution as the discrete levels were apportioned logarithmically and not linearly.

Recommendation G.711 has been instituted by the ITU in 1988 and is the standardized form of the PCM encoding. PCM does not eliminate the redundancy in the signals, which can result in a high data output rate unsuitable for certain situations, especially when there is a bandwidth constraint. This is the reason why several speech algorithms have attempted to reduce the data rate. Reduction in data rate by half can double the call-carrying capacity of the given bandwidth. G.722.1, G.723.1, G.726, etc are codec standards that reduce the bandwidth requirements. Their data rates are 24/32, 5.3/6.3, 16/24/32/40 Kbps, respectively.

Apart from these open standards, there are proprietary algorithms that may or may not offer an advantage over the ITU-defined algorithms. However, they can tie a business to their implementation for the economic life-cycle of the VoIP system.

Security Tips for Wireless Networks

2006-01-23T21:21:00.000-08:00

The increased use of wireless networks has necessitated security of the back-end as well as the front-end. The concept of end-to-end security makes it necessary that companies first define their security objectives before allocating resources for the deployment of firewalls, encryption, anti-spam, anti-viruses, etc.

The continuous merger of technologies enables interoperability and allows employees to stay connected. At the same time it also increases the possibilities for the transfer of viruses. A comprehensive security policy should be implemented. The policy should cover issues such as permissions, upgrades, access, breaches, etc.

802.1x technologies offer security because access to the WLAN possible only if the user possesses an authentication key. The technology works in environments that have both wired and wireless networks. Encrypting data like customer information, company data, etc helps to maintain privacy even if a mobile device is stolen or misplaced. For highly critical data, a 128-bit encryption key is preferred in the industry. Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) should be used with the VPNs in order to authorize access to sensitive applications. Thus, as marketing personnel do not need to know customer credit card numbers, their access to the credit card database can be blocked.

Endpoint scanning technology is useful for recognizing the wired and wireless devices accessing a network. Remote devices trying to access an enterprise network may introduce viruses into the network. This is because very often the devices are owned by individuals who may use them without security protection and in doing so may pick up viruses. Wireless devices should have some kind of challenge to offer, such as PIN or password or both, before granting access. A two-step authentication provides greater security for larger organizations.

Security should be tested regularly and remote devices should be used to make hack attempts. Security efforts should be monitored for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley. Security managers need to stay updated regarding the latest developments in network security.

How to Go Wireless With VoIP ?

2006-01-10T00:11:00.000-08:00

Before you decide to go wireless or not, there are many points to consider. You may be asking yourself if wireless is for you. Well, today, many people are asking themselves the same question. If you watch the headline news, you are bound to see stories involving mergers, federal regulations, and new tax rules.

This all points to the fact that VoIP has made a definite impression on American citizens and is here to stay. It may be difficult for some people to remove the telephone cords from their homes; we have depended on them for over 100 years. But once many people take the time to weigh the pros and the cons, most choose to go wireless. Here are some reasons, why you should make the switch to wireless.

1. Wireless Creates a Faster Network

Wireless networks are fast. With VoIP, you can create a network that incorporates data, audio, video, and computer web features. You can easily monitor your network for problems and troubleshooting is much simpler with web based applications rather than hardware applications. VoIP uses less bandwidth than other applications and this in the long run saves money. This is of special value to businesses. Businesses can also provide better customer service with integrated programs. Not only does this increase productivity, but also it saves time and money in the long run.

2. VoIP Saves You Money

Overall, VoIP is much more inexpensive then PSTN. You simply pay for your Internet service, and then whichever VoIP provider you choose. For a one time monthly fee, you can have unlimited local and long distance phone calls. You will need to check with the VoIP service provider that you choose for exact details on their rates. Sometimes, your VoIP service provider will allow free calls within the world to another computer, yet there may be a fee for calls worldwide to a landline phone. Always check with your chosen service provider for exact details regarding your chosen plan. Included in many VoIP service plans are free features.

These features include Voicemail, Caller ID, Call Waiting, Do Not Disturb, and more. Again, check with your chosen service provider for an overview of all the features bundled with your plan. The biggest benefit is the unlimited long distance calling. This has proven to be the number one reason why most businesses are switching to VoIP. For businesses such as sales or jobs that have mobile employees, these benefits go without saying. But overall, the average cost of VoIP is considerably less when compared to the cost of PSTN.

3. VoIP Enables you to Talk with More than One Person at a Time

With VoIP, you can talk with more than one person without paying extra for services such as three way calling. With VoIP you can have more than three people on the phone at once. VoIP is the perfect solution for those who want to explore the features of conference calls. This is very important for businesses that have employees overseas. By using the video conferencing features, employers will increase their productivity.

4. Enjoy Greater Flexibility

By using VoIP, you can take your VoIP equipment with you whenever you travel. Your VoIP service provider will send you a converter that will allow you to use your converter with any standard telephone. The converter comes programmed with your telephone number, allowing you to take your phone and phone number with you worldwide. All you will need is a high speed Internet connection and you can use your VoIP phone service. This is of extreme benefit to mobile employees.

No longer are outdated telecommunications systems necessary, or are employees trying to run businesses on prepaid cell phone plans. By using VoIP, an employee will have access to his/her phone number, wherever they are located. Whether out of state, in a hotel, or traveling on a business trip, customers will be able to call the same number as well as leave voice mail on the employee's computer.

5. You can Save Money for Family and Friends by Choosing Your Area Code

Many VoIP service providers will give you the option of selecting your own area code number. This is a tremendous benefit to family and friend members who can call you locally, if you select the same area code number.

How To Get the Most Out From Your VoIP Provider?

2006-01-09T23:45:00.000-08:00

Features and pricing are the two prime considerations in selecting your VoIP provider and deriving the maximum benefit from the product. With most VoIP users, all the features available in a particular product will rarely if ever be used. All leading service providers promise a range of features that look impressive as a marketing strategy, but often do not deliver as practical options. "Features" do not always translate as "benefits." Pricing is also a relative factor and is linked to "quality" in the long run. Let us look closely at the packages offered by three market leaders of today: Skype, Lingo, and Vonage.

Skype has three basic usages: a PC-to-PC call, which is free voice communication between two computer users across the world with an Internet broadband connection; a paid SkypeOut voice call from a Skype user to a landline/mobile phone; and a paid SkypeIn call from a landline/mobile phone to a Skype user. For a home requirement of chatting with family and friends, the Skype PC-to-PC free call delivers on most promises made on the official Skype website, including voice quality. If you are not against being "wired" to your computer with your multimedia speakers and headphone, this free offer is the best option in this category.

However, if your requirement is for a full-scale voice service that caters to PC-to-telephone and telephone-to-PC services, you need to step up to the paid categories. SkypeOut offers a flat global rate of € 0.017 per minute for some of the most popular destinations worldwide, and has specific rates for other destinations. SkypeIn, which is still in Beta, makes it possible for your family, friends, and business acquaintances to reach you from a landline by dialing a number assigned to you. SkypeIn charges are independent of your location; if you are assigned a Chicago number but are currently in Japan, the party making the call only pays for a call to Chicago. If you buy a Skype number--an annual subscription will cost you € 30 and a quarterly subscription comes at € 10--you also get Free Skype Voicemail bundled in the package.

Skype's cost plans are uncomplicated, and making a choice is relatively simple. Compare this with Lingo's Home, Office, and International plans, and the corresponding plans from Vonage.

From this analysis, Lingo emerges as the service that will save you more on your telephone bill. However, to get more out of your VoIP, you need to look at the international pricing because that's where VoIP scores over a traditional connection. If you make frequent international calls to Asia, you can take advantage of Lingo's Asia package. Lingo's international rates to individual countries are also lower than those of Vonage, but higher than Skype. Here is a comparison of the rates for three destinations.

Skype has the lowest call rates, but is limited in features. At the other end of the spectrum is Vonage, which offers the most consistent call quality and delivers on features, but is heavier on your pocket. Although it loses out on voice quality, Lingo has the features to match Vonage.

There are a few other features mentioned by both Lingo and Vonage--such as Anonymous Call Rejection and Do Not Disturb in Lingo, and Click-2-Call and Call Hunt in Vonage--but these are more in the way of cosmetic embellishments than utility tools.

The features are many, the utility diverse. To get the most out of your VoIP provider, you need to place the key factors of pricing and features at both ends of a see-saw, and weigh them with the cornerstone of quality--that will position you enticingly in making the right choice and getting the maximum out of your service provider.

VoIP Devices 101

2006-01-09T23:02:00.000-08:00

Making long distance phone calls usually means that you have to commit to a long distance carrier through your phone company, and pay often steep per-minute charges and fees just to call a friend or loved one. Often, the cost of the phone call depends on the day and time of the day that you are making it, as well as the location you are calling to. The minutes you talk add up quickly, and the monthly long distance bill can be a shock to your system and your bank account. Fortunately, there is an exciting technology that is gives you the option of saying goodbye to traditional long distance for good.

It is VOIP is or Voice Over Internet Protocol, and it's in the process of changing the face of long-distance telephone systems forever. VOIP works by taking analog audio systems and converting them into digital data, which can be sent over the Internet. This means that your kitchen telephone could possibly become obsolete. It will not be the only place to call friends and family that live far away. VOIP can make your Internet connection, and your home computer, the place that you make your long-distance phone calls - free of charge. Because you use VOIP devices and software that are widely available, the phone company is not involved. No phone company means that there are no hefty long-distance charges for you to pay. VOIP is a convenient and affordable way to keep in touch with those who live far away from you.

There are several types of VOIP devices available that can be used to place calls from your home computer. They are relatively simple to use, and often cost very little, if anything at all, to implement. They are all commonly in use, and each provides a slightly different take on this exciting technology. The most common device used in VOIP service currently is the ATA, or Analog Telephone Adapter. This VOIP device allows you to hook your typical telephone up to your home computer Internet connection. This device converts the analog audio signal from the phone and makes it possible to use over the Internet by converting it to transmittable digital data. The ATA is simple for anyone to use. Just plug the cord from your home phone that would usually go into the wall jack into the ATA, and it is set up for you to call anyone anywhere in the world.

Another type of VOIP device is the IP, or Internet Protocol, phone. An IP phone looks like a regular home telephone, complete with a handset and buttons for dialing. But, rather than having standard phone connectors (RJ-11), an IP phone is equipped with an Ethernet connection (RJ-45). This VOIP device connects to your computer's router, and allows you to make phone calls directly from your home computer, dialing it just like a typical home telephone.

Yet another type of VOIP device is known as computer-to-computer. With this method, long-distance phone calls are made free of charge. All you pay is the monthly ISP fee you are already paying. Many companies offer free or low-price software that you install on your computer. If your computer is equipped with a microphone, PC speakers, and a sound card in addition to your Internet connection, then you will quickly be set up to talk to anyone in the world using VOIP. This is an extremely easy and affordable type of VOIP device that allows you to keep in touch with those far away from you.

As you can see, not only will VOIP change the way you make phone calls forever, but it will save you money as well. Utilizing equipment that the vast majority of us already have in our homes today, VOIP technology provides consumers with easy and affordable options in long distance phone service. With the exception of your current ISP's monthly charges, there is little to no expense at all. And since there are several options of VOIP devices from which you can choose, there is no reason not to consider VOIP as your primary means of making long distance phone calls to far away friends and family.

Why Some VoIP Service are Free and Other are Not?

2006-01-09T22:48:00.000-08:00

Though not a new technology, VOIP, or Voice Over Internet Protocol, has recently begun gaining ground on the traditional long distance telephone industry. Simply put, VOIP is the ability for a person to talk on the telephone over an Internet connection. Using a variety of types of equipment to switch analog sound bits into digital data packets, VOIP has made placing long distance phone calls more efficient, more convenient, and much less expensive. Because there is no phone company or long distance provider involved, there are no monthly fees, long distance toll charges, or other charges associated with a traditional telephone bill. There are many VOIP service providers out there, and more cropping up on a regular basis. That means there is a demand for these providers to offer even lower cost services than they already do. In an effort to increase customers, some providers are now offering what they call "free" VOIP services. It is important to be aware that this type of service is not truly free.

A primary problem with so-called free VOIP services is the limitations that are often placed on the service subscriber. Many "free" providers limit the people you can call to only just users of the service you are yourself subscribing to. Sometimes you can call members of other "free" VOIP services. Because the commercial VOIP service providers, such as Vonage, connect to a traditional phone network, paying subscribers can call anyone with a telephone, whether it is connected to the Internet or not. As a subscriber to a "free" service, you can't place calls into the public telephone network, and those on a public network can't call you. This restriction negates the potential convenience that VOIP offers.

There are some "free" VOIP service providers that now offer customers the opportunity to call anyone, whether members of the service or not. This, of course, comes at a price. Service providers can offer this possibility to their customers at arguably lower rates than conventional long-distance providers, both domestically and Internationally, covering most of the globe. Though this is still cheaper (and probably a lot more convenient) than traditional long distance phone service, it is not free, and should not be advertised as such.

Subscribing to any of the free VOIP services are not truly free of cost. Chances are if you are interested in VOIP, you already have a home computer equipped with a soundcard and speakers. But if you want to subscribe to a VOIP service, you are required to have a broadband Internet connection, as dial-up just won't cut it anymore. Though prices for broadband Internet have come down, it is still a little more costly than dial-up, averaging $30-$40 per month. In addition, you will probably have to invest in a microphone that is specially equipped with an analog-to-digital converter and a USB connector. This will allow you to talk through your home computer when you place calls. Or, you can purchase an IP phone or headset that plugs directly into your home computer. This allows you to talk into a handset or headset, and have a dialing mechanism, much like a traditional telephone. Many IP phones come with a number of added features. Though these are one-time start-up purchases, it is important to note that service providers claiming to offer totally free VOIP services can't really fulfill their claims.

VOIP isn't too good to be true. It has the potential to forever alter the course of telephone communications. It is flexible (you can travel with your phone and phone number around the world), it is more than reasonably priced for the services you receive (services often include Call Waiting and Caller ID as part of standard service - features you pay extra monthly charges for with a traditional phone company), and it is convenient (you can check your voice mail from your email account, the voice reception is often clearer, and you don't get dropped calls like you do with a mobile phone). But, as with many other products and services, you get what you pay for.

So, beware of "free" VOIP services. They are not always free, and if they are, they are most likely very limited in what they can offer their customers.

VoIP - Pros and Cons

2006-01-09T22:27:00.000-08:00

You have a telephone, right? You have a computer, right? You want to save money, right? BAM, you are a VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) candidate.

It is inevitable that VOIP will replace traditional telephone service at some point. The only question is when should you jump in?

VOIP is quickly becoming more reliable and receiving wider acceptance. In fact, phone companies are already taking advantage of the technology to provide cheaper long distance rates. Like any emerging technology, however, there are kinks in the system that are still being worked out.

Advantages

VOIP has many advantages over regular phone service. One primary advantage is its low cost. If you have a fast Internet connection (DSL or cable), you can make PC-to-PC phone calls anywhere in the world FREE. PC-to-phone connections usually have a charge, but probably still cheaper than regular phone service.

You can sign up with a VOIP service provider for a monthly fee and get unlimited calls within a specified geographic area. For example, some VOIP services in the United States allow connections anywhere in North America for no extra charge. International calls are charged at a modest rate.

Another advantage is its portability. You can make and receive phone calls wherever there is a broadband connection by simply signing in to your VOIP account. This makes VOIP as convenient as e-mail. When you're traveling, you simply pack a headset or Internet phone; then you can talk to family or colleagues for next to nothing.

Phone-to-phone VOIP is also portable. Internet phones are small and light enough to take anywhere. When you sign up with a VOIP service provider, the Internet phone or adaptor used by that service is assigned a unique number. This 'phone number' remains valid, even if your VOIP service is in Los Angeles and you're connected to the Internet in London. When plugged into a broadband connection, anywhere in the world, you can make and receive calls as though you were at home .

Features like call forwarding, call waiting, voicemail, caller ID and 3way-calling, are included with Internet telephone at no extra charge. While you're talking on the phone, you can send pictures and documents at the same time.

Disadvantages

There are a few glitches that still interfere with the technology's broad acceptance by the public. Lack of continuous service during power outages and emergency calling are the two biggest hurdles.

Conventional phone service continues by the current supplied through the phone lineduring a blackout. This isn't possible with Internet phones. When the power goes, there goes VOIP service. Battery backups and power generators that provide electricity are the current solutions to this problem.

A major concern involves emergency 911 calls. For the most part, VOIP services aren't useful in emergencies. Traditional phone equipment can trace the locations of calls. Emergency calls are diverted to the nearest call center where the operator can identify your location, in the event you can't talk. With VOIP, there is no way currently to determine where Internet calls are originating. There is an emerging standard called e911 however, which is attempting to solve this limitation.

VOIP also has sound quality and reliability problems. Data sent across the Internet usually arrives at its destination scrambled. E-mail and documents can be reassembled in the correct order when it arrives. Voice data also arrives scrambled, but it's more complicated because of the real-time nature of VOIP. Some data packets may have to be dropped when they don't arrive in time, in order to make voice connections with the least delay. This can cause brief silences in the audio stream.

Distance and speed of the connection determine the amount of data lost. Some networks receive more traffic and thus are more likely to cause audio dropouts. One way to provide high quality audio connections is to create dedicated data paths.

With the incredible amount of work dedicated to VOIP, these disadvantages will no doubt be resolved withinin the next two years. It is expected that by then VOIP will have widespread consumer acceptance.

Business VoIP System Basics

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To set up a business VoIP system, you need several components. A central device to manage the calls, the way a private branch exchange (PBX) or key system unit (KSU) does in traditional phone systems is one of them.

This can be a dedicated piece of hardware such as an IP PBX, a regular PBX that has been IP-enabled, or a server running specialized software. You will also need phones and a data network. In many cases, you may be able to use your existing digital phones and computer network, although you may need to upgrade some of your network hardware.

VoIP Benefit

The most prominent benefit of an IP PBX is for businesses with multiple locations. With the advantage of VoIP, all the offices on a LAN or WAN can get the profits of having a common office phone system. The profits are - extension dialing, seamless call transfers, and other features.

In addition to making it easier to communicate, this sharing of features can enhance collaboration as employees at different locations can truly feel like they are part of the same organization. Plus, if they are on the company network, the phone calls are free - even if your offices are located thousands of miles apart. It is an advantage in saving money expended on calling between two branches of the same office.

VoIP Conversations

Computer networks are designed to handle messy data: packets arrive out of order and some are even lost, but in most cases the data being sent can easily be reconstructed when it is needed. Voice conversations, though, are not as tolerant of these kinds of disturbances. Each packet of sound has to arrive in the correct order because they are being sent in real time - if packets are lost; the conversation sounds distorted, choppy, or falls off all together. This is why VoIP services that rely on the Internet to transmit calls can have uneven phone quality.

The selection of a business VoIP solution is a major decision. Voice service is critical to the operation of the business, so no one wants to implement a technology that will compromise call quality or reliability in any way. On the other hand, the cost savings and value-added functionality available with VoIP makes it a compelling investment.

LAN or WAN

The VoIP phone system is beneficial for companies having multiple locations branches, telecommuters and remote sales offices. And the locations are connected with a company's Local Area Network (LAN) or Wide Area Network (WAN). In that case the companies are suitable for using a VoIP system.

You can share the full features of your phone system across all your locations. In addition, even if you have one office in one place and one in different place, VoIP allows calls between them via extension dialing, making it a zero cost call. For businesses with hefty monthly long distance charges due to calls between far off locations, is an attractive reason to upgrade.

VoIP Process

A VoIP phoning process requires a regular phone, an adapter, broadband Internet service, and a subscription to a VoIP service. When you place a call, it is sent over the Internet as data until it nears the recipient's destination.

Then the call is translated back into a more traditional format and completes the trip over standard phone lines. Also known as Internet telephony, this allows for extremely cheap long-distance and international calls.

VoIP Drawbacks

The main drawback of VoIP systems is the network requirements.
In VoIP telephony the greatest challenge is the bandwidth. It requires high bandwidth for clear messaging.

VoIP: The Business Communication Advantage

2006-01-09T20:30:00.000-08:00

Companies should choose to unplug and switch to VoIP technology because there are many advantages for using VoIP. Here is an overview of five reasons that your business should make the switch to VoIP.

VoIP is perfect for Call Centers
VoIP is slowly becoming the standard choice for Call Centers. VoIP offers some major benefits for Call Centers such as flexibility, cost efficiency, and enhanced customer service applications. For instance, in the past, a Call Center needed to be a stabilized facility equipped with many phone lines used by people who would physically be located in the Call Center. By using VoIP for your Call Center, not only is your main location easily relocated as your business expands, but you can hire employees virtually world wide. Larger companies take advantage of VoIP Call Centers by outsourcing work overseas where they can hire employees for less.

The Integration of data, audio, and web based features is another reason why businesses are opting for VoIP. Customer service calls are handled more efficiently with the integration of these three components. Not only are calls transferred more proficiently, but also greater care can be given to customers when Call Centers use integrated software platforms.

More Call Centers are taking advantage of the opportunity to hire employees world wide through VoIP services. Employees may work in different time zones, giving greater customer service benefits year round, and hiring home based employees is another way businesses are choosing to save money.

VoIP is better for Mobile Employees
Many companies employ mobile workers. Mobile Employees have typically used cell phones at the company’s expense to stay in touch during the day. By utilizing VoIP Mobile Employees can remain virtually connected with the company, and the company saves money on fees.

When mobile employees rely on cell phones, many times a customer will call the main office, only to hear a message or be told the worker’s cell phone number. This requires the customer to hang up and call the employee on their cell phone- increasing the chance that the employee will lose the sale. By using VoIP, a call is instantly routed to the mobile employee and productivity increases.

Since VoIP integrates many other technologies, including E-mail, mobile employees are able to conduct many more transactions with one application.

VoIP Reduces Cost
Businesses today depend upon telecommunications. Whether it is Internet, E-mail, Customer Service through telephone, online web applications, and E-mail, or whatever your IT business needs may be, VoIP offers to handle all of your needs with one application. Additionally, this reduces cost and increases productivity. VoIP also has combined with software applications that are perfect for many business needs. Software such as accounting programs, Email, and PC based applications help to save money by combining services.

The reduction in long distance charges is another great advantage for switching to VoIP for business needs. By combining data, video, and audio needs, companies save on bandwidth usage, which ultimately leads to financial savings.

VoIP allows Real Time Global Conferencing
Global conferencing and training can put a burden on a business. Attempts to reach employees worldwide are not only expensive but time consuming as well. With VoIP technology businesses can avoid conferencing costs, and enable secure audio and videoconferences to offices worldwide. By reducing long distance costs, employees are also taking advantage of calling each other and corporate headquarters more frequently.

VoIP offers Flexibility that Ultimately Increases Productivity
VoIP allows greater flexibility. By using a standard VoIP Phone Adapter, you are able to take your telephone number with you. This allows greater productivity by allowing employees to conduct business overseas, while traveling, staying in hotels, etc. Your customers will be able to call you on your regular business phone number, and you won’t have to use your cell phone.

Many VoIP services are fully integrated with PC applications such as fax and email. There is greater productivity when employees can integrate their email and phone services with one application. Conduct business with VoIP on your laptop, any time day or night.

With the option to get VoIP phone numbers with area codes throughout the country, and some world wide, businesses can expand by choosing local area codes for the city, state, or country they are targeting.

5 Quick Tips for Selecting a VoIP Provider

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