VOIP Broadband Phone Service

VOIP Broadband Phone Service
Voice Over IP Broadband Internet Phone Service

The new rage is VOIP.  Are you using it, yet?

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), is a technology that allows you to make telephone calls using a broadband Internet connection instead of a regular (or analog) phone line. Some services using VoIP may only allow you to call other people using the same service, but others may allow you to call anyone who has a telephone number - including local, long distance, mobile, and international numbers. Also, while some services only work over your computer or a special VoIP phone, other services allow you to use a traditional phone through an adaptor.

Frequently Asked Questions

How VoIP / Internet Voice Works
VoIP converts the voice signal from your telephone into a digital signal that travels over the Internet. If you are calling a regular phone number, the signal is then converted back at the other end. VoIP can allow you to make a call directly from a computer, a special VoIP phone, or a traditional phone using an adapter. In addition, new wireless "hot spots" in public locations such as airports, parks, and cafes, allow you to connect to the Internet, and may enable you to use VoIP service wirelessly. If you make a call using a phone with an adapter, you'll be able to dial just as you always have, and the service provider may also provide a dial tone. If your service assigns you a regular phone number, then a person can call you from his or her regular phone without using special equipment.

What Kind of Equipment Do I Need?
A broadband (high speed Internet) connection is required. This can be through a cable modem, or high speed services such as DSL or a local area network. You can hook up an inexpensive microphone to your computer and send your voice through a cable modem or connect a phone directly to a telephone adaptor.

Is there a difference between making a Local Call and a Long Distance Call?

Some VoIP providers offer their services for free, normally only for calls to other subscribers to the service. Your VoIP provider may permit you to select an area code different from the area in which you live. It also means that people who call you may incur long distance charges depending on their area code and service.

Some VoIP providers charge for a long distance call to a number outside your calling area, similar to existing, traditional wireline telephone service. Other VoIP providers permit you to call anywhere at a flat rate for a fixed number of minutes.

If I have VoIP service, who can I call?
Depending upon your service, you might be limited only to other subscribers to the service, or you may be able to call any phone number, anywhere in the world. The call can be made to a local number, a mobile phone, to a long distance number, or an international number. You may even utilize the service to speak with more than one person at a time. The person you are calling does not need any special equipment, just a phone.

What Are Some Advantages of VoIP?
Because VoIP is digital, it may offer features and services that are not available with a traditional phone. If you have a broadband internet connection, you need not maintain and pay the additional cost for a line just to make telephone calls.

With many VoIP plans you can talk for as long as you want with any person in the world (the requirement is that the other person has an Internet connection). You can also talk with many people at the same time without any additional cost.

What Are Some disadvantages of VoIP?
If you're considering replacing your traditional telephone service with VoIP, there are some possible differences:

  • Some VoIP services don't work during power outages and the service provider may not offer backup power.

  • Not all VoIP services connect directly to emergency services through 9-1-1. For additional information, see www.voip911.gov.

  • VoIP providers may or may not offer directory assistance/white page listings.

Can I use my Computer While I talk on the Phone?
Yes

Can I Take My Phone Adapter with me When I Travel?
You may be able to use your VoIP service wherever you travel as long as you have a high speed Internet connection available. In that case it would work the same as from your home or business.

Does my Computer Have to be Turned on?
Not if you are making calls with a phone and adaptor or special VoIP phone, but your broadband Internet connection needs to be active. You can also use your computer while talking on the phone.

How Do I Know If I have a VoIP phone Call?
It will ring like any other call.

Does the FCC Regulate VoIP?
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has worked to create an environment promoting competition and innovation to benefit consumers. Historically, the FCC has not regulated the Internet or the services provided over it. On February 12, 2004, the FCC found that an entirely Internet-based VoIP service was an unregulated information service. On the same day, the FCC began a broader proceeding to examine what its' role should be in this new environment of increased consumer choice and what it can best do to meet its role of safeguarding the public interest.

See also:

Vonage Broadband Phone Service, Lingo Internet Phone Service, internet phone, broadband phone, internet phone service, broadband phone service, voip phone, voip phone service, voip, voice over ip, phone, phones, telephone, telephones, service, company, companies, voip broadband phone

5 Cell Phone Myths

Myth #1: It's OK to use your cell phone in-flight. Not exactly. As I write this, the major carriers still forbid you to use your cell phone on a plane, citing Federal Communication Commission rules. In fact, a 2003 study by the UK Civil Aviation Authority determined standard cell phone use can make a compass freeze or overshoot its actual magnetic bearing. A wireless device can also interfere with an aircraft's navigational equipment. (Other studies have not found such a strong link, leading many passengers to believe the real reason airlines had banned cell phones was to boost profits from their onboard satellite phones.)

Myth #2: Onboard wireless is new. Hardly. People have been communicating wirelessly from the main cabin since there have been wireless devices (never mind those overpriced satellite phones). A few years ago, I reported that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was looking the other way while air travelers were firing up their personal digital assistants (PDAs) in-flight and checking e-mail. I have personally used a cell phone on a plane, and I have flown next to people who have used their cell phones, particularly when they are over a populated area or flying at a lower altitude. What is new is that the FAA appears ready to sanction equipment designed to send and receive wireless signals onboard.

Myth #3: Onboard wireless is cheaper than old satellite phones. Seat-back phones charged $1 a minute or more, and the connection quality was often less than spectacular. No one knows how the new onboard cell phone service will be priced, but you can bet that the airlines and the technology firms that were used to install the onboard cellular receivers will be vigilant in recovering their costs. As it stands, users of onboard cell phones will either be subjected to roaming charges of some kind or they will have to use special equipment to access the special onboard cellular signal. So if you're counting on the new phones being cheaper than the old ones, don't.

Myth #4: Onboard wireless means your cell phone works on the plane. Not even close. It doesn't even mean anything on the plane is wireless-enabled. Consult your airline's Web site carefully before making plans to connect wirelessly. For example, KLM just began offering text messaging and e-mail on its Boeing 777s, which operate on routes to New York, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Cape Town, Dubai, Tokyo, Shanghai, Beijing and Manila. A cursory glance at the service might lead you to believe that you can use your cell phone to send messages. Not true. In KLM's case, you use your in-seat, in-flight-entertainment system to send the messages at a cost of $2.50 each. Other airlines have installed onboard high-speed wireless Internet services, but haven't added the cellular equipment.

Myth #5: An onboard wireless connection means you'll be more productive. This is perhaps the biggest misconception about onboard phones — that somehow we won't be able to live without them (particularly as business travelers). Don't count on it. A plane trip without a phone may actually be the ideal time to focus on that presentation or report, away from the interruptions of a ringing handset. True, cell phones can — and do — make us more productive. But there's a time for everything. And that includes a time to turn off your cell phone.

Understanding that onboard cell phones are a new and quickly evolving technology which may help you decide whether to take your phone on your next flight, or to turn it off and stay disconnected for the duration.

It's your call.