As high-speed Internet connections spread around the world widely, Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) technology changed how people think of long-distance phone calls. Many see VOIP as the revolutionary technology that will replace the conventional phone systems entirely. In United States, companies providing VOIP related services, such as Vonage and CallWave (More CallWave information at here), are expanding steadily. Major carriers like AT&T are already looking seriously at the potential implication of VOIP technology.
How VOIP technology works?
VOIP a technology where analog voice signal is turned into digital signal and transmitted over the Internet connections. This enables VOIP users to make Internet phone calls without going thru phone company services.
VOIP calls can be done via several methods: ATA, IP phones, or PC-to-PC. For ATA, an analog-to-digital converter is used on regular phone to enable VOIP calls; For IP phones, specifically designed phones are used for voice routing via its IP address; for PC-to-PC, a VOIP calls and a PC with Internet connection is what it needs. Basically each of these VOIP call method performs the same function: To enable voice communications. However, different call methods have totally different hardware set up and they are all meant to suits different level of users. Needless to say, the cost of these VOIP call methods varies a lot.
How VOIP technology can help in your business?
Great savings on your business call rates
With VOIP, you can simply enjoy a much cheaper phone calls by utilizing your existing PC set up and data networks. Most VOIP companies are offering minute-rate plans structured as little as $30 per month. With the elimination of unregulated charges and additional features given, switching from conventional phone services to VOIP can be quite a bargain.
Easy customer calls support
Often the telephone customer supports will consume a big part of a business budget. The high sets up cost for customer calls support can be reduce greatly using VOIP systems. With the availability of VoIP calls, business owners can utilize the “Click to Talk” web services set up a customer service application like call centres with enhanced features and low maintenance cost.
Flexibility
With VoIP services, business travelers or home workers can work as in the office. You can call freely from anywhere you have the Internet connectivity. Further more, you get another alternative with VoIP– the soft-phone. A softphone is a application software that loads VoIP functions into your computer. With soft-phone, you can make VoIP calls thru your laptop/desktop from anywhere that has the Internet access.
Further more, a VOIP system gives better flexibility in the set-up. By implementing VOIP technology, you can select any area code for your customer support phone number regardless on your location, you can allow multiple employees managing your customers calls without extra charges, you can own an instant web-based voice mail for business tracking purpose, and you can have integrated conferencing.
Wrapping things up
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.
However, even though VOIP systems sound like a savior for your business, you should never switch into their service blindly. The new technology might sounds great, but there are several drawbacks that you should consider them with care. The reliability of VOIP services (imagine long down time for your LAN system.), the power issue (VOIP functions fails whenever there’s no power supply.), and quality of the services are some of the major issues to consider before making the switch.
By: Teddy Low
Posts Tagged ‘Analog Voice’
Business Calls Made Easy by VOIP Technology
November 28th, 2009Internet Telephone VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) – Technology and Terms
October 29th, 2009
If you are just starting to look at VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) as an alternative to conventional POTS (plain old telephone service) for your home or office, you will be hit with an all new set of technical terminology and industry jargon. This is a guide to help clarify and define some of the basic vocabulary used in the VoIP world.
Many of these terms are not limited to the VoIP world. As with so many technologies that revolve around broadband access, wireless networking and telephony, you will see these terms elsewhere so it will be helpful for you to understand their meaning as they relate to VoIP.
Telephone Adapter – In the world of VoIP, a telephone adapter is a device that is installed between your network and your telephone hardware. You can think of it as a converter as it sometimes referred to by this term. The most simple of these devices have three connections: power adapter connected to a power outlet, a 4-wire telephone connection where you plug in your conventional telephone hardware and an Ethernet adapter to connect the device to your network. The adapter converts (digitizes) the analog phone signal to an IP protocol.
Codec – Short for coder/decoder, this is a compression and decompression utility that digitizes and compresses the analog voice signal created by your telephone. There are a number of different codecs used and each one offers differing levels of compression. With varying levels of compression come different levels of quality of voice over the line.
VoIP Service Provider – This is a provider of the actual connectivity of your VoIP hardware, your network and the rest of the world. Some provide only computer-based services while others provide complete home or office solutions including multiple phone numbers and fax/data solutions.
RTP – Real-time Transport Protocol is the protocol used to specify standards for carrying voice calls over broadband connections. RTP is used in conjunction with RTCP (Real-time Transport Control Protocol) to provide QoS (Quality of Service) support. This provides a precedence or ‘right-of-way’ traffic control of voice calls over standard traffic over the network. Standard traffic can be thought of as text, email or other low priority, non-time sensitive traffic.
SIP – Session Initiation Protocol controls the way VoIP traffic is transmitted and routed over a broadband network. In simple terms, SIP is the standard by which a session (phone call) is initiated and terminated (phone hangs up).
VoIP phone – This is a telephone that is designed specifically to be used with a VoIP service. It has the functionality of both a telephone in its basic design but incorporates all the functionality of a telephone adapter making is a single, self-contained VoIP device.
Softphone – This is actually a misleading term in that it is not really a phone at all. A softphone is a computer that is equipped with a microphone, a speaker (or headset) and a software program that allows you to make telephone calls without the need for a conventional telephone or adapter.
By: Jeff Runyon
VOIP Considerations
October 14th, 2009
Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) is changing the way that we look at phone service. The relatively new technology is quickly becoming the norm in many homes across the world. But a variety of VOIP considerations should be explored before you take advantage of the technology.
It allows a caller to make long distance calls without having to pay much, or anything for them. Combine the VOIP technology with a broadband, or high speed, internet access line, and VOIP provides an easy, inexpensive way to make phone calls all over the world. However, there are still some disadvantages of VOIP – especially when it comes to using the technology for functions beyond the one caller to one caller scenario.
VOIP considerations for you to examine start with understanding how the technology works in comparison with traditional phone service. With traditional phone service, your long distance phone calls are routed from your local provider’s network to your chosen long distance provider’s network, where it is routed to the receiving party’s local phone provider’s network and finally, to their home phone line. Since multiple providers are involved, multiple providers charged a fee for the call, which the long distance provider passed on to you in the form of an often hefty per-minute charge.
But VOIP has changed all of that. It removes the long distance company from the equation, making a long distance phone call virtually the same as a local phone call. How? By using the internet as the routing method that passes the call from your local phone provider to your receiving party’s local phone provider. You initiate the call, and your analog voice signal is translated into a digital signal. That signal is then sent via your internet service to the internet, where it is routed to the receiving party’s local phone provider’s network, translated back into an analog signal and sent to the receiving party’s phone.
The disadvantages of VOIP should be part of what you understand regarding VOIP considerations, but they are relatively limited for the average consumer. The main complaints regarding VOIP have to do with providing the level of quality of service that customers are accustomed to with regular telephone technology.
The reason for this is multifold. VOIP requires a large amount of data to be compressed and transmitted, then uncompressed and delivered, all in a relatively small amount of time. Problems develop in VOIP conversations when this process takes too long and the callers experience one of two problems; echo or over-talk.
For businesses, VOIP considerations have more to do with how to manage the traffic over their network. Since they may be using their bandwidth for internet and even voice conferencing, they will need to analyze the amount of bandwidth that is necessary to handle all of their activities.
But for the average consumer, the greatest advantage of VOIP is the cost – or rather, the lack of cost. If you have a computer with a sound card, modem, speakers, a microphone and a (preferably) high speed connection, and you download software from companies such as skype.com, you can be making free long distance and international phone calls using VOIP in as little as 5 minutes.
By: Van Theodorou
