.: What do I Need for VoIP?
By:Cal Golden
Category:Home / Technology / VOIP
You can try out VoIP for free! All you need is a headset attached to the sound card of your computer. Next, download one of the many VoIP software packages. Skype, Gizmo, Free World Dialup, and Net2Phone are some of the big names. With the software installed, invite all your friends to download the same software and when someone is up and running, give them a call!
Most of these "soft phones" (as they are called) allow you to make and receive calls at no charge anywhere in the world as long as you are not connecting to a cellular or landline phone. They are easy to use – simply click on a contact name to initiate a call. Features such as call display, call forwarding, voicemail, and conference calls are included at no extra charge as long as both parties are using computers.
A step up from headsets is Internet phones. These feel a lot more like "real" telephones -- they ring, they have regular number pads, and you use them like traditional telephones. They plug into the USB port or sound card of your computer. These phones are still considered soft phones because you need VoIP software installed on your computer to make and receive telephone calls.
As we progress up the VoIP ladder the next is an ATA (Analog Telephone Adapter) which allows you to connect a traditional analog telephone to a broadband modem. ATA's are usually provided free of charge when you sign up with a VoIP service provider. This is similar to signing up with a regular phone company -- there is a monthly charge and you may have to sign a contract tying you into the service for a certain period of time.
The ATA is simple to use. It connects to a broadband modem - either a DSL modem connected to your traditional phone line or a cable modem which attaches to your cable TV connection. Any traditional analog telephone can be plugged into an ATA. You do not even need a computer in the house to use this type of VoIP connection.
Using an ATA for Internet phone calls is transparent. You simply pick up the phone and dial a number just as you would with your regular phone service. Anybody calling your phone number will not be aware that you are using VoIP instead of PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network).
If you are travelling, you can take your ATA with you and receive phone calls anywhere in the world by connecting it to a broadband modem. Any calls to your phone number will be routed to your ATA (which has an identification number making it unique in the world) at the same cost as the call to your residence or business would cost.
The third option for VoIP is to have an IP phone. Don't confuse IP phones and Internet Phones. IP phones plug directly into the modem, but Internet phones plug into the sound card or USB port of your computer. An IP phone is a handset which has all the necessary hardware and software installed in it. You connect an IP phone to a broadband modem and make or receive calls the same way that you would make or receive calls with an ATA. The advantage of an IP phone over an ATA is that you do not need an extra telephone set to plug into the ATA -- it is a completely integrated unit.
IP phones also have the advantage of having all your phone numbers stored in the phone as well as a display screen which gives you information about incoming calls.
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.: New VOIP Articles
1). 6 Voice Over IP Tips
There are many benefits to VoIP. Here are 6 benefits we found to voice over ip. You may be able to think of even more reasons to switch or to include this exciting way to communicate at reduced prices.
2). Top 10 Reasons You Should Switch To VoIP
If you are considering changing to voice over internet protocol or VoIP for short you need to know the arguments for changing. Here are our top 10 reasons to switch to VoIP.
3). 7 Good Reasons Not To Switch To Voice Over IP Technology
For every positive there is a negative when it comes to voice over ip technology. Here are 7 good reasons not to switch in spite of the savings you may realize.
4). How To Choose The Best Voice Over Ip Provider
Choosing the best voice over ip provider may require you to do something that you have never done before. Here are a few tips to help you choose the best voice over ip provider.
5). Residential VoIP: Things to Consider Before Switching
Choosing VoIP over traditional telephone services has its pros and cons just like anything else. It is up to the consumer to weigh the advantages and disadvantages, and to come to a conclusion with eyes wide open.
6). Advantages of IP Telephony for the Residential Consumer
As more of us are building our own local area networks at home to connect our family members to each others data and appliances, broadband connections to the outside world have expanded our pipe to the Internet, giving us plenty of bandwidth to consider converging our home network with voice over IP telephony.
7). VoIP Communication Technology
VoIP... or Voice Over Internet Protocol, is the latest and greatest communications technology.
.: Top VOIP Articles
1). VoIP Problems?
Well of course there's VoIP problems, although I think problems is too strong of a word. Instead I would call this VoIP issues. (Just semantics? maybe, read on!)
Some may be old enough to remember making long distance calls where there was static or crackling on the phone line connection. Maybe you remember having to speak LOUDER in order to be heard on the line.
2). How To Set Up A Business VoIP System
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.
3). VoIP Information: Benefits & Drawbacks
Once upon a time, a telephone was just a telephone. You set the base in your home and it featured either a corded or cordless handset for talking to family and friends. Even though that same telephone remains the standard, VoIP, which stands for Voice over Internet Protocol, is increasing in popularity and gradually beginning to change the way that the world sends and receives telephone calls.
4). Skype versus Yahoo
With the influx of complaints regarding Skype’s fall from grace, Danny Wirken measures up the top competitor and internet giant Yahoo!’s news internet telephony service.
Cheaper, faster, better quality, better customer service and a brand you can trust. These are the things Yahoo! want you take away from any of their promotional material for the new Yahoo! voice VoIP service.
5). Voice Over Ip – What Is It And What Are The Choices?
Voice over Internet Protocol. First was the telephone. Alexander Graham Bell had a vision. He saw people communicating over long distances with their own voice, not trough beeps and squeaks. Then came the Internet. A few students and the US military had a vision, somewhat similar to Bell’s. They saw people communicating over long distances, but this time in writing.
6). Why VOIP?
Voice Over Internet Protocol delivers the service of converting the analog line into a digital signal so that voice could be transferred through the internet and this proves to be a lot cheaper than the PSTN (public switched telephone network). Voip is the best for making long distance calls in, inexpensive rates.
Voip and IP telephony are fields which have seen extensive growth and they continue to develop efficiently.
7). Advanced VoIP Gateway Technology
Increased demand for video-based applications in the mobile network drive the deployment of 3G networks. Inherent complexities in traditional video gateways cause performance bottlenecks and inflate costs. If the industry expects to absorb the impending explosion in demand, these proposed cost-saving and complexity-reducing changes are needed.
Unrelenting market demand for video-based applications over mobile networks is driving the increased deployment of 3G networks.