Voip Comparison

VoIP is a service which uses the internet to make phone calls to people all around the world. Many people may think that this is nothing new, and it is true that it’s been possible to communicate using the internet for quite some time. It was even possible to communicate using audio over the internet. However it is only recently that the internet speeds are now fast enough to provide a service which is comparable to most people’s home telephone lines.

VoIP services allow you to call anyone with their phone number, not only is this very convenient but the person you are calling won’t know any difference than if you phoned them as normal. The only difference will be that your call is routed over the internet. Many VoIP service providers will provide you with an analog telephone adapter which allows you to use your existing telephones on your new service.

When you dial a number using your phone the touchtone commands will be converted into digital signals and sent to your VoIP service provider’s servers, here they will work out the location and call the person using the PTSN network (Public Switched Telephone Network). Now the phone will ring and they just pick it up as normal. Your voice will be ‘translated’ into a digital signal to be sent over the internet, and then translated back into analog for the person’s phone. This will happen every time someone speaks; all of the information will be split up into packets which are then sent over the internet. This method of sending in packets is thought to be much more reliable than other methods.

Converting sound from digital to analog isn’t a new thing at all. In fact it’s been around for decades. The sound card in your computer is a prime example of this. Your PC handles digital music on a CD for example; it then converts these digital signals into analog so that your speakers can play it. The biggest problem experienced by VoIP services is transmitting and reassembling all of the information quickly enough so that there is a continuous stream, you don’t want to experience any lag like with satellite phones!

When you are choosing a VoIP service it is important that there are no gaps in between the packets of audio, otherwise it could be extremely difficult to understand what people are talking about. This is why VoIP itself is considered fairly new although we’ve had most of the technology for ages.

There’s nothing that’s perfect unfortunately and even VoIP has some problems that hound it. Although VoIP is much more reliable than an actual computer it is only as reliable as your internet connection. My internet is like a nightmare! The speed fluctuates like mad which means some days calls are crystal clear and yet other times they’re awful. If you have an internet connection that plays up a lot then the packets of information could quite easily get delayed or lost, this can cause very confusing gaps in conversation. This will normally be most noticeable if you are using a network with a lot of customers and not enough equipment to handle them all. Modern VoIP services have worked very hard to improve the voice quality that we can expect and this continues to happen all the time.

When choosing a VoIP service provider it is important to think about any extra features that you may require as adding them on now won’t be a problem. If you are stuck with one provider and decide you want extra features it might either be impossible or very expensive. Not all VoIP services can send faxes, this is actually much more difficult than you might imagine. Many services offer a different protocol for sending faxes, which is why it is important to sign up to one of those if that is important to you.

VoIP services are outstanding in terms of what we had just a few years ago. You can even purchase standalone VoIP phones which do not need a computer in order to function. These voip phones have their very own miniature computer inside which is capable of connecting to your internet connection.