VoIP Phone Calls

VoIP stands for Voice over the Internet Protocol. It has always been realized that it was possible to digitize sound, transmit it and then turn it back into sound, but the Net was not fast enough to make the theory a reality. These days, when most Internet users have access to broadband speeds, VoIP can be used worldwide. However, it is still very much reliant on the speed of the Net connections for its quality.

VoIP goes under various names by various suppliers and so you might know it as IP, broadband or Internet telephony. VoIP has a few advantages and a couple of disadvantages over standard telephony. On the plus side, it should be a lot cheaper to phone anywhere in the world, because it is simply like using the Internet.

While you surf the Internet, you are charged either a local call rate or a fixed monthly fee for accessing the Net no matter where the web sites are that you are accessing. They do not charge you more to look at an Australian web site than an American one.

The same ought to be the case of VoIP: all calls should get classed as local calls. This is not always the case, but some VoIP service providers do permit free worldwide computer to computer calls.

Another plus point is that if you are talking about a topic, say business, which is computer-related, you can access your computer's data and share that whilst you are speaking. In other words, VoIP is much more adaptable than regular telephony.

VoIP also offers video-conferencing. Free video conferencing between computers, if the broadband connection speed is sufficient. This is great if you are working away from home or from a loved one. Most laptops (and other small Internet-enabled units) have a built-in camera and a built-in microphone to make video VoIP a doddle.

To connect a desktop computer in the same manner you just have to purchase a camera and a microphone and they are not costly. Anything that connects to the Net can be converted or adapted to make use of free VoIP. Again, vitally, this all depends on your local connection speed and the local connection speed of the person you are communicating with.

This is the disadvantage. If the speeds are not both high enough, the video images will appear very jerky and if they are low then the voice transmission will also become interrupted and you will experience delays like you hear when mission control speaks to its spacemen.

We have already talked about VoIP and computers, yet there are also special VoIP telephones, but they are just computers built into housings that look like telephones so as not to scare those who believe that they cannot operate a computer. They are more user friendly because they look traditional.

As more and more people have computers worldwide and as there are cyber cafes in even the most far-flung towns, so it is becoming easier and easier to use free (video) VoIP with friends and family all around the world which brings the price of long-distance communication down.

Owen Jones, the author of this article, writes on several subjects, yet is now concerned with looking for the best cell phone family plans. If you would like to know more, please visit our web site at Family Plans For Cell Phones