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The Basics
Time to ditch your land-line phone for VoIP?
A major development starting in 2004 has been the introduction of mass-market VoIP services over broadband Internet access services, in which subscribers make and receive calls as they would over the PSTN. Full phone service VoIP phone companies provide inbound and outbound calling with Direct Inbound Dialing. Many offer unlimited calling to the U.S., and some to Canada or selected countries in Europe or Asia as well, for a flat monthly fee.
These services take a wide variety of forms which can be more or less similar to traditional POTS. At one extreme, an analog telephone adapter (ATA) may be connected to the broadband Internet connection and an existing telephone jack in order to provide service nearly indistinguishable from POTS on all the other jacks in the residence. This type of service, which is fixed to one location, is generally offered by broadband Internet providers such as cable companies and telephone companies as a cheaper flat-rate traditional phone service. Often the phrase "VoIP" is not used in selling these services, but instead the industry has marketed the phrases "Internet Phone", "Digital Phone" or "Softphone" which is aimed at typical phone users who are not necessarily tech-savvy. Typically, the provider touts the advantage of being able to keep one's existing phone number.
At the other extreme are services like Gizmo Project and Skype which rely on a software client on the computer in order to place a call over the network, where one user ID can be used on many different computers or in different locations on a laptop. In the middle lie services which also provide a telephone adapter for connecting to the broadband connection similar to the services offered by broadband providers (and in some cases also allow direct connections of SIP phones) but which are aimed at a more tech-savvy user and allow portability from location to location. One advantage of these two types of services is the ability to make and receive calls as one would at home, anywhere in the world, at no extra cost. No additional charges are incurred, as call diversion via the PSTN would, and the called party does not have to pay for the call. For example, if a subscriber with a home phone number in the U.S. or Canada calls someone else within his local calling area, it will be treated as a local call regardless of where that person is in the world. Often the user may elect to use someone else's area code as his own to minimize phone costs to a frequently called long-distance number.
For some users, the broadband phone complements, rather than replaces, a PSTN line, due to a number of inconveniences compared to traditional services. VoIP requires a broadband Internet connection and, if a telephone adapter is used, a power adapter is usually needed. In the case of a power failure, VoIP services will generally not function. Additionally, a call to the U.S. emergency services number 9-1-1 may not automatically be routed to the nearest local emergency dispatch center, and would be of no use for subscribers outside the U.S. This is potentially true for users who select a number with an area code outside their area. Some VoIP providers offer users the ability to register their address so that 9-1-1 services work as expected.
Another challenge for these services is the proper handling of outgoing calls from fax machines, TiVo/ReplayTV boxes, satellite television receivers, alarm systems, conventional modems or FAXmodems, and other similar devices that depend on access to a voice-grade telephone line for some or all of their functionality. At present, these types of calls sometimes go through without any problems, but in other cases they will not go through at all. And in some cases, this equipment can be made to work over a VoIP connection if the sending speed can be changed to a lower bits per second rate. If VoIP and cellular substitution becomes very popular, some ancillary equipment makers may be forced to redesign equipment, because it would no longer be possible to assume a conventional voice-grade telephone line would be available in almost all homes in North America and Western-Europe. The TestYourVoIP website offers a free service to test the quality of or diagnose an Internet connection by placing simulated VoIP calls from any Java-enabled Web browser, or from any phone or VoIP device capable of calling the PSTN network.
Although few office environments and even fewer homes use a pure VoIP infrastructure, telecommunications providers routinely use IP telephony, often over a dedicated IP network, to connect switching stations, converting voice signals to IP packets and back. The result is a data-abstracted digital network which the provider can easily upgrade and use for multiple purposes.
Corporate customer telephone support often use IP telephony exclusively to take advantage of the data abstraction. The benefit of using this technology is the need for only one class of circuit connection and better bandwidth use. Companies can acquire their own gateways to eliminate third-party costs, which is worthwhile in some situations.
VoIP is widely employed by carriers, especially for international telephone calls. It is commonly used to route traffic starting and ending at conventional PSTN telephones.
Many telecommunications companies are looking at the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) which will merge Internet technologies with the mobile world, using a pure VoIP infrastructure. It will enable them to upgrade their existing systems while embracing Internet technologies such as the Web, email, instant messaging, presence, and video conferencing. It will also allow existing VoIP systems to interface with the conventional PSTN and mobile phones.
Electronic Numbering (ENUM) uses standard phone numbers (E.164), but allows connections entirely over the Internet. If the other party uses ENUM, the only expense is the Internet connection. Virtual PBX (or IP PBX) allow companies to control their internal phone network over an existing LAN and server without needing to wire a separate telephone network. Users within this environment can then use standard telephones coupled with an FXS, IP Phones connected to a data port or a Softphone on their PC. Internal VoIP phone networks allow outbound and inbound calling on standard PSTN lines through the use of FXO adapters.
Unlimited calling, free services
The unlimited free local, toll and long-distance calling that Mack gets with
Vonage allowed him to drop his land line and opt for a cheaper cellular plan.
He's also started to use -- and like -- the free services, like caller ID and
call forwarding, that he didn't use with his previous phone company because
of the expense.
Mack also likes the fact he can get his voice mail by e-mail, a service his former provider didn't offer, and that he can take his Vonage service anywhere he travels that has a broadband connection.
"I have taken my (Vonage adapter) box to another state and had my telephone number ring wherever I am," Mack said. "You are not tied down to a permanent location with a telephone number like you are with a land line."
All this for $8 a month less than Mack was spending just for his land line. Mack figures he saves at least $23 a month, and far more when he considers the many months in the past he went over his cell-phone minutes limit, racking up as much as $100 a month in overage charges.
"Another nice feature is that for $5 a month, we have a virtual number in another state that allows some of our out-of-town friends and family in Arizona to call us as a local call . . . saving them long-distance charges as well," Mack said. "As for the clarity of the phone, I promise that I could give anyone a land line and the VoIP line and you could not tell the difference."
Such was not always the case. Allen Tsong of Brooklyn tried an earlier version of VoIP and wasn't impressed. Outages and poor phone quality were common. But Tsong said problems have been few since he switched to Vonage in 2002. Now he uses the service both at home and at his Brooklyn wholesale handbag business, Yans NY.
Tsong said he makes lots of calls to Hong Kong and China, so Vonage's low international rates save him money.
The rates "are comparable to prepaid calling cards," Tsong said, but he doesn't have to worry about running out of minutes or buying new cards.
A few challenges
So why isn't everyone rushing to sign up for Internet calling? There are still
some barriers and drawbacks, including:
The need for broadband. You need high-speed Internet access to have these services. If you're still on dial-up, the cost for DSL or a cable modem can add $20 to more than $50 a month to your telecommunications bill. If you're a very heavy phone user, you may still save enough to offset the cost, plus you'll get speedy Internet access. If you're an infrequent caller on a tight budget, though, the math may not work.
The possibility of outages. Your service may be only as good as your high-speed connection. If your cable modem or DSL goes on the fritz, you won't be able to make VoIP calls. Also, the services themselves can have problems; Vonage recently experienced a 45-minute outage thanks to a software upgrade that went awry.
Dead jacks. The services typically only work on one or two phone jacks. If you have extensions in other rooms, you may need to buy an adapter or get a new phone -- the kind that has a base station that broadcasts to extra handsets. Also, if you have other things plugged into that line -- like your TiVo, for example, or a home alarm system -- you may need a wireless adapter, or you may need to keep a land line active.
Emergency calls. The independent Internet calling services typically aren't hooked in with city 911 locator systems, so the operator wouldn't be able to see your home address if you make an emergency call and can't talk or get cut off. (This typically isn't a problem with the cable companies' networks, which are tied in with cities' enhanced 911 services.) Some users of independent Internet services keep a land line or use a cell phone with enhanced 911 locator services to deal with the issue.
Louis Holder, Vonage executive vice president, said the company is working on solutions. Right now, Vonage routes 911 calls from registered users to the nearest available emergency facility, and it recently introduced enhanced 911 with address locator capabilities in Rhode Island.
"We're where the phone companies were in the mid-1990s," when 911 locators were far from universal, Holder said.
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