VoIP-Point

Introduction to a basic Voice over IP system.

In basic terms, a voice over IP system would consist of three items; an IP Telephone, a Broadband internet connection and a Voice Over IP service provider.

The IP Telephone.

The IP telephone is the familiar device through which you dial and make your call. This device may take the form of a physical IP telephone which would look and behave much like any normal telephone. The device could also be a software program running on a networked home PC which, via a headset and microphone can also be used to dial and speak on calls. There is also equipment available which allows old regular handsets to be used with VoIP services. Read More…

The Broadband connection.

The Voice over IP service will almost always rely on a broadband internet connection of some kind. With more and more homes and businesses adopting this type of internet connection, the way is paved for Voice over IP to be deployed on a large scale. The upstream bandwidth of the broadband connection is just as important as the downstream in the case of VoIP and should not be overlooked when deciding on a broadband supplier. Too little upstream bandwidth may result in poor quality VoIP calls or degradation of other user’s browsing etc. Read More…

The VoIP service provider.

The VoIP service provider is the point of connection between networks including the land-line telephone network allowing you to dial-out and receive calls from both land-lines and other VoIP users alike. Most, if not all VoIP service providers allow free calling to other VoIP users but charge for calls to land-lines. Consideration should be given to the price structure for land-line calling when making a decision on which provider to use. Special consideration should be taken when selecting your VoIP service provider as many restrict your calls to other VoIP networks and the type of hardware you are permitted to connect with. Read More…