VoIP Basics

How VoIP Works

Voip works just like a regular phone with just one key difference — how the phone call actually gets to your telephone. Instead of using the high priced telephone company's wiring, Voip routes your phone calls directly to your telephone using your high speed internet connection. You hear a dial tone and make your phone calls just like you've always done. What's changed is that you don't pay a big bill to use the phone company's wires.

What is VoIP?

Voip, or Voice over Internet Protocol, is a technology that enables people to use the Internet as the transmission medium for telephone calls. Voice data is sent in packets through your high-speed Internet connection rather than by traditional POTS lines (Plain Old Telephone Service). Voip is significantly less expensive than typical telephone long distance packages, plus one high speed Internet connection can serve for multiple phone lines with no loss in functionality, reliability, or voice quality.

Who Can I Call?

Anyone and everyone! Any local phone, mobile phone, long distance, or international number — if a number can be dialed, you can call it with Voip. Almost all plans include long distance for U.S. and Canada, so you can say goodbye to your long distance bill as well. Like to call internationally? No problem! Most plans include very low international rates, and some even offer unlimited calling to Europe.

How Do I Receive Phone Calls?

When you get a phone call, your phone will ring just like normal. Voip works exactly like you're used to — all it's done is replace the high priced phone lines with voip's low cost, high speed internet service.

How VoIP Works

The current phone system relies on a reliable but largely inefficient method for connecting calls known as circuit switching. This technique, which has been used for over 100 years, means that when a call is made between two people a connection is maintained in both directions between callers for the duration of the call. This dual directional characteristic gives the system the name circuit.

If, for example, you made a 30-minute call the circuit would be continuously open, and thus used, between the two phones. Up until about 1960, this meant that every call had to have an actual dedicated wire connecting the two phones. Thus a long distance call cost so much, because you were paying for pieces of copper wire to be connected all the way from your phone to the destination phone, and for that connection to remain constant throughout the call.

Today, however, your analog call is converted after leaving your house to a digital signal, where your call can be combined with many others on a single fiber optic cable. While this system is certainly an improvement over the past copper wire system, it is still quite inefficient. This inefficiency is due in part to the fact that the telephone line can't distinguish between useful talking and unneeded silences. For example, in a typical conversation while one person is talking the other person is listening.

Thus the current analog system uses roughly half its space sending useless messages like this silence. But there is also more information, even down to pauses in speech, which under a more efficient system can be effectively cut out rather than wasting the circuit space. This idea of only transmitting the noisy bits of a telephone call and saving a great deal on circuit space, is the basis of Packet-Switching, the alternative method to circuit switching that the VoIP phone system uses.

Packet-Switching is the same method that you use when you view a website. For example, as you read this website, your computer is not maintaining a constant connection to the site, but rather making connections to send and receive information only on an as needed basis (such as when you click on a link). Just as this system allows the transfer of information over the Internet to work so quickly, so also does it work in the VoIP system. While circuit switching maintains a constant and open connection, packet switching opens connections just long enough to send bits of data called packets from one computer to another.

This allows the network to send your call (in packets) along the least congested and cheapest lines available, while also keeping your computer or IP phone, free to send and receive messages and calls with other computers. This way of sending information, not to mention data compression, makes the amount of information which must be transmitted for every call at least 3-4 times less for VoIP than the exact same call in a conventional telephone system. For this reason, VoIP is so much cheaper than conventional calling plans.

VoIP FAQ

• What is VoIP?
• How do you use VoIP?
• Can I call any phone?
• Is VoIP clear?
• What are the advantages of VoIP?
• Can I get a free trial?
• Can I keep my phone number?

What is VoIP?

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol. VoIP phone, sometimes referred to as broadband phone, is a phone service which operates using your high-speed Internet connection. There are mainly two kinds of VoIP services: phone-based and computer-based. These services allow you to make phone calls using either your regular phone or a computer headset with a microphone, respectively. As opposed to a traditional landline, when you use your phone or computer to call a number the call is sent over the Internet instead of over copper wires running out of your house.

How do you use VoIP?

With a phone-based service you would use VoIP the same way you use a regular landline, by picking up the phone to answer it or dialing a number to place a call. With a computer-based service, you can call using a headset with a microphone plugged into your computer.

Can I call any phone?

Most providers allow you to call any phone number in the world, whether that number be a local, long-distance, mobile phone, or international number. However, some computer-based providers may limit you to other subscribers to that service (Commonly known as “User to User”). For your convenience, we list only those providers who allow their customers to call the regular phone network. Additionally, you may be able to speak with more than one person at a time using a feature typically titled either “Conference Calling” or “Three-way Calling.”

Is VoIP clear?

The quality of VoIP voice has dramatically improved over the past few years, reaching the quality level of a landline phone and sometimes even exceeding that level. However, voice clarity may differ from provider to provider and will also depend upon the speed and quality of your broadband connection. Before signing up, you may wish to consult our in-depth review of the specific provider.

What are the advantages of VoIP?

A VoIP or broadband phone service can help you save up to 90% of your monthly phone bill. VoIP providers offer many features which are covered in the monthly fee, such as voicemail, caller ID, three-way calling, and call waiting. Providers also offer unlimited long-distance with their plans, which saves customers the trouble of having to purchase long-distance phone cards. VoIP service is best suited for you if you can relate with any of the following comments:

• I have a high speed internet connection and would like to lower my phone bills.
• I make expensive long-distance or international calls and would like to reduce those costs.
• I run a small business and phone bills make significant part of my overhead.
• I like the convenience of taking my number with me as I travel anywhere in the world.
• I'd like to utilize attractive features such as conference calling, choice of any area code, voice mail, caller ID, call waiting, etc.
• I'm frustrated with excessive taxes and long-distance company monopolies.
• I live outside the U.S. but I need a local NYC number for my business.

Can I get a free trial?

Yes, many providers offer a no conditions 30-day money back guarantee so you can try a service without risk to see if it meets your needs. Many of the providers also offer the first month of service for free.

Can I keep my phone number?

Most providers allow number portability so you can use the same number which is given by your traditional phone provider.