| VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, is a complicated | | | | communicate with family and friends all over the world. |
| term for the fairly simple process of using your internet | | | | Using VoIP to call someone who doesn't have it incurs |
| PC to make phone calls. VoIP has expanded in | | | | a charge, but this is usually less than you'd pay for |
| popularity recently and is now seen as a viable | | | | standard calls, and is the same no matter where you |
| alternative to the humble telephone call. | | | | call. So, you could call your friend in America for the |
| VoIP uses packet switching as opposed to the more | | | | same price as calling your aunt in Devon. VoIP is also |
| traditional circuit switching used by landlines, and can | | | | beneficial to businesses, especially where the business |
| give the same quality of a call as a landline phone. It's | | | | is located over several sites. Internal calls can be free |
| also much cheaper, and relatively easy to set up. | | | | if the whole company is wired to VoIP. |
| There are 4 different VoIP types; PC to PC - Skype is | | | | The major concern when VoIP first began to rise in |
| an example of this; PC to telephone - Callserve uses | | | | popularity was the quality of the calls; however now |
| this method; Telephone to Telephone - BT Broadband | | | | technology has improved to the point that it's hard to |
| Voice is a form of this, and IP Phone to Telephone - | | | | tell the difference between a landline and VoIP call. |
| Vonage is a common example. | | | | Perhaps the only drawback now is that not enough is |
| Skype uses an instant messenger service, and both | | | | known about it. |
| parties use a headset plugged into their PC to make | | | | To start using VoIP is simple. For the basic package all |
| and receive calls. Callserve is similar, but only the caller | | | | you need is a broadband connection on your PC, a |
| uses the headset, communicating with the PC at the | | | | headset or microphone and speakers/headphones, |
| other end. Broadband Voice use adapters which mean | | | | and the use of an instant messaging service such as |
| your phone runs through your broadband connection | | | | Skype, MSN or ICQ, which are all free to use. You can |
| instead of your landline, and Vonage use phones which | | | | have all the features normally associated with phones; |
| are, in themselves, small PC's with their own IP | | | | caller ID, ring back and voicemail, plus you can set up |
| address. | | | | three-way calling and choose to block certain numbers |
| Calling another person with VoIP is free, and therefore | | | | from calling you. |
| it is seen as a great money-saving way to | | | | |