Depending on your calling habits, you can save hundreds of dollars in phone bills just by switching to VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol). One main reason you can save money with VoIP is that when you talk over phone lines, you are subject to several taxes, most of which you do not have to pay with VoIP.
But what exactly is VoIP and how will having VoIP as your provider affect your phone service? According to the FCC, VoIP simply is a "technology that allows you to make telephone calls using a broadband Internet connection instead of a regular (or analog) phone line."
An article in VoIPreview reports that the concept for VoIP originated around 1995, when people began to recognize the possibility of sending data packets over the Internet to communicate. Early versions of VoIP could only be used between people who had the same software on their computers, as well as had a sound card and a microphone. Also, the sound quality that customers got with early VoIP was not very good. But despite these inconveniences, people reveled in the fact that they could make long distance phone calls without the outrageous prices charge by the long distance providers.
The VoIP phone call quality has increased significantly since these early days. Now, people are switching to VoIP without even realizing it. "It's being marketed as digital telephone service and priced at what traditional VoIP is," explained senior analyst Keith Nissen. Nissen is with the research firm In-Stat and was quoted on February 20, 2006 in the San Francisco Examiner's article VoIP getting better all the time. He explained that, "it's a case where the customers are being asked to leave their telephone service and go to the cable company. It's totally transparent to the customer." Now with VoIP, you can get several of the options available with your phone company, including caller ID, call waiting, voice mail and more.
The security of having VoIP as your phone service has also increased. When VoIP first gained popularity, several providers lacked the ability to provide 911 services. Now, many VoIP providers have e911 features that allow customers to call for help in times of emergency. Another security-type issue that was a problem with early VoIP service was that if the electricity went out, customers would lose their phone connections. Currently, several VoIP providers are trying to prolong customers' service in times of electrical outages. For example, Time Warner Cable has been giving out phones with battery back-up for the past year, which gives the phone additional power for about four hours. Unfortunately, this isn't a fix-all. If an amplifier mounted on a telephone pole is knocked out, the phone will not be able to transmit phone calls even if it has a battery back-up.
But before you decide that VoIP is right for you, you should know that VoIP service requires High-Speed Internet. The price for high speed Internet can be a hidden cost when considering VoIP. Although you can get VoIP service from a provider like OPEX for as low as $14.99/month, you have to have a DSL, Cable or T1 Internet connection which regularly costs about $30/month to $80/month depending on the provider, making the total monthly fee for both High-Speed Internet and VoIP around $100. If you are planning on having high speed Internet anyway, this price should not be a problem for you; however, if you do not want or need High-Speed Internet, the savings you get from having VoIP will just be spent on your High-Speed Internet connection.
Considering all this, if you've tried VoIP before and were not satisfied or you have never tried VoIP before, you might want to look at the VoIP providers in your area and see if the service is right for you.
*This article was originally posted
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