What is it?
Most people are familiar w/ NetMeeting and other software that let you
talk to others over the internet. VOIP is similar. However, it also uses
your phone - the interface we're all familiar with.
Instead of connecting your phone to the wall, you connect it to a box
either the VOIP company provides or you buy on your own. This is the
modem. You need highspeed/broadband internet for this. Your modem plugs
into your cable/dsl modem and now it can 'talk' btwn your phone and the
internet.
Your phone lines already do pretty much what VOIP does, just w/
different/older technology (well, some of it's new w/ optics and such,
but...).
How hard is it to setup?
It's actually very easy. Assuming you have the company send you a modem or
you buy a kit at the store, you simply plug the modem btwn your current
cable/dsl modem and your computer (e.g., the out from your cable modem now
goes to the new box and the out from that to your computer). It also has a
phone jack for your regular phone.
Once it is on, it will boot up and configure itself.
What are the benefits?
There are many benefits depending on the company you go w/, but here are a
few I have (all of these are free w/ the monthly fee- $14.99 for my
setup):
1. Features like caller id, call waiting, call waiting caller id, call
forwarding, etc.
2. Voicemail
3. Email alerts for new voicemail.
4. Web access to voicemail - you can play your messages on your
computer.
5. Auto-forward - if the phone is ever down or isn't answered, it's
auto-routed to another number
6. Online management of all features, settings, account, etc.
7. Computer dialing - highlight any number on your computer, hit F6 and
it sets up the call from your phone to theirs - very convinient!
8. Keep your regular phone (you don't need a voip phone)
There are some other cool features available for extra $ like the
softphone which lets you use your computer as a phone w/o the modem - this
means you can take your laptop w/ you wherever and you have your phone w/
the same phone number everywhere too (you can do this w/o the softphone,
but you have to take your VOIP modem around w/ you - not bad if you're
going somewhere for a longer trip).
Another really cool thing is the virtual phone numbers. You can get extra
numbers that ring the same phone, but they are local numbers to any area
code you want. So if I live in Dallas and have family in New York, I can
get a local phone number here and there. That way my family in New York
can call a local number (free) and talk to me! Vonage charges $4.99/month
for that. I'm not sure about the others.
And the biggest benefit - IT'S CHEAP! I pay $14.99 plus some tax and such,
but not the ump-teen taxes, charges, fees, etc. like the phone company
charges.
Also, if you do a little research/reading, you can set it up to where
every phone jack in your house is wired for VOIP. It's little more than
plugging the output of your VOIP modem into the wall jack you already
have. Very little more.
Bottom Line
You get lots of good, free features and options for doing/managing a lot
more including a lot over the web and it's SO much cheaper (at least it is
for me!). Being the 'average guy' I am, I don't really use all the
features. Fortunately, it's pretty much a 'set it up and forget about it'
type thing except that I save $40+/month w/ it!
I use Vonage b/c that's what I was told about first and it was one of the
first. There are others and I'm sure they have their strengths, but Vonage
has the cheapest base option at the time I did my research.
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