Q&A: What is the application of VoIP and how can one use this device with the dial up internet access ?
Question by tesfay.yony: What is the application of VoIP and how can one use this device with the dial up internet access ?
Some one to use the VOIP, what requirements are needed
-hardware requirement
-software requirement
-ISP requirement
type of LAN and the internet type
Type of special skill
Best answer:
Answer by sHaDoW
VOIP (voice-over internet protocol) is a standard and not provided by any one company. There are a couple different major companies that provide VOIP service. They are Vonage, Skype, T-mobile, and many others. I personally use Vonage and absolutely love it. I was kind of concerned due to all the negative comments by people. The only issue was I couldn’t port my local landline number to Vonage. With some VOIP providers (Vonage does this) they provide you with hardware that allows you to plug in your existing phone and use that instead of using a computer. It is possible to plug this device into an existing telephone jack and “backfeed” into your phone system allowing all of the phones in your house to share the VOIP service (though make sure you physically disconnect from the phone company network interface before doing this, else bad things could result). With other VOIP providers you need to install their software on your computer and use a headset or a mic and external speakers.
As far as system requirements go, if you have a hardware VOIP device then there aren’t any since it operates independent of your PC. For software type check with the individual providers since requirements will vary.
I would recommend an absolute bare minimum internet speed of 384kbps download/128kbps upload. Although it might work with less speed, chances are if your using the internet and on the phone, you’ll experience choppy sound. Remember VOIP is real-time and requires an uninterrupted connection while in use. Basically you need some sort of broadband connection (cable, DSL, etc.). Dial-up or ISDN is out of the question. You can test your internet connection at:http://www.voip.com/speedtest.aspx .
The only other consideration is it won’t work if your broadband modem has one ethernet port and it’s connected directly to your computer. In that case you’ll need a router to allow the internet connection to be shared between your PC and VOIP device. There are some VOIP devices that have a router built-in.
As far as skill required, it not really that difficult. The hardware type device is a bit more difficult to setup; however, there are plenty of online resources and most companies will provide you with a setup kit that contains practically everything you’ll need, complete with instructions.
I hope this clears up any confusion!
What do you think? Answer below!
get skype. Its free from http://www.skype.com/intl/en/.
However – dial up is going to be too slow. You really need Broadband for it to be a proper solution.
You can use it with a webcam, headphone and microphone. I use mine with a webcam with the speaker built in. I have the sound coming through my normal speakers. But dialup will only frustrate you. You can then call other skype users’ computers for free. You can also buy skype credit and then dial normal phones through your computer. Its pretty cheap – especially overseas calls.
Some people buy a skype phone. The quality of the calls is good but not as good as a normal phone. And I wouldn’t totally replace your normal phones either because if your internet service goes down or you have a power blackout – you cant call anyone.
There are “Many Ways to VoIP”.
1. From your PC using a Softphone
2. No PC – using ATA VoIP analog telephone adapter
1.
From your PC, you generally need headphones with microphone + a Softphone software. Most VoIP services (VSPs – VoIP Service Provider) provide free downloadable Softphones for your PC.
PC-based VoIP is possible using Dial-Up as well as HighSpeed Internet. (Most people will disagree with me on Dial-up…. but it is possible and I have done it).
Examples of VoIP VSPs with free Softphones are:
Skype
Gizmo5
Yahoo Messenger/Yahoo Voice
Google Talk
PcCall
Hotfoon
MediaRing Talk
Efonica
CallCentric
2.
To use VoIP without a PC, you will need:
– HighSpeed Internet
– Modem, Nat-Router, VoIP ATA box
– Regular telephone to plug into the VoiP ATA box
– VSP – VoIP service provider
Examples of VSP’s that supply you with a “locked” ATA that only works with their services are:
Packet8
Vonage
LIngo
Examples of VSP’s that are BYOD (bring your own VoIP device) and no contracts, or commitments:
CallCentric
InPhonex
Les.net
Voip.ms
I use a 2-Line Linksys PAP2T-NA or SPA-2102-NA (unlocked) VoIP ATA and configure Line-1 with CallCentric and Line-2 with InPhonex.
With BYOD VSP’s I can swith providers at anytime with no penalties. They are all only pay-as-you-go. CallCentric also provides a free downloadable Softphone to use on my PC. So I can use a PC or my Voip ATA to make calls.
To configure your own ATA does take some technical ability. But it is worth the effort to learn – The savings are worth it in the long run.
*** VSP’s that work over Dial-up:
It is possible to use VoiP over Dial-up (56Kbps) Internet.
Only a few VSPs will work over Dial-up speeds under 56Kbps.
The key to VoIP over dial-up is the CODEC they use to encode your Voice packets.
Most VSP’s use high-bandwidth Codecs like G.711u or PCMU.
These codecs will require at least a HighSpeed Internet service connection of 256Kbps.
But if you use a “high compression” Codec like G.729a or GSM, …. you can use Dial-up connection for those VoIP services that support G.729a and GSM (and a few other low-bandwidth codecs).
Here are VSP’s that will work over dial-up over Softphones on PC:
– CallCentric (supports G.729a and GSM)
– InPhonex (supports G.729a and GSM)
– Efonica
– PcCall
– Hotfoon
– Google Talk
Good luck in learning to use VoIP.
Hey,
To make it simple for you, you’ll need highspeed internet (cable or dsl). As far as software and hardware – that’s provided to you if you go with a mainstream company. It’s extremely simple to set up.
Go with http://voip-reviewer.com – they know their stuff and have special deals when you go through them!
Hope that helps and good luck 🙂