As long as there is a number available, when a person switches from their landline service to the newer VoIP technology, they are still able to get a UK telephone number. There are basically four types of VoIP that are currently available for the way in which phone calls are made. Some of them are free of charge and others involve a fee. Regardless, this does not preclude the ability to have a UK telephone number when you switch over to the new service.

1. Computer-to-Computer (FREE) – This is the free VoIP service and probably the one that is used the most. It runs strictly between PC’s and all you need is a broadband cable or DSL internet connection to enjoy unlimited, cost-free conversations with family and friends. This does not require the use of a telephone in that all you need is the PC’s speakers and a separate microphone, or a PC headset with earphones and mike. There is no UK telephone numbers required for this type of telephony.

The Pros: easy to set up, free to use, gets you started on VoIP immediately
The Cons: computer and broadband cable or DSL internet connection required, both parties need to be running the same 3rd party VoIP software

2. Computer-to-phone (£££) – This is the next step up the ladder and requires a fee for the VoIP service. This is a very popular method for making international phone calls. Despite the fact that a fee is involved, you are usually charged in pennies per minute rather than tens of pennies per minute. These calls work in much the same way as #1’s method above in that your call is made using a 3rd party piece of VoIP software and your headset or a USB (VoIP) phone. You are allowed to have UK telephone numbers with a VoIP phone.

The Pros: easy to set up and calls to landline phones anywhere in the world are very inexpensive to make.
The Cons: you still need your PC, internet connection, and VoIP software in order to use this service, and normally you cannot make emergency services calls

3. SIP-to-SIP – this is VoIP’s standard communication protocol and is called Session Initiation Protocol. There are no UK telephone numbers required to make these calls as you are using your PC and your internet connection to do this. Additionally, there will be a need for SIP hardware or software as well. It’s a PC-to-PC connection so the same rules apply as in #1 above. The use of your traditional phone and a UK telephone number can also be used provided that you have a SIP adapter. This negates the need to replace handsets.

The Pros: can use phone handsets, the benefits are the same as PC-to-PC VoIP service, will be well supported for years to come since SIP is the VoIP communication standard
The Cons: generally, you are unable to make emergency services calls, SIP phone hardware or software required by both parties if you want the calls to be free of charges

4. Telephone-to-Telephone - UK telephone numbers are necessary if using the standard landline system with this method. This method behaves in the same manner as a PSTN service when the calls are made using a VoIP service provider. When you are using a VoIP phone (hardware or software), or using your landline with an ATA (Analog Telephony Adapter), this is the ultimate type of VoIP service.

These are the four basic methods of making phone calls where VoIP telephony is concerned. As was mentioned above, UK telephone numbers are available for VoIP service just like they are with your standard landline service.

When the whole scenario of telephone numbers began, New York City stepped up ahead of the pack and actually started the system wherein the phone numbers consisted of two alpha digits and five numeric (i.e.DA9-0123) in 1930. The alpha was the abbreviation of a place or proper name, so the DA could have stood for Dallas or Dayton as an example. In 1958, although the bell system had taken a step towards standardization, things were a little different with UK phone numbers.

Typically, in those days, there were no lettered dials on UK telephones until they introduced Subscriber Trunk Dialing (STD). Only the “director” areas of Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Manchester had lettered dials for UK phone numbers. At the time, the three alpha-four numeric phone numbers were what were being used for UK phone numbers. Though this did lead to more widespread use with lettered dials, eventually the method was abandoned in 1968 for all-figure numbering.

The director cities listed above were prefixed for dialing in the following manner:

In the 1960’s, the prefixes were 01 for London, 021 for Birmingham, 031 for Edinburgh, 041 for Glasgow, 051 for Liverpool, and 061 for Manchester. Long after the 1960’s, some of the UK phone numbers appeared as 071 for London (Inner), 081for London (Outer), and 091 for Tyne and Wear (as examples). With VoIP systems becoming the rage in the UK, just like it is globally in general, since the dialing configurations were already in place for many years, assigning UK phone numbers to VoIP phones and service has not been difficult.

There is never any question as to the cost-effectiveness of VoIP in that it is a great way to save money on your phone bill. The application has gone beyond the residential realm into the business sector so its cost-effectiveness is a benefit to businesses as well. UK phone numbers are applicable with VoIP service providers and are just as portable in the UK as they are anywhere else in the world. Since there is so much need for inter-branch dialing as well as long distance and international calling in the UK, VoIP has been well received at the business level as well as the residential level.

Enabling a person to receive calls from a standard landline to a VoIP system using standard UK phone numbers is not a challenge, so even if you are receiving non-VoIP calls you can do so without difficulty. All you need to do is find a VoIP service provider who offers “inbound DDI’s (direct dialing inwards) and UK phone numbers. If you are having difficulty in achieving this, there are numerous forums online geared towards VoIP users in the UK, and with a simple query, you can receive valuable information that will help you in your search.

VoIP does not employ the same type of telephony as one’s standard landline service, but it doesn’t mean that you can’t get UK phone numbers in conjunction with your service. They just have to be available. There are new exchanges being created all the time for VoIP service since more and more people are subscribing to VoIP service providers everyday. Roughly 15,000+ people are subscribing to VoIP service every month according to the most recent statistics, so upgrades and improvements are not very uncommon. The technology continues advancing, hence the ability to be assigned a UK phone number.

Granted, VoIP does not employ the same telephony technology as a standard landline or PSTN service. However, the technology enables you to receive phone calls from regular or international landline phone numbers because you are assigned one of the standard UK phone numbers to use with your VoIP service.

Computer telephony, internet telephony, Voice over IP, or just plain VoIP — no matter what you call Voice over Internet Protocol, it still equates to one thing and that is cost effective telephone calls. We are creatures of habit and have been raised with the ethic that “cheap is good.” This is especially true for those of us not fortunate enough to have been born into affluence. With the names of all the different VoIP providers becoming everyday household words, many households and businesses alike that have a UK phone number are thinking more strongly about making the switch over to VoIP.

Is VoIP the way you should go for your home and office? Only you can answer that question, but don’t attempt an answer until you have thoroughly investigated and researched all the variables, as well as the advantages and disadvantages involved. And it doesn’t matter if you have a UK phone number or live in another country, internet telephone calls are not for everybody. This is the first truth about VoIP technology.

So what are the different types or applications of VoIP service? There are three:

1. consumer VoIP
2. small and medium size enterprise VoIP (also referred to as SME’s)
3. large business VoIP

Consumer VoIP is the standard format that is used on a residential basis with or without a UK phone number, depending on whether or not you are calling PC-to-PC. For the most part, these calls are free. Additionally, long distance and international calls can be made very inexpensively, as in pennies on the dollar versus tens of pennies on the dollar. The calls are made by virtue of VoIP service using a PC with a broadband cable or DSL internet connection.

The negative aspect of these services is that, while they are orientated around a software program on the user’s computer, they are less intuitive to use than a regular landline service with a UK phone number. Additionally, if the computer network is busy then the sound quality oftentimes suffers. It is also important that the software be used with a good quality headset, rather than a microphone and speakers. Otherwise, the sound becomes distorted with background noise and feedback.

Small and medium size enterprise VoIP is normally integrated with a PBX system. The central call control and the switching are performed by a central server at a remote internet hosting center. With a VoIP service provider integrated with PBX, you can still make calls using a UK phone number. Just like with residential VoIP service, having the same for an SME has its benefits as well. The five most common benefits are:

• Ease of deployment - simply plug the phones into an internet connection
• Increased flexibility and new ways of working - distributed offices or home office
• Reduced “internal” phone costs - particularly between office and home
• Reduced operational expenditure - maintenance of the phone service is done via the internet

Huge business VoIP involves the connection of the different office phones systems and UK phone numbers, or known as the “PBX” across corporate sites. Some larger businesses and corporations have phone systems that operate through the use of a converter or VoIP adaptor. While such systems are linked in such a way that calls which are routed between different company sites can be carried over the corporate intranet or an internet connection, and are normally carried at no additional cost to the company. Additionally, many of the newer systems integrated with office PBX technology are now being sent as IP-enabled systems.

With a VoIP telephone and a number for free UK calls, you can receive calls from anywhere in the world since they are routed directly to your phone. It’s a simple matter of maintaining your internet connection. Instant messaging is also facilitated with your phone and the VoIP services that you subscribe to. It can be said that a VoIP telephone is definitely a thinking person’s kind of technology you are enabling the entire world to move closer to you as you move through it. After all, VoIP service and technology have changed the telecommunications landscape for the better as well as the way in which people communicate with one another.

When you have VoIP service, the provider includes many features as standard items and includes them in the cost, whereas the standard landline service will often charge you for these. This is definitely one benefit when using VoIP service along with a number for free UK calls. When you make long distance or international calls with VoIP service it only costs you pennies on the dollar. The standard landline service equates to tens of pennies on the dollar so the savings are quite significant. Therefore, it makes perfect sense to switch to a VoIP phone system and be able to make cost-effective calls

So what equipment is needed in order to enjoy VoIP phone service? Besides your PC and a broadband cable or DSL internet connection, you may need some of the following equipment or accessories:

• VoIP Hardware – a VoIP telephone which can be plugged into a broadband router and a network
• VoIP adapters – if you are using an analog telephone, you will need an ATA or Analog Telephony Adapter
• Softphone – a software-based phone that operates using your PC and internet connection, as well as a USB phone or handset
• Subscription to a VoIP service and a number for free UK calls

When you are shopping for a VoIP service provider and any related equipment, there are a few things that you will probably want to take into consideration. Here are three aspects to consider.

Good Audio and Sound Quality – recent advancements in VoIP technology has made audio and sound quality near perfect. Unless the network that you are using is really crowded, calls are relatively free of static and interruptive noise anymore. Finding a VoIP service provider that offers the best sound quality is a must. If you are experiencing lags and delays with your current service provider, then shopping around for a better service may be a good option for you to pursue. Even if you have an inexpensive VoIP phone with a number for free UK calls, it won’t matter if your sound quality is below average.

Reliability of the Equipment and the Service – if you are dealing with one of your clients with your VoIP phone and the number for free UK calls, and the call gets interrupted with static or gets dropped, this is not going to fare well with the client. This is a “red flag” that you aren’t getting what you’ve been paying for. Look for a service provider that possibly offers a free trial period so that you can test the service and see how it compares to what you currently have. There’s no point in jumping from one bad service to another.

Customer and Technical Support – Any company that does not emphasize that both customer and technical support is part of that company’s core values is not worth staying with or subscribing to. You need to know that if there are any problems, whether customer or technical related, that their support departments are always available to help solve your dilemma. Most of the better VoIP service providers are now offering 24/7 customer support, so look for that when shopping for that first-time or a new provider. It’s always nice to know that someone will be there for you when you need them.

VoIP calls are cheaply priced where long distance and international calls are concerned. Local UK calls (for the most part) are placed free of charge. Additionally, VoIP service also comes with many of the features that traditional phone service provides. One of the many features that are provided is the ability to conduct conference calls, although users of VoIP service claim that the more people there are engaged in the call, the more the voice quality depreciates.

Dependable VoIP and Voice over ATM platforms are required by local UK calls as for long distance and international calls through the internet. The leading VoIP network and telecom companies have amazing sales with numbers worldwide with over 25,000 people choosing their service every month. The cutting edge technology uses a Voice-over-packet chip to process and transfer signals that provide exchange between internet users.

The VoIP hardware is known as an ATA (analog telephony adapter) and it connects your phone to your broadband modem. One benefit about this is that your computer does not need to be turned on in order to place or receive local UK calls on the internet. The VoIP applications work well with an ATA so that has to be kept in mind. The device is needed to convert analog signals into digital ones so they are placed in the “data packets” that carry your voice signals over the internet while you converse.

Where the voice quality is concerned, the use of transferring voice data by virtue of data packets has helped to improve this disadvantage of VoIP technology. The use of “packet switching” has also helped with the cost effectiveness of local UK calls. Many consumers are claiming that they have saved up to 90% on their monthly phone bills with their international calling as well. Additionally, people living in the US are calling Canada and only paying 3 or 4 cents per minute for those calls with certain VoIP service providers.

Probably the most important decision to make once you have decided that local UK, long distance, and international VoIP service is the way to go is which provider to subscribe to. Selecting a VoIP service that has been in business for quite some time and one that also provides exemplary customer support levels is probably the first two qualities to look for when picking a provider.

Be careful when choosing a provider. There are a lot of affiliate marketers that have jumped on the local UK VoIP calls bandwagon. All they do is make a commission of you when you subscribe to a particular service that they are “reselling” — you are not actually dealing with a true service provider. Therefore, you won’t be able to rely on the elements of longevity and customer support since the affiliate is not the service provider.

VoIP products are definitely market driven and this rapid expansion that VoIP service has enjoyed into the telecommunications market is the sole reason why there is so much diversity in product and service lines. VoIP service providers can now provide local UK, long distance, and international service through different sized gateways that are VoIP capable networks. Multi-regional requirements have been met and the strength in deployment of VoIP service providers has resulted from the presence of these gateways.

If you have switched over to the latest in telecommunications technology, namely VoIP service with a free number from the UK, probably the biggest cost benefit is with low cost overseas calls a.k.a. your international calls. The interesting point with international calls is that businesses are now seeing the viability of the cost savings as well. When you consider that numerous businesses are global, it makes perfect sense that they would investigate a VoIP system.

This all depends on the type of calling package that you invest in. When it comes to cheap internet international calls using a free number from the UK, and charge-by-the-minute calls, they will run anywhere from $.10 to over $1 per minute, and that depends on two factors — what country the call is going to and is it a call made to a regular or mobile device. There is also the SMS messaging issue involved as well which can sometimes incorporate texts as well.

When it comes to keeping prices down with a free number from the UK, a lot of service providers actually negotiate good bandwidth rates with the companies that provide that in the international calls market. This, in turn, helps VoIP service providers stay competitive with one another. Wyatt claimed that this enabled their company to reduce its VoIP rates 30% over an 18-month period by negotiating better international call rates. He claims that roughly 10% of the company’s outbound calls are of an international nature, while 50% are to cell phones, 20% are national or long distance and the remainder are calls made within a distance of 50km or less (local).

Businesses that have call centers or support centers set up globally are the companies who benefit the most. In some instances, their international calling equated to nearly 60% of their outbound traffic, so the concept of making low cost overseas calls ranks high on their list of cost saving priorities. Companies that use a VoIP provider and a free number from the UK don’t have to worry about costly phone bills like they used to, and saving that kind of money is always the focus with any business.

When a company handles its own VoIP communication, oftentimes it has to confront issues such as costly equipment and creating a bandwidth infrastructure. The costs to do this can be staggering. However, when they sign-up with a VoIP service provider and a free number from the UK, for low cost overseas calls, long distance, and local calls, they actually are renting the access and the functionality so that they don’t have to incur those huge costs of doing it themselves.

It is estimated that a call center operation can save as much as 40% on calls to cellular phones and anywhere from 10% - 25% on national and long distance calls. It is not uncommon for a VoIP service to save the company up to 30% or more on international calls. The other benefit for businesses that have a free number from the UK is that they can rent the access and functionality of the VoIP service.

Even though the business has been given a free number from the UK, it would be extremely costly for a company to handle its own VoIP communications due primarily to the cost of the equipment as well as implementing the bandwidth infrastructure necessary to enable VoIP communications. It’s a given that VoIP service is the optimum way for cutting costs on long distance and international calls, but it is equally as important to understand the pitfalls of VoIP service as well.

The business just needs to choose the service that provides them with the most benefits and is the best suited to a free number from the UK. However, they need to keep in mind that they are basing the goal of building their business in this newer technology and that it will eventually equate to savings in the long run as well as achieving those business goals.

In some respects, VoIP is sort of like the game of Bridge in that there are Calling Cards, but then there are also the Trump Cards. Unlike residential phone service and making the switch over to VoIP, it’s a completely different ball game when you’re looking at the business or corporate aspects of internet telephone calls using free business phone numbers. With the residential aspect of this, it is mainly done for cost-effectiveness.

Businesses are not only looking at costs and free business phone numbers, they are looking at replacing all their existing PBX systems and dedicated voice networks that they have relied on for years. When you look at some of the characteristics, namely related equipment, one of the first things to do is compare PBX handsets with the VoIP-enabled types. Though similar in appearance, VoIP handsets obviously have more PC-oriented features.

If you’re a business person, there have probably been several times when you have contemplated making the switch from your costly standard phone service to an inexpensive internet phone service using a free business phone number VoIP technology, office PC’s, and of course, a broadband internet connection. But you’re a little concerned about the bugs and glitches that always seem to accompany these newer types of technology. Here are five helpful tips that will enable you to have a better phone experience, as well as help improve your VoIP network where business operations are concerned.

Helpful Tip #1 – Before you order your VoIP service, make sure that your current network can handle voice capabilities as well as normal data. Having separate networks to handle data and voice is very expensive, both with the initial act of installation and with monthly expense. Besides cost-effectiveness, you are afforded a more uniform and level form of communication where you can run data and voice over the same network using an internet phone service with a free business phone number.

Helpful Tip #2 – Before you start up your VoIP service, make sure all the right management tools are in place. Investing in a cheap internet phone service that uses free business phone numbers will not be of any benefit to you and your business if you haven’t installed the proper software to manage and monitor incoming and outgoing calls. Monitoring voice quality is also a task that should be performed so you can adjust echo and noise factors more easily.

Reason #3 – Before you fire up that VoIP system, make sure your network is safe and secure. All internet phone service providers (with or without the use of free business phone numbers, continue to share in the same dilemma even though significant improvements are on the horizon. VoIP is in the process of developing encryption support, but until it is developed thoroughly and then implemented, hackers can interrupt the data stream and steal secure information such as login information, system passwords, and even credit card numbers. Take steps to protect both your data and voice traffic by using encryption before you start using VoIP.

Helpful Tip #4 – Configuring QoS (Quality of Service) will give your voice traffic the priority with your VoIP service. QoS allows the prioritizing of certain types or classes of traffic when using VoIP with a free business phone number. In a VoIP network, you should always prioritize voice over all the other types and classes of traffic.

Helpful Tip #5 – It’s imperative that each and every one of your employees/ staff members get trained properly to use your cheap internet phone service. Having the best network, service, and software mean absolutely nothing, if your staff isn’t educated to the new technology. Things that your employees need to be skilled at or understanding of are:

• basic technical savvy of the hardware and software involved with the system
• communication processes that are well defined
• data flow of the system

For many years after the onset of IP telephony, the dark cloud with VoIP voice calls was always quality and reliability. It was not only the physical aspects but from a reputation standpoint, nothing was more damaging to IP telephony than those two issues. It was almost like the individuals on each end of the call were testing cheap walkie-talkies. Thankfully, those days are long gone. Many improvements have been made in recent years gone by where VoIP voice calls are concerned, and it has finally begun to offset the finickiest of attitudes that were founded in the quality of landline services that had spoiled the user.

Unfortunately, prior to a solution ever being developed, all that was ever heard were the complaints, never the reasons or the solutions. However, all is well now with quality and reliability factors, and they continue to improve. But have you ever wondered what actually affects the quality of VoIP voice calls? The following content discusses those things that have any effect on the quality.

Bandwidth – this is probably the biggest contributor or detractor of voice quality with VoIP voice calls. It is the key to voice quality and probably the biggest reason why dial-up and VoIP telephony are not good bedfellows. As long as it is not “spotty”, a broadband connection usually performs equitable where voice quality is concerned. Additionally, the sharing with too many other communication applications also affects voice quality. One of the biggest drawbacks with VoIP voice calls is the dependency on sufficient bandwidth.

Equipment – VoIP hardware can have a tremendous impact on voice quality of VoIP voice calls. Typically, the cheaper the hardware the poorer the quality, but that isn’t always the case — just most of the time. Before investing your hard earned money into that nifty VoIP phone, make sure that you get a good idea of quality factors with the phone itself, the router, and if applicable the ATA (analog telephony adapter). Read all the reviews you can get your hands on and even visit some forums when you get the chance.

Phone Frequencies – you can often experience interference with other VoIP equipment due to the frequency of your VoIP phone. The quality VoIP voice calls is very subject to frequency issues. There have been numerous instances where people who are using 5.8 GHz phones have experienced voice quality problems. In most of these instances, downgrading to a 2.4 GHz phone (which operates at a lower frequency) solved the voice quality issue that was plaguing the user.

Weather Conditions - voice quality of VoIP voice calls can be terribly distorted by static which results from thunderstorms and the effect they have on static electricity in the atmosphere. Additionally, the voice quality can be affected by the following climatic conditions as well:

• electrical impulses
• heavy rain
• strong gusts of wind

Characteristically, this static intrusion is not so noticeable when downloading files or surfing the internet, but when you’re listening to a voice it is very annoying. Usually, all that is needed to get rid of static is to unplug your hardware (i.e. the ATA, phone, and router) and then plug it back in after waiting 20-30 seconds. Normally, this alleviates the static problem with VoIP voice calls.

Location of your hardware – during voice communications, interference is like a poison for voice quality. Noise and other related problems are known to occur when different pieces of VoIP equipment interferes with each other, and this in turn damages the voice quality of those VoIP voice calls. As an example, if your ATA is too close to your router, there could be voice quality problems. This is an electrical feedback issue and can usually be resolved by moving the pieces of equipment farther apart.

Small and medium sized businesses around the world have enhanced their communications abilities and reduced their costs by using VoIP solutions. Not only have costs been reduced, but efficiency and productivity levels are up as well. This in itself is a major benefit to companies who have had cost issues with their phone service and have had issues with employee productivity. Per-employee productivity has increased in most companies primarily due to the factors that VoIP solutions provide businesses and individuals with.

VoIP service providers have experienced certain obstacles as they began penetrating the SME (Small and Medium Enterprise) market. Spending their monetary resources in order to assess client networks and plan the deployment thereof, is one of the major problems as VoIP providers are unable to do this.

Additionally, call quality and call set-up problems require the presence of a technician on-site, and the importance of “lifecycle management” with VoIP solutions can be an issue at times. Once the concepts are in place VoIP service providers no longer have to worry about call quality and set-up problems. So what exactly do we mean by “lifecycle management?”

Lifecycle management solutions in conjunction with VoIP solutions enable certain services to be availed to the SME market sector. It involves several aspects or functions such as maintaining service quality and a no hassle delivery of VoIP solutions to clients. In the past performing these functions over different networks has generally been a nagging problem. Service providers have always been concerned with major areas, specifically ease of deployment and scalability. Mostly lifecycle management solutions are used within the context of an SME organization takes care of these two areas.

VoIP solutions play an extremely important role in the monitoring and reporting of all the numerous statistics surrounding VoIP service and calling. Deployment methods are relatively simple and solutions can be scaled progressively in order to monitor market dynamics and trends. This is all necessary information for the numerous SME’s in that it provides them with an efficient system of tracking what is cost-effective in their broad communications infrastructure as well as what is hurting them financially.

VoIP solutions and their providers are continually improving the integration process so that has a no hassle switch over to VoIP technology from the standard telephone network. Many VoIP service providers have grown dependent upon lifecycle management solutions in order to integrate the deployment and scalability of VoIP solutions.

Corporate business solutions that pertain to communications and their communications infrastructure are an essential part of the everyday operations of the organization. The latest VoIP telephony innovations are being implemented within VoIP solutions. These highly specialized services are a major contributor to the growth and the diversification of many SME’s. And this is becoming knowledge to SME’s on a global scale. For this reason, VoIP technology will continue to cater to SME’s as well as individual users.

Finally, there are a multitude of options afforded the SME by virtue of the many VoIP solutions that are now available on the market. VoIP carrier services facilitate specific needs of the businesses especially where cost-effectiveness is concerned, ensuring companies against exorbitant telecommunications charges. Therefore, it follows that a minimal level of impact to infrastructure costs is ensured as well.

In addition to the fact that integrating communications networks has become so cost-effective for businesses, certain additional advantages of VoIP solutions are afforded the SME’s. These advantages go a long way in facilitating the corporate processes and leaving a very favorable impact on the client’s psyche. Integrated multimedia messaging and other voice services (sometimes very specialized at that) are two services that both the corporation and their clients benefit from on an ongoing basis.

Since the beginning of VoIP technology for mass use, the industry has been changing to meet the requirements and mostly people agree that it is for the better. The major reason is due to its cost effectiveness. Making international calls at a low cost, if you have subscribed to a low cost VoIP provider has made it a favorite way of communication. In many instances, long distance calling is free, while for international calling costs may be very low for per minute dialing and comes to be cheaper than most cellular phone service as well.

Studies have estimated that nearly 1,000 people change their service providers and most of them are subscribing to VoIP services as a second support. The business owner is the primary user of low cost VoIP providers as a business portal for their office/home needs. Even parents are using VoIP service to provide for children’s communication use as the service is cost effectiveness of the service.

Broadband phone reliability is relatively new technology, and in the technologically savvy world, when it’s new, there are always a few bugs and glitches. To be the case with internet phone service and the VoIP provider. As far as the reliability issues are concerned, your land line service is still the leader of the pack in this case. However, with VoIP improving in leaps and bounds, these “bugs” should be worked out fairly quickly. When you have a power outage or your internet service is down, you can’t use your PC to make calls. Since the land line with standard phone service gets its power to operate through the phone line itself, the issue of electricity is a non-factor.

One of the biggest selling points with the VoIP provider, besides their cost factor, is the phone number portability issue. In most instances, you are able to keep the same number you had with your land line service. In some cases, the VoIP service provider may give you a completely different number, but that number will be yours for the life of the subscription to that service. Also, portability is not a standard free feature with most VoIP providers. There will usually be a slight cost associated with this feature.

Another benefit is the ease with which you can switch over to a VoIP provider. Business owners are reluctant to make changes with their communication systems when newer technology is available. This is because they are oftentimes required to change their entire system in order for the new technology to be adapted and put into place. This is not the case with inexpensive internet phone service because it is easily adaptable to the current system that has been in place, and the savings are literally immediate.

VoIP service has been developed with expansion capabilities. You won’t have to suffer with those growing pains that are prevalent when a company is growing. To summarize then, there are three major advantages to having service with a VoIP provider:

1. cost factors – less expensive
2. ease of installation and adaptability
3. capabilities/provisions for expansion

So what about the disadvantages and why should you be cautious about going with a VoIP provider? To begin with, and most would agree that this is the big negative that you have to deal with, it takes a lot of power to run this type of application. If there is a service interruption, you’re a dead duck. Unlike regular phone service which can operate if there is no electricity running, this is not the case with VoIP service.

Another key disadvantage relates to the placing of emergency phone call. The 911 system relies on the traceability of your call in order to reach you as quickly as possible should an emergency exist. VoIP calls cannot be traced and therefore cannot lead rescuers to your aid.

Additionally, there are some other minor annoyances involved with switching your phone service to a VoIP provider, but the bottom line is that the advantages supposedly still outweigh the disadvantages.