VoIP Review

VoIP Review: MagicJack – Skype – Vonage

This post will share a VoIP review of three different companies rates. A long time fixture of the VoIP industry, Vonage provides various services for various rates, some of which vary in cost over time. Rates for Vonage start at $17.99 monthly, and can go as high as $34.99 a month. Much like Vonage’s status as a fixture of the VoIP industry, Vonage’s prices have remained quite fixed over time, and continue to be competitive in the VoIP industry.

In contrast to Vonage, the MagicJack service which is a relative newcomer to the VoIP industry has proven to be innovative in price and service packaging. With a low cost of $39.95 for both the MagicJack unit and a year of service, and a $19.95 yearly bill, the MagicJack service already beats Vonage hands-down in regard to service price. Adding to MagicJack’s value is the fact that service includes free long distance calling to the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands. On top of long distance services provided by MagicJack, the MagicJack service also includes free directory assistance, phone number assignment, call waiting, voicemail, and caller ID.

While MagicJack and Vonage have only long-term service rates, Skype provides service on both a monthly and “Pay-As-You-Go” basis. With rates from 2.1 cents per minute for Pay-As-You-Go, Skype’s short-term benefits are quite apparent. More so, Skype presents itself as quite the competitor in regard to their monthly service plans by providing services starting from $2.95 a month for domestic calling. Along with their domestic (US & Canada) plan, Skype also provides country-selective services at the cost of $5.95 a month.

Skype’s ‘Unlimited Country’ plan allows the user to select a country in which they can make unlimited land-line calls to for the duration of their month subscription. Skype’s third monthly option is the ‘Unlimited World’ plan, at the price of $12.95 a month, Skype provides landline calls to over fourty countries worldwide. Along with the capability of being able to make telephone calls, Skype also provides the capability to make free PC-to-PC calls which also include video services.

Overall, in the competition between VoIP services, Skype provides the most cost-efficient plan without many frills. MagicJack meanwhile provides the most cost-efficient price which also includes a wide range of special services. Vonage, while being a long-time leader in VoIP services has fallen behind with their use of excessive prices, for services which are now common-place and can be delivered at lower rates by their competitors.

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VoIP Pros And Cons

As we know, VOIP is the abbreviated form of Voice Over Internet Protocol, which is the latest technology by which an user can make the phone calls via internet instead of using traditional land line based phone calling. Since this is an accepted technology and is being used worldwide, so for sure, it has got its own advantages but at the same time there are some disadvantages also in conjunction with these advantages. So, for sure before completing reverting to this latest technology of telecommunication, which has taken the world by storm, it is advisable for the customer to have a quick glance at the pros and cons with which this latest revolution in telecommunications comes to you. So, let us take a glance at both pros and cons in successive paragraphs.

PROS OF VOIP:
1. The very first and most important advantage of VOIP is that it costs much less in comparison to traditional phone calls as it has a flat rate charge for calling long distances whereas in traditional way, your call cost is always proportional to the distance between the caller and the receiver.
2. With VOIP, you can communicate with multiple people at anytime you want but with traditional way of telecommunication, you are limited to one call one person.
3. As VOIP incorporates both data and voice communication. So, instead of just being able to talk with the other person, you can exchange more ideas with them like sending graphics, videos etc, which again is a limitation with the traditional system of telecommunications.
4. As VoIP is internet-enabled service, so even if you change location, you do not need to change the existing number, which you have to, in case you are using the traditional system.
5. Wherever internet access is available, VOIP services can be utilized but same stand restricted in case of traditional system.

CONS OF VOIP:
1. As VOIP is internet-enabled service, every time the internet connection cuts down, the VOIP system becomes inaccessible. So, if that is the only way of your telecommunication, in that case, it would prove dangerous in case of emergency.
2. VOIP services depends mainly on the quality of internet connection in your area as well as the power availability. So, in case the quality of internet is poor, it will led to poor VoIP conversation.
3. Since the VOIP is portable, so calls cannot be traced properly as to from where they are made.
4. Eavesdropping is another limitation of VOIP as it does not comes with conversational privacy and your calls can be overheard by somebody else.
5. Though caller ID is a built-in feature of VOIP package, but when we make calls using our VOIP connection, our number is not screened on their caller ID and is displayed as “Unknown.” So, the receiver might not be willing to attend our call.

Having said both the pros and cons of this great technology, none of us can undermine its importance in the current scenario where internet has certainly become a part and parcel of our everyday life. Check out several companies and do a thorough VoIP review before signing up. So, let us hope that soon all its disadvantages can be completely removed or at least minimized to an extent that majority of the world population can use this fascinating technological innovation.

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VoIP Adapter

Voice over Internet Protocol, also know as VoIP for short, is a convenient way to get telephone service if you have a high speed Internet connection available to you in your house. VoiP services are a great option because they are generally very low priced even when making international calls. In order to successfully utilize a VoIP you will need a VoIP adapter in order to get your VoIP service up and running. Thankfully most companies that over VoIP services provide an adapter. It may or may not be at additional cost.

One of the most common types of VoIP adapters are analog telephony adaptors, also known as ATA for short. You will be able to use this device to connect a certain number of phones to a digital telephone system, usually two to four phones. This means they these adaptors are perfect if you use VoIP. Since you are able to connect multiple phones to this adaptor you’ll be able to connect every single phone in your house up to one line. If you’re a business owner you may very well need to purchase multiple adapters in order to connect all your phones to a VoIP service if your business is large. However, for the general user and a small business one adapter is usually sufficient.

It is very common for analog telephony adapters to be the VoIP adapters for many companies that provide VoIP services. These adapters are used in order to allow a user to replace their traditional telephone line with a voice over IP network. Often times when receiving an adapter from any given company they are locked so they you are unable to use it with any other competing VoIP service. Usually the user is able to make miner changes to the adapter, but the amount of control given is extremely limited. In order to find VoIP adapters that are usable with any VoIP service provider you will need to search for adapters that are unlocked.

Some service providers sell these types of adapters, but because it is a competitive market usually you will only be able to purchased locked adapters. The absolute best place to purchase unlocked VoIP adapters is over the Internet. There are many reliable stores online to purchase these adapters. A quick search will probably yield hundreds of results. It is up to you, the consumer, to make the best decision about which adaptors to purchase and from what store. If you are not up for shopping online for them usually you can find adapters in retail stores.

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