The local and long-distance services required to support our calling needs is different for: frequent travelers, small to medium-size businesses, and for work at home professionals.
What Is VOIP?
This technology brings the Internet and the phone together, a marriage bound to happen. The acronym VOIP means voice over Internet protocol and is a service provided by various telecommunication firms including: Vonage, Voice Pulse, Dial Pad and net2phone. How Big Is the VOIP Industry ?
According to a Sandvine press release, there are over 1100 voice over IP providers in the world today and the growth rate is impressive. Mr. David Caputo said, "There is one company starting per day." Sandvine is a company based in Waterloo, Ontario Canada. They manufacture very high and broadband equipment for large companies. Why Is Voice Over IP Growing in Leaps and Bounds?
In most workplaces, people have had to put up with:
- Complex hard to decipher long-distance phone bills
- Exorbitantly high long distance phone rates
- Dealing with long-distance providers who lacks accountability
In order for businesses to reach more customers in a diverse geographic population -- voice over IP provides a very cost-effective solution. I run a bird tour sightseeing company and I have clients as far away as Singapore. Many of my clients travel halfway around the world for a two-week all-inclusive bird watching vacation. Since I was tired of paying such high long-distance phone bills, I decided to do some investigation and compared three different voice over IP providers. They are Vonage, VoicePulse and Net2phone. Overseas calls are not factored into these plans. The charges for international calls change per country and plan provider. With the old long-distance provider, I was paying as high as $3.30 per minute to call Singapore. With Vonage, calls to Europe and Asia are as low as three cents per minute.
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Vonage ( Best Buy ) |
VoicePulse ( Best Buy) |
Net2Phone |
| Basic, included features |
voicemail, call forwarding, call waiting, call transfer, caller ID, 3 way Calling, call return, caller ID block, repeat dailing, int'l call block |
Caller ID w/name, caller ID block, int'l call block, telemarketer block, call waiting, call transfer, line unavailable call forward, call return, 3 way Calling, voicemail, speed dialing, distinctive ring, web based account mgmt, |
voicemail, call waiting, caller ID, call return, redial,speed dial, 3-way calling, call forwarding, call blocking, remote feature mgmt |
Pricing
( basic ) |
$24.99 USD per month for unlimited local and long distance calling in US(including Puerto Rico & Canada) |
$24.99 USD per month for unlimited local and long distance calling in US |
$29.99 USD per month for unlimited local and long distance calling in US(including Puerto Rico & Canada) |
| Does 911 Work |
Yes, Only VOIP that offers 911 |
no |
Yes |
| Local Number Portability |
Yes, Most, but not all, people can keep their number if they are in one of the biggest markets in US |
Yes, Most, but not all, people can keep their number if they are in one of the 48 continental states. Local Number Portability may not be availabe in all areas |
Yes, Most, but not all. Keep your current phone number with VoiceLine |
| Where can you buy it? |
Buy it from the web |
Buy it from the web |
Buy it from the web |
| Installation |
Simple, connect router to cable modem or switch |
Simple, connect router to cable modem or switch. 1 sheet instruction step by step guide included |
Phone and adapter is combined so set-up is easy |
| Network |
Open Internet - Network Availability Number is free |
Open Internet - Network Availability Number is free |
Open Internet |
| Sound quality |
Very good consistent |
Exceptional sound quality, |
Good, sometimes flaky |
| Nomadic |
Yes, take the device anywhere and link to a high speed connection |
Yes, take the device anywhere and link to a high speed connection |
Yes |
| Local & Long distance directory assistance |
411, for just 99 cents, you can any listing in the US, Canada or Puerto Rico |
411, for just 75 cents, |
If the number you choose when signing up for VoiceLine includes emergency (911) services, it will also include access to 411 service, for just 99 cents PER call. |
| Other |
For $9.99 per month, you can get the Vonage SoftPhone for your laptop and get 500 local and long distance minutes |
You may cancel the service within 30 days of service activation and receive a full refund |
Service activation fee is $29.99 |
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