What Is All The Excitement About Voip Phone Services

It seems like everywhere you go these days, people are talking about the VOIP phone service they got and how much they like it. Many college students do not even have a regular telephone in their dorm room or apartment, but instead they opt for VOIP phone services. What is all the hubbub? Did you ever feel like you were missing something and did not know what it was? Let's talk about VOIP and what it can mean for you. VOIP phone service is not without its own set of disadvantages, so be sure you consider all the angles before you run out and sign up for VOIP.

 VOIP phone service uses your existing high-speed Internet connection and allows you to make and receive phone calls over the Internet. That is the entire bottom line summary of what VOIP is. But you need to dig under the surface a bit in order to determine if VOIP is right for you. First of all, not all parts of the country can get a local phone number. If you live in a rural area, chances are that a LOCAL telephone number for your VOIP service is not going to be available.

What that means is that if someone local wants to call you, even your next door neighbor, they may have to make a long distance call to reach you. Yes, you can "port" your existing phone number to your new VOIP service, but there have been so many horror stories about how the phone companies screws that up that I would not recommend that option. It SHOULD be simple, it should be seamless, but like many other things, the reality of what happens does not reflect the simplicity of doing it.

 You also need a high-speed Internet conection and this is not provided with the VOIP service from any of the VOIP providers. They assume you already have this. In most cases they are right as the price of home DSL and home cable Internet prices keep going down. But even if you already have high-speed Internet access, you should carefully consider the following two points:

 1. When I say high-speed Internet connection, I am NOT referring to a satellite high-speed Internet connection. I do not recommend satellite for VOIP, and if you try it, I can almost guarantee that you will not be happy with your VOIP service. In most cases you will probably, in best case, sound like you are calling from the bottom of a bath tub.

 2. Is your existing high-speed Internet connection reliable? Remember, when your high-speed Internet connection goes out, so does your VOIP service and you will not be able to make or receive any calls. If you are on DSL and your speed is very slow because you are at the end of their pipe, VOIP is going to likely be a problem there too.

 Assuming none of these disadvantages depict your situation, then you are probably in very good shape for great VOIP phone service. So why is VOIP better? The quality is at least as good and frequently better than regular phone service. The big reason that people are flocking to VOIP phone service is for the financial considerations.

 Basic phone service from the phone company costs about $25 per line per month, and that gives you only a line with dial tone, probably unlimited local calling. For the same price (or even less with some VOIP providers), you get unlimited calling locally, unlimited calling in the entire continental US (some also include Canada and/or Puerto Rico), you get voice mail, call waiting, and caller ID. Even if you do not make any long distance calls, the extra features alone that come with basic VOIP phone service are extra with your phone company.

 VOIP phone service may or may not be right for you, but once you have considered all the factors, it can save you a ton of money each month.