Frequently Asked Questions - Basic VoIP

Question 1: What is VoIP?

Answer: 

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) - technology that enables one to make and receive phone calls through the Internet instead of using the traditional analog PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) lines.

Question 2: What are the advantage of VoIP over analog PSTN lines?

Answer: 

The primary main advantage of VoIP over PSTN lines is cost (it's cheaper!) Other advantages of VoIP are as follows: digital features not commonly available on PSTN lines such as voicemail, caller ID, conference, music-on-hold, etc.

Question 3: What type of service and equipment are needed for VoIP deployment?

Answer: 

The following equipment and services are required for VoIP deployment: High-Speed Broadband connection, IP Phones (Softphones will require PC) or Analog Telephone Adapters (ATAs) and VoIP Service Provider (terminate calls).

Question 4: Can I use dial-up for VoIP or do I need broadband?

Answer:

Dial-up can be used for VoIP when necessary or if it's the only type of connection available. However, we recommend using broadband since certain VoIP codecs (e.g. G.711) require higher bandwidth.