Advantages of VoIP

There are various advantages of VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) that make this a very effective communication technique. Any kind of voice transmission and other forms of communications that take place over Internet Protocols have to go through the VoIP transmission channels.

Even though the technology is not perfect yet, it has several advantages over regular telephone services. For this reason alone, VoIP will soon become the standard way of communicating, and telephony services will be pushed out of the way. VoIP communication refers to any form of voice chatting, fax messages or electronic messages that are carried out through the Internet channels, and there are many VoIP service providers available today.

Advantages of VoIP Technology

One needs to understand the various advantages and disadvantages of VoIP before passing judgment on it, and like any other new technology that the world embraces, there are plenty of pros and cons of this service as well. Its popularity is soaring at the moment though, but it is still to take steps to ensure that it replaces our regular phone services. Here are some of the well-known advantages of VoIP phones.

• The most important feature of this service is that it is very cheap. The cost associated with making VoIP calls is negligible, and in most cases, non-existent. All you need is an active broadband Internet connection, and you can subscribe to any VoIP provider and you can use this service. Making PC to PC calls is absolutely free for anywhere in the world, and this is an advantage that just cannot be overlooked. Moreover, PC to phone charges are also much lesser than regular phone to phone charges. Some service providers also provide free PC to phone calls for certain geographic areas.
• The next great benefit of VoIP is the portability it grants you with. All you need to do is access your VoIP account from anywhere in the world where an Internet connection is available, and you can make use of this service. With a pair of headphones and a mic, you can use this service anywhere for free. Additionally, if you own a VoIP phone for making phone to phone calls, then these are also extremely easy to use anywhere. This portability is a major plus point, and one of the best advantages of VoIP over POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service).
• The additional features of VoIP are also extremely helpful. At no extra charge, you get all the features that you would get in a normal phone. For instance, call waiting, call forwarding, voicemail, conference calling and caller ID are the features that you can enjoy. You can also send and receive other multimedia content like documents, pictures and other files. These features mean that the advantages of VoIP for businessmen, over POTS, are immense.

POTS and PBX (Public Branch Exchange) are the conventional means of telephony services, and VoIP is slowly usurping these services from the market. There are many areas where VoIP scores over these services, and this table will make that clearer.

Advantages of VoIP Over POTS	Advantages of VoIP Over PBX
Considerably cheaper than POTS.	Easier to use than a PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) PBX in companies and business organizations.
Very easy and flexible to use due to portability.	Allows unlimited number of extensions and voicemail boxes.
Additional bundled services free of cost.	Allows the ability to record conversations as well.
No toll charges for long distance calling.	Cost is much lesser, going up to a maximum of $1000.
Wastage of bandwidth due to multiple parties, and this is paid for by you.	Allows easy desktop management with the help of a web browser, rather than PSTN switches.

With the help of these features, VoIP also enables easier internal communication within a business. With the added advantage of cutting down costs, it is no surprise that most companies are turning to this service now.

Disadvantages of VoIP

Now that you know the answer to What are the advantages of VoIP, you should also know a bit about its disadvantages. There is a reason why VoIP has still not displaced telephony services in spite of being so beneficial. These disadvantages do not go against Internet phones and they do not discourage people from using these services, as they simply limit the functionality of VoIP. Needless to say, these limitations will be overcome sooner rather than later.

Problems like the inability to make emergency 911 calls, dependency on a fast Internet connection and the dependency on the constant supply of power for the Internet make this service slightly inconvenient. For these reasons, it is important to also have a regular phone connection as backup. This is something that you will have to do for the time being at least, as solutions for these problems will arise soon.

In the meantime, you must enjoy the various advantages of VoIP, because this is a truly revolutionary service that is changing the way we communicate with each other. Over time, VoIP calls will become the norm all around the world.