VoIP

VoIP

When it comes to VoIP, you might not fully understand what it is. But if I were to ask if you have ever used the voice call on Zoom, FaceTime, or Skype, many of you will say yes. Actually, if you have ever used these online chat tools for voice chat, you have already used the telephone service brought by VoIP. This kind of voice call is not transmitted through the traditional telephone network of the telecom operator, but the internet.

What is VoIP?

VoIP stands for Voice Over Internet Protocol, which allows you to make low-cost calls over the internet. VoIP can be used for many internet access devices, including VoIP phones, smartphones, and personal computers, to make calls and send text messages via cellular networks and WiFi. You can easily use VoIP to contact your friends, employees, customers, and family members under different networks.

How does VoIP work?

To better understand how VoIP works, let’s take a look at how traditional phone services operate. When a speaker says something into the handset, they create sound waves that the microphone converts into analog electric signals and then transmits it to a destination across copper wires. The receiving phone then converts the electrical signals back into sound waves through the speaker of the handset. The electric signal and the sound wave signal have the same waveform, which is an analog sound signal, so it’s called an analog signal.

Different from traditional phone services, VoIP converts analog voice signals into digital signals, compresses and encodes the voice data and packages these voice data according to the TCP/IP standard. VoIP then sends the data packets to the receiving place through the IP network. After arriving at the receiving place, these voice data packets are strung together and decompressed to be restored to the original voice signal, so that the caller can hear it.

Put simply, VoIP uses a series of encoding, compression, and packaging procedures to convert calls into digital packets, so that voice data can be sent over the internet.

Benefits of using VoIP phone services

The digital transmission of VoIP phone services gives it the following obvious advantages over traditional phone services.

• More flexibility

Since VoIP voice data can be sent over the internet, VoIP calls can be placed from any connected mobile phone, handset, or laptop, and you can talk to anyone as long as you have an internet connection. With VoIP, you don’t need to answer calls in the office, locally, or sitting at your desk phone. This is great for remote work or business travels.

This also means that you need to ensure you have a dependable internet service provider to offer a reliable internet connection, which seems to be a flaw. But now more and more businesses and households have reliable internet connections, and recently, most VoIP service providers offer backup options, such as automatically rerouting to pre-designated mobile devices in the event of network disconnection, so this flaw is not as big as it might seem at first.

• Lower cost

Traditional telephones use the Public Switching Network (PSTN) to transmit voice, which requires a dedicated line running on old copper wires to transfer phone calls to a destination, and always remains expensive due to the need of keeping hundreds of circuits open during the conversation. The use of VoIP is more economical because messages and calls are made via internet data—both domestic and international VoIP calls. Most VoIP service providers usually provide unlimited domestic calls for free, and international calls can be provided to you at a lower price. Additionally, you can also save on repair and maintenance service fees paid to fixed-line telephone providers.

• Clearer voice quality

The analog signal used in traditional voice calls is susceptible to electrical interference and is compressed with high distortion, resulting in poor voice quality. VoIP, however, uses digital transmission on the internet, which performs low-distortion compression to ensure relatively good call quality. As network bandwidth increases and the processing power of mobile phones and computer terminals enhances, VoIP calls now far exceed the voice quality of traditional telephone calls.

• More features supported

Traditional phone services are limited to the most basic features, such as caller ID, call forwarding, call waiting, call blocking, voice mail, etc. However, internet-powered VoIP allows for not only basic features, but also a variety of features, including video conferencing, voicemail-to-email, automatic attendant, automatic call forwarding, and more. This also saves you additional costs, as traditional telephone service providers usually charge fees for these additional functions.

VoIP routers

Since VoIP relies on the internet, the faster the network connection, the better the VoIP call quality. For example, a high-speed broadband connection allows you to make calls while surfing the internet. So a reliable router with VoIP satisfies those who want both ultra-fast speed and VoIP features.

TP-Link VoIP router not only provides stable wired and wireless network connections but also a high-performance telephony system featured with numerous VoIP functions, such as three-way conference, call forwarding, call blocking, speed dial, voice mail, and more. You can make VoIP calls or record voicemail to save important messages with a smartphone.

The TP-Link VoIP router is integrated with the DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications) function. You can register several cordless handsets on the VoIP router and make calls via the internet. You can also connect your traditional analog phones or fax machines to the RJ11 port on the VoIP router to use the numerous VoIP features.

With an array of additional features, the TP-Link VoIP router is the perfect hub for your home or business network.

For more information about TP-Link VoIP routers, refer to https://www.tp-link.com/.