USB VOIP Phone?

fender

Having Used Skype on my desktop with a headset, the audio quality was rubbish; really quiet sound.

Would a USB VOIP handset improve quality?

Thanks.

:money: :money: :money:

Little_John

The way the handsets work are by adding a 2nd soundcard to the pc on a usb port the phone is the soundcard, this allows you to adjust the levels seperatly from your pc sound card levels.
The quality will only be as good as the phone you buy after all it is a speaker and microphone in a single device and mic's vary so much as do speakers so its up to you how much you spend.

tshabs

My personal reccomendation would be to buy an ATA device. This is a device which can provide an analog phone interface (normal telephone) as a VoIP adapter.
I currently have one built into my modem, and my regular telephone plugged into that. Ive managed to set it up so that outgoing calls are via voip, but i get incoming calls from both my voip and landline on the same phone.
Great sound quality and no problem with firewall etc.

Look at this manufacturer website, ive got the X5v 5565

http://www.zoom.com/products/voip_products.html

About £60 and would reccommend for a solid VoIP solution.

Tom.

computerwoman

:j what you need is voip voice uconnect its a usb phone converter you can plug in a wireless/cordless phone and use it for skype and go wireless with ih, its great I've had one for months it's around £25.00 just google it or pricerunner and pick up the best price, or try ebuyer.co at £25.00 T

patwa_2

OK. For a variety of devices, check out https://www.phone-phones.co.uk.

A USB phone won't improve the sound quality persay, as it's the audio codecs that are built into the device that govern the quality of sound. A cheap no-frills USB phone will probably not give you any benefit bar the ability to dial the number straight from the phone.

There are some very good desktop USB VoIP models. Unfortunately the company I bought mine from did not list the model number, and I've now sold it (not due to lack of quality more due to lack of space on my desk!). A search on froogle for USB VoIP speakerphone should get you some.

If you're wanting a cordless phone that does both VoIP and standard PSTN, DO NOT go for the Skype Olympia. It's an OK phone in its own right, but it's way overpriced, and is locked to Skype, meaning you can't use it with other VoIP providers. Sucks.

Take a look at the above site. They ahve a large range of devices, and you can probably get a fairly cheap adapter box that will allow you to plug any phone into it, and can switch between VoIP and PSTN.

For a good headset, I can only recommend the Plantronics Audio 90. Stunning audio and sound quality going both ways, very comfortable, no annoying microphone jutting out and not heavy on the ears.

Hope that helps. I've gone through 5 VoIP phones since last summer, and have only now found the perfect solution. A Plantronics DSP-500 (the Audio 90 is a 3.5mm connection, the DSP is USB, more expensive but same excellent quality) for my desktop, and an Acer Bluetooth VoIP phone for my laptop.

wiraone

tshabs wrote:

My personal reccomendation would be to buy an ATA device. This is a device which can provide an analog phone interface (normal telephone) as a VoIP adapter.

The bad part is, most if not all ATAs do not support skype.

tshabs

True, however for £39.45 Skype offer VoSky Internet Phone Wizard which is similar to an ATA. Works via USB however so will require the PC to be on.

http://accessories.skype.com/item?SID=0c8e335ad109a7cc00a12d0bfe4448a2d20:4580&sku=USB00020C46AUK

patwa_2

Again, make sure that this phone is not just locked to Skype and that it can be used with other products, unlike the Olympia.

Cheers and take care.

Hussein.

hbl_2

I got an Ipevo skype enabled phone for £20 or so from ebuyer. It's compact, comfortable, a good build and has clear sound.

Silver_3

Hi, can anyone recommend a wireless voip phone? I need to use the phone for long coaching calls so the battery must be good enough. I don't mind getting a normal wireless phone and an adapter if necessary.
Many thanks,
Silver