VOIP, Discussion, questions and answers

Rex_Mundi

VOIP is Voice Over Internet Protocol. It means using your computer and internet connection to make phone calls.

Have a read of Martins article on this subject.

agentzoonie

mark, I use a voip phone at work. The programme I use is Skype, which works both as an instant messenger service, and I have a VOIP phone connected through a USB port. To call another Skype connection is free of charge, but you can also pay money into an account (via a card) and ring landlines for very little money.

For example I make phone calls to someone in Brazil and because I ring their Skype, it costs nothing.

The phones are quite cheap, or you can connect a microphone to your computer instead.

ElCid26

You have to read the terms and conditions. It is not difficult.
At the moment free calls between mobiles are restricted to Zone 1.
Any call you make can only be free BETWEEN REGISTERED LANDLINE users.

So it makes sense to ecourage your friends in Zones 1 and 2 to REGISTER.
It is FREE to Register. That's it. You get 100 minutes usage per day, 300 minutes per week and 1000 minutes per month FREE.

They say that they are working on UK mobiles (Zone 2) at the moment. Watch this space !
Cheers,, EM

wlcnetwork

ElCid26 [what happened to the 25 Cids before you?!]

I can't immediately see what JaJah has to offer over a combination of VoIPCheap and 18185. The former to landlines and the latter to mobiles.

Bill

ElCid26

Hi Bill....
ElCid is so popular that after trying to take 1,2,3 etc I gave up and settled for 26 which happens to be the street number of my house in Wales.(easily remembered)
As for your second part - first of all Jajah does not, like VioPcheap, need any downloads, secondly as regards 18185, well. I don't live in the UK. I have a house here in Spain (as ElCid would suggest) over to you friend.
Cheers. Eric

hurrah

Voipcheap sister company Webcalldirect does not need any downloads either.

Try it for free now!!!

http://www.webcalldirect.com/en/index.php

ElCid26

Yes but they charge you 3 cents to connect you. Jajah do not.

hurrah

ElCid26 wrote:

Yes but they charge you 3 cents to connect you. Jajah do not.

But Jajah charge you for the call if the other party is not a customer.
2 euro cents a minute +VAT to call USA or EU or UK from the UK.

Where as webcalldirect only charges a 3 cent connection charge to free destinations.

patwa_2

Another option is to use companies such as VoipCheap , VoipBuster or SipDiscount .

With these companies you pay a small deposit, say between £5-£10, and then you can make free calls to landlines within the UK, as well as to landlines in up to 20 other countries. Your deposit is just that, a deposit to 'guarantee' the service, and lasts for 120 days.

You don't need any special equipment to use this service. Just a computer, a microphone (laptops have them built in nowadays) and speakers. Alternatively, you can get a microphone headset, that is a pair of headphones with a microphone that is either fixed or that can be moved around/folded up. The advantage of this second option is that it gives better call quality, as there is no echo of the sound coming through teh speakers and the sound from your voice is more clearly picked up.

then you just download and install the VoIP software free from the website in question, dial the number into the software and you're away. Note: the websites I mentioned have a 1 hour limit per call, you are disconnected automatically at the end of that hour, but can always redial.

You can also get your own phone number as well. The companies mentioned above offer you, free, as part of the service, a local telephone number, similar in format to your home phone number (although not always with the same dialling code). You can give that to your friends, they can dial it, and you can answer it on your computer. Many home businesses use this to cut down on costs and take calls at their PC. You can, with some adaptation, also use this number and some additional software to set up an answering machine for incoming calls - google 'Asterisk' for more information on this.

VoIP can also be used just to talk to someone at their computer, Pc-to-PC, which is useful, for example, if you have a friend who is on holiday and you want to chat with each other. This is free, and works around the world, unlike the paid calling which does depend on the quality of the telephone exchanges at the destination you are calling.

I hope this helps, and would be happy to answer any further questions you may have.

Cheers and take care.

Hussein.

Graham1

Ref your second paragraph:

patwa wrote:

, and lasts for 9 months.

I think you meant to say 120 days there.