VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol which is sometimes pronounced as Voyp /ˈvɔɪp/ or V-O-I-P.

Voice over Internet Protocol is a technology that enables people to use the Internet as the transmission medium for telephoning by sending voice data over IP (Internet Protocol). Unlike PSTN’s traditional circuit transmissions, VoIP is entirely digital.

PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) is the collection of interconnected voice-oriented public telephone networks which is also referred to as the Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS). Landlines are a part of PSTN. Mobile Telephony has the same concept as PSTN, however, it uses digital broadband.

VoIP for daily use

Certainly, we use VoIP on a daily basis with or without knowing. Any calls including video calls made through are successfully made through VoIP technology.

• Some of the common web and mobile apps such as Skype, Whatsapp, Viber, Messenger, and GTalk use VoIP service.
• Most business operations are carried out through the effective use of VoIP services. This has helped to cut down on costs of using a regular phone and has increased the ease of accessibility.
• A person can make a call from any part of the world with the working internet connection.

How does VoIP work?

VoIP technology enables telephone to operate over digital networks using packet-switched protocols. Packet-switched VoIP puts voice signals into packets, similar to an electronic envelope.

VoIP packets can be transmitted over any VoIP-compatible network, such as a local area network (LAN).

VoIP Phone

Also referred to as online phones or Internet phones, a VoIP phone can be a physical telephone with built-in IP technology and an RJ-45 Ethernet connector instead of the RJ-11 phone connector found in standard phones, or it can be a voice-capable computer that uses VoIP hardware such as MagicJack or VoIP software like Skype.

This flexibility makes it possible for VoIP phone calls to function as;

• Internet Phone-to-phone
• Internet phone-to-PC
• PC-to-PC
• PC-to-phone calls

Advantages of using VoIP

Using a VoIP technology has many benefits.

Cost Friendly

VoIP is a cost-effective method of calling someone. It’s cheaper to call using VoIP than calling through a regular phone. Even long distance calling is way cheaper than PSTN or ISDN as VoIP uses an active internet connection rather than analog networks.

Portability

The VoIP technology can be taken anywhere and be used from any part of the world. As it uses internet connection, you should only carry the required hardware (device or phone) to use the VoIP at any time.

Flexibility

VoIP has flexible uses. You can either use digital apps to make VoIP calls or turn your handheld device into a VoIP enabled device using the VoIP converter or VoIP telephone adapter. A VoIP converter will sense signals that are emanating from traditional or analog phones, and such signals will be converted to digital data that can be routed over the Internet.

Multi-Functional

Other than simply telephoning a user, you can indulge in video calls and video conferencing which can be important to discuss important deals, business meetings, or to talk with clients.