Voip - Quality or Junk?

Don't know about Vonage.

We have magicJack (not an endorsement, but it really is) and it is just as good as a land line.

$35.00/year. We've had it for over a year and no problems. 911 compatible too, they say.

This sounds like a paid advert, but it's the truth.

PM me if you want more details.

I agree with Mr. lyn - like him l have the MJ for 6 years now! I install and use it as the house phone, as well as linked on the wife's Ipad and Iphone! As in any VOIP services, reliability and quality of service is dependent on internet internet connections for both local and international! The callers have no idea on your physical location...whether you are at home or outside the country!

It depends.

You can have blazing fast internet, but if the person you are connected has inferior service, then it sucks. That can happen if you have a landline and the person you are connecting to has VOIP, too.

We use an old fashioned landline because when internet service goes down we still have a phone. It also has superior audio quality.

You may not care until you need to dial 911 and don't have internet for some reason.

Where we live we are subject to bad weather (i.e., hurricanes) and that is typically when you need 911 and when internet doesn't work, but I find the VOIP drops periodically.

We tried VOIP, but we've had too many failures where the line is dropped, even when weather is good. They generally only last a minute or less, but the inconvenience while calling is not worth it. Your mileage may vary.

I use VOIP for the business, but will be switching over for the same reasons. Vonage has too many instances where it drops connection, but the old landline always has worked.

Our cell coverage out here sucks, so a landline is the best choice for us.

Does Skype count as VOIP? We use it a lot: Skype-to-Skype, Skype-to-landline and Skype-to-cellphone, nationally and internationally. It's mainly good, but can suffer sudden dropouts and poor reception, even during an otherwise satisfactory conversation. Cost wise it beats cellphones. Overall, I would class it as "satisfactory."

VOIP = Voice over Internet Protocol.

If it uses the internet, then is is a form of VOIP.

Echo AH, of course it is and so is Viber.

Like any comms link it is only as good or reliable as its worste link. Traditional copper is not magically immune to failures.

Viber and Skype also have a billable service that gives access into the PSTN to any phone connected to the PSTN anywhere just as I think the OP's VoIP residential service does but wrapped up differently. Skype to Skype and Viber to Viber are free except for third party data transport charges.

The PSTN is chock full of IP backhaul segments. You don't know it. The brochures in the recycling pile call it "carrier grade" IP, it's quick and cheap and tolerates crappy implementation.

I think this is really a price shopping decision for the OP.

As AH said, it depends. And mostly it is going to depend on where you are, and your service providers (both Telco and ISP). Your best bet is to ask people in your local area, and see what their experience has been with your providers.

VOIP works so well that most telephone companies around the world use it for their voice communication as at least a backup capability if not the primary mechanism for providing voice to a customer. The complication to answering your question as a customer of voice requires knowing a lot more information that is unknown to the customer, primarily the details of the communication infrastructure.

As others mentioned, it depends on your internet connection. Most providers offer a free trial, so you could test it out.

I've had Vonage for a number of years. I'm on a plan with limited minutes, which lately has become problematic. I'm currently testing Ooma which has more minutes at a lower price. They have two plans: one where you just pay monthly taxes/fees, and one that's about $10/month with some added features.

I called the customer service department yesterday because I couldn't get a dial tone. They fixed that, and also made some changes on their end regarding my complaint about the staticky background noise. It has improved. (I never experienced any poor quality with Vonage.)

Uverse phone service is a VOIP line. I use it for my business and it works okay. We do have a dedicated land line and the quality is better on the land line. Most times though, I don't notice the difference, until I have someone with a poor connection on the other line (VOIP or cellular). I have to ask them to call on the land line or I call them back on the land line.

About 6 years ago, the office I worked at had a VOIP line, but it was a professional one. The quality was excellent and you would never know it was a VOIP. The quality of the phones was also excellent too, which helped.

I guess it all depends on the amount of time you're on the phone, how important your phone calls are and if you're okay with lower quality phone calls once in a while.

Like all server based systems VOIP has multiple single points of failure. When my employer changed over completely to VOIP telephony no allowance was made for such failures, on a site with Class 3 bio-hazards, explosive materials, toxic gases and a whole range of other potential problems. Their limited answer, carry a cell phone... Hard-wired land-lines work, can be 'protected' and have many telephony devices built for explosive atmospheres and similar hazardous area use available, and tend to still work if the power goes down.

It sounds like you are not looking for a residential solution.

If you are looking for a business solution go with a good SIP provider in your area. Some provider will also support Office 365 and hosted Skype for business, choosing such providers will be profitable in case if you need any cloud services.

To my knowledge most of the call centers are now using VoIP for an end to end communication. If you are a small business owner take a look at this http://www.thinktel.ca/blog/general-category/5-benefits-voip-businesses/

there are also fake and scams in this field please choose a reputed carrier and ensure that no hidden charges will be charged to you.