VoIP Digital Telephone Service - Skype Recommended

As a technology person I have been following the world of instant messengers, internet telephone services, and video conferencing for quite a while. Until the past three to four years, the quality of these services on a consumer has been good enough to use as a fun tool, but not really good enough to replace traditional communication. High prices, tacky interfaces, dropped calls, long delays, distortion, and lack of features plagued most of the software out there. But since broadband internet connections have become more affordable and popular, companies have been putting more effort into investing into the Voice Over IP (VoIP for short) services. Companies such as Microsoft, Yahoo, and AOL have even expanded their instant messenger programs to include VoIP features. This article reviews my favorite service - Skype.

When I started doing business overseas, the idea of using a service called Skype was presented to me as an alternative to expensive landline rates. At first I was doubtful and didn't want to go through the hassle, but after about 10 minutes it was setup and ready to use. Once I started using the service, I quickly became a fan and started using it for calls to regular phone numbers as well.

The things that make Skype so popular with digital phone users is that it is free to download, easy to setup, easy to use, and has a simple interface that isn’t bogged down with advertisements or spyware. All you need is a computer, an internet connection (high speed is recommended), and a headset and microphone (I started off using the inexpensive Logitech Internet Chat Headset ) and you are ready to go!

Since EBay bought the company a few years ago, the service has gotten even better. For an incredibly low cost (compared to cellphones and traditional home service) you can purchase pre-paid minutes to call regular phones from the Skype interface and have your calls forwarded to another number when you are not on Skype. The service is even easier to setup, use, offers more features, and they have recently added a video camera service to allow surprisingly clear video conferencing. The features don’t stop there - Skype also allows you to purchase an incoming phone number and voicemail – which allows you to use the service as a regular phone system.

Skype has become so popular that there are tons of Skype accessories available (click here). One of the most popular types of accessories are the USB telephones you can hook up to your computer to use with Skype, such as the US Robotics USB Internet Phone. There are also adapters that allow you to use traditional phones with Skype such as the Skytone Adapter by Radian Works. For home offices, they even have accessories called digital call centers such as the Actiontec VoSKY Skype Call Center that will allow you to use Skype from your cellphone.

Since I decided the VoIP is the way that I wanted to go permanently, I checked out all of the Skype competition. There are a lot of companies out there offering similar services - however, I am comfortable with my choice and now use Skype for my business telephone and a majority of my day to day calling.