| The simplicity and danger of an internet phone | | Posted Tuesday, January 24, 2006 3:44:03 PM by Rose Martins | Internet phones and internet phone services are quickly gaining popularity. Many internet phone service providers are offering various free internet phone services that include internet video phone and conferencing capabilities.
Internet phone companies generate revenue from advertising and from VoiP internet services that sell as package deals. The internet phone systems provided by the internet phone companies are up to date technology that provide internet phone calls with crisp clarity and excellent transfer speeds.
Most of the internet service providers selling packages charge cheap phone call rates. Cell phones today also offer internet connections and capabilities, with speeds that are continuously improving.
But internet phones come with certain risks. According to Gartner's Meta Group, calls made via internet phones can be intercepted, are vulnerable to attack by other internet phone companies and the voice clarity of VoiP can sometimes be of bad quality and/or interrupted.
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| | | Cable outfits now offering wireless to compete with phone firms | | Posted Monday, March 12, 2007 3:08:58 PM by Blog57 Team | | Two months ago, Fred Poteet walked into a Sprint store to resolve some technical problems with his cell phone service. When he walked out, he had a new wireless contract -- with Cox Communications Inc., his cable TV operator. "Since I already had Cox digital TV, the high-speed Internet and the telephone, they said they could bundle it all in one package," said the 62-year-old engineer from Goodyear, Ariz. "They were also giving away a free phone if I added another line. Free sounded pretty good." Branded cell phone service is the latest attempt by cable operators to compete with -- and swipe customers from -- traditional phone companies that themselves are invading cable's turf by offering TV service. Each side wants all of the consumer's communications business and each has plans to make the technologies complement each other.... | |
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| | | Belkin Skype phone a step forward | | Posted Friday, February 02, 2007 1:07:26 PM by Blog57 Team | | It's a safe bet that as technological miniaturization continues, cellphone makers will stuff anything they can into their handsets. Pairing some features, such as music, with cellphone calling is understandable. Others, however, are mystifying. (What's the appeal of micro-TV when Hollywood is making films for high-definition screens?) One cellphone that represents considerable advances in "cool" technology is the Belkin WiFi phone for the Skype Internet phone service. Retailing at $269.95, the phone makes calls using the voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service without a computer. It's about the size of a "candy bar" style phone, with a glossy front, and works without the need for installation -- well, after three hours of charging time -- as long as the user has access to a WiFi network and a Skype identification.... | |
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| | | Fun Internet sites to bookmark | | Posted Sunday, January 14, 2007 3:27:30 PM by Blog57 Team | | With 2006 gone, it seemed a good time to compile some of the sites farther down on the ol' bookmark list. Here are a few of the loose ends and oddities left over from a year of clicking around on Al Gore's Internet. -The Movie Timeline: www.themovietimeline.com Ever get confused about the difference between real life and the movies? This site wonders what the history of the world would look like if it were told through the plots of films. A few of the movies that seem especially disruptive of the time continuum include "Alien vs. Predator" and "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure." -Bluff Your Ego: www.blufr.com This Web site keeps score as you deem statement after statement either false or true. It may sound like a familiar trivia game, but it's sneakily smart.... | |
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| | | £360000 internet phone kiosks to be scrapped | | Posted Monday, January 01, 2007 1:11:07 PM by Blog57 Team | | INTERNET telephone kiosks in Bolton, installed at a cost of £360,000 just three years ago, are to be ripped out - because hardly anybody uses them. The 42 kiosks, subsidised by the council, were hailed as innovative and ground-breaking when they were introduced across the borough three years ago. But now BT engineers are to replace them with standard pay phones. .... | |
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| | | GE VoIP Phone In The Works | | Posted Sunday, November 19, 2006 1:08:08 PM by Blog57 Team | | Equipment maker Thomson plans to offer a General Electric-branded VoIP phone and work with service provider SunRockets, which sells residential Internet phone service for a flat rate of $200 a year. By Antone Gonsalves InformationWeek Nov 17, 2006 04:30 PM Manufacturer Thomson Inc. plans to offer a General Electric-branded phone that will support Internet telephony, an indication that the technology is entering the mainstream. The GE licensee, among the largest makers and distributors of phones, has agreed to work with voice-over-Internet protocol service provider SunRockets, the latter company said Friday. SunRockets, a privately held Vienna, Va., company, sells residential Internet phone service for a flat rate of $200 a year.... | |
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| | | Making the connection:Common questions on the rapidly growing Internet phone market | | Posted Wednesday, November 15, 2006 7:08:33 AM by Blog57 Team | | NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. - The only thing you may know about Internet phone systems is the disturbingly catchy song that plays with the ubiquitous Vonage commercials. It's not all your fault, however. Broadband phone companies have learned to keep it simple, skipping over the often fancy technical aspects of their systems in favor of a simple message about price - and, of course, that "Whoo-hoo, whoo-hoo-hoo" tune. Depending on the provider, it could mean merely plugging in one new device behind your computer, or it could mean adapting to a new way of calling. It could also mean stashing your standard land line phone, or keeping it on hand for emergencies. Some of the common questions about Voice-over Internet Protocol (or VoIP) can be answered straightforwardly.... | |
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| | | Do research before trying Internet phone service | | Posted Monday, November 13, 2006 11:11:54 PM by Blog57 Team | | Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) offers a different way to make and receive telephone calls -- using a broadband Internet connection rather than a conventional phone line. VoIP converts a phone call into a digital signal that travels through the Internet to the person on the other end. New companies and some traditional communication services have taken the plunge into providing VoIP service. Most services using VoIP allow a caller to contact anyone with a telephone number, including local, long distance, cellular and international numbers. Others may allow calls only to people with the same service. And most VoIP services allow you to use a traditional telephone through an adapter, but others work only over your computer or a special VoIP phone. Some of the benefits of VoIP service typically include unlimited local and long distance calling plans for a fixed price; the ability to have more than one phone number, including phone numbers with different area codes; and integrated voicemail and e-mail message systems.... | |
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| | | Cell Phone Companies Tout Strong Gains | | Posted Sunday, November 12, 2006 11:08:16 AM by Blog57 Team | | NEW YORK - For the billions they've spent to upgrade their wireless networks, cell phone companies are now trumpeting quarter after quarter of strong gains in revenue from services other than phone calls _ from messaging and games to music and video clips, as well as wireless Internet access for laptops. But a closer look at the numbers raises some question as to whether these flashy new features can be relied upon for long-term growth in the wireless business, or if they'll merely serve as a way to stay even, making up for revenue lost to fierce price competition on the voice side. Verizon Wireless, a standout performer in the U.S. cellular market, recently set another industry high-bar by nearly doubling its third-quarter revenue from non-voice services to $1.2 billion, led by text and picture messaging, ringtone sales and laptop subscriptions.... | |
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| | | Yahoo, Linksys roll out phone that can call Internet | | Posted Friday, November 10, 2006 7:23:30 PM by Blog57 Team | | SAN FRANCISCO -- Yahoo and Linksys rolled out a new telephone in the United States on Thursday that lets people make free Internet calls as well as traditional analog calls. The dual-mode cordless telephone made by Linksys, a division of Cisco Systems, used Yahoo Messenger software to access Internet services including digital online calling. "Yahoo Messenger and Linksys are giving consumers the flexibility to make and receive free Internet calls from the same phone they use for their home line," said Yahoo Real Time Communications director Jeff Bonforte. The telephone also lets people search the Internet for the telephone numbers of local restaurants or businesses using their US Postal Service zip codes and then get instantly connected. Internet calls between Yahoo Messenger voice service users anywhere in the world are free, which has been the standard for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services from industry stalwarts including Skype, Google and Microsoft.... | |
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| | | Sale of cable, phone, Internet service getting voters' OK | | Posted Thursday, November 09, 2006 7:34:10 AM by Blog57 Team | | LEBANON — Voters preferred selling the city of Lebanon's phone, Internet and cable television services, 74 to 26 percent, according to unofficial results released at 9:08 p.m. Tuesday by the Warren County Board of Elections. The percent of precincts reporting in the city was unavailable. .... | |
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