Inconvenience Side of Voip Service
VoIP is a great technology, even the telecommunications industry is quite threatened by it. But since VoIP is still new, there are some inconveniences. Before making a VoIP investment, make sure that you check for its inconveniences. Applications that are web based does not necessarily mean that they promise optimum quality and satisfaction. If having a voice over IP will cut down your telephone bills, but will increase your other monthly bills, then perhaps it’s better to stay with a traditional phone.
One major issue is sound quality. Not all households and small businesses can afford a highly efficient internet connection or good equipment. Remember, you need a broadband or a fast internet connection (cable/DSL) in order to achieve good sound quality.
Sound quality is affected because of the following reasons:
1. How VoIP works; in order to transmit voice information through the internet, your voice will be converted into packets. These packets will be transmitted to the call recipient in sequential order. There are times when it arrives jumbled and so the system will have to re-assemble the entire data by following the packet’s number to figure out what the call is about, and this is rather time consuming. While re-assembling the data, the recipient can’t receive the call in real time, and there are seconds of silence.
2. Latency issues; bandwidth is a very important element in order to deliver the call without significant delay. As providers figure out ways to lessen bandwidth requirements through compression algorithms, another problem surfaces
3. Compression consumes processing power, therefore, the sound quality is greatly affected; some have problems with regards to echoes. Though the echoes can be filtered, this will again need added processing power. This is great problem with computer-based voice over IP. But if you have a VoIP phone, you will not worry about processing power, but this phone is more costly than a regular telephone set.
Other inconveniences include:
1. Practicality issues; VoIP computer-based systems requires you to have a computer; the computer should always be running as well as the software which adds up to your electric bills; you can’t use VoIP when there is a blackout; without an internet connection, you can’t use VoIP
2. Another issue is emergency calling; when you make an emergency call using VoIP and dial 911, your call can’t be easily traced but now there is the so-called e911 but not all VoIP providers have this particular feature, so do check if your provider has it