OT: Anyone familiar with broadband (Internet) telephone?

[Jerry Freeman]

I believe this may have been discussed before, but a search on "broadband telephone" turned up 169 very randon looking results.

I spotted an ad for a broadband telephone service, and it looks like I could save some money. Does anyone know about these? What are the pros and cons? How does one pick a provider?

Thanks for your help.

Best wishes,
Jerry

[MarkB]

Hi Jerry

We are going to VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) telephone system in the library this year.

I got the link below from CNet.

http://news.com.com/2001-7352_3-0.html

There seems to be quite an amount of information pro/con on internet telephone.

Hope this helps.

MarkB

[cyberspiff]

I design cable networks for high-speed internet and VoIP. What's the question again?

[DCrom]

I design cable networks for high-speed internet and VoIP. What's the question again?

What's the odds?

My last job, my design team did a lot of work making sure our DOCSIS 1.1 cable modems and headends had all the needed QOS features for VoIP support (though we never put our VoIP modems into production).

Unfortunately, I don't know a lot about what's currently available on the retail side, which is what Jerry needs. But I can give a great lecture on broadband VoIP and QOS design.

[Jerry Freeman]

To clarify,

I'm talking about consumer/small business long distance phone service that goes through a broadband Internet connection.

I do use my line for some business calls, so "gotcha" deals that claim unlimited minutes but kick you into business charges if they think you use your phone too much are unacceptable.

I've found two basic types of deal. One charges strictly by the minute (typically $.02/min) no matter whether for business or residential, no matter how many minutes you use.

The other charges a flat rate for some version of "unlimited" (usually not really unlimited) or high volume (like 4,000 min/mo).

Here are some examples, more or less at random:

http://www.packet8.net/about/residential.asp

http://www.iconnecthere.com/nonmembers/ ... dband.html
(this looks like the best fit of the three or four I've examined so far)

http://www.vonage.com/

Again, thanks for your help.

Best wishes,
Jerry

[cyberspiff]

I spotted an ad for a broadband telephone service, and it looks like I could save some money. Does anyone know about these? What are the pros and cons? How does one pick a provider?

I could go on and on, but I'll try to be concise I believe there will be two revolutions in the cable industry, VoIP is one and MultiMedia is the other.

With MultiMedia you'll basically get your TV channels sent directly to your cable device one at a time instead of how they are broadcast today. This will save bandwidth and leave it available for other uses, like internet access, telephone service, etc.

VoIP will drastically lower the cost of phone service since it does away with the need for the large switching networks phone companies use (on one end at least) and uses little bandwidth. I've seen some cable companies that plan on providing unlimited long distance, voicemail and full phone features (caller ID, forwarding, etc) to VoIP customers as part of the deal. Our field trials have shown no difference in quality or availability between VoIP and standard switched phones.

We (the cable companies) have spent millions beefing up the cable plants to get them ready for voice. The government puts a lot of restrictions on service quality, uptime, features, etc that have to be in place prior to turning up the service. I can't speak for other companies, but I would not hesitate to switch over if the price was right. Now, since it is a new technology there may be some hiccups, but in the long run it will be a good thing for competition.

[cyberspiff]

Looks like I was typing a response while you were further clarifying your question *insert sheepish grin*.

Personally, I've tested call quality with Vonage and found it to be pretty good, in some cases better than standard phone service. Their promise of QOS is not quite accurate though, since that is really up to the cable provider to do regardless of the device Vonage provides.

They offer a good deal for $34.95 and unlimited calls within the continental US. The features they offer are included in the base price as well.

One thing I forgot to mention is that using the broadband services will mean that you do NOT have 911 capabilities. You'll have to use a cell phone or other means to call for help in case of an emergency. If you get your phone through your cable company you will have 911 capabilities.

[DCrom]

One note:

The biggest bugaboo for cable/broadband VoIP is guaranteed service.

Conventional phones have power available on the line, and a basic phone can be powered by it (some of the fancy high-end phones need line power - but you should ALWAYS have a single basic phone just in case, IMHO). And the government imposes extremely strict uptime requirements on the phone companies - how many times have you had your electric service out and were still able to get phone service? (Quite a few times, if you live in a typical rural area).

Cable service is not intrinsically less reliable, but most cable providers don't find it cost-effective to match phone uptime requirements (after all, if your electricity is out you likely won't be watching TV). And since most cable industry equipment is NOT self-powered, you have a double whammy - if the power's out, both your phone AND the cable service are likely out as well. And if it's more than a very localized power outage, your cell phone service is likely ALSO out.

If you can get a basic "lifeline" phone service for a few dollars/month, it may make sense to get that just in case and use your VoIP phone for all your non-emergency calling. My tuppence worth -

Dana

[Jerry Freeman]

Regarding 911 service, at least one of the broadband phone providers does facilitate 911 service, but it isn't automatic. You have to go through some kind of one-time setup and then 911 will work.

Dana, your point about service outages is important. In my case, I'll be keeping my regular phone and only using the broadband service for outgoing long distance, so I'll be covered.

Best wishes,
Jerry

[cyberspiff]

Many of the new MTA's have battery backup which can last for days. The ones we've tested have gone around 4-5 days before draining sufficiently to affect the call.

Almost all equipment on the cable plant up to the customer premise is line powered. We run a 60Hz carrier that the equipment uses to run on, so that is not a problem. All the new systems and rebuilds we do have dual-ring fiber, so a single cut will not take it down. Once we get to the fiber node that's where it goes to a single cable. So in theory the most we can lose is around 200 homes if a cable is cut. Of course, that's us, not all cable companies

I agree though that in it's current state VoIP is not to be treated as lifeline. Switched phones over cable can be treated as lineline, but even then (as with POTS phones) you should have a backup plan in the event of outtages.

[DCrom]

Many of the new MTA's have battery backup which can last for days. The ones we've tested have gone around 4-5 days before draining sufficiently to affect the call.

That's a good point - but that's the local MTA, not the cable as a whole. (Which also means that the HOME end of VoIP costs more than a POTS phone).

Almost all equipment on the cable plant up to the customer premise is line powered. We run a 60Hz carrier that the equipment uses to run on, so that is not a problem. All the new systems and rebuilds we do have dual-ring fiber, so a single cut will not take it down. Once we get to the fiber node that's where it goes to a single cable. So in theory the most we can lose is around 200 homes if a cable is cut. Of course, that's us, not all cable companies

Good point, too - but again, once you're fiber even though you may have the reliability you don't have power - the local MTA will need battery back up.

I agree though that in it's current state VoIP is not to be treated as lifeline. Switched phones over cable can be treated as lineline, but even then (as with POTS phones) you should have a backup plan in the event of outtages.

I thoroughly agree with this. I like VoIP just fine, and would take it in a heartbeat if my local cable company offered it (You know the old saying about the cobbler's kids? Some parts of Silicon Valley have an infrastructure thats at least 20 years out of date. Though I'm able to get DSL, my top dialup modem speed is 28800 because of line problems. And I can't GET a cable modem.) I spent several years leading a software team working on DOCSIS cable modems, with an ongoing MTA project (we planned to offer one as soon as we thought the sales volume would warrant it) so I know a lot about the technical pros and cons (though you likely have a much better knowlege of the real-world application). But at the same time, I'd feel much better if I had a POTS backup.

I believe, BTW, that the phone company is required to offer "lifeline" phone service for a low fixed fee ($5/month?) - never really looked into it, so there may be a means test; if not, grab that as backup and make the VoIP your primary line, if it saves you money - gives you the best of both worlds.