Q: Why should I use a VoIP Phone
System?
A: With VoIP you can:
Avoid buying an expensive phone system
Have phone extensions in multiple locations
Make calls between remote offices without cost
Have inbound numbers in different area codes - be
local in yellow pages but a single office
Have a flexible voicemail system with Email notofication
Have unlimited capacity for calls - grow quickly
Get detailed call statistics, anytime!
Ring different phones in your office at different
times of day, or let phones in different locations and offices ring at the same time!
Q: What about call quality and
reliability?
A: We find that as long a customers have sufficient bandwidth to
operate the service correctly, they experience excellent call quality. We
are able to advise on the bandwidth necessary for an optimum experience.
Our use of the service also means we are acutely aware of any problems with
service which means that we resolve any issues immediately.
The only other issues can be to do with your equipment and connection to the
Internet which we can help ensure you are setup correctly.
Q: Do I have to have broadband to use it?
A: Yes, ISDN and dialup modem users may find the sound quality is
much more variable. It’s important to make sure you are using the correct
codec to compress the voice data if you are using a lower bandwidth line.
g729a or GSM are codecs recommended for dialup and ISDN use.
On an ADSL line with 256k upstream, you can get 3 to 4 concurrent calls.
When using our service in a busy office of up to 10 people, customers
typically dedicate one broadband service to their phone provision.
Q: Can I use my existing numbers?
A: No unfortunately we cannot port existing phone numbers from BT or
NTL. We can provide a new number in the local area which could so you will
need to redirect to VoIP number and you can use your existing number as your
caller id when dialling out.
Q: How many numbers do I need?
A: It depends on how many calls you expect to have at anyone time and
whether you want DDI in which case it's one per person. A number gives you 2
calls.
Q: Can I redirect to another phone number or
Voicemail?
A: Yes. You just pay the cost of diverting (which is a standard
outgoing call).
Q: How much does it cost?
A: The single line package is just £4.99 a month (PLUS a 3 month FREE
trial) Other packages vary.
Q: What do I need?
A: ADSL which will give you three to four simultaneous calls with a
router plus either:
a SoftPhone on your computer (We offer a download of
X-Lite on our site)
Telephone Adaptors which we supply through our
hardware section
or IP phones which we supply through our
hardware section- either Sipura 841 or Snom 360
Q: What about my fax machine?
A: Yes, you can plug a fax machine into one of the ports on the
Sipura SPA2002 Adaptor to allow it to send and receive calls.
Q: Will my VoIP phone work if the power fails?
A: No - Your ordinary phone doesn’t need a separate power connection,
but as VoIP relies on your internet connection, if your broadband router has
no power, your phone won’t work either.
Q: I installed a VoIP service but I can’t hear
anything from the other end when someone rings. What could be the problem?
A: Chances are that your firewall doesn’t have all the necessary
ports open. Check with your service provider and make sure that your
firewall is not blocking UDP ports that it needs to use. But - if you just
read the previous Q, you might have your phone set to use only one codec.
Most services can use several codecs and pick the one the caller is using.
But if you’ve disabled all but one codec, and someone calls you using one of
the disabled codecs, silence will result.
Q: Are there any phone numbers that VoIP phones
can’t call?
A: You can phone most phone numbers, apart from premium numbers. The
big exception is the emergency services. You can’t call 999 on a VoIP phone
at present, so in an emergency you would need to also have a mobile or
landline.
