Tired of nickel-and-dime minute charges on your monthly phone bill? Discover how you can save by switching to a VoIP home phone service. To make a VoIP call, your voice is converted into digital data and sent over an Internet connection. This process requires codecs that compress voice data for reduced bandwidth requirements.

What Is a Home Phone?

It’s essential to understand traditional landline phone and how it plays a vital role in our daily lives. In recent years, about two out of every five American households have dumped their landline phones in favor of cell phone service. However, some reasons remain to keep a home phone—especially if you suffer from hearing loss or live in a noisy household.

VoIP is an internet-based phone service that transmits voice conversations over an internet connection instead of traditional copper wires. It encrypts the data stream and authenticates it to ensure secure calls, and automated software, such as a virtual private branch exchange (PBX), eliminates the need for personnel to greet callers and route incoming telephone connections.

A business can use VoIP to make and receive calls from customers worldwide without paying huge long-distance rates, a big incentive for many companies. Using VoIP, business owners can also use their mobile devices to take work calls and send texts to customers, and they can have one business phone number that works no matter where they’re located.

Corded Phones

A traditional landline phone, or Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS), uses copper wires to connect you to the public telephone network. Your local phone company buys these lines in the ground, which are still used in many homes, businesses and government buildings. These systems tend to have a higher monthly cost than cordless phones, but they are reliable and offer enhanced functionality that many users appreciate. These features include call analytics, anonymous call rejection and voicemail-to-text transcription. On the other hand, VoIP systems digitize your voice communications, making them compatible with the newest headsets, smartphones and other technology that uses your voice. These systems are also more likely to work during a power outage because they’re based on your internet connection rather than a dedicated network of copper wires. However, VoIP customers need a stable internet connection to ensure the best sound quality. Depending on your provider, you may need additional equipment like an adapter or router.

Cordless Phones

While most people rely on cell phones for voice and video communication, the humble home phone is still vital to many lives. It provides a sound quality that is hard to beat and a reliable connection that’s not susceptible to data drops or hacking. A cordless VoIP phone can work like any other home phone, except it uses your internet to send and receive calls. A VoIP home phone uses an adapter that connects to your internet router and converts analog voice signals into digital data packets. These data packets are then sent over the internet and converted back into an analog voice for the caller to hear.

Getting started with VoIP is easy and convenient, offering low-cost packages that include a free home phone number and a range of mobile devices. For businesses, there are even business-focused VoIP options that can be integrated into other key software tools.

VoIP Phones

VoIP stands for voice-over-Internet protocol, an alternative to traditional landline phone systems. In most cases, your business can call local, long-distance and mobile numbers for free — the only cost is your monthly internet access. The main benefits of switching to a business VoIP system are lower costs, clearer call quality and more reliability. Plus, with VoIP, you don’t need to invest in expensive private branch exchange (PBX) hardware or phone lines. All you need to get started with a VoIP system is a reliable internet connection and a compatible device. You can choose from a range of VoIP devices — from USB phones to desktop VoIP phones. Some come with LCD screens for more advanced productivity features. Others look identical to your traditional desk phones and can handle multiple phone lines. Moreover, they offer the convenience of unified communications with native integrations with popular business software and solutions.