Pros : it's cheap. Cons : not all VOIP service allows for 911 calls to be placed easily. And 911 calls usually don't go directly to 911 operators, but rather to a "middleman" service who then turn around and call 911. What this means is that you can call 911 and instead of the emergency service automatically knowing where the call is coming from, they'll have no clue until you/third party tells them. Most home alarms aren't compatible with VOIP. So if you have a monitored alarm, you may be in trouble (depending on what/who you use). If you have bad cable Internet service, you'll have bad phone service.
Another pro I just thought of : You can take your phone number with you when you travel. A few more cons : When the power is out, so's your phone. Quality of the phone really depends on the Internet. One thing I read about was the fact that some people complain about echos, dropped calls, etc. Others think it sounds fine. A lot of that has to do with the amount of traffic being routed along with your call as it makes its way throughout Da 'Net. You *may* not be able to keep your current phone number.
If you have a business or non-profit, make sure you have a backup plan incase you lose your connection. I've seen a connection go down for a day or two, and if you have a piece of equipment starting to fail it may be hard to recognize that without a full time tech on hand. That would hurt. So if you could have some kind of backup internet or backup phone line you'd at least be able to keep on truckin.
Currently, I have 2 land lines, one metro and one isn't, plus DSL. Im paying about $110 a month for all 3. When I move, I am going to get just one, non-metro land line w/DSL and 1 Vonage hookup. Should save about $30 a month doing it that way.
most of the Cons are eliminated with the cell phone that evreyone has these days. 911 Power going out...etc
Yea if you have a battery backup the power outage thing is not a problem. I was thinking to keep a land-line in case of 911 emergency.
Like, if you travel overseas, you can make pretty much free calls back home as long as you have highspeed internet, and you take your little converter box. well it should work in theory.
If you have relatives overseas, signing them up with a number that has your local area code can save you a bundle.
A national law could pass very soon that will require all VOIP services to have local 911 services built in, but like I said it hasnt happened just yet...
Cant have DSL and VOIP at the same time. Because when you cancel your traditional phone service, your DSL goes with it.
I use skype on my laptop. Works real good. The voice quality starts off a little bad, but then its almost 90% phone quality. I use it with my bluetooth headset around the house, and that just makes it sooo much better.
