I just got my BT phone bill for the last quarter, it’s for 11p. normally it’s around the £60-£70 mark
That’s right ELEVEN PENCE for calls made
Why so low? I’ll tell you.
3 months ago I bought an internet phone, calls anywhere in the world are just 2p per minute. Last quarter I phoned the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand plus a load of European countries many times.
If I had called using my BT landline the cost would have been exorbitant.
It gets even better, if the person you are calling has an internet phone from the same supplier as you then the calls are free.
If you don’t have an internet phone I urge you to get one, you’ll save money believe me.
They are cheap, mine cost just under £13 and I got £5 talk time included in that
I forgot to add that the installation is childs play and you get to pick your own number.
There is also an answering service that will take your calls when you are not logged on to the net. As soon as you log on you are told that calls have been recorded.
skype - you can get a number so people can call you or do as I do, get no number and then you can be called only by people who also have the program. I use it to talk with Mom; very nice considering that when I lived in Miami my biggest monthly expense managed to be the phone at least twice (and just to listen to her talk).
You can use MSN, ICQ and many others like that too but they require both people to have the program.
And for the programs I mentioned, you don’t even need that gadget. One of the reasons I like using VoiP without the gadget is that headphones are, for me, much more comfortable than a handheld phone - I’ve had 3h phone calls both ways and the neck crick from the “normal” phone wasn’t even near the horizon with the headset.l
The idea of an Internet Phone has been a long time in coming; I remember hearing rumblings about this exciting new VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol, for the uninitiated) thing back in 2001. At the time though I couldn’t see what the fuss was about. Big deal, you can talk to folks voice-to-voice in MMORPGs and such. But then I’m not much of an online gamer. Even prior to that though, programs like Netmeeting and ICQ attempted the voice call over Internet thing, as long as the other person had the same program and it was pre-arranged that you’d be “calling” so they could be connected to take the call.
It’s interesting how far its come, what with being all formalized with phone numbers and actual hardware and the ability to have it treated like a normal land line for the most part, and with online companies like Skype and Vonage offering services just like your regular phone company, only a hell of a lot cheaper in most cases – at least for long distance rates. If all you do is mostly make local calls though the benefit is reduced, as the savings in most cases isn’t major ($20-25/mo for Vonage here, vs. $30 or so for a basic land line from Ma Bell) and Ma Bell offers more features (admittedly at a higher cost) and it works even during a power outage, which is perhaps one of the most significant advantages and is the reason I don’t think it will ever replace your land line. (Even cell phones run out of juice, after all.) Oh, and being tied to a corded phone is not something I want to go back to. I love my cordless. (Do they make Bluetooth or even WiFi VoIP phones yet?)
I make very few long distance calls from home, so the advantage of a VoIP service isn’t huge for me, especially if it’s piled on top of the cost for my land line. It would probably be different if I was in the habit of making a lot of long distance calls.
I’m a huge Skype advocate. I use it on a near-daily basis both for completely free calls in the United States and calls to Amsterdam and the U.K. Brilliant stuff for the cost of a headset with mic, or a computer that has mic and speakers already.
VOIP is quite appealing to me because I do so much cellular phone work while sitting at my desk in front of my computer. ( Or, on the road near the laptop). Can VOIP be used from a remote location such as the laptop, or do I have to be using the machine that had the software downloaded to it? ( That would be mighty counter-intuitive, but I had to ask ).
My best fiend is currently doing a project in South America and called me on Skype. Good connection, and cheap. My own long-distance carrier charges 3¢/minute and doesn’t send a bill until the balance is over $2. I tend to pay $10 or $20 since I don’t want to spend 41¢ to pay a $2 bill.
Skype runs on my [Windows Mobile] cell phone, so I can call other Skype users anywhere in the world at data rates (and I have an “unlimited” data plan, anyway). Several manufacturers make dedicated Skype handsets that use WiFi, and the Windows Mobile version of Skype will use any network connection (including Bluetooth or WiFi if available).
(Do they make Bluetooth or even WiFi VoIP phones yet?)