"How sour, sweet music is if time is broke and proportion kept" - William Shakespeare

Home » Archives » May 2009

VoIP without PC/Laptop?

Saturday, May 2, 2009

When you come across this term VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), what comes into your mind? Hmmm… chatting, YM, Skype, GoogleTalk, or MSN. The latest craze is MagicJack where it uses ordinary phone as a calling device and it can dial regular phones. That’s better. However, there’s one big disadvantage, all of them require PC/laptop

How about old folks at home who doesn’t know anything about PCs? They only know how to use the ordinary telephone. Can we make phone calls via Internet without using a PC? Yes  - by getting an Analog Telephone Adaptor (ATA). It’s a portable box with sockets for an ordinary phone as a calling device and to your Internet connection. There’s a socket for your PC should you wish to do your usual Internet stuff.  

How to get it? There are 3 options:

  1. Subscribe to Vonage and send the device to your folks BUT there’s a monthly fee about US$17.95
  2. Buy an ATA (Analog Telephone Adaptor - similar device used by Vonage) - there’s no monthly fee BUT you have to set it up yourself.
  3. Buy a pre-configured ATA from a value-added reseller.

If you choose Option 3,  LanVox Systems  offers delivery to the Philippines. There’s no monthly fee. Plus … if you want your own phone number in USA/Canada, there’s a monthly fee of $5.95 plus a one-time setup fee of $5.95. Having a phone number in Los Angeles or Vancouver is like having a Vonage service but much cheaper.

So far so good. I recommend this to my (retirable and dinosaur) brother in Cagayan de Oro, a close friend in Silicon Valley for their residence in Quezon City, and a friend in Camiguin. We can call each other anytime, for free. So everybody’s happy!

Posted by gcd at 8:15 am | permalink | Add comment