Broadband Internet Phone Service VoIP
How to Compare VoIP Services

Broadband Internet Phone Service VoIP - it's a hot topic because everyone wants to slash their phone bills and VoIP is the obvious answer. So why hasn't everyone jumped on board and switched to a cheap home phone service? We suspect it's because there is a lot misinformation and confusion about residential VoIP services. It's understandable, there are hundreds of VoIP phone service providers to choose from, but many of them are not service orientated or user friendly.

The good news is that there are a growing number of plug'n play residential VoIP services that anyone can set up and use. It's also worth noting that while most ISP's have a VoIP offering, it's incremental to their core business and they aren't geared up to deliver a competitive IP phone service. As a consequence there is generally no advantage to be gained from sourcing both a broadband service and home VoIP service from the one provider.

Best Broadband Phone Service

Here's our shortlist of the best VoIP phone service providers.

PROVIDER	MONTHLY COST	REVIEW	RATING
	$14.95	An unlimited residential phone service at a competitive price. A 2nd line is included at no additional cost. As with most providers there are deep discounts for consumers who sign up for 12 and 24 months.	5/5
	$9.95	Unlimited plan $15.75 includes a wide range of impressive features covering call control and privacy. BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) option - any SIP phone.	4/5
	$5.95	The Unlimited Country Subscription - unlimited calls to landline phones and mobiles. It's one of cheapest VoIP deals available.	4/5
	$14.95	For those requiring a VoIP business service, RingCentral is the benchmark. It delivers many more included features than residential VoIP services offer.	5/5

Broadband Internet Phone Service VoIP - where to begin?

Skype Phone Service

If you're completely new to VoIP there is no better place to start than with Skype. Get a Skype free download and make a few calls. If you're friends don't use Skype then sign up for a subscription that enables you to make unlimited calls to landline phones and mobiles for peanuts. It maybe all you ever need. Despite having accounts with several VoIP phone service providers, we still use Skype. It's the common denominator that almost everyone has used at some stage. I also keep a Skype video phone on my desk as there is nothing that competes with Skype's free video conferencing.

Home Phone Service Providers

Vonage was one of the first VoIP telephone services. It's much more like a traditional land line phone service than either Skype or the other providers that subsequently emerged. Vonage is a cheap alternative to using a landline, but today it's far from being the cheapest VoIP service. Since 2002 when Vonage signed it's first customer the competition has stirred and customers have become a lot more knowledgeable. Many are familiar with the technology and insist on a standards based SIP solution because they want the freedom to use more than one provider.

Increased competition has made it virtually impossible for VoIP phone service providers to lock customers into long term agreements without offering steep discounts. It's also forced them to offer plans that feature unlimited phone calls. A further sign of the times is the advent of BYOD (bring your own device). Millions of consumers already own an analog telephone adapter or cordless VoIP phone and don't want to buy stuff they already own.

Free Online Phone Calls

In less than a decade the broadband Internet phone service VoIP has evolved in many unforeseen directions. One of the most radical is Ooma. Buy an Ooma phone and you get a free VoIP phone service thrown in. Ooma is actually in the business of selling phones in competition with Panasonic, Uniden, Siemens ... , but by bundling them with a free home phone service they have succeeded in wrong footing the competition.

There are indications that Ooma is the first of many phone manufacturers that will be bundling a free Internet telephone service with it's VoIP cordless phones. Siemens Gigaset has done something similar with it's SIP phones.

Final Thoughts

It's clear to see that in the near future broadband Internet phone service VoIP will completely supersede land line phone services. If you haven't yet switched, we would recommend that you explore the options and join those who are already enjoying a cheap home phone service.

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Related Reviews

Best Skype Internet Phone - it's time to ditch your old Skype headset. There was no such thing as a Skype phone when the service first came online. Today there's no excuse for using a headset the challenge is to pick the best Skype telephone.

VoIP home phone service - the challenge is to find the best voice over IP provider to meet your specific requirements.

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