Do you choose to use VoIP on a mobile device?

Many individuals and enterprises have used VoIP as a substitute or complementary to traditional telephone services, and have benefited greatly in cost saving. For my small business, I also have a basic telephone line (for sending and receiving faxes and security alarm systems) and a low-cost VoIP line from Lingo.

The cost of local calls is about $42.12 per month, and there is no additional service, such as voice mail. Additional fees are required if you want to call a remote call other than your local phone number. My VoIP line costs about $25.10 a month to provide voice mail (I can directly forward it to my email box), call wait, third-party call, speed dial-up, and other functions, and call the United States, long-distance calls in Canada, Puerto Rico, and 21 other countries (including Western Europe, Australia, New Jersey, Singapore, and South Korea) are not restricted.

Because you can get so much and lose so little, It would be surprising if more people do not replace traditional phones with VoIP lines. In fact, in March, after my current security monitoring contract expires, I may close my contract with AT&T.

Of course, there are also some unsatisfactory results. For example, although the voice quality of almost all VoIP calls is already the same as that of traditional phones, sometimes there are still times worse. In addition, there are also the facts that VoIP cannot work when the Internet fails or a power outage occurs-although in those cases, we can also use our mobile phone as a backup solution.

Now, although it seems that the threat of VoIP to mobile phone operators is exactly the same as that of traditional fixed phones. However, providing VoIP on mobile devices is still considered a major event in the industry. Let's take a look at how this works-and whether it is a viable choice.

VoIP over wi-fi

Today, many PDA/handheld computers have built-in 802.11 Wireless Network support (Wi-Fi), and more Wi-Fi access hotspots are available all over the world. Wireless connections are available in many airports, hotels, coffee shops, and other public areas. Some cities have even begun preparations for the campaign to provide Wi-Fi throughout the city, or pay by month, or by day, or even "free ".

By installing software similar to the mobile version of Skype on a handheld device, you can connect to a wireless network, then, you can call a VoIP call without additional fees (you can only call other Skype users). If you call a non-Skype user, you only need to pay a little lower than the cost of a traditional mobile phone. Let's take a look at the specific numbers.

If you use the services of major mobile operators, the cheapest monthly fee here is about $29.95 to $39.95, providing 300-600 minutes of call time. The SkypeOut service of Skype allows you to call numbers in the United States and Canada without restrictions. The fee is USD 14.95 per year. If you want others to call you over a regular phone, you can add the SkypeIN service (with a free Voice Mail Service), which costs $36 a year.

In total, it is about $50 a year-or $4.25 a month. This is significantly different from the cost of using a mobile phone.

Of course, to use this solution, you must rely on Wi-Fi coverage. Therefore, if you do not have a wireless network available in your region, you will not be able to use the telephone service. For those who are in the rich area and have Wi-Fi available everywhere, this solution is obviously feasible. For those who have to travel to small towns or rural areas, it is obviously unacceptable to use telephones in those areas.

However, even if mobile VoIP cannot replace your mobile phone service for the moment, you can use it to reduce your mobile phone fees.

VoIP provided by mobile operators on Broadband Networks

If you have already customized broadband Internet services for your mobile phone (for example, Verizon's EVDO) And you often make many calls, you can probably use Skype or other VoIP services on your mobile phone broadband connection to minimize your mobile phone fees and save your costs. The following describes how to work:

I customized Verizon's unlimited Internet use service on my Pocket PC phone (a Samsung SCH-i370 running Windows Mobile 2003. This allows me to use my Exchange mail, browse Web pages, and other Internet programs that can be used for Windows Mobile. I have also installed Skype for Mobile on this device and can connect to the EVDO network. I use my Skype account to make phone calls on workday without reducing any allocated time.

Since unrestricted data access costs as much as $59.95 per month, it makes no sense to only use VoIP, but if you need to connect to the Internet anytime and anywhere, using VoIP can save you $20 or more for your mobile phone service, because it can greatly reduce your mobile phone call time.

VoIP over mobile lines

By using a third-party program named iSkoot (you can download it for free), you can use Skype through 3G/GPRS and GSM/CDMA standard networks. The company claims that their goal is to make VoIP available on all networks and on all devices; but currently, this program only supports specific phone models.

Even though you still need a data solution from Internet providers, you no longer need an expensive high-speed Internet service without traffic restrictions. In this case, you only need to pay standard calls for your mobile phone calls. The iSkoot service is available all over the world.

WiMax commitment

For Microwave Communication (WiMax), the global cooperative working capability is considered as a new long-distance wireless technology, which can greatly improve the availability of wireless connection technology. Theoretically, it can provide more than 70 miles of communication distance; in fact, the related deployment can provide a relatively fast connection speed within 10 miles (for example, 10 Mbps) -- this distance is far greater than the traditional 802.11 Wi-Fi network, because the remote distance of the latter in the wild cannot exceed 300 feet.

If (and only if) such wireless services become a reality, mobile VoIP will probably become possible. At that time, it will undoubtedly be a useful choice in some specific circumstances, but it is likely that it will not shake your demand for mobile phones, because the latter is always available.

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