Archive for Living With Telecommunication
October 2, 2008 at 2:18 pm · Filed under Living With Telecommunication
I expect I’m part of the majority when saying my communication costs seem to have grown exponentially. Expenses for phone, fax, cell phone, high-speed internet, cable, satellite, etc., have all combined to seriously raise the bar on what I can get done, but at a correspondingly higher cost. Seems like I ought to be able to get rid of something! I could get rid of my phone bill (landline) by relying on my cell phone. A lot of folks do just that and it works great for them. However, some of us still need something like a landline - usually for business.
Another alternative I’ve been watching evolve, is Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP for short. This basically means using the Internet to talk on the phone. This has been around for a while now, but until recently, required one or both parties to be logged onto a computer. It was kind of novel, and having free long distance was a definite plus, but for day to day use, was obviously a pain.
However, VoIP is finally coming into the mainstream, offering serious competition to traditional carriers by providing VoIP using your regular hand-held phone. Keep in mind you need a broadband connection to utilize these services - either DSL or cable, but since I’ve already got cable, it’s a no-brainer. Savings over my last phone bill is $64 a month, which goes way past what I need to satisfy my Starbucks habit! Even better, is since I bundled high-speed internet service with my existing cable, I cut that cost by about $30 a month. Yes, life is good!
Several providers offer their broadband service starting at about $15 a month for their basic plan. That usually includes about 500 minutes of local and long distance calling throughout the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico, along with all the expected features like caller id, call waiting, call forwarding, yada, yada, yada. For unlimited calling, premium plans cost about $25 a month. Plus, most offer decent international rates, and no contract commitment.
There are several players to consider, including Vonage, Verizon VoiceWing and AT&T CallVantage. They all have similar plans in the same price range, some with additional features. Existing customers of specific providers can sometimes save more costs by combining other services. As you’ll observe when researching, most of the major players, are now starting to compete in this space, and they bring serious credentials, which will translate into stability and reliability going forward.
One of the biggest motivators for me, after price and reliability of course, is that all these providers disclose all the taxes and fees up front on their websites - try getting that out of “ma bell” - like pulling teeth. And, those taxes and fees are minimal - like a couple bucks compared to over $10 with the “other guys”. Do yourself a favor and take a look - you might save some bucks.
John Allen writes on a wide range of topics. Visit his blog to read more or obtain feeds. He can also be reached through his website which focuses on finding unique gifts.
August 29, 2008 at 3:49 pm · Filed under Living With Telecommunication
Once you have decided to adopt a VoIP phone system for your business or home, the next step is to decide on a provider. There are so many options to choose from with each offering attractive schemes.
The first step would be to sit down and list in detail your needs. Once you have a clear idea do an internet search to find out about different providers, the facilities they are offering, and whether or not they have a reliable operation in your area. Read blogs as well as reviews on VoIP phones and the different companies, check with the better business bureau and chamber of commerce as to whether there are any complaints registered against the companies you are considering.
Some important considerations when choosing a provider are:
• The costs: undertake a comparison of the VoIP fees. These can range form US $ 8- US$ 30 per month. And, depending on the charges, the facilities offered will vary. What you need to do is list what features are beneficial to you and then determine for these services what the monthly fees will be.
• Read the offers carefully. Surf the web to find out what each provider offers for the fees charged. Think about call forwarding, voice mail, call waiting and so on. Read about what kind of network the provider has, the technology he is using and what his future plans are.
• An important consideration is the ability to contact emergency services. Choose a provider who has E911 access. This is dependant on whether the VoIP system is to be the only phone connection in your home.
• Find out whether the provider offers free technical support. Some do charge for technical services. Also determine whether your existing computer system and internet cable will support VoIP services. Determine whether you will need any new equipment or software.
• Ask about number portability and whether you will be able to retain your current landline number.
• Find out what the different plans being offered are and whether there are any promotional schemes. There are databases of residential and business VoIP providers listing special deals, features, and plans.
• Make a list of doubts/questions you have and seek answers from VoIP experts.
• Make a list of hardware and software required such as phones, internet speeds, IP phones, routers and so on. Determine portability as well as efficacy of the services.
• Read the contract carefully. Find out whether there is a lock in period within which you cannot change schemes or providers.
• Ask about service charges applicable. Find out about sound quality and reliability of services.
• Find out whether there will be additional costs for making international or long distance calls.
Weigh the pros and cons carefully before making a final decision. Most broadband phones work with a DSL or cable modem internet. If you have a dial-up, satellite or wireless broadband then VoIP phones will not work in your home or office.
Paul Wilson is a freelance writer for http://www.1866Voip.com, the premier website to find help on Voip including topics on online voip, voip phone, voip service providers, voip solutions, business voip, internet telephony voip and more. He also freelances for the premier Voip Services Article Submission Directory site http://www.1888Articles.com/voip-articles-127_12.html
August 28, 2008 at 10:10 pm · Filed under Living With Telecommunication
Owners of BMW motorcycles have a new technology available to them to provide up to the minute directions and navigation throughout all of Europe. BMW’s latest GPS unit for their motorcycles is a huge step up from their previous model. This model features an upgraded memory chip, up to 2 GB from 512 MB. The model also comes with a road map covering all of Eastern Europe installed right out of the box. This is a great feature because prior to this model you would have to take the unit to your pc and download the appropriate maps onto the unit. With this model you simple have to mount the unit to your motorcycle and attach the battery cable and you are ready to take off on the road.
Riders will find the new touch screen a vast improvement over the previous model and it has been retuned for easier use with gloved hands. The unit has been rated for use in snow and in rain, and against extreme heat and cold. The units increased memory and processors allow for virtually instantaneous updates of information and position. As with the previous model it still provides the rider with elapsed time, estimated time to destination, current speed, average speed and top speed. This models positioning is extremely accurate as it pulls information from twelve different satellites when coordinating your position. Most GPS units only use the information of four satellites and this gives the BMW model a greater advantage at calculating your exact position on the globe.
As for drivers or riders of non-BMW bikes, this unit can be used with any vehicle or motorcycle and will require minimal mounting and wiring. For an automobile it comes equipped with a cigarette lighter plug and can be mounted fairly easily to most vehicles. Pedestrians can also use this unit with its battery powered option. This product is available at all BMW dealerships and online at the BMW website.
Find out more about GPS at http://gps-go.info.
July 26, 2008 at 1:08 pm · Filed under Living With Telecommunication
The Samsung E840 is a slider style phone which has proved popular since its launch in March 2007. Considering it is an entry level phone the E840 is pretty well featured compared alongside some of the more popular mobile phones. The Samsung E840 is a good all round mobile handset that would be appropriate for a very broad range of customers.
Moving on to the display the mobile handset is fitted with a 2.2 inch screen, which, if you look at other options available for this kind of price is an average display. A TFT, 256K colors display is fitted to this mobile handset. This mobile handset is one of the more compact phones on the market. Colour wise this mobile handset comes in, Ice Silver, Candy Pink, Topaz Gold and Noble Blue. The Samsung E840 weighs only 99 g. The Samsung E840 has a battery cell duration of 360 hrs standby charge and talk time of 4:30. The Samsung E840 is that is supplied with a Li-Ion 690 mAh, battery. The Samsung E840 is has bluetooth, for compatibility with a great deal of devices. The ring-tones enabled on the E840 are Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3 on top of which is a vibrating alert. The E840 has support for 2G GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 . This phone has a 2 MP, 1600×1200 pixels, video(CIF) camera. A WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML (NetFront 3.4), browser allows this mobile phone to be used for mobile Internet access. There are also a number of additional features on the E840 like:
MP3/AAC/AAC+/e-AAC+/WMA player
TV-out
FM radio
To do List
Document viewer (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF)
Calculator
Java MIDP 2.0
Stopwatch
Organizer
Voice memo
SyncML
Regardless of being a fairly new model, the Samsung E840 has already been out classed. It is therefore relatively easy to pick up a great deal on this mobile handset. If you are looking for a fantastic buy, shop online where there are hundreds of competitively priced offers to consider. Ordering online can allow you to take advantage of significant cost savings, believe it or not, it is possible to get a Samsung E840 with 6 months free line rental , which may never cost anything at all.
May 19, 2008 at 1:32 am · Filed under Business Performance, Living With Management, Living With Telecommunication
There are many websites one of them being FreeConference which offer services for making telephone conferences to businesses, homes and the like. Take for example business conference call which is a phenomenon used by countless young business associates to communicate and carry out their businesses. High popularity can be attributed to extremely low rates of 0.1$ per minute or even lower! In fact, free conferencing also an option which is available nowadays. Now that is something which is really great, I mean really great!
All that is required is logging into such a website and paying for their service and get going. With more and more entrepreneurs coming into the market, the growth of the business conference call industry could be likely, after all how else can they find cheap and easily accessible methods of communication. Giants like PC World also support conference calling. Such methods like business conference calling just might end up gathering pace in developing nations like India and China in the future. So if you are new and want a good start in your business career, you can choose conference calling as a cheap and viable option for communication. Surprisingly, conference calling doesn’t require internet access, it is based on just regular telephone lines!
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