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Welcome to All American Communications!
Do you need answers on VOIP?
We're here to help. There are several flavors of VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol), and before you dismiss all of them as a good option for your business, it is important to understand the difference between them.
IP Telephony
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IP Telephony, simply stated, if your Business Telephone System running over your data infrastructure. The language the phone system speaks is Internet Protocol. In the past it has been H323 and various other protocols, but by moving to IP, phone systems can now run on the same infrastructure as your data network.
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The advantages? Reduced cabling costs(as one cable now can serve your telephone and your computer), tighter integration with applications, ease of administration, ease of networking locations, ease of adding remote users. Lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) over traditional telephony when factoring in maintenance and programming.
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Downsides? If your data infrastructure is not updated to support an IP phone system, quality issues will occur. We can tell you exactly what it will take, and implement what is needed. It is estimated that only 2% of new business telephone systems shipped in 2010 will be non IP, so this is an issue that will need to be addressed before long. The industry will only be offering VOIP systems in a few short years.
Hosted VOIP Phone Systems
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Defined as an IP Telephony Phone System, but one in which the user only has IP or SIP enabled telephones on site. The main PBX is collocated elsewhere, but provides complete functionality without system ownership.
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Advantages: Lower purchase or leasing costs depending on size of the company and number of users, as the company does not purchase the CSU/KSU or "brain" of the phone system. As an owner of SIP phones only, there is a perceived reduction in maintenance costs. Can potentially reduce costs and make centralized administration easier.
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Downsides?: As an ASP model, or charge by user license model, there are limits to sizes of companies that will find this model cost effective. Multiple vendors have recently gone out of business, leaving very few legitimate options available, or customer who are willing to take a risk on them. Your T-1 services MUST be provided with the same company who is hosting your phone system in order to guarantee any type of QoS, so you lose flexibility on carrier options and have all of your eggs in one basket. Some type of hosted solutions run over Asterisk, a free software, and do not provide adequate capacity or support. We can show you who the top providers are.
Business VOIP Phone Service
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Nearly all telephone calls travel as VOIP across your carrier's network currently, whether you know it or not. However, quality is controlled on their network, and they are not passing over the "public internet" with your calls. Business Voice Over Internet Protocol or VOIP service is offered in many flavors, but the most common you will see is in conjunction with SIP, Integrated T-1's, or dedicated T-1's, but will always be provided by the company who is providing the data circuit to you.
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Advantages: Reduced Costs. Typically using SIP (Session Initiation Protocol), using VOIP allows you to more fully utilize your existing circuits. Since most VOIP is compressed at around 28-32K, you can carry twice as many calls as a traditional voice T-1, but you also have the ability to share it with data via dynamic capacity. Equipment provided from the carrier will offer QoS (Quality of Service) or voice prioritization so that phone calls ALWAYS have precedence over data traffic. In some cases, Business VOIP service can be delivered via ethernet handoff to your IP Telephony system, negating the need for a PRI cards or analog CO cards.
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Disadvantages? Limited options at this time from reputable carriers. Service must be inter-operability tested with your specific telephone system to even be offered. Without approval, the carrier will not offer their service. Not available in many areas, or very often in analog interface. We can show you who is for real, and who interfaces with the NEC system.
VOIP Phone Service
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VOIP phone service is telephone service provided by a carrier that is NOT providing your data circuit. There are several option out there to choose from such as a Vonage or Packet 8 type of service.
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Advantages: Cheap phone service for the small office. Prices can range from around $20 a line and up.
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Disadvantages?: Unpredictable quality. Since they provider of the voice service is running your calls over the public internet and has no control over your data connection or traffic, there is no guarantee of call quality. Other factors that can affect call quality include jitter, latency, lack of speed with your data connection, no QoS, no voice prioritization, and network congestion. This service will often work adequately for a handful of users that don't use much email or browsing, but it is not recommended over DSL service. Common issues include echo, static, delay, one way conversations and more. There are often a lack of features associated with this type of service, making is a poor choice for business applications.
Each application is significantly different from the others, and are often confused with each other. Most likely the "horror stories" you've heard of have to do with option #2 and option #4. Using a telecom professional and VOIP expert that offers all of the options is key to getting the best solution available for your business. Call us Today!
1-888-692-5526 |
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1-888-My-All-American
1-888-692-5526
All American Communications, Inc.
NEC ASPIRE VOIP
For a Converged World
...the right technology, the right time, the right choice.
NEC Aspire allows your voice and data network to converge so you can enjoy the multiple advantages of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) while using the hundreds of features you expect from traditional digital/analog switching. NEC lets your organization benefit from the cost-saving advantages of IP even though you might not be ready to migrate to 100% IP Telephony right away. Aspire gives you a choice: You can implement traditional circuit-switched technology, VoIP, or a combination of both TDM and VOIP, all from a single system! You have the ability and the freedom to adopt VoIP how, when and where you need it.
As independent representatives of all the major commercial telephone service providers, high speed data service provider, VOIP services, and fiber optic service suppliers, you can be sure we can find you the perfect solution to fit your needs and your budget.
Not sure what to make of Voice Over IP yet. We know what works and what doesn't. We provide several options:
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VOIP Telephone Systems
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Hosted VOIP Solutions
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VOIP Carrier Services
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Inter-Office VOIP
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