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Many of the things we do today are technology oriented. In this era of high speed, quick and efficient services, everything around us seems to work at the touch of a finger. Broadband phone services could be talked about in this context, considering the stages of development it has gone through.
Broadband phone services help you to make calls while you stay connected to the internet. Therefore you get the benefits of two latest technologies at the same time. In the way it works, high speed internet is connected with a hardware adapter to enable voice calls on a broadband phone. A cable modem or DSL is best suited for a broadband phone to function. However most functions of a broadband phone service would be disabled if you are on dial-up, or wireless broadband through a satellite subscription.
So how does a broadband telephone service stack up against a normal land line service?
1) Reliability - as compared to the standard house phone a broadband phone service is less reliable and relies completely on the functioning of the internet connection. If the internet connection is down a broadband phone wont work. If your ISP (Internet Service Provider) is highly reliable then this would be less of a problem.
2) Portability - one of the key features of a broadband phone. Portability would mean number portability. This service allows you to continue with the same telephone number which you owned prior to subscribing. You could exercise your discretion to keep the same number or change it.
3) Security - for security reasons this service comes with a lock-in which means it will not allow you to change the users on the account. Should you do so then high service charges or change of ownership fees are charged to you.
4. Quality - call quality has greatly improved with broadband telephony and with a good provider and a good internet connection you will not readily notice the difference from a normal land line. Generally speaking however, broadband telephone calls are not as good a quality as your land line.
It is apparent then that there are some restrictions on broadband telephony at the moment. That said, broadband telephony also holds many advantages in terms of pricing, notably with long distance and international telephone calls and portability.
If you are going to use a broadband telephony service you must bear in mind that you will always require an internet connection to use it. If you lose the connection not only can you not make calls out but people cannot call you, so ensure you have a quality service provider for you internet service. Technical developments are advancing at as fast a pace as never before and getting the latest product or service offering may be what attracts you but do your homework before you commit to any service contract.
