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Information on Internet Phones - Broadband or Dial-Up
Iknowicould
Posts: 3,321 Forum Member
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I am not sure whether a thread has already covered this topic, but I would appreciate tips from any one who has some experience with the best setup for making free international calls or cheap calls via broadband and/or dial-up to bypass BT and its call charges.
Information on tried and tested equipment and recommendation for free software to use would be gratefully welcomed.
Information on tried and tested equipment and recommendation for free software to use would be gratefully welcomed.
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www.skype.com
I recommend Skype it works with both dial-up and broadband. and you can call free pc to pc, and low cost calls to mobile and landlines.
You can choose a Skype-in number and receive calls and the Skype-in subscription includes voicemail free.
Its free to download and try, so "suck it and see"!
Widdy.
You can then also register will www.call1899.co.uk, and use their service for out going calls, as they are completely free to ALL UK and German landlines and also USA and Canada numbers, not just other VoIP users. You can also use various software for 1899.
Skype is OK for kids, not for serious use.
http://www.bextech.me.uk/voip has some setup details.
Setting up a good/adequate internet telephone connection appears to boil down to 2 main areas - the hardware bits and the software part.
Re software, I have heard of skype and was looking for alternatives hence my call for help.
One area of interest is any free or shareware telephony software that works from the UK or anyone is currently using and can give me the low down.
On the hardware bit, I have AOL Silver broadband, which is not the best but at least 4 x better than dial-up.
I would require an internet phone set that can connect to my PC either through USB or my sound card.
It cannot be a USB PC phoneset as they are more expensive, from my investigations. Additionally, I prefer something through my soundcard as I have no spare usb ports left and I would like to minimise costs as much as possible.
I think I have now sorted the matter of the local number and I will register with www.call1899.co.uk, and use their service for out going calls.
Next would be VOIP networks and softwares for broadband to try.
Links to these can be found here
You can always just use microphone and speakers from your sound card initially, and over time put a few pennies away each week, for a hardware solution if you wanted.
www.sipgate.co.uk are great, as they give you a number for free, I decided to have ones that are local and ones that aren't local too.
You can also get for free a USA number that can point to your Sipgate service so people from the USA / Canada can call if they don't have VoIP and so do not have to pay for international rates. http://phone.ipkall.com/ipphone
So as you can see, if you are happy to just use a software solution, with your existing microphone and speakers / headphones, then for absolutely no money you can have a VoIP service and make free calls too.
I will go over these and start experimenting and see how it goes.
you can also download the voip software from call1899 and use a headset/mic to make calls using your internet connection as if you were making them from the phone number you registered.
Yes you can, but X-Lite and Firefly does the job much more reliably than 1899's software.
With 1899, you can register any number, and when you make calls the CLI will show up as that, be it mobile, landline, Sipgate, or fake.
Sorry about that, maybe I should have two versions, and not just one as it is set to allow people with vision impairment to see it also, as I know a few people who have vision impairment, and they need the high contrast.
Leo
Different services.
I never thought you would do it, but you have converted me. As of tonight I am not going to use skype any more for VOIP calls.
I have set up the system with 1899.co.uk and sipgate both using the x-lite softphone.
My cyberphone K usb handset is not fully compatable, so I am now on the look-out for a usb phone thats fully compatable with x-lite if anybody knows.
I also have a cyberphone k going cheap if anybody is interested
Widdy.
Do you have a router that maybe causing the problem?
ie it does cost something, its not completly free??!?!
Is it perhaps something in respect of running (trying to) Xlite/Firefly/SJphone all at the same time. I have noticed that when Voipbuster is running and I try running Firefly I get a closedown message from XP in respect of trying to enable Firefly.
Originally Voipbuster worked just the person called found it faint and somewhat broken. Perhaps its just since I tried other software I have cocked it up!
Should one have more than one software phone installed at any one time?
Does NTL allow access to sipgate and its mates or does it "Block"? It would be nice to get rid of BT
I have found people find my VoIP calls to be louder and clearer most the time, though occasionally there has been some break up.