1. VoIP Hannah Samways

2. What Is VoIP? (VoIP) Voice Over Internet Protocol is a communication protocol that transmits voice communication and multimedia sessions over the internet for free. It is an easy accessible application that is mostly used by people who talk to others around the world as it is cheaper then land based telephones. You can use VoIP by basic calls over the internet, using programmes such as Skype which allow video calls and sending data, business conference calls and the most used today online gaming.

3. How Does It Work? VoIP uses broadband internet connection to make calls between the IP of the two computers. PC to PC calls are the easiest and inexpensive if you have a reliable internet connection. When calling from a PC using software such as Skype all you need is a microphone, and a webcam if you wanted to see your caller. It converts a person’s normal voice into a digital signal, the IP header then allows it to travel across the internet.

4. What Are The Strengths Of VoIP? Its strengths are one of the easy accessible applications Skype. Skype is software that enables users to make calls across the internet if they also have Skype. You can also make calls to landline telephones and mobile phones for a small cost. Skype is very practical if you have an internet connection and is very useful to businesses. As well as just people using Skype, businesses use it as a cheaper way to make business calls. Skype’s new improvements allow calls with three or more people perfect for business conferences. Its other new features include instant messaging, file transfer and screen sharing.

5. What Are The Strengths Of VoIP? Another strength of VoIP is gaming consoles such as the Xbox and PS3. Both game consoles allow you to have over the internet voice chats with up to six people and allow you to talk to people when playing an online game. Although the downside to Xbox is that you have to pay £40 a year for Xbox Live. Both have attachable webcams that allow users to video to each other and the Playstation Eye has a built in mic. Xbox Live allows users to access more social networking sites on the Xbox, such as facebook and twitter and the added bonus of Windows Live Messenger which allows eight people to chat at one time.

6. More Info On VoIP Gaming Gaming consoles have become a worldwide franchise. The biggest worldwide multiplayer game for all gaming consoles is Call Of Duty. The COD series have sold millions worldwide with the most popular Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 selling approximately 4.7 million copies worldwide in 24 hours. The game has now sold over 20 million copies being the best selling game in the UK and second in the US. Online in-depth multiplayer games allowing you to play amongst friends and interact at the same time and also with people worldwide have become extremely popular and without VoIP this wouldn’t of been made possible.

7. What Are The Weaknesses Of VoIP? One of the weaknesses of VoIP is that you have to have a reliable, high speed internet connection otherwise the transmission when calling by phone, Skypeor playing a game consol online you may lose connection or it will run very slowly. VoIP is less reliable in contrast to a telephone network as IP data packets can get lost or delivered in a different order. This could be due to calls over a long distance or being at a busy time. The biggest disadvantage of VoIP is the power outage, since it relies on internet broadband and power if there was to be a power cut you wouldn’t be able to access it unlike landline telephones which are not affected. This would also be a downfall in developing countries where this could be a major problem.