Comparing a Business VoIP and a Traditional Telephone: Which One’s Better?

The VoIP phone and the traditional telephone are two of the most talked about communication tools around. People are torn between the two phone services when it comes to their benefits and their disadvantages. Technology-wise, the VoIP phone is more advanced in terms of features and its ability to connect to the Internet. On the other hand, when talking about durability and ease of use, the traditional telephone is the best option.

Here’s a quick comparison between a VoIP and a Traditional Telephone line:

If you’re looking for a more flexible phone, the VoIP phone will probably be a much better choice. Using this phone, you can move around whilst in your workplace or in your house, as one can use a Bluetooth headset or earphone. This way, you can talk to the caller without being too restrained in just one place. Furthermore, you can bring your phone if you have plans on moving to another house or office, provided that there’s a good broadband connection available since VoIP phones rely on the Internet to function.

If you are going to compare the cost of service between a traditional telephone and a VoIP phone, the latter would be the perfect service. Why? For one thing, VoIP phones have cheaper subscription fees compared to the plain old telephone service or POTS. Some VoIP companies like RingCentral offers monthly subscription fees you can avail, which includes local and international calls, along with additional phone features that you will find more expensive using a traditional phone line.

However, the POTS or traditional phone is the right one to use in most emergency cases. VoIP phone services may not be able to call emergency numbers like 911, and it could be difficult to pinpoint the exact location of the caller. Unlike the POTS, dispatchers can easily locate the emergency since the GPS settings of the phone system are linked with the emergency services’ own system. Traditional telephone can be more useful and reliable in emergency situations.

There are a number of good features that VoIP phones comes with that you can use inside the office:

• Noise Cancelling and Voice Clarity Feature – In a loud office, these two works great. The VoIP phone drowns out the noise coming from your end so that the person on the other line can hear you better, as well as improve the clarity of your voice.

• Auto Attendant – Most of the time, the receptionist or secretary may be too busy to answer and route calls. This feature is like having a digital receptionist. The program picks up the calls and provides the callers with options or numbers for a person or department. Once you have keyed in the number of the desired person or department, the Auto Attendant will quickly route the call to the correct extension number.

• Voicemail – This feature is useful when no one is in the office. In case a call comes in, especially if no one is around, the caller can simply leave a message in the voicemail service. It reduces the number of missed or dropped calls, particularly urgent or important ones.

Knowing the advantages and disadvantages of a business VoIP phone and a plain old telephone service is very essential. Think carefully which one best works for you and can satisfy your household or office needs.