WD200711ZA-sm.pdf

VoIP
VoIP Services
If you’ve been skeptical about deep-sixing your landline, it’s now time.
Talk is cheap, and call quality is fab … mostly, anyway. —AOIFE M. MCEVOY
8x8 Packet8 Digital
Phone Service
$25 per month • packet8.net
The company sent us a sweet $300 video phone, but the hardware wasn’t
enough to mask intermittent problems. Call quality on our end was generally
fine; however, our gabbing partners often groused about a loud crackling
noise. Plus, the Web-based account manager is obtuse, requiring
multiple clicks to access features like call forwarding and logged calls.
WIRED Quick and easy setup. Monthly fee covers calls to US and nine
other countries. Optional $199 annual contract offers $100 savings. Tango
videophone we tested had a 5-inch LCD and nifty rotating camera.
TIRED Inconsistent voice quality. Online layout is drab and uninviting.
AT&T CallVantage
$25 per month • attcallvantage.com
Hats off to AT&T for its all-around solid service. Setup was a snap—we
were ready to make calls in about six minutes, and the phone’s friendly
beep indicating successful installation was a nice touch. The online account
manager is as efficient as can be: You can access a host of settings, such as
call waiting and voicemail, with just one click.
WIRED Excellent call quality—no echoes, choppiness, muffling, or
background interference. Before placing the first call, Ma Bell asked us
to confirm our address for Enhanced 911, saving a trip to the Web site.
TIRED Area code required for local dialing. Monthly fee covers calls
to the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico only.
Comcast Digital Voice
$45 per month • comcast.com/comcastdigitalvoice
Comcast’s service is the priciest one we considered, by a long shot.
And that hefty fee only buys you calls to the US, Canada, and a few US
territories. At least call quality was terrific most of the time, although a
handful were choppy—as if a blustery wind were whipping through the
wires—and one connection was mysteriously dropped. One perk: no
wrestling with installation. Comcast sends a tech to do the honors.
WIRED Online account is easy to navigate. Quick pickup by tech support.
TIRED Company offers a discount on service only if you’re a cable and
high-speed Internet customer. The savings: a measly $5. Pay as you go for
all calls to numbers abroad. Bulky 8 x 7 x 1.9-inch box.
Lingo
$22 per month • lingo.com
EDITORS’
PICK
Looking for a bargain? Lingo’s low monthly fee covers unlimited calling to
the US, Canada, Puerto Rico, and more than 20 other countries, including
Australia and most of western Europe. Although we initially encountered an
annoying echo with overseas connections, after contacting the company
for help, the problem went away. Domestic calls were superb, soundwise.
WIRED Most inexpensive plan. Tidy online account manager. No hold time
for tech support. Optional mobile plan lets you save big bucks when making
international calls on your cell phone. (First dial a designated number to
connect with Lingo, then make your international call.)
TIRED Some cable-futzing required during setup.
SIPphone Gizmo Project
Free computer-to-computer calls; various prepaid
rates and per-minute rates for calls to landlines or cells
in and outside the US • gizmoproject.com
Break free from the Skype-using herd! Unlike Skype, Gizmo Project is based
on an open standard, which means you can connect with other networks,
such as AIM and MSN Messenger. A cool Account Snapshot spots missed
calls, accesses your profile, and keeps tabs on your balance.
WIRED Clear-as-a-bell calls. Free voicemail. Voice messages delivered
via email. Ability to record calls to hard drive. Competitive international
rates for calls to landline and mobile numbers.
TIRED No all-you-can-talk plan. Dialing on the fly involves multiple clicks.
Skype
Free Skype-to-Skype calls; $30 per year for landline
or cell calls in the US and Canada • skype.com
With a reported 220 million–plus users, even the most socially impaired
can find somebody to talk to on Skype. Yet call quality falls a hair short of
Gizmo’s, with words occasionally getting clipped. The main interface feels
a bit overcrowded, too, though we like how easy it is to hop between tasks,
whether dialing, adding a contact, or using SkypeFind to locate a café.
WIRED Flat yearly rate for unlimited phoning to numbers in the US and
Canada; competitive rates for the rest of the planet.
TIRED Voicemail costs $20 a year, unless you have a SkypeIn number
($60 per year). Standard conference calls limited to nine people plus host.
Verizon VoiceWing
$25 per month • voicewing.com
Verizon’s VoIP service is not for the impatient. Setup was the most cumbersome
of all the services we tested. After logging in to the VoiceWing site,
we had to register the telephony adapter’s MAC address (twice), click
through a series of screens while hooking up cords, then wait a few more
minutes. Once up and running, call quality was impressive for domestic
connections but sounded slightly muffled on overseas calls.
WIRED Compact adapter (4 x 4 x 1 inches). No wait time for tech support.
TIRED Fee covers only the US, Canada, Puerto Rico, and other US
territories. Cluttered online account manager makes accessing billing info
a chore. No discount for existing Verizon Wireless customers.
Vonage
$25 per month • vonage.com
Enough already with the insufferable ad campaign. But we’ll grudgingly
forgive Vonage because it delivers the goods. Call quality is first-rate, account
management is a breeze, and the service boasts some unique features:
You can limit how much bandwidth gets doled out to calls while keeping
sound quality optimized, and Vonage will convert your friends’ rambling
voicemails to text and deliver them via email for 25 cents a pop.
WIRED Setup takes just minutes. Monthly plan covers calls to US, Canada,
Puerto Rico, and five European countries. Short hold time for phone support.
TIRED Sometimes had trouble accessing voicemail via Vonage’s portal. One
conversation partner grumbled about an annoying “paper crinkling” sound.