Those new to the world of internet telephony would be forgiven for thinking that 'Hosted VoIP' and 'IP PBX' are little more than dyslexic wordings concocted during a late night game of drunken scrabble.
The reason I included myself in the category of the un-initiated is that the differences between VoIP and IP PBX technology are very significant, and yet many people who are well versed in the world of Voip are unaware of what those differences are.
VoIP stands for Voice Over Internet Protocol and uses the internet as a means to transfer voice or audio data from point A to point B by converting the data to digital instead of analogue. Digitising the data makes it possible to cram much more data into the bandwidth and substantially reduces call costs.
IP PBX systems are the successor of PBX systems. PBX systems were designed so that large businesses were able to organise their own phone systems by routing their own telephone calls through their own telephone network.
There are two main differences between IP PBX and PBX systems. IP PBX (which stands for Internet Protocol Public Branch Exchange) systems require Gateway cards in order to be able to install and connect equipment, and IP PBX signalling takes place over LAN.
IP PBX systems allow you to keep complete control of your telephone system instead of control belonging to your service provider. However, with service provider managed (Hosted Voip) systems, any problems or maintenance will be taken care of by them.
Hosted Voip systems also ensure that all enhancements and upgrades will come as standard, along with any other features the provider can offer. An IP PBX system, on the other hand, means that you are not at the risk of price increases catching you unaware.
Hosted Voip systems afford you an unrivalled level of mobility by allowing you to connect to your Voip network via any internet connection points. The plus side for IP PBX is that, while you do not have the benefit of complete mobility, you have full control over your system and are able to refine all system details down to the smallest minutiae.
So as with all questions of importance there is no straight answer. To many smaller businesses, a Hosted Voip system will seem like the obvious choice. However, for larger companies and those wanting more control over their telephone system and their call rates, an IP PBX system is the obvious choice.
The reason I included myself in the category of the un-initiated is that the differences between VoIP and IP PBX technology are very significant, and yet many people who are well versed in the world of Voip are unaware of what those differences are.
VoIP stands for Voice Over Internet Protocol and uses the internet as a means to transfer voice or audio data from point A to point B by converting the data to digital instead of analogue. Digitising the data makes it possible to cram much more data into the bandwidth and substantially reduces call costs.
IP PBX systems are the successor of PBX systems. PBX systems were designed so that large businesses were able to organise their own phone systems by routing their own telephone calls through their own telephone network.
There are two main differences between IP PBX and PBX systems. IP PBX (which stands for Internet Protocol Public Branch Exchange) systems require Gateway cards in order to be able to install and connect equipment, and IP PBX signalling takes place over LAN.
IP PBX systems allow you to keep complete control of your telephone system instead of control belonging to your service provider. However, with service provider managed (Hosted Voip) systems, any problems or maintenance will be taken care of by them.
Hosted Voip systems also ensure that all enhancements and upgrades will come as standard, along with any other features the provider can offer. An IP PBX system, on the other hand, means that you are not at the risk of price increases catching you unaware.
Hosted Voip systems afford you an unrivalled level of mobility by allowing you to connect to your Voip network via any internet connection points. The plus side for IP PBX is that, while you do not have the benefit of complete mobility, you have full control over your system and are able to refine all system details down to the smallest minutiae.
So as with all questions of importance there is no straight answer. To many smaller businesses, a Hosted Voip system will seem like the obvious choice. However, for larger companies and those wanting more control over their telephone system and their call rates, an IP PBX system is the obvious choice.
About the Author:
Saul Saresi researches and writes about all Voip technolgoies and systems for his website which can be found here asterisk Alternatively, to see examples of his past work please visit here business telephone system
