VOIP Hardware Incompatibility

There are some negatives for VOIP service. Lack of standards have caused incompatibilities between different VOIP carriers. For example, the only way for a Skype phone to call a Vonage phone is by using the SkypeOut service. There’s also been a host of VOIP phone hardware released recently, and all of them are service-specific devices. This means a phone bought for Skype will not work with Vonage or any other VOIP service. This problem will escalate even more with Wi-Fi phones gaining in popularity.

VOIP Connection Diagram

Alarms, Faxes, and Tivos

Alarms

Check with your home security company to see if they support VOIP. There’s a good chance they don’t. Beware that VOIP requires electricity. Therefore, if the electricity goes out, your alarm will go out. It might be best to use your home security company’s wireless or cellular system instead if you are disconnecting your traditional phone service.

Faxes

Most VOIP providers do not support faxes. Check your VOIP provider for more information.

Tivos

Tivo and most VOIP services will work fine with the daily calls. However, this is not the case for the initial guided setup, which Tivo requires a land based telephone to establish. See the Tivo Community Forum for more information on how to get around this problem with your specific Tivo model.

Introduction VOIP Features and Benefits Vonage VOIP Phone Adaptor Other Phone Adaptor Based VOIP Providers Skype Skype Phone Setup Other PC Based VOIP Providers VOIP Hardware Incompatibility VOIP Connection Diagram Alarms, Faxes, and Tivos VOIP Tips Connection Diagram MyHTN VOIP Forum (NEW)