Hey Guys,

I'm wondering what would be better for me, I'm based in the UK and I want to know if Using a VoIP Service such as Skype or get a Dedicated Phone line put into my address? what do you guys think?

- David Scheme

it all depends on what you want to achieve, obviously if you use voip then you will need to have a good broadband link for it to work whilst you are doing your day to day business on the net. also, if you want to go down the route of having a full ivr system then it is usually far more cost effective if you have voip, but if your net connection is not that great then you are better set with a standard pstn line.

Cheers for that Mark, I'm wanting an IVR System so i've been thinking about getting a TrixBox System setup. What do you think? is it worth while? Ofcourse I've been looking at several Telephone Companies and i've seen some really good deals for having lines put in so I really am stuck in between.

- David Scheme

I'd recommend VOIP, its much cheaper.

I'd wouldn't use Skype as a primary line, in my experience, if you have any resource intensive application open with skype, the call is horrible a quality, then again, it could just be my computer.

Vonage works great for me. I have it wired to a 66 block with 2 lines, if someone calls the first line , line one rings. If it is busy it is forwarded automatically to line 2. Works great!

don't forgot, you can't call the tech support with skype when your DSL is down. Its cheaper but has its limitations, if there is no annual fees, buy the both

I would recommend: voip.ms
I was able to save the company I work for quite a bit of money on both lines, and long distance by doing the switch.

They'll even take care of the usual asterisk/pbx stuff. Some of those features include IVR, calling queues, time based conditions, forwarding, ring groups, play recordings, callbacks, disa, and voicemail.

We pay $0.99/month + $0.01/min for Canadian DIDs (USA, tollfree, etc available)

Phone line all the way... Its reliable & wont cut out...

I use VoIP.ms - have nothing but great things to say about them. A dedicated PSTN phone line is often expensive, and isn't as versatile as a VoIP line.

I would recommend: voip.ms
I was able to save the company I work for quite a bit of money on both lines, and long distance by doing the switch.

They'll even take care of the usual asterisk/pbx stuff. Some of those features include IVR, calling queues, time based conditions, forwarding, ring groups, play recordings, callbacks, disa, and voicemail.

We pay $0.99/month + $0.01/min for Canadian DIDs (USA, tollfree, etc available)

went to VOIP.ms, created an account, added $25 to my account with a credit card, plugged in and configured the ATA, and was making calls within a few minutes. I have not yet purchased a DID, since I'm just playing around right now.But for $0.99 per month for a DID and about $0.01 per minute incoming and outgoing, it's cheap to try out. So far, I'm impressed with the ease of setup, and the price. I would like to see the ability to create a custom contact list for incoming Caller ID. After I've used the service for a few months I will write a proper review.

What do you mean by "custom contact list for incoming Caller ID"?

Have you looked at their "Phonebook" feature I think this is what you want, it allows you to enter phone numbers and names, and it will use the information listed in your phone book instead of doing a CNAM lookup (CallerID) which is good, so you can avoid the CNAM fee.

For the UK, VOIP companies to consider are voipfone, and localphone.

Voipfone is focussed on business services like virtual extensions, and is well established. I've been using them for years, reliable but (as you'd expect for that) not the very lowest prices.

Localphone are more of a consumer service, generally lower prices (especially for incoming numbers). Still, it has more features than Skype and has been reliable so far.

Both of these have failover, which means that if your ADSL is down they will redirect incoming calls to a number you specicfy, such as your mobile. To me, that's an essential feature for any business number.

Rob

If you are looking for an IVR system go with FreePBX, it is more stable than TrixBox and I have some friends that have a new version coming out based on the FreePBX platform called Ballistic PBX.

You also have the option of a hosted solution but at a premium price. I personally do not like the hosted solution since if you lose internet you lose all control of the PBX as well as internal communications.

Some people think that VOIP is a replacement for POTS lines but I personally think that any company can benefit by combining the two. Keep a POTS line for faxes on an FXO port and emergency communication

First off VOIP is not 911 capable and if you lose your internet or AC you lose all outbound, inbound and sometimes internal contact, in that case it is always good to keep 1 POTS line in place for emergencies. I would have 1 POTS line as a main inbound local number and a couple of SIP trunks for outgoing and long distance.

went to VOIP.ms, created an account, added $25 to my account with a credit card, plugged in and configured the ATA, and was making calls within a few minutes. I have not yet purchased a DID, since I'm just playing around right now.But for $0.99 per month for a DID and about $0.01 per minute incoming and outgoing, it's cheap to try out. So far, I'm impressed with the ease of setup, and the price. I would like to see the ability to create a custom contact list for incoming Caller ID. After I've used the service for a few months I will write a proper review.
I have used voip.ms in the past, they are a good service but I have recently switched over to:

https://www.aretta.com/

David,

I am not sure if you are still following this thread, but it seems you are asking about getting a "trixbox" setup. If you search around you will find that there are several companies that provide hosted asterisk (trixbox, elastix, pbx in a flash, etc) setups that are turn-key. You can then get your DID (phone number) from any of a number of sources (since you are UK based, have you checked out www.didww.com?). Having your own server (vps or dedicated) will allow you to control every aspect of your PBX.

Good luck.