Net2Phone Cheap Long Distance Telephone Charges via Your Computer Forrest Stroud
Net2Phone claims to have produced "the most revolutionary technology on the Internet" with its Net2Phone client. A bold promise, yes, but does the client deliver? First, the premise. With Internet phone clients like WebPhone, Internet Phone, and TeleVox, the person you call must already be on the Internet and, in most cases, must be using the same software.
Net2Phone, on the other hand, will allow anyone with a multimedia PC (you'll need at least a half-duplex soundcard and a microphone) to place domestic and international calls from your computer to any telephone in the world. Your computer-generated call is transmitted over the Internet to Net2Phone's phone switches. At these switches, the call signal is converted from the Internet's packet switch network to the circuit switch network used by telephone companies. The signal is then carried to the recipient of the telephone number you originally dialed.
The result is real-time voice communication with anyone in the world, at only the cost of your Internet connection and a small surcharge. Yes, there is a catch. Unlike other Internet phone clients, using Net2Phone will cost you each minute of use. The rates, however, should be better than those charged by long distance companies, especially for domestic calls. All calls made within the U.S. will cost 10 cents per minute, as will any international call made using Net2Phone to a location in America.
A listing of rates for U.S. calls made to locations outside of America and for international calls not made to American locations can be obtained at the Net2Phone web site. The savings are still considerable. For example, a call to France will cost you 26 cents a minute using Net2Phone vs. about 58 cents per minute when going through a major long-distance company. Net2Phone debit calling cards have also been released by Net2Phone to facilitate using the client.
OK, so the premise sounds pretty good, even if there is a catch. The only problem is that the current reality of the client is that it isn't quite yet "the most advanced telecommunications application harnessing the global power of the Internet" that it's hyped up to be. The current release is limited on several levels. First, although the client is capable of full-duplex transmission mode, small delays are commonplace in conversations between users. Second, quality is quite poor, especially when you consider the fact that you are actually being charged per minute of use.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, without using Net2Phone's debit calling card, Net2Phone will currently only allow you to make calls to toll-free 800 and 888 numbers. If you want to make any other type of call, you will have to purchase the debit calling card from the Net2Phone web site. Net2Phone could indeed deliver some amazing technology in the future with Net2Phone, but in our humble opinion, for most users the current incarnation is still bested by a number of competitive offerings.
Pros: Real-time voice communication with any telephone user in the world (sort of), ability to send faxes via PC2Fax
Cons: Limited to toll-free numbers w/o a debit calling card, poor audio quality, call surcharges
