VoIP phone system

Basically, private branch exchange (PBX) is a more traditional type of on-premises phone system that requires hardware in your office. They used to only be able to make phone calls internally, but today, PBX phone systems allow you to make external calls too.

While VoIP and PBX are not mutually exclusive (PBX is a type of phone system while VoIP is a type of technology—that some PBX phones use), there are some differences to bear in mind. VoIP doesn’t need you to have on-premises phones or hardware—usually, it’s hosted in the cloud and lets you make phone calls over the internet on your cell phone or computer.

Learn more about PBX phone systems vs VoIP.

One big difference between PBX and VoIP is the cost. Setting up a PBX network is complex and expensive. For starters, you’ll need to invest in hardware like compatible headsets and handsets, adaptors, routers, and a power supply—as well as covering the costs of installing the necessary supporting infrastructure.

VoIP, on the other hand, just requires a router that can handle high-quality calls, compatible phones and devices, and your software. Basically, you need good Internet. Unlike PBX, you don’t even need to call customer support or a technician to install the system. Ongoing costs after that are also low, since hosted VoIP requires minimal maintenance, and its subscription costs are comparatively modest.

Dialpad in particular helps businesses spend less money and time on setting up new office spaces, cutting new office setup time by more than 90%.

VoIP phone calls have bandwidth requirements, so you’ll need to take this into account when choosing your business phone system. To handle 10 quality VoIP phone calls at any one time, for instance, you’ll need about one megabyte of dedicated bandwidth as a minimum. Generally, you should have at least 100 kbps of upload and download bandwidth for each VoIP line.

Yes! Unified communications, or Unified communications as a service (UCaaS), has been the focus of much attention among businesses, especially in recent years, and for good reason.

No one wants to have five different business communications tools on their phone, or have to open a different window for messaging, and telephony, and virtual meetings. Things get cluttered.

With a wireless business phone system like Dialpad, you can access different communication channels whether you’re on a Mac, PC, iOS, Android, Chrome browser, or even a desk phone. You can flip a call between devices with no interruptions or switch from a messaging thread to a video call, and so on. Basically, with a unified communications tool, you’ve got options.

Not to mention that it also makes paying all those bills easier, since you just have to pay one subscription fee for one platform, as opposed to paying five different invoices for five different tools.

VoIP phone services do need a reliable, high-speed Internet connection to let you make and receive high-quality calls.

Businesses with good internet connectivity should have no problems using VoIP, and there are other considerations too. If you mainly have phone calls or voice-only calls, that’s easier on your Wi-Fi than if you have video meetings all day.

Of course, not every place has good Wi-Fi or free Wi-Fi, even. That was always the little asterisk with “working from anywhere.” Today, with 5G, you have a connection that’s often better than Wi-Fi when you’re on the go. Having a 5G is, in many ways, the “new Wi-Fi”—and what’s really going to be key for remote work in the future.

VoIP technology is generally very reliable. VoIP services tend to require minimal maintenance, since they’re provided via the cloud and the service provider takes responsibility for maintaining systems and ensuring uptime.

All you really need to actually use VoIP phone services is a robust and fast Internet connection, whether you’re in the office or working remotely.

Small business VoIP systems actually offer numerous benefits. In particular, they’re inexpensive, with modest monthly fees and practically no maintenance costs, as well as being reliable and easy to set up. VoIP can also be deployed over a local area network.

For small and medium-sized businesses that already have PBX systems, VoIP does everything that PBX does and more, since it offers many advanced features—without the accompanying installation and maintenance costs. VoIP phone systems can also scale much more easily with your business as you grow.

Traditional landlines use a technology known as the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) or Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) instead of the internet. Compared to VoIP calls, traditional phone calls require physical infrastructure, which means they cost more both to set up and maintain.

No! All VoIP phone systems should come with softphone apps that work on mobile phones and computers. (If they charge you for this app, run.)

This means you can make phone calls via the internet using the desktop or mobile apps without having to buy extra dedicated hardware.

(You might want to have an ethernet cable as a backup so that you can keep making VoIP calls if the Wi-Fi ever goes down.)

A cloud-based phone system allows you to make phone calls through a cloud service provider (instead of the traditional phone line) and VoIP refers to the technology that enables this.

Since VoIP technology can be used in different ways, such as through a PBX (public branch exchange) or hosted through a third-party cloud provider. This means a virtual pbx phone system would be considered a VoIP phone system if it supports VoIP. Put simply, cloud phone systems are a type of VoIP phone system.