PC Magazine's In-Depth VoIP Review

Voipster writes "PC Magazine has completed their in-depth review of six VoIP providers. The Editor's Choice award goes to AT&T's CallVantage service. Unlike other reviews that consist of making a few phone calls, PC Magazine uses Minacom's PowerProbe 6000 VoIP testing equipment which provides hard numerical scores for a DTMF detection test, a fax transmission test, and two voice quality tests, PESQ (Perceptual Evaluation of Speech Quality) and VQES (Voice Quality Evaluation System). However, after a very detailed analysis of each provider, the calculated scores don't carry much weight as they award AT&T's CallVantage the Editor's Choice and four other services strangely tie for second place."

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Re:horrible webpage

[Roland Piquepaille]

Anyone else notice that only about 5% of the webpage is the actual article while the rest of it is cluttered in ads and other crap. Imagine if magazines were like that? Read 3 paragraphs, turn page, read another 3, turn page...

You mean like in Byte or PC Magazine?

Re:Interesting Idea

[LiquidCoooled]

The only worrying part about moving to VOIP is losing the emergency services.
Our broadband is quite stable, but quite often I have to reboot the STB, taking time away from my connection, I have had the box replaced numerous times, and am working from cleaned up installations (both win and linux).
Also, what happens in a power outage/problem, usually the last remaining "life-line" is the phone, and was invaluable when the main fuse box lit up in my old house.
So, all in all, no I won't be changing.

One thing I just realized

[Prince Vegeta SSJ4]

Security systems, such as mine, are connected to the call center via a hard wire phone line. Unless you design your house where the VoIP router is near your Security Box you are SOL. Unless of course you pay an electrician to run a wire to the location. In my case it would be the entire length of the house, through three floors. Way too expensive and/or intrusive.

so I would have to keep a basic dialup. Anybody got a solution, ike a wireless repeater for a phone line?

Early in the game

[rueger]

After reading through far too many one paragraph webpages, clicking every five seconds, I have to say that my overwhelming impression is that this is still pretty rough and ready technology.

The lack of a consistent way to connect with real world telephone systems, the sketchy support of 911 services, and the inability of the competing VoIP services to interact make it look as if it will be at least another year before it's viable for most people.

In particular I can't see abandoning a hardwired phone line yet. Internet is still too prone to outages and other problems. What happens when you lose your telephone service because some idiot has launched a DOS attack on Vonage or the Verizon VoIP center?

Or when you lose your main business phone service because a mistaken RIAA takedown notice [slashdot.org] causes your ISP to shut down your Internet connection?

Until the VoIP services can match the traditional phone companies for reliability and services they won't get my money.

(I admit that Verizon [news2mail.com] pretty much sets the standard below which no phone service could ever drop, but you get my point...)

Idiotic Article

[mrinella]

Have to love how they discuss free services like Skype:

As these services are running on the Internet, though, they are susceptible to latency, distortion, and other factors that can lower performance and sound quality.

Glad that the reviewed fee-based services aren't using the Internet as well.

Re:Interesting Idea

[FLEB]

Don't most cellphones allow 911 calls, even without service? Depending on your location, you could just find an old cell somewhere and stash it on the charger for emergencies.

My opinion: Be careful about PC Magazine

[Futurepower(R)]

From the story: "... the calculated scores don't carry much weight as they award AT&T's CallVantage the Editor's Choice and four other services strangely tie for second place."

My opinion: Be very careful about anything you see in PC Magazine. My experience is that generally the ratings are paid ads. Generally, I have found, they know the winner in advance, and pick contenders that they can rate lower.

Here's evidence: Can you find a better VOIP service than BroadVoice [broadvoice.com]? (NOTE: Not BroadVox.) Why didn't PC Magazine rate that company?

It seemed to me that there was a time when PC Magazine began selling their ratings, and in the years after that the Magazine became much smaller very quickly.

Other fake comparisons on the Internet:

1) Telephone calling cards,

2) Price comparison web sites. The comparisons are just ways of convincing you to pay more. It always seems that the apparently completely honest Froogle [google.com] shows lower prices.

Re:Lots of VOIP phones in 1 house

[lordkuri]

I never said it would kill anyone... I was commenting on the fact that there are people stupid enough to sue them over something as inconsequential as a mild shock, and that statement absolves them of most of the liability.

lets not forget we're in the country of "wasn't my fault!!!!!" these days