AOL Enters the VoIP market

freitasm writes "AOL is entering the VoIP market with its new service entitled 'AOL Internet Phone Service'. The service will be available in 40 cities around the US and offer integrated IM presence indicator, voice/e-mail and features like Call Waiting, CallerID. As a bonus current AOL members wil receive a wireless AP when signing-up for the service."

meanwhile, in Canada

[WormholeFiend]

The CRTC Issues 911 Ruling for VoIP Providers [digitalhomecanada.com]

Already in Canada...

[Anonymous Coward]

AOL Canada (oxymoron?) already has something like this:

http://www.totaltalk.ca/ [totaltalk.ca]

Re:Emergency services

[thing12]

At least Vonage will direct your calls to a local 911 dispatcher (based on the location you provide). Most VOIP providers don't even go that far. They're testing e911 service in Rhode Island... apparently it's working quite well.

Re:Emergency services

[Anonymous Coward]

You can have your cake and eat it to. Keep your landline only for 911, they are required to provide it whether you have telephone service or not.

Re:Emergency services

[fiji]

I dunno how AOL will handle this, but e911 works with Vonage... sort of.

The deal is that you tell Vonage where the "phone" is and they will send that information with the 911 call. The trouble occurs if you move the adapter and forget to tell Vonage and then call 911.

Then there is the uglier question about VoIP reliability vs. Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS). Lots of things need to work in order to place a VoIP call (power for the adapter, power for your internet infrastructure, the cable/DSL, etc.). However, if you used to have a phone line into the house, that line can still place 911 calls. So keep a plain old phone connected to it for emergencies (hell, paint it red too!).

-ben

Re:It's as easy as point-and-click

[mekkab]

And why isn't this thing being released in September?

Golf clap for the Eternal September reference. [catb.org]

Re:Knowing AOL

[cypher073]

Actually, no...the phone service works with any POTS phone connected to one of the router's rj11 ports. It's a very simple setup: connect the router to your existing broadband modem or router, plug in the phone, turn everything on. Simple as that. Phone calls can be placed to any other phone connected to the PSTN, of course.

latency != jitter

[mamladm]

Latency is not jitter. Latency is when packets get delayed. Jitter is when packets arrive out of order.

Latency is not generally a problem. Cell phone services tend to have rather heavy latency. Typically you don't even notice latency up to about 500 to 600 ms.

Jitter can be a problem if out of order packets aren't dealt with properly, that is, in most cases, they should be discarded, or more precisely, the longer they have been overdue the more likely they should be discarded for VoIP.

However, there are codecs that can deal with jittery connections and as long as your service provider is using open standards where it is up to the end user equipment or client software to negotiate the best codec for a given connection, you generally don't have to worry about jitter impacting your call quality to the point where you would notice.

It's Asterisk, not Asterix

[mamladm]

It's http://www.asterisk.org/ [asterisk.org] and the name is Asterisk, not asterix.

Re:It's as easy as point-and-click

[bcrowell]

More like "You've got telemarketers". I believe VOIP is not covered by the do not call list.
Can you back up this statement? I have Vonage, and I'm on the do not call list, and it works -- haven't gotten a sales call in months.

VOIP != computer phone

[mamladm]

You are mistaken.

VOIP doesn't mean that your computer becomes a phone. All it means is that voice is encapsulated into IP packets. Period.

In fact, a software that allows you to use your computer as a phone, a so called softphone is a very bad compromise.

You will always get far superior quality if you use a real VOIP phone, that is, a device that looks just like an old fashioned telephone, but instead of a phone jack (RJ-11) it has got an ethernet jack (RJ-45) at its back and circuitry to convert between analog voice and IP packet encapsulated digitised voice.

http://www.voip-info.org/wiki-VOIP+Phones [voip-info.org]

Re:Emergency services

[WeirdKid]

Forwarding to the PSAP on record isn't the same as knowing your specific location. This would be important if you couldn't speak.

From the Vonage Terms of Service:

2.10 Automated Location Identification
At this time in the technical development of Vonage 911 Dialing, it is not possible to transmit identification of the address that you have listed to the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) and local emergency personnel for your area when you dial 911. You acknowledge and understand that you will need to state the nature of your emergency promptly and clearly, including your location, as PSAP and emergency personnel will NOT have this information. You acknowledge and understand that PSAP and emergency personnel will not be able to find your location if the call is unable to be completed, is dropped or disconnected, if you are unable to speak to tell them your location and/or if the Service is not operational for any reason, including without limitation those listed elsewhere in this Agreement.

AOL VOIP = Good

[dygital]

I use broadband, so dont flame me. I have AOL For Broadband for free, and I participated in the beta test of the "Internet Phone Service". Its very reliable, and you get a free Linksys box to hook your telephone into. To make things easier, and less linksys boxes (I have 4 as it is now), I hooked up the TA into the Telephone Network Interface and put a label on it that says "Anti-Qwest Device". All phones work in the house on it. I performed one 911 test call, and took slightly longer to reach than a cell phone, but I was overall connected to the PSAP in a decent amount of time. However, I dont know how much AOL plans to charge for it, I'm thinking ballpark like $15/mo. I get it for free though, so thats maybe why I like it more. ;)

Re:Open source

[smilheim]

http://www.asterisk.org/ [asterisk.org]

Re:Emergency services

[Desert Raven]

Who said there was no dial tone?

Most states require phone companies to maintain dial tone for 911 on any line connected to them.

So, there is a dial tone, you just can't dial anything except 911. Dialing any other number will get you a nice recording telling you the line is not in service.

Re:Knowing AOL

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes, this is similar to AT&T CallVantage and Vonage. What AOL offers is integration with all their backend services, Buddy Lists, Parental Controls, IM, etc.

It's too expensive....

[Newer Guy]

The leader in VOIP right now is Vonage, who prices their time proven product at $24.99 a month. AOL's VOIP is an unknown product with no history that's priced five dollars a month more. Vonage also offers a rich feature set including simultaneous ring (where any incoming calls ring on both my home and cell phone; the first one answered gets the call). The next lower tier of VOIP is flooded with providers like Packet 8, Voicepulse, Broadvoice, etc. which offer similar service to AOL but are priced TEN DOLLARS a month less. As always, AOL has set their prices way too high.... AOL is also 10 dollars more then the next ter

The actual Press Release

[puck13]

Straight from AOL/TW, not just a summary from a newspaper: AOL introduces internet phone service [timewarner.com]