Is VoIP an emerging industry that's here to stay or is it likely that it's just another popular short-lived fad that will soon be erased from our vocabularies? Evaluating VoIP is important to helping you determine whether this is a career opportunity that you should consider.

When looking at any new technology, it's important to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages. After all, these are the factors that will determine whether the new technologies will be short-lived fads that disappear after a brief time on the market or become part of our everyday lives. VoIP - Voice Over Internet Protocol - is a fairly recent addition to the ever-changing world of communication technology. The VoIP systems have some real advantages, but it's not yet all positive news when it comes to VoIP.

One of the biggest advantages of VoIP is cost. This provides users with a cost-effective way of voice communication within a particular network. Here's why some companies and individuals are moving to VoIP for their basic telephone service.

Because the VoIP uses a system very much like an Internet connection, users can make phone calls to anywhere without incurring long distance charges. Think it's not possible? Consider your email or chat capabilities. You can email friends or chat with friends anywhere in the world just like you can email the person in the next office. All you need are the proper connections. If you have access to the Internet and the email address or information to connect in a chat room, you can send written communication to anyone who also has that same access and information. You can "meet" with family on the other side of the world in a particular chat room, even adding voice and video if you have a microphone and webcam.

Realizing this, it's easier to understand that free phone calls using those same principles should be possible. VoIP is the result of putting those ideas into action.

VoIP also allows both data and voice streaming on the same network, another major advantage that is especially important to businesses with intense communication needs.

That doesn't mean that VoIP is without its downsides. One of the biggest is that using VoIP has traditionally meant that you have to be physically at your computer. Though there are now some phones that use WiFi connections, there's still the need to be at particular locations before these communication systems work. While it's likely that the technology will continue to emerge and become more convenient, there's no doubt that many business people count on the ability to stay connected using cell phones and wireless connections, wherever they may be.

Another problem is that streaming doesn't always occur at a steady rate. There may be problems with slower transfer of data in one direction or the other. VoIP may also be less cost effective if the user is connected with a traditional phone line, such as DSL. In this case, the user is still going to be paying for basic phone service in addition to the VoIP connection.

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