When to use VoLTE vs. an OTT voice app

In a previous article, we discussed voice over LTE (VoLTE) and its implications for the enterprise VoIP phone system. All voice traffic over the LTE (also known as 4G mobile) network is packetized and conforms to modern VoIP standards, making it the first mobile telephony standard to completely circumvent the traditional circuit-switched telephony infrastructure.

In many ways, VoLTE sounds a lot like over-the-top (OTT) voice applications that leverage the same protocols for voice. In this article, we look at what OTT voice apps are, what VoLTE is in relation to OTT, and the benefits of using one, the other or both over an LTE network.

The family of endpoints includes the GXP1760, GXP1780 and GXP1782 models

Telecommunications infrastructure can be one of the biggest costs for a small- to medium-sized company, so it’s critical to find a solution that strikes the right balance between value and cost, while at the same time ensuring scalability so the system can grow along with the business.

IP phones often comprise the bulk of the cost of a business telephone system, so choosing the right endpoints is an important part of the functionality-cost ratio. Developed specifically with growing businesses in mind, Grandstream’s mid-range GXP17xx series IP phones achieve this balance remarkably well.

As investments in the legacy circuit-switched voice network wane, national telephone operators are directing their energies to mobile and IP networks. This focus has brought about many “Voice over X” or VoX technologies over the past few years. While VoIP (voice over IP) is one of the most important ones, many related technologies are also proliferating such as VoWiFi, VoDSL, and VoZigbee. The VoX technology we examine in this article is voice over Long-Term Evolution or VoLTE, which has exciting implications for enterprise VoIP telephone systems.

We had a chance to speak with Tommy Lee, VP of sales at VTech. Before VTech Holdings Limited acquired 100% of the share capital of Snom Technology, GmbH  in a transaction that was completed in November of last year, Tommy was president of Snom, Inc., an American subsidiary of Snom Technology, GmbH.

In this exclusive interview, Tommy speaks candidly about what customers can expect from the two brands post-acquisition.

Part 2 of 2: Cloud communications offer many advantages, but some businesses benefit less than others

In Part 1 of this series, we reviewed some advantages of cloud-based unified communications (UC). Among other things, we emphasized the ease of use, streamlined functionality, and cost savings of this platform as compared with a similar on-site deployment. However, there are situations where cloud-based UC is less advantageous. In this article, we look at the prerequisites for using UC over the cloud as well as some specific examples.

Are you hearing both sides?

By Kate Clavet, Marketing Specialist, Grandstream Networks

The very technology that makes VoIP so efficient can also indirectly cause one-way audio issues.

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), indicating that the communication travels over the internet in little packets using RTP (Real-Time Transport Protocol). Since the packets are traveling through the internet, they must pass through firewalls and network address translation (NAT). Due to the tricky nature of firewalls, a common complaint of customers and installers alike is that either the caller or callee cannot hear the other party. Although this is a common inquiry and topic for support tickets, it is also rather easy to fix.

A useful yet vastly underused functionality of SIP is what is known as presence technology. According to Salesforce, 86% of executives surveyed blamed lack of collaboration or ineffective communication for workplace failures. This is where presence can help.

When providing services for your customers, it’s all about convenience. Imagine a customer trying to find out some information about your service from your website. Her question is very specific and can’t be answered by the FAQs you have on the site. She spots a button on the bottom right of the screen that says “Can’t find what you’re looking for? Talk to a rep now!” She clicks it and is immediately connected via voice to a customer representative and gets her question answered on the spot. Now that’s service!

This is just one of the functionalities that Web Real-Time Communications (WebRTC) provides. A survey conducted by The SIP School found that 88% of professionals have either never heard of WebRTC or only have a cursory understanding of it. Here we present a few facts that will help you better understand how it can benefit your business.

It seems like everyone is talking about digital transformation these days. Technology is changing the way business is done at a mind-boggling pace, and making sure their companies are able to adapt to this change is a top priority for today’s business leaders – 81% of CEOs said keeping up with new technologies was their chief concern in a recent KPMG survey.

As a telephony dealer, you can help your customers on their digital transformation journey by intelligently leveraging their VoIP telephone system. And the good news is, it’s easier than many people think.

Last week, we touched on some of the technological advances that have allowed VoIP telephony to surpass the PSTN in both quality and reliability.

Yet, even though VoIP has been around for two decades, there are still some misconceptions about what it really is. A lot of people think of VoIP as a technology that allows placing phone calls over the internet. Although this is true, such a narrow definition encompasses only a fraction of the functionality of VoIP.

The unfortunate consequence of this misperception is that VoIP is often associated with low quality and best-effort services that offer low cost or free voice calls over the internet. Those familiar with these services have experienced the frequent disconnects, jitter and stuttering on the line characteristic of this type of service. As a result, VoIP has erroneously been associated with an unreliable user experience.

The truth is, VoIP is much more (and better) than just voice over the internet.