If you’re just starting to look into business phone systems, it is understandable if you are confused by all the terminology floating around. The good news is that is fairly simple to explain. Here are some of the most commonly used terms in VoIP Jargon:
Voice over IP (VoIP): VoIP is the technology that is used to transmit voice over the internet. The voice is first converted into digital data, which is then organized into small packets. These packets are stamped with the destination IP address and routed over the Internet. At the receiving end the digital data is reconverted into vice and fed into the user’s phone.
IP: IP, or Internet Protocol, defines the way data packets, also called datagrams, should be moved between the destination and the source. More technically, it can be defined as the network layer protocol in the TCP/IP communications protocol suite. If you think of VoIP as a highway, IP is sort of like the exits that define where data gets on and off.
Kbps: Kbps is the acronym for kilobits per second and is used to indicate data transfer speed. If the modem speed is 1 Kpbs then it means that the modem can route data at the speed of one thousand bits per second. It’s important to know how many Kpbs your router and modem have to make sure your office gets the highest quality call clarity.
Bandwidth: Bandwidth is the volume of data that can be transmitted over a communication line in a fixed amount of time; expressed in bits per second (bps) or bytes per second for digital devices and in cycles per second, or Hertz (hz) for analog devices. Make sure your office is set up to handle VoIP.
SIP: SIP, an acronym for Session Initiation Protocol, is an IP telephony signaling protocol. It is used primarily for VoIP calls, though sometimes is used in instant messaging.
Softphone: This is a software that is installed in the user’s PC. It uses VoIP technology to route calls over the net. The audio is provided through a microphone. The only limitation is that the phone call has to be made through a PC.
PBX (private branch exchange): A telephone switching system that interconnects telephone extensions to each other in-house as well as to the outside telephone network.
Hosted PBX: An internet-based telephony that follows a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model by hosting phone system equipment in remote datacenters so that it can be managed from a web interface rather than through the administration of physical onsite equipment.
