VoIP (also know as voice over IP) is becoming very popular these days.  With it’s flexibility, ease of use and cost savings, many people are dropping their service with traditional land line providers and switching to voIP providers.

With all of the benefits of voIP, You’ve probably heard about it and were wondering just how voice over IP works!

Well, understanding how voIP works is simple actually…

How Voice Over IP Works

VoIP means that instead of using traditional phone lines, your voice is carried over your internet connection (an IP network).  VoIP literally allows you to use your internet connection as a telephone where you can make and receive calls.

Now let’s get a little more technical…  Your voice (analog) is disassembled and converted into a digital signal and sent over your internet connection to the other end of the call.  Once it reaches the other end of the call, it is converted back to it’s original analog signal.

The protocols that are used to carry these voice signals over your internet connection are know as VoIP or Voice over IP protocols.

Traditional Telephone Systems VS. VoIP

With a traditional telephone system, a call is placed and your analog voice signal is sent over the telephone lines and is switched to form a single direct analog connection.

With voice over IP, your analog signal is converted to a digital signal by your voIP adapter.  The digitacl signal or “packets” is sent through your IP networks where it is re-assembled back to an analog signal before it reaches the other end of the call.  This analog signal can be heard through any traditional telephone device.

If you are still unsure as to how voice over IP works, the diagram below should prove to be very useful. Study it closely and it should paint a clearer picture of voIP.