voip applications + providers?

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luffaglover

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Wannabe Geek

Topic # 66157 13-Aug-2010 15:36

Hey everyone. Long time reader, first time poster.

I am looking into getting the iphone 4, but man oh man it is an expensive phone/mp3 player.

However, I saw that Telecom xt are doing a $38 a month deal for 2500txts and 1gb data.

So I thought: Why not just use a voip application and provider? Then I would be able to justify the costs a bit more hahaha.

Doing a bit of research into this, there are heappps of voip providers, and was hoping that you fine blokes may be able to help me find a voip provider that is good for us here in NZ.

I saw callnet.co.nz who have their own app. Has anyone used this before? Their rates are very decent 15c NZ mobiles, 2c landlines... It also seems too good to be true as most other voip providers are around the 20-35c mark. I have emailed them asking what codec they use, too, as I assume lag can be an issue with voip applications?

Also, how much bandwidth does voip use? I assume not much at all. Certainly not enough to blow out 1gb p/month.

Cheers

1eStar

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Reply # 367453 14-Aug-2010 08:14

2talk have an app which works in NZ and is well written well for checking balance, adding credit etc. Unfortunately it doesn't support the g729 codec. It uses other codecs and I never got it running smoothly.
However: I went and signed up on a free 15 minutes a month 2talk plan, selected the g729 codec, purchased the Acrobits SIP softfone from iTunes store, bought the in-app g729 codec.
And: I now have good call quality for cheap using my iPhone!
Uses less than 0.5MB a minute
The acrobits softfone supports Bluetooth and you can do call recording
I use the original 2talk app to check my balance and call records, but cannot call through it
I've also just gone onto the XT Smartphone extra

sbiddle

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Reply # 367464 14-Aug-2010 09:23

If you're planning on using VoIP for all your voice calling over mobile you will end up being very disappointed. It does work but you certainly won't enjoy anywhere near the same level of call quality as you will using circuit switched voice.

Linuxluver

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Reply # 371553 23-Aug-2010 15:31

sbiddle: If you're planning on using VoIP for all your voice calling over mobile you will end up being very disappointed. It does work but you certainly won't enjoy anywhere near the same level of call quality as you will using circuit switched voice.

I'd love to test that.....but no one ever calls me on my SIP number. (I'm using SIPdroid on Android).

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jjnz1

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Reply # 371565 23-Aug-2010 15:43

Linuxluver:
sbiddle: If you're planning on using VoIP for all your voice calling over mobile you will end up being very disappointed. It does work but you certainly won't enjoy anywhere near the same level of call quality as you will using circuit switched voice.

I'd love to test that.....but no one ever calls me on my SIP number. (I'm using SIPdroid on Android).

Linuxluver: Who is your provider? I have found that with my Nexus One, I can never get a great voip connection, mostly the echo is too bad or the ear piece/bluetooth car kit volume is too low. I havent confirmed this, but I think that it improves when using Wifi instead of 3G.

sbiddle

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Reply # 371743 23-Aug-2010 18:33

The biggest issue is cellsite handover. UMTS handovers can be anywhere up to 2500ms. On a TCP data connection this may not be noticeable. On a UDP VoIP connection it's a bit issue.

billgates

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Reply # 371752 23-Aug-2010 18:42

1eStar: 2talk have an app which works in NZ and is well written well for checking balance, adding credit etc. Unfortunately it doesn't support the g729 codec. It uses other codecs and I never got it running smoothly.

However: I went and signed up on a free 15 minutes a month 2talk plan, selected the g729 codec, purchased the Acrobits SIP softfone from iTunes store, bought the in-app g729 codec.

And: I now have good call quality for cheap using my iPhone!

Uses less than 0.5MB a minute

The acrobits softfone supports Bluetooth and you can do call recording

I use the original 2talk app to check my balance and call records, but cannot call through it

I've also just gone onto the XT Smartphone extra

what's the call quality like? clear? static? drop out's etc?

Do whatever you want to do man.

1eStar

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Reply # 371883 23-Aug-2010 22:45

Hi. Mostly use it stationary, so handover isn't an issue. Using the G729 codec there is a noticeable high pitched 'peep' every ten seconds or so, only loud enough to notice it. Occasionally if in poor reception you get a little packet loss and miss a word or two. I did try it mobile the other day(on Bluetooth officer) while driving and was clear as. No cell handover again I guess.
Overall I'm pretty happy with it now as I actually phone people now instead of texting (cheap!) and the recipients can hear me properly, they don't complain about the voice quality like they did when I was using the G711 codec

puggy

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Reply # 372330 24-Aug-2010 19:04

I have been using Skype for a few months now on my iPhone (3GS) and love it. Have really only used in the grater Auckland area but make 90% of my calls through it as I have a company unlimited call plan $80 for the year or something, but is great I never have to worry about minutes. Only issue I have is wish it worked though the in-car bluetooth system for hands free, so not sure if it will work with a bluetooth headset on iPad. Also the further out of Auckland you go sometimes it can get a bit dodgy, but I daily make calls to my Swiss office while driving to work on the motorway and they don't know the difference between using Vodafone or Skype. I guess this is why the Telco's hate Skype on phones, it has dropped my bill by 75% a month. for a tiny $80 a year. Give it a try on Skype or 2Talk and just buy a small amount of credit for testing.