A General description of the options. All of these options allow you to make long distance phone calls utilizing the internet. The quality is not as high as a regular phone call, but can be free or very cheap (2c a minute overseas). The simplest of these is call overrides. In this case you buy a cheap calling card from a newsagent (or on the internet). This has a phone number and a serial number. You enter these into any ordinary phone (following instructions) and dial the phone number you want. This has no initial setup fee to use this system (other than the purchase of the card) but the ongoing costs are the highest of these systems. The other systems utilize a broadband connection (ADSL, cable or wireless) that is presumed to be already in your house. Your voice is converted to data, travels down your broadband connection and across the internet. The protocol to do this is usually either Skype (owned and controlled by Skype) or SIP (a more open protocol). Now you have more options... depending on how much you spend on hardware (for your voip) you can get a cheap system that plugs into your computer (requiring your computer to be on) or a more expensive system that does not require a running computer. In some cases you can also get an incoming phone number so people can call you on that line. In some cases you can buy an adapter and plug in whatever phone you like. Note that in both of these cases you can call others using the same network (Skype or a sip network) free of telephony charges. Note that when you are using VOIP, data is transferred down your broadband connection fairly quickly. So if you want to use VOIP, steer clear of those broadband plans that only give a few hundred megabytes of download allowance or have expensive (> $10 per gigabyte) excess usage charges! After examination of the options available at this time, the best value options for normal home owners in Sydney appear to be Skype and mynetfone (using SIP). Some broadband providers such as People Telecom offer their own voip service, generally most similar to mynetfone. For my use, mynetfone would be the best option. The following table shows the most commonly used options: Call Overrides Skype mynetfone mynetfone with incoming number Setup cost $10 card free (computer mic and speakers) $50 cheap usb handset $200 portable handset free (computer mic and speakers) $50 cheap usb handset $120 ethernet adapter (byo handset) Access charge Free $15/month Minimum usage Varies (cards expire) $0 Requires broadband no yes Requires computer on no yes usbphone=yes ethernet phone=no Free calls within service (to others on same service) no yes Calls to phones long distance cheaply yes Receive calls within service on computer (from others on same service) no yes Receive calls from normal phones with a normal phone number no yes What is the difference between mynetfone (without local number option) and Skype? There are a few differences: Skype is a closed protocol and you need to use the Skype software on your computer to use it. With Skype you need to have your computer on in order to make or receive calls. Skype reportedly can work better behind NAT and firewalls (if you don't know what NAT is, it is probably irrelevant). Skype has more users. mynetfone offers 10c untimed local calls. I like the Skype $220 portable handset that works for both types of phone calls, even with caller i.d. for other Skype users. I like the mynetfone (and other available SIP) adapter where you can plug in any phone you like (e.g. portable phone with headset in my case) So what do I choose? If you just have a couple of long distance phone calls to make, and don't want to set anything complex up, or don't have broadband, then you can fairly cheaply use a call override card. If you just have a few calls to make, or make them infrequently, to one party long distance, and the other party is up to it, you can just install the Skype software (or mynetfone type software) and use the computer speakers or a cheap $50 usbphone. For a nicer and more general solution, for more frequent use, I like the mynetfone adapter the best, and the prices they offer. For example, a Sydneysider going to live in the USA (and with a good high quality broadband internet connection) for some time could buy a SIP adapter overseas, join mynetfone, and make 10c untimed local calls to Sydney. An Australian with relatives overseas could join mynetfone, spend $120 on an adapter and $100 on their favourite phone, and call overseas for a few cents a minute anytime. Sydney internet related pages on this site Internet options for people in Sydney Voip choices in Sydney Back to Main Page Comments by visitors: Email webmaster@iliveinsydney.com to contact the webmaster.