Isn’t the web amazing? It used to cost a small fortune to phone Japan from the UK and costs alot to call the UK from Japan. But with Voice Over IP (VOIP) it’s virtually free! I say “virtually” since I pay a tiny fee every 6 months for my VOIP account.

It works by sending the call data over the internet and only using the regular phone network for the last leg of the connection to the phone you are calling. To set it up you download some software from the VOIP provider and connect a headset to the audio jacks on your computer.

To make a call, you enter a telephone number and click on the dial button and you here the dialing tones just like with a regular telephone. When the person at the other end answers, you chat away. There can be a slight delay across the link but most of the time it’s not noticeable. The clarity is generally superb.

To receive calls, the software sits in your taskbar waiting and pops up if a call is being received allowing you to click on the handset icon to answer the call. Your number is one assigned to you by the VOIP provider. In my case it’s a UK national call rate number.
The company I use is VOIP Cheap

It’s pretty wierd the first time somebody calls you on your PC and took me by surprise. Kind of like when some fax software answered my land line phone on another PC and took a message. I had forgotten it had this feature.

Filed under: Life in Japan by blogmaster